AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 92

P&E

EFFICIENCY

Rationalizing retracts
Which feels right for you?
B Y D AV E H I R S C H M A N

92 | AOPA PILOT April 2013

A Cessna 177B with a 180-horsepower
Lycoming O-360 has a useful load of 857
pounds and cruises at 139 KTAS, all pretty
respectable numbers. A 450-nm flight from
the Mid-Atlantic to a vacation in Maine
will take about 3.2 flight hours and consume about 32 gallons of avgas.
Upgrading to a retractable Cessna
177RG seems like a great idea because of
the higher speed (max cruise of 156 KTAS)
and the joys of moving that gear handle up
and down. But the trip results in a time savings of just 21 minutes over the fixed-gear
model, and the thirstier 200-hp engine
pulling a heavier airplane (the retractable
gear and associated hydraulics weigh about
145 pounds) results in higher total fuel burn
(34.6 gallons), despite the shorter elapsed
time. (The RG takes 2.88 hours at 12 gph

JOHN HOLMS

WE ARE SEDUCED by the sound the landing gear makes as the wheels retract and
thump against the uplocks. We delight in
the transition that takes place as the airplane accelerates and the controls become
lighter and crisper. And we appreciate the
aerodynamic efficiency of having the landing gear tucked neatly away in cruise, and
the flexibility it grants pilots in emergencies such as the ability to glide further, or
land gear-up in an off-field scenario, or ditch
with less danger of overturning.
But in the vast majority of piston singles,
retractable landing gear is impossible to justify given the added weight, complexity,
and costs—both in maintenance and higher
insurance premiums.
Take a Cessna Cardinal as a case in
point.

compared to the Cessna 177B’s
3.23 hours at 10 gph).
The RG looks great on
paper. It’s got more useful
load, a higher ceiling, longer
range, and a better rate of
climb. But all that is attributable to the bigger engine
and the larger fuel tanks
required to feed it. And if
you own an RG, the costs
don’t stop there. Servicing
the landing gear typically
accounts for about 20 percent of total maintenance
costs, and retractable landing gear adds a whopping 50
percent to insurance bills.
Let’s compare the insurance costs for an $80,000
Cessna 182 and an RG model
of the same value. For a 400hour private pilot with an
instrument rating, insurance is
$1,086 a year for the fixed-gear
model and $1,705 for the RG—
an additional $619, or 57 percent, for the RG.
For pilots with lots of retract time the
insurance cost delta is less, but it never goes
away. A 1,500-hour instrument-rated private pilot with 500 hours in retracts could
expect to pay $908 a year in insurance for
a fixed-gear 182 and $1,346 for a retract, a
48-percent premium for the RG model.
Similar differences in performance and
cost are found across the spectrum of singleengine piston airplanes. A 200-horsepower
Piper PA–28 Arrow is about 15 knots faster
in high cruise than a fixed-gear Archer. In
six-cylinder airplanes, a Cessna 210 is about
20 knots faster than a fixed-gear Cessna 206.
But we’re talking about decades-old
airframes. What about new ones? Well,
the marketplace has spoken, and the fixedgear versus retract argument is largely moot



AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013

AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013
Contents
President’s Position
Visual Approach
Waypoints
Proficient Pilot
Foundation Focus
License to Learn
Pilot Counsel
Fly Well
History
Debonair Sweepstakes
Pilot Products
Fly-Outs
Milestones
Test Pilot
Letters
41 Ways to Save
Fun On the Water
Training the Best for the Worst
Finding Flamingos
This Bird Really Flies
Technique
Avionics
Proficiency
Efficiency
Never Again
Membership
State & Local Action
Member Products
AOPA Foundation
Pilot Resources
Fly by Wire
Pilots
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Cover2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Contents
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - President’s Position
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 5
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 6
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 7
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 8
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 9
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Visual Approach
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 11
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Letters
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 13
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 14
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 15
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Waypoints
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 17
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Proficient Pilot
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 19
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Foundation Focus
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 21
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - License to Learn
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 23
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Pilot Counsel
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 25
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Fly Well
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 27
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - History
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 29
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Debonair Sweepstakes
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 31
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Pilot Products
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 33
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Fly-Outs
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 35
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Milestones
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 37
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Test Pilot
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 39
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 40
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - I1
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Letters
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 41 Ways to Save
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 42
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 43
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 44
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 45
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Fun On the Water
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 47
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 48
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 49
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 50
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 51
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 52
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 53
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Training the Best for the Worst
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 55
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 56
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 57
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 58
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 59
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 60
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 61
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Finding Flamingos
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 63
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 64
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 65
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 66
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 67
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 68
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 69
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - This Bird Really Flies
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 71
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 72
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 73
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 74
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 75
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 76
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 77
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Technique
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 79
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 80
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 81
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Avionics
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 83
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 84
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 85
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 86
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Proficiency
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 88
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 89
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 90
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 91
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Efficiency
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 93
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Never Again
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 95
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 96
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 97
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Membership
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 99
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - State & Local Action
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 101
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Member Products
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 103
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - AOPA Foundation
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 105
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Pilot Resources
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Fly by Wire
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 108
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 109
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 110
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 111
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Pilots
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Cover3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Cover4
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