AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2012 - 24

WAYPOINTS

BY THOMAS B. HAINES
EDITOR IN CHIEF

On mission

he three of us on board the Beechcraft A36 Bonanza lapsed into a comfortable quiet as we watched the Mid-Atlantic states scroll by on the life-sized moving

seat is good for something. Fortunately it was a short flight. A week later, the Cessna again was put into service, carrying a group of eight to and from a multi-faceted meeting in Texas, making what would have been a two-day airline affair into a one-night trip via general aviation. Our points of interest were located right at the departure and destination airports; on each end the nearest airline airport was more than an hour away. Never mind the parking and security hassles where the big airplanes fly. Editor in Chief Tom Haines has been map out the window. Connecticut turned into As we enjoyed a big tailwind headed home enjoying business from Texas, I was reminded, as I was in the New York and then New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and and personal Bonanza, about the importance of right-sizing finally Maryland as we slipped into the pattern at flying for more than Frederick Municipal on that fall Sunday morning the airplane to the mission. three decades. for an arrival home after nearly a week at AOPA The “right-sizing” of an airplane to its mission Aviation Summit in Hartford. With two of the six is not a new concept. Business aviation users seats removed, we had gear stacked nearly floor to ceiling have worked for years to craft the right fleet mix for various in every nook and cranny. Even then, the old Bonanza, a missions. Wally David, CEO of SimCom Training Centers in product of the Nixon era, sprinted upward at 1,000 feet per Orlando, has watched the trend accelerate during the recent minute right after takeoff, still more than 100 pounds short economic downturn. Some 8,000 pilots cycle through the of its maximum gross weight. With our full load of fuel, we company’s training facilities each year and David and his staff could have continued on to Chicago, Louisville, Atlanta, or routinely hear about individuals and companies changing up Charlotte. their fleets to fit changing missions. “Prior to the economic As the states slid by, I reflected on the seminar I had given realities in today’s marketplace, it was not uncommon for a at Summit on buying your first airplane. My first recommen- large jet to be used for a 300-mile trip,” David reports. “For dation is always to get the mission right. Figure out what the most part, that has changed. Pilots now tell us a smaller your primary missions are and then buy the appropriate jet, a turboprop, or in some cases a piston twin is being used airplane. Don’t let ramp appeal, sporty handling, or breath- for those trips instead.” taking cruise speed cause you to buy an airplane that carries Based on the training customers are seeking, David half the load or goes half as far as you typically want to go. For observes that the use of turboprops is surging, contradictme, the trusty Bonanza, which I have owned for more than a ing the not-too-distant thought by some that the day of the dozen years, is a near perfect match 85 percent of the time. turboprop was over—to be replaced by very light jets. “OperSure, there are missions where I wish I could go farther, faster, ators comment that their twin and single-engine turboprops higher, but those represent a minority of the trips. If I bought are just hard to beat on trips up to 750 miles or so.” an airplane to serve those exceptions, I would be paying way Although business aviation has taken a hit during the more than I need to on a day-to-day basis. economic downturn, the unique value proposition of such I had a similar thought a few weeks later when eight of flights assures a resurgence of flying, David predicts. “The us piled into a Cessna CJ3 for a trip to a printing plant west value, service, and convenience of personal and corporate of Milwaukee. We were about to sign a multi-million dollar aviation is unmatched by any other means of long-distance contract for magazine printing and distribution services and travel. Because of this, it will never go away. But the days wanted to see for ourselves what we were buying, meet the of operating airplanes too large and costly for the typical staff who would make it happen, and set up a smooth transi- missions being flown seem to be disappearing. Rightsizing tion plan. With eight on board, the CJ3 is no luxury liner. It’s means replacing those larger airplanes with smaller aircraft cramped, but made for an efficient day trip, with us landing that can fly the same trips at lower cost.” at an airport minutes away from the plant instead of at the In other words, whether you’re burning avgas or Jet-A, get airline airport four times the distance from the facility. the mission right and you’ll enjoy a long and happy acquainThe day trip would not have been possible on an airline tance with your airplane of choice. schedule, thus requiring an overnight stay and really amping up the expenses and scheduling hassles. On the way home, Email the author at thomas.haines@aopa.org; follow on twitwe added yet a ninth person to the manifest; that belted potty ter.com/tomhaines29. 24 • JANUARY 2012

AOPA PILOT •

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AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2012