PA28 to SR20
 

Hey,

I have recently completed my PPL on a PA28 and am now well into my ATPLs and looking to hour build.

Does anyone have any experience of converting from a PA28 to an SR20. As a relatively fresh PPL is this a good transition?

If anyone has experience, would you be able to drop me a PM?

Cheers

CB

I see no reason not too.

Learn the glass thoroughly before setting foot in the cockpit. There are some good pc simulators on the market.

You will find the aircraft more slippery and therefore need to think ahead more during the approach and obviously the scenery goes by a bit quicker, the handling is more precise but certainly not razor sharp in comparison but beyond that the conversion should be straight forward enough.

It will prove a good introduction to flying a bit faster, and especially to handling much more sophisticated avionics but its no substitute for the added complexity of a twin on your way to a commercial.

Hey Fuji,

Thanks, sounds good, that is what I thought, good point to learn the avionics first, google here I come ...

Cheers

I completed my PPL, IMC and Night rating and then moved fairly quickly to a SR20 and then SR22 at Blackpool. It was good fun. Feel free to PM me.

Unless you've got access to an SR20 on the cheap, this is probably not an economically sensible way to hour build.

Whilst a nice aircraft, if you think about it, the additional cost of the extra speed doesn't always mean less in total expenditure on any particular trip.

I would recommend that rather than thinking about the type of aircraft, you set yourself some challenging places to work towards visiting. Start by consolidating your skills in an aircraft you're familiar with - at a speed you're familiar with and expand your experience bit by bit.

Then build up experience of the type of aircraft you can actually do your CPL test in, like an Arrow, 182RG or similar.

I do like the Cirrrus... But I do think you need to examine what you're trying to achieve a little more closely.

You're actually better off flying a slow clapped out airplane for hour building since you're interested in flight time rather than distance travelled.

There's nothing wrong with flying more complicated stuff with a basic PPL, but you might wanna check you can rent an SR20 with your current total time before spending money on converting to it.

The500man
 

As someone who supply's the hour building market I resent your assumption that all aircraft are slow & clapped out.

My C152's are slow but not clapped out they make the book numbers, the engines are overhauled by reputable agency's, not the cheapest and the maintainence is EASA 145........ Not part M.

Supplying well maintained aircraft pays me in terms of less unscheduled maintenance and most of my business coming from recommendations from customers.

Just because the market is dominated by unloved aircraft with shabby paint and an interior that smells of the pond life living in the carpets, it is not true that all in this sector offer the usual inferior product.

It's a non issue moving to the Cirrus. As everyone says take a couple of hours to get your head around all the features.

I agree with Duchess. It's not a particularly complex aircraft. Nor is it a particularly good handling one. If you can I'd recommend flying a retractable machine the like of which you will do the cpl in. Or go for the queen of the sky and hire a Bonanza if it's possible.

500 is right though. Maybe worth building time in something cheap and slow. Then spend your last 20 hours practising Vfr nav in something you'll train in.

CB - it would be a very comfortable and competent aircraft for your hour building but cost would surely be prohibitive assuming per hour cost is an important factor in your calculations.

PA28 to SR20 conversion
 

I converted from the PA28 to the SR20 at Flight Academy Blackpool. It wasn't particularly difficult and I like the handling of the Cirrus (although I've only flown the G3 version). I wasn't hours building, if I was I might have gone for something cheaper. Plenty of people have done their PPL in the Cirrus at Blackpool and others their CPL in the SR20 and Arrow. The same organisation have aircraft based at Elstree and North Weald. Worth a look if you still want to go down this route.

A and C
 

I made no such assumption. The point is that slow is fine for hour building, and an aircraft that is clapped out is likely the cheapest to rent. By clapped out I don't mean just cosmetically, but there are plenty of old cans flying around with lengthy defect lists, most of which are avionics that the average hour builder isn't bothered about.

Making sure you're aircraft are well maintained is definitely worth your while if you're running a business which relies on customer referrals. If you are able to compete on price with the clapped out providers than you're probably one of the more honest businesspersons (politically correct ;)) in the aviation business! :ok:

We don't have any other aircraft belonging to flight training organisations at Stapleford.

Sorry - meant North Weald