Preferred Trike

[Fairy Flycatcher]

Hi Smiley

I think you might be asking the wrong questions if you want to make a decision on your own purchase, and asking for honest opinions on a public forum will probably also not be of much value, as people (like me) will be reluctant to point out the cons of different aircraft.

Remember the industry in South Africa started very small, and mainly with Aiden and Dave down here at SoloWings. They used to make hang gliders, and then started with the Windlass about 20? years ago. Most of the instructors who started the industry, converted themselves, and were granted instructors ratings by CAA based on their experience. They were flying Solo Wings products, sold it to their students etc. Some of the students became instructors and sold Solo Wings products. Solo wings have made a lot of changes to their products since then. Some while later other manufacturers also started making trikes. Some of them did not last, some were imported, etc. Raptor was also borne from a Hang gliding factory (I still have an old Aspect Hang glider here made by Manfred along with my old Aquilla hang glider from Solo Wings). Mike Blythe started Rainbow Aircraft, and used an imported wing (The Aeros) on local undercarriages.

So the industry where we are now, has a lot of historical reasons for Aquilla to be the biggest at the moment. That does not make it the best (or the worst), and asking people who are happy with their Aquillas, why they are happy, does not mean that they actually know why they are happy (or not).

Mostly we want to fly, and if my plane can do that for me, I'm happy with it :D

Maybe you should decide what you want to do with your flying, whether you are going to be a turkey patch pilot, do some 2-3hour local trips over the weekend or fly away. See how often you want to take passengers, if you would like to be able to thermal or ridge soar with your trike, or only do powered flight. The size of the airfield and the altitude from which you are going to operate will also play a role.

You need to know how experienced, and also current you are going to be. There are some wings which I will not recommend to pilots who do not fly regularly, but a big old Windlass wing can be extreemly forgiving (just not great in turbulence - unless you know it well).

The Airborne products from Australia is not even mentioned on your list, neither are the Air Creation or the Cosmos from France. Each one of the ones on your list has many, many options (engine, wing, prop, instruments), some which might suit you, and some which might not.

If you are unsure about what YOU would like to purchase, and would like others to help you make an informed choice, I would suggest you make a short list of what your needs as a pilot are (including good back-up service, handling for the weather you intend flying in, fuel consumption, short field characteristics etc), and ask the guys to recommend aircraft based on what you need, vs their experience of the aircraft?

I wish we had honest "test pilots" who could give us reasonably unbiased reports on aircraft, the way you can pick up car magazines and read about test drives in new models and things, but we don't.

All the aircraft are approved, test flown and flown by other pilots, and therefore there is probably some merrit in all of them. I own 5 different kinds of aircraft for the school. I fly them all. I love them all...

[Smiley]

Hello Fairy

Good points raised. Thanks for the advise, this is probably why I raised this issue, for people like yourself to give me good sound advise!!

Maybe one of our magazines should apoint somebody that test-flys every make of trike and gives a full report in the magazine???

[Morph]

Maybe one of our magazines should apoint somebody that test-flys every make of trike and gives a full report in the magazine???

Unfortunately, Smiley, South Africa still does not allow competitive advertising or editorials, i.e. you cannot directly compare your product to any other and print the results. What will happen is the magazine will give you the pro's of each of the types plus basic pricing specs etc, but I wouldn't expect any more, especially not the cons. For example, look at African Pilot, they have been focussing on different segments of the market from Light Aircraft, to Gliders and this month Gyro's and these are great at comparing the speeds weight, carrying capacity. price etc but they don't go into detail about the flyability ot idiosyncrasies etc. You will never be able to make an informed choice except though your own experience and that of people you trust. It's no secret that students typically buy the plane they started training in.

I like going to Fly-ins and chatting to all the various pilots about their planes. Where possible get them to take you up and let you have a feel. Also decide upfront what you want to use the plane for, i.e. long distance, cabbage patch, etc and use that as a starting point when talking to others. I also personally like the concept of initially buying a good 2nd hand plane and fly it a lot. Here you will begin to get a sense of what you like and don't like. Then take your time and look at the expensive long term investment. IMHO

[Smiley]

Morpheus wrote:

I also personally like the concept of initially buying a good 2nd hand plane and fly it a lot. Here you will begin to get a sense of what you like and don't like. Then take your time and look at the expensive long term investment. IMHO

Thanks, I'm on my second trike now. My first trike was a Panther and now I own a Aviate Aspect. Must say the latter fits me perfect!! :D I will again go for something with similar capabilities but this time fit a 582.

I think a Cobra with Spirit15 wing or a Aquilla with AquillaII wing will do it. Just battling coming to a decision!!