Who has experience flying, or flying in, smallplanes. We are about to take a 4 hour trip in a small plane,and the first question everyone asks, is "do you have a will?"
Sounds funny at first, but then you think there must be a reason they are asking.

Can anyone tell me of their experiences of flying in small planes. We are flying in a 6 seater, single engine prop from CO to AR. I am ok with it, but my wife freaked out when i showed her a picture of the plane.

I'd be more concerned with the pilot's experience than with the size of the aircraft.

4 hours in a small plane is going to get cramped. The first thing you will notice is there is alot to see below to help pass the time. Flying commericial your'e up to high to see anything. The glide ratio of a small plane is great compared to commercial. If you have any problems you will have plenty of time to find a place to land. Have a great trip!

funny you should ask ...

my first time in a small airplane, 3 seater (think fiat 500 with wings), was also my very first day in the US ...
flew in from frankfurt into SFO, my girlfriend picked me up at the gate with a "surprise" ...
a friend of hers had rented a small plane and we were going to fly out to the black rock desert to "burning man" ...

cool, i think to myself, until we walk out to the airfield and i see the "small plane".

we get in, the pilot guy (whom i had never met before) starts talking to the tower, everything is clear and we head down to take-off.
now remember, this is SFO. there are *HUGE* jumbos landing and taking off left and right and we're in this little shoebox right in the middle.

then the scary part, does this thing actually fly? we'll find out. takeoff, s l o w as hell, putter, putter, finally catch some air.
now we have to do circles (!) to gain height ... all the while being passed left and right by big mofo jumbos (!)

on the way up to our departure height, the pilot hands me a book that he had open on his knees during takeoff, "hey, can you hold this for a second?" ...
i look at the title "Users Guide for Pilots" (insert "oh my god, i'm going to die!" smily here) ...

the flight into the black rock desert was actually pretty uneventful, except that we almost ran out of fuel and had to land in sacramento to refuel.

oh, and by the time we got up to sacramento, it was already dark, so we simply followed the *freeway* as it was easy to spot.

this was probably the scariest thing i've done in my whole life. 3 hour adrenaline rush that wouldn't shut off ...

finally got to burning man around midnight and circled over the big burning for half an hour or so.
that was quite spectacular ...

bottomline, small planes are SCARY and i won't be seen in another one if i can help it ...
Andy

lol andy

pilot is experienced. comes from an aviation family, works in aerospace, owns the plane, been flying since he was a kid, etc.

4 hours is a long time, but we will take our time, and he has offered to stop as often as we want. probably once or twice on the way out.

i am totally looking forward to it, and I think my daughter will absolutely love it. It's going to be fun, and the weather is supposed to be perfect all weekend. Plus, we are travelling early to avoid any chance of thunderstorms. it was a;; the questions about wills that had me nervous. and i'm sure everyone was joking, but it was EVERYONE who was asking.

Dude, . . .

Small airplanes are a lot safer than driving on the highway during rush hour.

It all depends on 1) the experience of the pilot , 2) If there is lousy weather along the way , is he IFR qualified ? , 3) Make sure that the aircraft is not overloaded , 4) What kind of plane is it anyways , 5) last and not least how long can the old bladder hold out determines how long the flight will be .

Small aircraft like big aircraft are as good as the pilot and how well they manage and fly the plane. Being in a big airliner does not necessarilly guarante a safe and happy flight. Look at what happened to the Comair flight recently in Kentucky .

Go on the flight and enjoy yourself dude. They're a lot more interesting to fly in than a big airliner.

I agree with the comment about the pilot. I'd be way less worried about the plane itself than I would be with the pilots level of experience and the conditions you will be flying through.

Some observations...

Leave early in the morning. Get as far away from the front range as you can before the heat of the day stirs up more turbulance. The eastern slope gets really bumpy as the day progresses. Same goes for the return trip, try to get in before the afternoon.

Don't expect a 100% super smooth flight like you would get on a 777. Turbulance that would make the water in your glass shake a bit on a big heavy will toss your glass across the cabin in a small plane. Granted, the cabin isn't that big, but you get the idea right? It's possible you might get smooth sailing, but be prepared for more entertaining bumps in the road if the weather gets "interesting".

Pack light. Should be obvious, but small planes tend to have small baggage holds. Unless you're the only ones on the plane...

6 seater right? Do you know the model of the plane? Single or twin engine?

Most importantly. enjoy the flight! You can see soooo much more from the cabin of a small plane, you won't want to land...

-Josh2

I am picturing Burt Reynolds landing on a street in a small town and Dom DeLuise going in to a store to get beer. Gotta love the Cannonball Run Movies.

Smaller plane means you feel everything, and flying lower means there is more to feel. Like being on a rollercoaster......maybe not fun for 4 hours though.

Sounds like fun to me.

beechcraft bonanza (they've been in production since the '40s)

i figure if we have to go down, there isn't much to hit in Kansas. most of the state is a natural runway lol

not around here ...

unless you're scared to drive 15 mph with frequent stops inbetween ...
Andy

I had a couple of really bad experiences flying commercial about 20 years ago, and was ready to throw in the towel. A friend who operated a small airport convinced me to take flying lessons to get over the fear. He was right.

After a few hours playing around in a Cessna 172 I got to like flying again. The biggest problem I had was trying to get it to stop flying. Those things don't like to get back on the ground.

FWIW, the workers compensation rate on general aviation pilots is half that of truck drivers in CA.

But just in case something goes wrong, can I have your car?

Greg,

You'll love it! I am getting my license right now in a little Cessna 172(solo next week!) and small planes are a hoot. You fly lower, see more...life is good. They are noisier inside and you'll experience a few more bumps if it is rough but they are still a blast.

I agree with others, I would worry about the pilot more than the plane. If trust them, have a great time!

MW

I used to do a lot of flying in a Mudry Cap 10.

Like that except yellow with blue stripes. Little french aerobatic 2 seater. Very differnt flying then Jets. If the pilot has much experience, I find small planes many times more enjoyable then jumbos.


I learned to fly in that Cap10. But I have ot been up in a prop plane since 1993 (the year I went to college).
Zach

That is the perfect answer Chris.

Like how many times have you heard about a plane failing as compared to "pilot error?"

An (EX) in-law almost killed us landing at San Clemente in a Grumman American Tiger - he just had to land at one of the most difficult airports around.

To bad there isn't a test for massive ego!

Private Pilot since '68 ..... I haven't died yet ... noisy, but a hell of a lot more fun that a commercial airliner.

Go enjoy Rubberboy!

Ah man, you erased the hackers attempt!

My ex girlfriend flew airplanes alot. I absolutely hated it. Unless wew were going somewhere I had no interest in getting in these things. Even still she really had to twist my arm.

THey are extremely noisy so you have to wear headphones and even still you whole body rattles and it's just a miserable experience.

Of course I simply hate to fly so I may be biased.

Also 2 planes we had flewn in did break on other pilots and had to crash land. No personal experience with crash landings.

You ain't lived until you've chased an elephant under a bridge in a Cessna Super Skymaster, and there were guys fishing off the bridge! I'll admit to being a bit unnerved ..................... The Cap'n

I penciled in, in my will, that a 914 club member can have and use the car as a daily driver, but they must return the car in the same condition they received it when my child (ren) are old enough to drive

true story

Small planes are a blast. 4 hours will get you a little squirmy though. I wouldn't be concerned about saftey unless there's bad weather involved.

Oh yeah, stay out of the "slow speed, no wake zones" ( I love buzzing the beach!)

Click to view attachment

Bad Bad Bad ....... FAA 500' horizontal & 1000' vertical clearance (AFAIR)



Make sure you have a relief tube with ya!

Totally agree: small plane=much safer then street driving. Only thing I would be worried about is cloud cover in mountain areas... and inclement weather (especially down drafts) in high elevation mountain areas. But even those aren't much to worry about.

A small plane is very landable as a glider- most anywhere. Have fun! Take dramamine if you get motion sick (before you leave).

Forgot to ask, who's the pilot....Elliott or Waldo?

If you have never flown in a small airplane before, the very worse thing you can do is fly on an empty stomach. I learned that from an Air Force flight surgeon about 40 years ago. (Trust me on this). Have a good meal and keep a barf bag handy just incase. If you start to feel a little queezy, have a fresh air vent blowing cold air on your face and try to focus your eyes on a distant object on the horizon. Get some foam ear plugs. They protect your hearing and allow to hear conversation better. They also help with the fatigue factor on a 4 hour flight. Keep your seat belt fastened ALL the time. I make a living flying great big airplanes and used do it flying really small airplanes. Your going to have a great time. As far as turbulence goes, I wouldn't worry unless the airplane is upside down. The airplane can take much more abuse than you can. (Trust me on this one also.) Have safe, fun flight.
Cheers, Elliot

...if you are upside down, I'd start to worry big time!

I love flying in small planes, noisy, but so much more interesting - try to follow what the pilot is doing, navigation and stuff - really makes it fun.

R

A 6 seater isn't a small plane...try two seats, one behind the pilot (his is the other one) and your 914 has more hp.....then put it on floats.....moose spotting

Nuckin' Futz if you ask me

Hot Chocolate & Pancakes make a wonderful projectile vomit at the pilot's head. Trust me on this.

Moose for you Sgt. Preston ...... Beaver for me!

Ever drive your 914 on a sunny day, top off, on a choppy dirt road with no muffler for 4 hours without a radio and no piss breaks?

Make sure you bring sunglasses. Have fun, be safe.

My Nephew flys private jets and twin engines, he has logged may hours in a high

traffic area and has had no mishaps. (knock on wood) He flys single engines for

fun, he taught me in a 172. I love it. A six seater should give you some room to

to at least move your legs and arms. It beats driving that far for that long, and

the view is great.

Just my .02 .......

Enjoy your ride. The bonanza is a good airplane. I agree with the others in that the pilot will make or break this trip for you. It will be like the first time you had a run at the AX course.

Make sure your tummy is full and your bladder is empty.

My friend is a pilot. We flew in a rented Cesna once. Door fell of during take off. What a joy!

Another time, my mother flew on a puddle jumper out of Chicago to podunk South Dakota. Front landing care wouldn't go down, so they assumed the position and had a crash landing (complete with sparks, fire department, etc.). All were okay.

Flew with another friend in a Cesna 182 and electric went out. Fun landing at night with no landing lights.

Why do you ask?

Just make sure the pilot has the same number of take offs as he does landings.

you do know you just went through a speed trap, right?

I used to fly/own a Cessna 172. It was alot of fun...never felt unsafe. The only reason people have a hangup on small planes is that some of the general aviation pilots are not as experienced as the major airline pilots...therefore more mistakes are made by inexperienced general aviation pilots. Some don't fly for years and then get current and fly "rusty". I agree with the other comments made about the pilot's experience and that small planes can make a safe unpowered landing just about anywhere (in daylight). Don't worry...have a great time...enjoy the ride!

I got my pilot's license back in 1988. I absolutely love it, and so does Betty. She sits in the back and screws with the trim by leaning forward and backward just to see me crank on the trim wheel.


Oh.. and I KNOW about the glide ratio of a Cessna 150. Two days before I took my flight test for my private license I got to be the first person to land at Ft. Worth Alliance airport. The left mag on the 150 performed a dramatic self destruction, and in the process tore off the two plug wires from the right mag to the left cylinders. And that Lycoming wouldn't run on just 2 cylinders and 2 plugs....So I ended up greasing the plane onto the graded dirt where the runway was being built. I landed at the south end, and the construction crew had just started laying rebar at the north end.

When I stopped the construction foreman comes roaring up in his pickup and shouts at me "You can't land here, this airport isn't open yet!". Hopped up on adrenaline I shouted back "If I had any choice, I wouldn't have landed here."

The construction foreman drove me to the office trailer, and I called the flight school and told them what was wrong with the plane. One of their mechanics flew out in another 150 with a pair of Mags and wires, plus tools. He installs the mags, fires it up to check it, and says "Ok, you can fly it back now." I replied, "I am not a test pilot, you fly it back." I flew the OTHER 15o back to the home airport.



Unlike a commercial airliner, you can land a light plane just about anywhere. You will have a blast on the ride.


Here's the plane I want... The Swift.

Think of a 914 with wings. Two seats, handles well, cool looking, but it has an underpowered, air cooled flat 4. Most are customized with bigger flat sixes.

The owners are just as passionate about these planes as we are about a 914.

WTF?

Small planes are safe. The nice thing about small planes is the glide ratio.

Lose the engine, glide on down. In a commercial plane, they lose the engines, and they drop like a rock.

Dad flew military planes for 25 years and small ex-drug planes for another 20 years. He put down a number of shot up or crapped out military planes but only put down one small ex-drug plane when he was flying for the State of Florida. That plane lost the throttle and he had to put it down in the glades.

Seems the A**hole mechanic checked the "grease the throttle cable" box during maintenance without doing the job. The FAA found the cable sawn half way through and locked into a throttle bracket after 2 hours of flight time OOOPS! somebody lost their job.

I have ridden in small planes all over Alaska and have no fear. Won't fly with my Ex- brother in law though. He gets drunk, overloads the plane and hits the tops of the trees on takeoff. Three times now......

Isn't the saying that there are old pilots, there are bold pilots, but there are no old, bold pilots.

If you want religion, fly into or out of Telluride, Colorado's airport in a small plane. It's the third highest elevation airport in the world (9475 ft.).

No truer words have ever been spoken!

The plane may be in top shape and the pilot first class but if your wife is a nervous flyer I wouldn't subject her to four hours in a Bonanza or any other light plane.

THe guy who taught me to fly was a WWII fighter pilot. He taught me the first commandment of flying:


Maintain thy airspeed and thy altitude lest the ground cometh up and smite thee.

Back before I started college, I started working on my PPL. Car, college and girlfriend drained all my money away and couldn't finish then. I used to hate roller coasters, but after flying, they were really sorta boring. Not that any of my flights were that rough, but after practicing stalls, there was nothing to a roller coaster.

Someday (losta stuff gonna happen that day) when I can afford to get back off the ground, I'll be after it. I'd love to have a 337! Centerline thrust twin!

There's lotsa factors to if it's gonna be a nice flight for you. Realize that things happen sometimes no matter where you are. 9/11/01 is proof that you can be at work, in relative safety, and bad things can still happen. Or a Drunk driver. It's not necessarily true that it's safer to fly long distances than to drive in a car, but it's about par or over with a motorcycle. Forget the details of that stat... If it's hot and you fly over plowed fields or asphault lots, you'll have some turbulance. Some people get sick... Go buy some candied ginger and chew on a lump of it if you think you'll be one of them

We just had a family from here crash a few days ago killing everyone on board. I read P&P every month, and the NTSB section in the back is always interesting. Much depends on the skill and experience of the pilot. The tests are not easy to pass, and are designed that way to weed people out.

I used to be in CAP (Civil Air Patrol) and we would work with authorities on Search and Rescues. All of the calls my squadron went out on were Non-Emergency. So long as a Flight Plan is filed, in the event of a crash, you can usually be found withing 24-36 hours, as when you don't report in, and nobody can find you, they start the operation.

All that said, my grandmother was one of the 99er's, my grandfather owned a Beech and operated for profit, my mom flew, my other grandfather was AF (on detachment to FAA for Air Group inspections), and I've got a few hours under my belt.

Somewhere in a closet around here I have a set of David Clark headphones that cancel out the ambient noise and all you hear is conversation. They cost a bit but they make flying in small airplanes very enjoyable.

You will love the view.

GPS makes getting there a snap now days. Just program in the airport code and no matter which way you are heading the arrow tells you which way you need to go, how long till you get there etc... Not an excuse to forget good pilotage because they can and do fail but they are pretty reliable.

Well I still don't like roller coasters, but my story is similar to yours. I got my first aerobatics training doing spins and recovery over the chesapeake bay when I was 15. My friends joked that I would have my PPL before I had my drivers liscense. When I was visiting colleges we would fly over them first and have a look around. I learned navigation from my uncle handing me a map and saying "Look out the window and find where we are, then tell me how to get to (wherever)."

College changed all that. I have not been up since then (13 years now). My Uncle sold the Cap 10 and bought a tandem Ultra. I have seen it, but I have not been up in it.

I'd love to get back into it, but I don't have the money or the time. One day. One day....

Zach

Great stories, I grew up in SE Alaska and up there it was like taking the bus. If you went anywhere it was either by boat or plane...mostly Otters and Beavers, Cessna 180s and Grumman Goose aircraft. I love them, and yes I have been on a dead stick event....less comfortable. I used to fly to Baja with a guy who didn't like to stop at Lax for fuel and so he was iffy to get to Loreto...after the second dead stick landing there (the end of the runway is the sea of Cortez) we agreed that he would not pass up LAX anymore if he wanted to live. Enjoy the sights and sounds...what the hell...you drive the car equivilent of a small plane....Jim

Hi,

I am a professional pilot who teaches in the big simulators and in the small aircraft. My apologies for the lecture that is about to follow..

Beech Bonanza is the Mercedes(when they still made reliable cars..) of the single-engine piston aircraft. A great plane, and sounds like TROJANMAN and his family will have a great trip. However, I´d like to correct couple points that have been made earlier in this thread:

1. People often refer to the excellent safety record of aviation as a whole, without knowing what the difference between the accident rate of transport aircraft and general aviation. The accident rate of general aviation on par with motorcycling. The good part(for general aviation) is that, where as in motorcycle accidents in 75% of the accidents the bikers personal behaviour wasn´t the fault of the accident, in general aviation it is the other way around. 75% of the general aviation accidents are pilot induced. So, a good pilot will make a lot bigger difference to the risk of flying a general aviation aircraft, than a good biker to riding a motorcycle.

2. The glide ratio of a general aviation aircraft is usually less than half of a medium jet. For example, Boeing 737 has a glide ratio of 22 to 1, where as Beech Bonanza has a glide ratio of 10 to 1. But, as far as forced landings go that´s enough. The important bit is that a general aviation aircraft has a low stall speed, and can be landed in a small clearing, or if there isn´t one available, in low enough speed that the people inside have a good chance of surviving.

Based on what TROJANMAN has posted, sounds like the pilot involved knows what he is doing, and knows how to deal with a passenger afraid of flying (very important to try to take all the pressure off a person afraid of flying). I´m sure the trip will be a great one.

-Jani

You know, I flew around Belize, Guatemala and Honduras in a small plane that was all too likely used to run drugs around South America at least a time or two, and I got to ride shotgun with the pilot.

Some of the instruments were falling out of their mounts, dangling by the wires that they were connected to, and the rest were rattling around. Then the radio fell into my lap and the pilot yells at me "Don't touch that!", as I try to tuck it back into its cubby. Then I told him that I was going to flight school back in the states, and that kinda' put him at ease. At least he didn’t look at me so sternly when the radio fell into my lap again.

I don't know if I was confident that this guy knew what he was doing (being sort of a crazy French barnstormer, I'm sure he knew every rivet in his plane), confident that I could fly if something bad happened to our crazy pilot, or maybe it was the adrenaline, but it was actually an okay thing. I wasn't as worried as some people would be, I think.

Maybe these things I say aren't comforting, but you should take comfort in the fact that your ride will be a thousand times better than this flight of mine

Made it Forth and Back from Arkansas safely, and even got to watch my TROJANS hang 50 on the Little Pigs. It was a pretty great flight. We were delayed a few hours, as the cluds did not leave Denver as early as forecasted.
Turns out our pilot had been flying since he was 6, and solo since he was 17. I blew chunks on the way out , then quickly learned that Dramamine is my friend My 3 year old thought it was pretty funny.

On the way back I sat shotgun, and everything was rosey. Even got to take control for a little while.

Front seats are the best! I always try to put the passenger afraid of flying in front, and teach him/her to fly a bit. Sometimes though, even the calmest of persons get sick, due the motion of the aircraft. In eleven years I´ve had a single case where I wasn´t able to get the situation under control before the passenger started faxing. The guy was really keen to fly, but unfortunenately when he started feel sick, he felt he would lose face if he´d confess it to me. Made my job a lot more difficult, and the 15 min it took to get to the ground was too much by 15 seconds... After that my passenger briefing has emphasised early warning, and I haven´t had a problem in ten years.

P.s. How did your wife like it, if you don´t mind me asking?

-Jani