Just received my “actual delivery date notification packet” from Cirrus for SR22 #196. The happy day is April 4th. Just in time to fly to Sun-N-Fun in Lakeland. Anyone else flying in?
For those of you that have already made the trek to Duluth to pick up your beauty-How many days should I plan to be there total assuming no weather delays? I am trying to plan my trip. Any info would be helpful…
Greg
With perfect weather and a 9 am delivery. And no down time on plane i think you can be on your way home at noon on the 3rd day and only the cirrus training no extras .from don
I returned from Duluth with my SR22 a week ago. I agree with Don. If you have been through the training manual before you arrive, and your 22 has no problems, and you have experience in a similar airplane you could be done in three days or less. If your 22 has some “problems” you could be delayed hours or days. My fuel tanks leaked. First the left and then the right. Each took 2 days to fix. Others taking delivery at the same time had minor squawks addressed in a day. I recommend planning for 3 days and having your calendar clear for the following week.
Roger
I also wanted to add I will be flying to sun and fun never been there before what is the parking like is it beter to park at anther airport and drive in from Don
Don,
I suggest flying directly to Lakeland. THey do an excellent job of traffic control in the air. I flew to a nearby airport last year and the drive added an hour to my trip. I am flying straight in this year.
Mason
Don,
Getting in to Sun-N-Fun can be a real chore. The weekend days are the worst. The lines of cars to get in can be pretty bad on the interstate with an hour wait at its worst. The best time is to go early, before the exhibit halls open, on the weekdays. There is PLENTY to look at before the vendors show up, and when the exhibits open, you just wander over there. Flying in to the airport is pretty slick. Get the info packet with the fly-in instructions and read them before you go. The most common mistake almost every pilot makes is they land short in the first 500-1000 ft. of runway and they want you to land long, touching down about halfway down the runway so that they can turn you off at the end faster. Landing short slows everything down because they have to wait on you to taxi a 1/2 mile to the end causing a backup in the air behind you.
The weather can be in the mid 80s to the 50s. Dress in layers that can be peeled off. Bring sunscreen and a hat. Bring your hand held aviation scanner. Bring a portable chair, the lighter the better. Make your hotel reservations right away. Wear good walking shoes, you’ll use them. If you need headsets or any other gear, you can usually get the best prices at the event. You can test all of the ANR headsets you want. If you have never been, and you are a real airplane nut, plan on 3-4 days. If you are just going for kicks, plan on 1-2 days, but you will see only about a third of what is there.
Finally, if you enjoy camping, that is the best way to go. You can camp right at your plane and never have to deal with the lines of cars. Pitch your tent right there and leave when you are ready. But, there are no fancy restuarants and the shower facilities get a bit crowded.
FWIW,
Greg
Hey guys,
Thanks for all the input. I sure appreciate it. Have any of you taken additional training from Cirrus or do you think what they include with the plane is enough. I will be a fresh instrument pilot with a total of 200 hours flight time, all in the last 18 months. I have been flying a piper arrow 200 horse RG. I hope to see some of you at Sun-N-Fun!!
You could take the COPA Pilot Proficiency Program on the weekend after Sun 'n Fun.
Access the CPPP page from the COPA Home page under Members.
The CPPP provides 9 hrs of ground and 6 hrs of flight instruction tailored to SR2x pilots. Assumes everybody has completed the New Owner Training Program and has additional time in their own aircraft.
Drpo me an email if you’d like to discuss.
Bob
Chairman
Cirrus Pilot Proficiency Program
For me the standard training (preceded by reading the training manual and the POH, completion of all the training manual worksheets and practice on the download garmin simulator) was enough to get me comfortable in the plane in VFR conditions. Takeoffs, landings and all the flight maneuvers came pretty quickly. Controlling the plane while under the hood also came fairly quickly. The CFI and the curriculum were excellent.
Basically it is an easy plane to fly. However, if you have been following the thread on autopilot left/right oscillation, it should be clear that many of us have been humbled by the instrumentation. To be comfortable in heavy instrument conditions, you need to be able to set up the garmins, the HSI, the autopilot and the audio panel automatically. That takes repeated practice. My Cirrus instructor suggested flying IFR procedures in VMC to get very familiar with all the buttons and knobs which has worked well.
You might want to consider doing the flight training on the way home. I was forced into that by terrible weather in Duluth, but it worked very well. Your contract administrator should be able to give you details.
Only you can judge how much training is enough for you initially. However, I think it is best to approach this with the assumption that however much training you do with Cirrus, you will probably need to do some follow-up, either with the COPA recurrent training program or with your own CFI. Hope this helps.
Bob:
Are you taking reservations yet. If so, sign me up. If not, when will you start?? Is there a limit on the participants for this first session??We will start taking reservations for the Dublin, GA course within two weeks.
I’ll announce it on the COPA Home Page, by email to all members, and on the message boards.
We are planning to accomodate a max of 20 members at the first course as limited by physical facilities and the availability of CFIs with the required experience.
Bob
Thanks Lou,
Sounds like great advice.