Well, it's a sad time but it's done. I owned an original non upgraded Pre-ETT Eclipse (small tip tank) Avidyne model. I bought it a little over a year ago. It had 100 hour windshields with wide spacing and I bought it cheap 2 hours before the windows timed out. I took it to Eclipse Aviation and removed my 100 hour windows and paid them $50K to install 4 new USED windshields with extra holes. They returned my removed newish windshields with 1/2 inch holes drilled in them. Then my A/C broke and they wanted $2,500 for a box. I fixed it with a $12 fuse. Good to go! I flew her another 150 hours all over the place, Alaska, Bahamas, OSH, Maine, Michigan, North Dakota, Wyoming, Arizona, and everywhere in between. Towards the end, I starting getting STALL STALL STALL on the left PFD and OVERSPEED OVERSPEED OVERSPEED on the right. I thought my plane was cursed but then I read the new ones do it to. I have never been scared in an airplane EVER but this was the only time in my life I thought I was going to die. IMC in the high 30s, the attitude indicator 30 degrees banked in level flight, no autopilot, no yaw damper, no radios, with STALL STALL OVERSPEED OVERSPEED blaring. I've flown all versions of the Eclipse and all of the planes I have flown do this, it's not an upgraded versus not issue!

Anyways, fast forward, they want over a million to upgrade my bird. I sold the motors to a famous celebrity and the rest of the parts via a buddy to another guy without losing a dime.

I loved my Eclipse and hope to own another one soon! It was really sad to to murder a virtually new 400 hour plane. Regardless, this airplane needs to be Garminized and unsoftwarized to be safe.

Anyways, I thought I should share my Eclipse Saga. It's not built like a Beech by any means but the last year has been one of the best aviation years of my life!

I remember when you bought it. Amazing story. Glad you got out unscathed physically or financially.

After all that you want another one?

What is a 100HR windshield?

I can sort of understand how in older aircraft there comes a point where a needed major repair isn't economic, and the plane ends up getting parted out, I don't like it, but I can understand.

But a 400HR airplane that doesn't have enough value to support repairs and upgrades, that is just wrong. It is like that (for sale) MIG 21 that was posted a little while back, dangerous junk at 400HRS.

Maybe the answer is to slap an Experimental Sticker on the side, and pull the entire panel/avionics/everything out of a salvage Malibu (heck, have the Factory do the engineering, but ignore the approval process), and let older plane owners go flying Pt. 91. If they are flying, some will buy those $2,500.00 boxes to get the A/C working and other consumable parts. It has got to be better business than competing with the scrappers for parts sales, and trying to make money supporting a rapidly shrinking population of operating aircraft.

In theory, (after your story, I'm not as sure as I was) I'd rather run around in a two engine RVSM Experimental Eclipse, than some certified 25,000' single engine plastic jet with a parachute.

On the other hand, if enough owners make the same decision you did, New Eclipse is going to run out of customers.

They won't let you do that because it doesn't meet the 51% rule. Many have had the same thought though. I'd love to do it with an old King Air but it will never happen.

Great adventure! Took guts for sure and its cool you traveled so much in it.

But...

Why in world were you trying to convince other guys to buy into this craziness??

The original Eclipse had windshields requiring replacement every 100 hours, nuts! This airplane is a drug. It's fun to fly and doesn't cost much more than a Baron when nothing breaks.

I had the time of my life owning this plane but it's basically a software laden experimental. The new ones in my opinion are not any better than the non upgraded versions based on my experience flying both.

Regardless, I loved my airplane and look forward to this experience again despite all the risks. As I said before, the Eclipse is a drug!

Total cost of ownership over 150 hours was about $500 an hour.

They won't let you do that because it doesn't meet the 51% rule. Many have had the same thought though. I'd love to do it with an old King Air but it will never happen.

WOW,

That is a lot less than I pay to run my Aerostar, and you were going 50% faster.




Not saying I'd trade my classic faithful 601P for a buggy air-frame with goofy software and a windshield that lasts 100 hours. I wouldn't.... Never-Never...
RHPS Fans know how this exchange ends up, (twice)

But maybe for a weekend, with permission, while PE is in the shop, no one would have to know....

This is how one ends up on a street corner with a sign that says:
"Will Work for Jet Fuel"

Thanks for the scoop on the windows.

Where there is a will, there is a way.

Here are two experimental Aerostars:
http://cessnateur.blogspot.com/2011/07/ ... ebuts.html

Somewhere out there is (or was) an Allison Turbine converted Aerostar as well.

Plus, air-frames are easy, avionics are the real guts of a modern aircraft, I bet an enterprising fellow with some connection to an understanding FAA inspector (they are out there) could come up with documentation showing that the time required in replacing the entire avionics is at least 51% of the time required to build the entire aircraft on the assembly line. Then New Eclipse, or some other outfit sets up an owner assisted Avionics swap R & R program, and everyone wins.

Impossible I say for the eclipse. The entire panel is software and everything runs through the panel, landing gear flaps, AP, FUEL, START, ETC. It's not an avionics stack, there are no circuit breakers! I spent many a night scheming how to add a couple G3X touches and make her experimental and save my bird from the knife but it's really impossible. I think with $300k you could gut it and add some Garmin stuff but it could never be legal. You could likely fly a really awesome illegal bird but you could never sell it.

Nice work selling the engines and airframe. If you got your money out of it, you can't complain about that. Good luck with your next one.

My only complaint is that it wasn't right. It was a 9.5/10 cosmetically with zero squawks (other than the random near death failures). Sad, I really enjoyed this plane. To muder a 400 hour plane says something about this market!

My next jet will likely be a Citation or Phenom and burn much more gas but you will not hear a story like this.

Ummm, well,

Not so sure about the zero squawks, but I hear what you're saying about the rest. It's more of a statement about the early generation Eclipses.

You might check out the Mustang. A little bigger/heavier than an Eclipse, but well proven, and only a couple hundred an hour more to operate with good programs.