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Going the Extra Mile
With its sleek lines and efficient high-aspect ratio wing, the four-seat DA-40XLS cruises at 150knots TAS on the 180 HP of the IO-360. This equates to about 16mpg while eating up the distance at over three miles a minute. The composite construction results in a smooth airframe. Fuel capacity has been increased to 50 gallons in a pair of wing tanks. (Diamond Aircraft) DA-40XLS Flight Report
By David Brown
The long-winged Diamond DA-40 has been steadily entering the market in the four-seat fixed-gear general aviation aircraft, which has been long dominated by the Cessna 172. With sleek and sturdy composite construction, the DA-40 can show a clean pair of heels to the competition.
Diamond has not been resting on its laurels but has been continuously improving the DA-40. I was eager to fly the latest version, the DA-40XLS. I met up with the XLS on the ramp at Long Beach Airport in Southern California. The day did not seem promising for our mission with a thick overcast blanketing the area, but Robert Stewart, my demonstration pilot, was not dismayed. With a full avionics fit and integrated autopilot, the DA-40XLS was fully IFR capable, and the inclement weather would give us a chance to see the advantages of the system under instrument conditions.
Safe Landings - July 2013
Cessna Skycatcher
(Photo courtesy of Cessna Aircraft)Exclusive Pilot Report
By Ed Downs
Sometimes you are asked a question that has an answer so obvious that you wonder why it was even asked. You know, kind of like, “would you like to win the lottery?” This writer got one of those questions a short time ago.
As a member of the team that developed the ASTM certification process and Sport Pilot infrastructure, this writer was very pleased to see Cessna enter the S-LSA business. Cessna is truly the 800 lb gorilla in a room full of S-LSA manufacturers and has the dealer/flight training network in place to launch Sport Pilot in a big way. The Cessna 162 Skycatcher immediately caught my attention, and thus began a two year effort to conduct interviews with Cessna staff and management for the purpose of writing an article concerning what Cessna thought about the ASTM process versus the wonders of FAR 23. Recent conversations with the ever courteous Cessna PR folks resulted in the question referenced above. “Ed,” asked Angela Baldwin, Manager of Media Relations, “would you like to meet with Kirby Ortega, Cessna’s Chief Pilot of Piston Engine Flight Operations, and undertake an evaluation flight in the Cessna Skycatcher?” This writer, waiting a cool nanosecond so as not to seem overly anxious, calmly replied, “YES!”