Since then, I've flown a variety of single-engine aircraft, from the common Cessnas and Pipers to the newer Diamond Star. I've also managed to log a bit of time in more complex aircraft: A twin-engine Duchess, a Cirrus (the one you've heard that comes with a giant parachute), an old Cold War Czech fighter, and even a Citation jet.
From the first time I flew one seven years ago, my favorite model has always been the Grumman Tiger. It's a simple but fast design: fixed-gear, 4 cylinder, 180 horsepower engine like most Cessnas, but typically cruises about 15% faster. It's got a cool canopy top and the back seat folds down and out of the way into "station-wagon" mode - easily enough room for two full-size mountain bikes. The first time I ever flew one, I greased the landing. That's pilotspeak for landing so softly it takes a few seconds to realize you've landed. It also had the nice effect of pleasing the owner/instructor who was with me.
I've always rented planes from clubs. I've always said aircraft ownership is expensive enough it doesn't make any sense. It typically takes flying a plane in excess of 150 hours a year to offset insurance, parking, maintenance, and innumerable other costs to "break-even" versus renting. This year, I've flown about 80. It doesn't really make sense for me to own a plane.
The aforementioned Tigers are great for longer trips. Going 135 knots vs. 120 may not sound like much of a difference, but it adds up in a variety of ways. (By the way, aviators measure distances in nautical miles. A nautical mile is 6075 feet - about 15% longer than a statue mile. A knot is a nautical mile per hour. So 135 knots is about 155 mph.) Unfortunately, a problem with Tigers seems to be that pilots have a tendency to land them in such a way as to strike the prop on the ground. This is a Bad Thing To Do. If nothing else, it's Very Expensive. The club I fly with in San Diego used to have three Tigers. Over a period of about 5 years, I think each one had at least one prop strike. I think one got hit twice. The owners all decided it was too much abuse, and all the Tigers left the club.
This started causing some dissonance with me. Owning an plane was expensive and stupid for me, according to me circa 1994. I think I said the same circa 2004 when the club went Tiger-less. However, taking Cessnas on long trips left both me and my flying buddy wishing there was a Tiger around. I started making noises about maybe buying a Tiger someday. I'd occasionally look at ads and balk at the price -- and the costs of plane ownership goes way beyond the price of the plane. There's all that ongoing maintenance, insurance, and other stuff I mentioned earlier.
On October 11, 2006, I came across this ad
On October 30, 2006, I wrote this email:
I've been eyeing your Tiger for a couple weeks, and thought it was
time to drop you a brief note. Realistically, I'm probably still a
couple years from jumping into my own plane, but I thought I'd
request the logs and see if that helps motivate me at all. I also
have a few curiosity questions:
- Everyone I've talked to wants to know if the domain name comes with
the plane...
- Then they want to know if the stuffed tiger is included too. :)
On November 20, 2006, I signed a purchase contract for the plane, subject to inspection.