soloflight Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 Hello, I am a low time 110 hour pilot that has been thinking of buying myself an airplane. Well lets just say that on my budget all I could afford would be a 30+ year old cessna that can harley achieve 100 knots. So that got me looking at the idea of buying a kit plane and when comparing cost and performance I find myself liking planes such as Cozy's, Velocitys and the like. Now I am wondering if some pilots would like to chim in on there experiences with being a low time pilot in an aircraft such as these? Or even what your opinon is for a low time pilot? I would also like to meet a canard pilot who would be interested in taking me up for a demo flight so I can experience what these planes are like. I would like to buy a plane already built and ready to fly or at least somewhat completed. Anyway it is nice to find this forum and I hope to make some friends along the way. Thanks, Erick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Tomlinson Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 Welcome to the forum! There are a couple of forums and a mailing list supporting decisions like this, and it does help make that decision. Lots of builders and flyers. Many were at Rough River Ky this weekend (72 Canards official count) and the smiles won't go away for a long time! Our pics are at: http://fof.compus.ca/RoughRiverFlyIn2004/index.html If you can get a flight, that's great, but many builders have started without, including me. I had my first flight about 1-1/2 years into the build and was just amazing! At 3 years, I'm starting finishing and the canopy and engine. You could build a bit faster too. You're licensed and obviously like flying - an excellent starting point. My suggestion is to determine your "mission requirements" and "local capabilities", then dive in. The Cozy is effectively a 3 mile a minute cross-country airplane with 4 seats, but practically 2-3 plus loads of baggage (1000 lb idea useful load 300lbs fuel) and needs hard surfaced runway. If that meets your mission requirements, it is a great airplane! Looking to use the grass field out back? Probably there is a better suited plane. I suspect you'll easily build it for about the same cost as that 30 year-old, and really have something to be proud of! If that matches, start building, then attend Sun-n-Fun or Oshkosh and beg for a ride! That way you'll really have something to compare and talk about! /dan Quote /dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Zeitlin Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 ....Now I am wondering if some pilots would like to chim in on there experiences with being a low time pilot in an aircraft such as these?I had about 175 hours when I first flew mine, all in C-172's and Warriors. I know of a few others that were in the 100-200 hour range as well. There's nothing magic about these planes - a few hours of transition training and you pick up the nuances.Or even what your opinon is for a low time pilot?See above.I would also like to meet a canard pilot who would be interested in taking me up for a demo flight so I can experience what these planes are like.You'll have to give us a clue where you are in 3-space. There are many canard folks willing to give rides. Joining the COZY mailing list will get you a database of builders/flyers near you, so you can contact them for a visit. See the URL below. I don't know if the Velocity folks have an equivalent system, but you could contact the factory to see. Quote Marc J. Zeitlin Burnside Aerospace marc_zeitlin@alum.mit.edu www.cozybuilders.org copyright © 2024 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soloflight Posted October 4, 2004 Author Share Posted October 4, 2004 Marc and Dan, How do pilots learn to fly planes such as an EZ where there is no control stick in the rear of the plane? What is the insurance for a something like a EZ run for a low time pilot? This is just so new to me please excuse the ignorant questions. Erick Redfern Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soloflight Posted October 4, 2004 Author Share Posted October 4, 2004 My location is Ogden Utah airport OGD Lunch is on me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Zeitlin Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 How do pilots learn to fly planes such as an EZ where there is no control stick in the rear of the plane?You talk about it a lot with folks that know, and then you try it. Hundreds have done so. It's not so different than an experienced pilot can't figure it out, although the first couple of landings might be interesting. And actually, there IS a stick in the back of a V.E./L.E. - just no instruments, throttle or rudder pedals. You can fly it, but you can't (easily) land it or stop it. Obviously in a COZY, you take conventional lessons for a couple of hours with a compliant owner, just to be that much safer. You can ask the same question about any single seater - you fly it by trying it. What is the insurance for a something like a EZ run for a low time pilot?I got liability ($1M/$100K) on my COZY MKIV for $700/yr. with about 200 hours. I think L.E.'s are somewhat less. Quote Marc J. Zeitlin Burnside Aerospace marc_zeitlin@alum.mit.edu www.cozybuilders.org copyright © 2024 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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