PilotDAR
As jxk says the UK STAR annual was a tri yearly inspection and a club aircraft can add a lot of hours in 3 years, with resultant loss in engine performance (lower compression etc), so the average Joe PPL had no real way of knowing whether the aircraft would deliver book performance, other than by familiarity with the aircraft or finding a gross fault during the walk around (e.g. incorrect rigging, which I have also found)
If you look at the performance variation across an old fleet, I imagine that the standard deviation will be of greater magnitude than for a new fleet, simply because of the impact of factors such as engine state, paint finish, prop condition, hangar rash etc.
An aircraft at the negative tail of the distribution is what I would define as "tired."
I think that is what Squeegee Longtail is saying and I agree with his cautious approach.
And I do also agree with you that handling skills are a critical factor in achieving book performance.
Last edited by Final 3 Greens; 17th July 2008 at 08:58.
Reason: Add definition of tired