AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2014 - 52

First of all, a great big thanks to all the
generous contributors to the Debonair's
revival (page 56). Without them the project simply couldn't have been completed.
It was a two-year project, and we needed
every bit of that time to do the job.
There are lessons here for anyone thinking of modernizing an older airplane. For
one, don't go into such a project thinking you'll save money. Our budget for the
Debonair was $250,000. Those funds were
used to buy the airplane ($55,000) as well as
pay for the travel expenses associated with
the many trips for each stage of the four
major work packages (windshield/windows/tip tanks; panel upgrade; interior; and
paint), plus all the shows (two Sun 'n Funs,
two EAA AirVentures, and AOPA's regional
fly-ins), plus the fuel the Debonair burned
in the process. It also was used to pay for
any discounted parts, plus any labor charges
incurred in the restoration.
But the full, retail cost of the restoration would be more like $350,000, counting
labor-most of it associated with the rework
of the instrument panel. That's why we rely
on those contributions and discounts.
FLYING THROUGH THE STAGES

The best part of managing any restoration is experiencing the improvements
firsthand, in flight. When I first flew the
airplane from Hartford, the windshield
was practically opaque with scratches and
discoloration. More troubling, the airplane
wasn't making book performance-even
though the engine had a major overhaul just
five years and fewer than 200 hours earlier.
But the world-and the airplane-looked
better after I flew the airplane to Buffalo,
Minnesota, and had D'Shannon Aviation
install new windows. And the airplane's
range went way up with the installation of
D'Shannon's 20-gallon tip tanks.
The next stop was to have been AOPA's
Summit 2012 in Palm Springs, California.
But the airplane wasn't happy at the
Southwest's high density altitudes. The airplane was talking to me. So the trip ended
at Albuquerque, where Pat Horgan of Santa
Fe Aero Services picked it up for its instrument panel overhaul. That process took
five months, but the next trip-to Sun 'n
Fun 2013-was a wonderful new experience. Gone was the old panel, replaced
by a full suite of the latest and greatest
52 | AOPA PILOT July 2014

THE DEBONAIR'S PANEL

features Aspen's
three-screen Evolution
2500 display system,
an iPad mini running
information from Garmin's
Pilot app and GDL 39 3D,
and Garmin GTN 750 and
GTN 650 GPS nav/coms.
Beneath the Aspen
display is Electronics
International's MVP-50P
engine analyzer and
systems monitor, which
is coupled to the master
warning and master
caution lights between
the iPad and the GTN 750.
Above the GTN 750 is the
PS Engineering
PMA-8000BT and
Bluetooth audio panel.
Panel design and installation were done by Santa
Fe Aero Services. The
sweepstakes logo was
embroidered into the front
headrests by Air Mod
(above). B.A.S. four-point
restraint harness
(facing page, top left);
panel cubby hole holding
the Debonair's pilot
operating handbook
(facing page top center);
and the ergonomically
correct rear seats (facing
page, top right).
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2014

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