General Aviation Aircraft

Explore the world of general aviation aircraft with our reviews. Written from a pilot's perspective, these reviews provide fantastic insight into what these general aviation planes are really like.

Thursday, May 1, 2008 We're Headed For The Future It's a great year to buy a plane! To borrow a line from my favorite songwriter and performer, Neil Diamond, aviation is “headed for the future and the future is now.” If you’ve ever been in the market for an airplane, 2008 is a banner year to buy.

Thursday, May 1, 2008 The Day Of The Personal Jet No one can guess if the personal jet market will be as robust as many entrepreneurs think, but here’s a look at the current and projected crop of contenders It’s a new world. VLJs and personal jets are on their way. Despite naysayer predictions, Eclipse Aviation is actively marketing its model 500 twin jet, with more than 100 aircraft completed and 50 delivered (as of mid-February), and there are at least another 10 models of small jets set to debut in the next three years.

Thursday, May 1, 2008 Capt. Dale “Snort” Snodgrass Gaining Positional Advantage James Wynbrandt, Photos by James Lawrence Captain Dale “Snort” Snodgrass (U.S. Navy, ret.), former Top Gun instructor, legendary F-14 Tomcat pilot and current air show superstar, is politely considering a question he’s likely been asked many times before: What’s the “right stuff” all about?

Thursday, May 1, 2008 Flying With Speed Brakes Speed brakes can ease the process of descent and landing, and they can even decrease engine wear and tear on piston aircraft Bill Cox, Photography by Jessica Ambats I was flying with a buddy in my Mooney, returning from a Saturday hamburger flight. We’d come home from the desert via the tall road, high-jumping to 10,500 feet to clear the San Jacinto mountains on the short 120 nm hop back to Long Beach, Calif.

Thursday, May 1, 2008 2008 Cirrus SR20-G3: Don’t Call It A Comeback The SR20 has been here for years, and now steps out from the shadow of the SR22 Jessica Ambats, Photography by Jessica Ambats Most pilots equate progress in flying with stepping up to bigger, faster and more powerful airplanes. When I earned my private pilot license in a 310 hp Cirrus SR22, it was difficult to imagine enjoying anything with less performance. But as insurance (and my bank account) dictated, almost all of my post-checkride flying has been in a rented 200 hp Cirrus SR20-G2. First delivered in 1999, the SR20 wowed pilots with its composite construction, digital avionics suite and BRS parachute recovery system.

Thursday, May 1, 2008 Resurrecting A Dream A restored Staggerwing fulfills a father’s wish James Wynbrandt, Photos By James Lawrence Bill Morrison, a pilot with now-defunct Western Airlines, was perusing the classified ads in the Los Angeles Times, back in 1974, when he erupted in a shout. “Oh my God, there’s a Staggerwing for sale!” his sons heard him exclaim. Mark, then 17, and Ron, then 14, both wondered the same thing: “What the heck is a Staggerwing?”

Thursday, May 1, 2008 Air Elite Storm Rally This LSA is adapted from a European model that has been flying for years in Europe as both a four-seater and an aerobatic sportplane Bill Cox, Photography by James Lawrence Anyone who has followed the development of the LSA market in the States is probably aware that many of the current crop of LSAs were developed in Europe as many as 20 years ago. That was long before there was any formal definition of the type, and those airplanes have been adapted to accommodate the American definition. America “discovered” the economy and fun of flying LSAs only three years ago, but pilots on the opposite side of the pond have been aviating in economical two-seaters for decades to offset the high operating expenses of private aircraft.

Tuesday, April 1, 2008 Project 182, Part I Let’s say you own a 1981 Cessna Skylane with adequate avionics, an old paint job and a pedestrian interior, but want to increase capability and safety. What would you do first? Here at Plane & Pilot, we seem to enjoy lavishing full rebuilds on old Skylanes. Back in the late ’70s, I found and negotiated the purchase of a 1963 Skylane for the magazine as a reader project airplane. A few years ago, ex-editor Lyn Freeman purchased our current project airplane, yet another C182.

Tuesday, April 1, 2008 $1,000 Per Month Airplane An affordable way to own Because response to Plane & Pilot’s “$500 Per Month?” article [October 2007] was so overwhelming, we decided to take the idea to the next level.

Tuesday, April 1, 2008 Airplanes, Cars—What’s the Difference? What you need to know, on the road and in the air What’s the difference between car (or motorcycle) engines and aircraft engines? It’s a perennial question with a series of stock answers, none of which is sufficient.

1...21222324252627282930...38

Best Buys LSA Maintenance Modifications Ownership Photo Downloads Pilot Reports Specifications