This seems totally reasonable to me.

How come so many of you guys have wives that don't like to fly. I've only ever dated 1 girl that was a "little nervous" about flying. Aside from her all jump right aboard.

I had a TN A-36 and I upgraded to a 421C last year. I also have 3 kids. Couldn't be happier. Now we're thinking about a Conquest 2 in a year or so.(you only live once!) trust me, the wife will love it and the potty gets used.

This seems totally reasonable to me.

How come so many of you guys have wives that don't like to fly. I've only ever dated 1 girl that was a "little nervous" about flying. Aside from her all jump right aboard.

The original poster has specified an acquisition budget, but not an operating budget. $600K can get you everything from a clapped out MD80 to a brand new 182.

That said, for a typical $600K capital budget, operating a turbine is doable.

Reasonable Twin Commanders, Merlins and MU2s can all be bought FAR less than $600K. If you can stomach 60-80gph fuel burn at $4-5/gal an 250-300kts, a turbine is affordable. None of the Garrett twins have the onerous KA inspection schedules.

Yup. That's why I'm not married.

My wife is much, much more comfortable in the twin. :shrug:

Charles, good point. Time to circle back.

Plan A is to change it up a little. 600k for a late model twin that needs to fit into a T-hangar, because I own 9 of them.
The plane should burn between 20-30gph so that is just a little more than an SUV.

To put things into perspective;
I fly mostly by myself and 200 mile legs to Maine a couple of times per week. Stepping up to a jet or a Concorde would be a waste of gas for me and where I fly to, The biggest boat in the harbor. I would not write checks for 50 -100k per year just to save a few hours of driving time.

PlanB:
I received my pilots license in a Schwiezer. If I take Todd's advice I would keep the Bonanza, put a turbo on it and buy a late model R44.
Now that's what I'm talkin' about! Then maybe for Christmas; flying lessons for the whole family.
All would be good.

There are 21 on Controller. You gotta start working the phones.

Mustang is a great buy because you'll sell it for what you have in it at this point. At $1.5 + it's a ton of bang for the buck. This will not be the case in a Million $$ Baron.

What about a cirrus? Does the parachute impress the wife? You can get a NA G1000 3-5 year old SR22 with FIKI for $350 and blast all over New England at 180kts on 16gph.

Now you are talking!!!

Yes - R44 - or even a 206! Now, maybe a Cirrus with a chute as well?

No they're not more frequent. You can't lump all the trainer Cessna's in with the rest of us.

JFK JR didn't have an "engine out". His plane worked great all the way to the crash.

"Engine Out" is way down on the list of things that will kill you in an airplane.

I'd research this more if I were you.

1) Single vs. Twin. The man's wife says a twin makes her feel better. End of discussion. Happy wife, happy life.

2) JFK Jr. The navy did send a ship to recover the wreckage.
http://www.airsafe.com/events/celebs/jfk_jr.htm
In terms of knowing what caused a GA accident, loss of control seems essentially certain. Nothing to do with single vs. twin.

9 T-Hangars....Oh heck, now it's on.
Lets see....$600K
1. 1970s B-58 with everything $200K
2. J-3 Cub $35K
3. R-44 $200K
4. T-6 $150K
5. build a bar/lounge in the T-hangar on the end with the extra depth $15K

Problem solved!

Charles, good call. Yes it certainly impressed the wife. The Cirrus was on the radar screen and we have talked about that. The parachute times out after 5 years if I remember correctly and I was told the cost is 20k.
It is smaller, I know that I would miss the doors and easy access to the rear in the Beech. You know; everything is a trade off.

A Cirrus went down a week ago here. Engine out after takeoff; the chute deployed and everyone lived. When you hear stories like this; what's 20k?

10 years and roughly $10k or so I believe.