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.

August 9, 2017

10 Thoughts On 80 Years Of The Cub
The Cub is such an icon of light aviation that it’s easy to forget some important things about the actual airplane

The Piper Cub is coming up on 80 years young. Expect to see lots of them, plus a number of Cub-related special events, at this year’s Oshkosh AirVenture. As you know if you’ve been reading my views on things for very long, I’m not a big fan of anniversaries, but if there’s a purpose to more »
July 31, 2017

The 9 Most Beautiful GA Airplanes
There are a lot of amazing-looking airplanes in the general aviation universe. We pick the nine most beautiful ones. You get to pick the tenth.

It’s no secret that we pilots love airplanes, though the reasons why we do are, well, not so much mysterious as wide ranging and, at times, hard to pin down precisely. We love airplanes for what they are, where they can take us, and for reasons that are more related to aesthetics than utility. We more »
July 26, 2017

Incredible Pix: Oshkosh AirVenture Dreams Take Flight
Legendary aviation photographer Jim Koepnick’s AirVenture photos will blow you away.

Even though we’re less than halfway through it, this year’s Oshkosh AirVenture has been one for the ages. There are some incredible airplanes…see them here…for sure, but even more than that, this year’s show has been characterized by an enthusiasm for personal flying, from ultralights to single-pilot jets, that defies easy understanding. Despite challenges for more »
July 24, 2017

Amazing Photos: Oshkosh Off To Rip Roaring Start
Master photographer Jim Koepnick captures the magic of the world’s biggest and coolest air show.

The 2017 edition of Oshkosh AirVenture is off to a great start, and we’ve got the numbers to prove it. EAA president Jack Pelton said that general aviation camping…and the rest of the airplane camping areas at OSH, had filled to the brim by early Sunday, the earliest he’d ever seen those areas fill up. more »
July 18, 2017

Cirrus SF50 Vision Jet
An epic flight in the first truly personal jet

Up where we were, it was smooth, cruising along at Flight Level 270, Utah’s Painted Desert, swaths of reds, browns and golds panning behind us as we flew. Just like the light, we were, as they say, golden, with pilots in other planes at altitudes both below us and above squawking nonstop about the rough more »
July 18, 2017

2017 Cirrus SF50 Vision Jet Specifications
Cirrus SF50 Vision Jet over ocean

The Cirrus SFR50 Vision Jet we flew for this report was a nicely equipped 2016 factory demonstrator outfitted with TCAS, TAWS, Vertical Situation Display, Garmin color weather radar, Iridium satellite communications, envelope protection, and much more. Price: $1.96 million Main Construction: Composite Engine: Williams International FJ33-5A, 1,800 lbs. thrust Avionics: Cirrus Perspective Touch by Garmin more »
July 11, 2017

Mods: A Used Plane Reborn
Our ’64 182 needed new belts. How we did it and how much it cost.

This article is the first in a series about bringing a good used airplane up to more modern standards. Our test subject is a 1964 Cessna 182G with a beautiful airframe, passable but old interior, avionics in dire need of updating and the original engine that has good compression and relatively low time since an more »
July 6, 2017

2018 Turbodiesel Cessna 172 JT-A
Specifications
Cessna JT-A

The plane we flew for this report was the first factory production model and was outfitted with the standard Garmin G1000 NXi avionics suite. Optional equipment included the Garmin FlightStream connected cockpit solution and SurfaceWatch and factory air conditioning. Base Price: $438,000  Price as tested: approx. $465,000 Main Construction: Metal Engine: Continental CD-155 Horsepower: 155 more »
July 6, 2017

2017 Piper Archer DX
Specifications
Piper Archer DX

Base Price: $412,645 Main Construction: Metal Engine/HP: Continental CD-155/155 hp Propeller: MT, 3-blade, composite, constant speed, 71” diameter Avionics: Garmin G1000 Top Cruise Speed: 123 kts Stall, Landing Configuration: 49 kts Max Range: 848 nm (45-minute reserve) Max Takeoff Weight: 2,550 lbs. Payload (full fuel): 488 lbs. Useful Load: 794 lbs. Takeoff/Landing Distance: 1,673 ft./1,400 more »
June 28, 2017

Step-By-Step ADS-B Rebate Guide With Photos
It’s not too late. Here’s how you do it

The FAA approved a program last September to encourage private aircraft owners to install ADS-B Out equipment as soon as possible by providing a monetary incentive. Unfortunately, the program is only authorized to last for one year, and the last date to register for a rebate is September 18, 2017. This program will send you more »
June 27, 2017

Owner-Assisted Annuals
This airplane owner wanted to help with his plane’s annual. Here’s how he did it.

Two words that will strike fear into any general aviation aircraft owner are “annual inspection.” Face it, most of us fly airplanes from the golden age of general aviation, so your airplane is probably at least 30 years old. My airplane is getting ready to celebrate 47 candles. Since it comes around every year, and more »
June 20, 2017

Beechcraft Bonanza G36
Evolved and refined, the 2017 Bonanza has Garmin’s latest panel and so much more

Six seats. Big doors. Club seating. Retractable gear. Substantial feel. Metal construction. Those are the bullet points for the Beech G36 Bonanza, but if you stopped there, you’d be missing the point entirely. People who fly one of Beechcraft’s planes, from Bonanza to King Air, know this already. This is the 70th anniversary of the more »
June 20, 2017

2017 Beechcraft Bonanza G36
Specifications
Beechcraft Bonanza G36 on the ramp

The airplane we flew for this report was an early model production Bonanza G36 outfitted with the Garmin G1000 NXi flat-panel avionics suite with redundant dual-color displays, Garmin GFC 700 integrated autopilot, dual ADAHRS, standard ADS-B In and Out, enhanced digital HSI, Vertical Situation Display, Visual Approach capability, Surface Watch ground operations utility, SiriusXM Weather more »
May 26, 2017

We Fly The Cirrus Jet: Five Surprising Takeaways

You’ll be reading a lot about the Cirrus Jet (officially, the SF50 Vision Jet) in the weeks and months to come, but nowhere except in Plane & Pilot will you read the real story behind the story. Look for our coverage of this remarkable little jet in our upcoming August issue. And for now, a quick more »
May 23, 2017

Used Cessna 182 Skylanes
Still in production 60 years after its introduction, the Cessna Skylane remains one of the most popular used airplanes. Here's what to look for in a vintage 182, from 1956 to 2016.

It seems like the Skylane is everyone’s friend. It’s certainly one of mine. The Cessna 182 was the first honest four-seater I flew after earning my license, and I loved it. If you’re like me, you’re probably among the thousands of Skylane enthusiasts. That’s not surprising, as the Skylane exemplifies the primary qualities that have more »
May 17, 2017

The New Economics Of Flying
New technology is bringing older airplanes back to life and into the reach of a lot more pilots

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote my first check to my finance company for my not-so-new Cessna 182. The airplane, a 1964 G-model, is exactly the kind of plane that’s today benefiting from a revolution in aircraft electronics, with the FAA enthusiastically working to bring new avionics into the cockpits of light, relatively inexpensive planes, more »
April 18, 2017

Cessna 182 Skylane NXi: We Fly It First
How the world’s most popular utility plane is better than ever

I won’t make any bones about it. We were getting our butts kicked as we climbed out on what seemed as though it should be an ideal early spring afternoon. The conditions were CAVU, dry air and severe clear blue skies cradling the green and rolling Hill Country of Central Texas as we headed slightly more »
March 20, 2017

We Fly NXi: Garmin G1000 Reborn
It might look the same, but it’s better in a hundred ways

There’s a new G1000 in town, G1000 NXi. And while the name might imply a minor upgrade to the legendary flat-panel system, nothing could be further from the truth. NXi is a new ballgame. Since its introduction a decade ago in the Cessna Citation Mustang and Skyhawk, Garmin’s seminal flat-panel avionics suite has become the more »

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