Newbie question Cessna or Beechcraft?

Hello,

I live in Georgia and am planning on starting flight school at Southeastern
in Macon. They offer the option of either learning in a Cessna 172 or a
Beechcraft Sundowner. Is there a better choice between the two? I only
plan on getting my private pilot rating for trips with the wife and two
kids. I have heard that the Cessna is easier to rent because there are a
lot of them out there. I would very much appreciate your opinion.

Thanks
Rob

Hi Rob,

You can't go wrong with either one. They both are fine planes to learn in.

Yes, there are more rental C172s than Beeches out there. So what? If you learn
in a Sundowner, you aren't limited to only flying Sundowners. You can still go
out and rent a Cessna, or a Piper, or something else for that matter.

The biggest difference between the two is one has the wing on top, the other
has the wing on the bottom. The Cessna can take off and land in a shorter
distance and at a slower speed. The Sundowner handles crosswinds better. You
don't have to worry about switching fuel tanks or using auxilliary fuel pump in
the 172. The Sundowner has better visibility and cabin room. You have to use a
ladder or climb on the strut to look in the 172 gas tanks. You have to get on
hands and knees to check the wheels and brakes on the Beech.

You get the idea. I would say pick the one that seems to be available most
often so that you don't have to wait. Or the one that rents cheaper. Whatever
your thing is. Can't go wrong.

Best regards,

Steve Robertson
N4732J, 1967 Beechcraft Musketeer (Sundowner predecessor)

rbboydston wrote:

Hello,

I live in Georgia and am planning on starting flight school at Southeastern
in Macon. They offer the option of either learning in a Cessna 172 or a
Beechcraft Sundowner. Is there a better choice between the two? I only
plan on getting my private pilot rating for trips with the wife and two
kids. I have heard that the Cessna is easier to rent because there are a
lot of them out there. I would very much appreciate your opinion.

Thanks
Rob

On Thu, 7 Aug 2003 14:05:11 -0400, "rbboydston"
wrote:

Hello,

I live in Georgia and am planning on starting flight school at Southeastern
in Macon. They offer the option of either learning in a Cessna 172 or a
Beechcraft Sundowner. Is there a better choice between the two?

I've heard it put (and tend to agree) that the Cessna is easier to
learn to fly, but harder to learn to fly _well_. Same argument for
Cessna vs. Piper.

If you're looking to eventually fly older, lighter aircraft then the
Cessna would be a better choice. OTOH if you want to move up to
heavier, faster "going places" aircraft, then go with the Beech.

Really, though, it doesn't make all that much difference, kind of a
Ford vs Chevy thing. Why don't you start with one, get a few hours
in, then try an hour in the other to see which you prefer?

-Dana
--
--
If replying by email, please make the obvious changes.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------If the government doesn't trust us with our guns, why should we trust them with theirs?

Roger Halstead wrote:

snip!

The biggest difference between the two is one has the wing on top, the other
has the wing on the bottom. The Cessna can take off and land in a shorter

Are you sure on that? A beech Bonanza (F33 and Debonair) will both
land shorter than a 172, but I don't know the figures on the
Sundowner.


Yes, I am positive. I've got many hours in 172, C35 Bonanza, and Sundowners, and am
a current owner of a 200hp Musketeer Super III (older version of Sundowner, the
Sundowner having only 180hp). A Bonanza is indeed a good short field bird, as is the
172. But the Musketeer/Sport/Sundowner/Sierra series is not particularly spectacular
in that regard. Much more like Piper Cherokee/Warrior/Archer/Arrow. The
Musketeer/Sport/Sundowner/Sierra series has the same rugged, roomy, and comfortable
construction as the Bonanza, but performance is just not the same (neither is the
price, though!). The airframe just isn't as aerodynamically clean. Having said all
this, don't get the idea that the Sundowner needs huge runways to operate. I'm just
saying that one needs a bit more r/w than a C172. Of course, in a big crosswind, I
can probably get my Musketeer down safely in less room than the typical 172 driver.
That's because I can still use full flaps and don't have to carry extra airspeed to
stay on a normal approach, even in a huge wing-low situation. That super-wide
landing gear stance and terrific ground effect are also just the ticket.

FWIW, one will normally find that climb and cruise performance of the 180hp
Sundowner will be almost identical to that of a 150/160hp C-172, and short field
performance of Brand B just isn't as good as Brand C. The Sundowner is a bigger,
heavier plane, so it takes a few more hp to get similar climb and cruise. The
Sundowner also has a higher stall speed, so you just can't "hover it in" like a 172.
But, as I said in a previous post, the "Baby Beech" has a strength for each
weakness. Just like the 172. Or Cherokee.

Best regards,

Steve Robertson
N4732J 1967 A23-24 Musketeer Super III
ex-N1151Y 1962 Cessna 150B
ex-N5839C 1953 C35 Bonanza
ex-N33337 1972 Cherokee 140 Cruiser
ex-N5828E 1959 Cessna 150

On Fri, 08 Aug 2003 07:51:22 GMT, Roger Halstead newsgroups@rogerhalstead.
com wrote:
Are you sure on that? A beech Bonanza (F33 and Debonair) will both
land shorter than a 172, but I don't know the figures on the
Sundowner.

The Bo and Deb have enormous Fowler flaps. The Musketeer/Sundowner has
plain flaps. Also, when it comes to taking off, 285 hp in the S-35 Bonanza
with 10 degrees of flaps makes for a much quicker acceleration to about
the same takeoff speed.

As for the original poster, when I learned to fly, I started in a C152,
moved to a C172, did my cross countries in a 200hp Beech Musketeer
(with the IO-360). I did my checkride at around 50 hours or so. I don't
think there's much truth that changing planes will significantly hamper
your progress - so take which ever you fancy, knowing you can always
change! I did the same during my instrument training, except that time
I did a couple of hours in a Warrior, several in an Arrow, about half
in a C172, a little in a Bonanza, and some in a Tiger. I just took whatever
plane was free on the schedule and I was checked out in. Having the
ability to be flexible in which plane I took meant I didn't suffer
continous delays because of scheduling problems.

--
Dylan Smith, Castletown, Isle of Man
Flying: http://www.dylansmith.net
Frontier Elite Universe: http://www.alioth.net
"Maintain thine airspeed, lest the ground come up and smite thee"