I’m sure this type of post has been on your site more times than you all care to count but it’s the same thing whenever someone wants to know about a product… go to the folks who have them and hear directly rather than from a broker. I currently have a Socata Trinidad. Very nice plane, but my partner and I are thinking of selling it for a more modern aircraft. There is a lot we like about the Trinidad, 1250 lbs payload, very comfortable and good range, decent speed, 2 doors. There are also some things we would like to change as well and rather than toss more money into an aircraft with 20 year old technology we started thinking of the SR 22. Late G1 or early G2 is about where our budget falls. I would be interested in ownership experiences from anyone out there willing to share. I’ll leave it open there and see what you all have to say. Thanks in advance for your responses and time.
You’ve come to the right address but you’ll need to knock a little louder on the door. [:)]
By that I mean if you join you’ll get access to the member area where many more people are likely to see your post and respond. You’ll also be able to search the forums for just the sort of comments you are seeking.
Yep, you have no idea. Way, way more material on the Member forums. One or two members might take the time to reply, but many don’t follow the Guest forum. Although since there are so many posts available to read on the members side it’s a stretch to expect a lot of people to muster up enthusiasm for repeating themselves for the nth time.
You can find a lot of older posts on the Guest forum if you pull down “show all” from the recency control - the default is only 30 days. Or try searching using the word “ownership”.
If the $65 to join is a barrier, consider that there is a money-back guarantee. (And if $65 seems expensive, a Cirrus might not be the right airplane for you!)
David - On the other side some would say that $65 is about 1/5 of an hours operating cost in a SR22! To get a good feel of typical operating cost per hour just search outside of this forum for rental costs at various flight schools, ect. It appears you have joined already though?
David, becoming a member will easily pay for itself with the knowledge you will gain! I just purchased my 04’ SR22GTS two months ago and couldn’t have done as well as I did wihout being a nember of COPA. You will also love the aircraft!!!
I wasn’t sure wether the forum membership was strictly for Cirrus owners or open to all. As for your comment that the Cirrus may not be the plane for me based upon your assumption that the $65 membership was a “barrier”. I will make a decision on wether the Cirrus is the plane for me based on it’s merits and how it fits my mission profile not on the presumptive and condescending of an individual such as yourself. I had hoped to learn from the membership more about the aircraft NOT be talked down to based on a single first post.
It would seem that non-owners can be full members. If this will help in learning more about the plane and get “real world” knowledge, then I’m all for it.
Welcome to COPA! Tim is just joking around (although his statement is technically true [;)]). You wouldn’t believe the number of Cirrus owners historically that haven’t joined COPA because it’s too “expensive.” [:)]
Dave, as Andy said, Tim’s comment was techically true – and importantly phrased as a conditional, one that might not apply to you (we don’t know much about you). And remember that web discussions are imperfect vehicles for communication subtlety! [;)] Yes, COPA membership is open to all. So, welcome if you choose to join and explore the amazing wealth of information contributed by volunteers.
FYI, Tim single-handefly created the COPA buyers guide info and manages our magazine mailing list. We emoy the fruits of many talented COPA members. You can to. Cheers
Rickl
I’m really sorry my comments came off that way. Please accept my sincere apology. I was not at all implying that you were being a cheapskate, and it was not my intention to be condescending. I’m quite embarrassed that I chose words that sounded this way to you.
My sole intent was to encourage you to take advantage of the terrific COPA resources open to members.
As far as it not being clear that non-owners could join, I’m going to work on making that very clear on the website right now.
Thank you, Tim. That was very gracious of you. I have joined the full membership and have spent the afternoon browsing the website. Thre is a lot of information here. I look forward to the process.
Indeed. I’ve revised it in attempt to make this much more clear. The home page bit Sanjay highlighted has been updated accordingly (see below).
Thanks to all (especially Dave) for all the feedback and the chance to improve this.
Tim
Membership in COPA
All interested individuals are welcome to join.You don’t have to own or fly a Cirrus to join COPA. We especially encourage everyone considering becoming a Cirrus pilot or owner to join. Our membership includes pilots with a wide range of experience, and low- and high-time pilots are all well represented. Our membership also includes many Cirrus renter pilots, student pilots, and even non-pilots thinking about learning to fly.
If you are considering buying a Cirrus, you will find COPA membership resources invaluable in familiarizing yourself with Cirrus aircraft. The COPA membership is welcoming of newcomers and open to answering your questions on the active COPA forums.
Annual membership fee $65, which includes a subscription to Cirrus Pilot magazine, access to the COPA members website and member-only forums, and eligibility to attend other COPA events and activities (additional fees apply to some activities).
Welcome to COPA Dave and enjoy browsing the information. There is a TON of it here and if you have a question, just ask. You will most likely have a reply within minutes! Mike
Welcome to COPA. I have been a member since inception and have never owned a Cirrus, although I do rent them occasionally. COPA has been some of the best money I’ve spent in aviation, I hope you’ll find it to be the same for you. Great information resource, good fellowship, lively give-and-take, and some of the brightest, most accomplished and most thoughtful people that you’ll find in any aviation group.
The late G1’s and early G2’s are in my opinion among the best values in used aircraft in all of GA. Were I in the market for a used SR22 that’s exactly where I would look.
Why can’t you just answer Dave’s questions or if you don’t feel you wanted to share your opinion - LEAVE IT ALONE!! … You should become a member… bla, bla… Its almost religous. Give me a break.
Why should one join COPA when investigating about a certain aircraft??! Yes, its only a fraction of the cost of a Cirrus, but maybe he is looking into a Bonanza as well. So become a member of ABS as well. How about Mooney - Yeah, become a member!! Cessna? Here you go…
I actually own a Cirrus and I always refused for some reason to join. I just don’t know why.
That’s not a bad suggestion. I think if I were seriously considering buying a plane I would to join every active owner’s association I could just to gather real world information about the upside and downside of each model. The risk of a few hundred bucks against the reward of all that information seems pretty attractive. Even if the association were only focused on the nuts and bolts of the model and not as active and broad as COPA.
BTW, Dave, I used to fly a tobago before switching to the 22 about 6 years ago. Obviously, your trinidad is a more capable machine than the tobago I flew. But, my SR22 experience blows the doors off my Tobago days.
Timm,
To each his own, but I joined all those organizations when researching airframes. The more intel you’ve got, a better decision maker you’ll be. Or we can take your route and make it into an adventure In Self righteousness for whatever reason.
