I was hoping not to feel the need to get into the usual All-Flying Tail
of Death thread that happens every time we bring up the Std. Cirrus.
As a pilot who's first personal glass ship was a Std. Cirrus, Serial
Number 17, I both learned cross-country in one but flew my two diamond
distance flights in it. Why is serial number 17 important? Because it
was the first Std. Cirrus George Moffat owned, so probably the one most
people have read comments on. It was suppose to have all kinds of
nasty habits that would kill the inexperienced pilot.

With a sane flight training plan I transitioned without much trouble.
I set a 10 flight, 25 hour minimum of local flying to get familiar with
the plane. I stalled it, spun it and most importantly learned to slip
it and land it at the correct air speeds.

The plane never dropped a wing without clear warning, flew beautifully
and was one of the best handling gliders I have ever flown. It would
land on a dime flown correctly. Just don't fly it 10 knots too fast
on final or it will float. The Std Cirrus will climb with a Std.
Libelle and out climb anything else I flew against. With a slip it
would groove a thermal and climb amazingly. It will run well and is
probably the best of that generation of gliders.

The only weakness was the inability to take your hands off the stick.
But you learn to fly that way, trim it very carefully at slow speed if
you need to take care of some business in the cockpit. Keep one eye
one it to see if it starts to wander in pitch.

It is light on the controls, but not severe. The wings are a crews
dream, some of the lightest of any glass ship. Rigs easily if done
with finesse, nearly impossibly if you try brute force. The tail must
be respected. Check and double check the connection and inspect the
guide bearings before each flight.

I logged 500 hours in the ship and loved every minute. She took me
everyplace a glass ship could and never had any bad habits. As a
graduate student on a budget my 1/3 of the ship was all I could afford
and I would not hesitate to recommend one to any competent pilot. As
PIC you must know your ability and take a positive approach to learning
a new ship. You must also fly often enough to maintain those skills,
especially when you are first stating to fly.

I went on to own the big brother and flew an additional 500 hours in
the Nimbus 2 (A model) with the same tail.

Tim
Ventus B (former Std Cirrus and Nimbus 2 owner)