24 Apr 2024, 19:53 [ UTC - 5; DST ]
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Post subject: Re: Express 2000 RG Posted: 07 Aug 2017, 14:53 |
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Joined: 06/08/12 Posts: 12587 Post Likes: +5181 Company: Mayo Clinic Location: Rochester, MN
Aircraft: Planeless in RST
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Username Protected wrote: I suggest that before you invest $0.10 in the process, call an insurance agent to see if you can actually be insured in the thing. You may get 90% to buying it and find out the insurance is either unobtainable for you or so costly as to make it cheaper to buy a personal 747. What makes you think the insurance would be high? Experimental? PT6? Not shopping for a plane, but man, that's a low entry price for burning jet fuel. And the speed and performance must be spectacular compared to what I am used to.... Also the appeal of experimental avionics prices is high....
_________________ BFR 8/18; IPC 8/18
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Post subject: Re: Express 2000 RG Posted: 07 Aug 2017, 20:50 |
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Joined: 06/18/12 Posts: 10397 Post Likes: +8066 Company: Revolutionary Realty Location: Coeurdalene, ID (KCOE)
Aircraft: 1954 Bonanza E35
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If I remember right, at the time insurance was going to cost me about $200 a year more than I paid on my K-59. I know it wasn't insane, the insane part was me thinking "I can build it".....takes a LONG (OMG) time; a ton of hours; to get it right, and it's for others, I'm not cut out for it. The Express is a VERY sleek & clean airframe. I did dirty mine up a little, though, I installed directional lights in the horizontal stabs looking up at the rudder....& a "Walsh" family crest all lit up like a Delta 747....I thought of that plane as my own personal airliner... AH, yes, and the wing on the RG 2000 is not the same as the original Express planes; it was an improvement in both regimes, slow & fast, and they had air tunnel docs to prove it.
_________________ It's all a big conspiracy.....
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Post subject: Re: Express 2000 RG Posted: 18 Jun 2022, 21:24 |
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Joined: 01/24/19 Posts: 398 Post Likes: +187 Location: Birmingham
Aircraft: Vans RV-6; Archer II
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Username Protected wrote: Anthony C from Aeromania, a pilots pilot with a huge amount of experience got killed in one last May in an apparent fire after takeoff.
These things look like a death trap to me. Wasn’t that a one-off or nearly one-off turbine variant?
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Post subject: Re: Express 2000 RG Posted: 19 Jun 2022, 00:06 |
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Joined: 11/22/12 Posts: 2602 Post Likes: +2364 Company: Retired Location: Lynnwood, WA (KPAE)
Aircraft: 1993 Bonanza A36TN
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Username Protected wrote: I’m not sure what a conforming EDI express 2000 RG turbine looks like but this thing looks like it’s pretty much boiler plate express 2000. PT6A-20. https://www.aircraft.com/aircraft/13545... Every search for a turbine Express RG always turns up only this one plane, now crashed with fewer than 100 hours TT.
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Post subject: Re: Express 2000 RG Posted: 21 Jun 2022, 19:27 |
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Joined: 06/18/12 Posts: 10397 Post Likes: +8066 Company: Revolutionary Realty Location: Coeurdalene, ID (KCOE)
Aircraft: 1954 Bonanza E35
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Quote: These things look like a death trap to me. None of the Express Aircraft were "death traps" any more than a Vans or Lancair are. The only turbine that flew was flown by Larry Olson, and he passed away in it when the engine (PT-6) failed over a fuel issue. The rest of the Express Fleet was well behaved with a good record, Express was ahead of it's time in many respects, none the least of which ws the excellent low speed handling capabilities, which is why I bought & built & Express RG 2000 (Deathtrap"?) instead of a Lancair.
_________________ It's all a big conspiracy.....
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Post subject: Re: Express 2000 RG Posted: 21 Jun 2022, 23:46 |
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Joined: 11/22/12 Posts: 2602 Post Likes: +2364 Company: Retired Location: Lynnwood, WA (KPAE)
Aircraft: 1993 Bonanza A36TN
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Username Protected wrote: The only turbine that flew was flown by Larry Olson That is not correct, there were at least 2 turbine Express aircraft. Larry died in N512EA S/N 001 in 2003, and the one that crashed this year was N44508 S/N 0101RG. The only two known examples both fatally crashed, a 100% fatal crash rate, but "not a death trap". OK, fine, whatever.
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Post subject: Re: Express 2000 RG Posted: 22 Jun 2022, 12:45 |
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Joined: 08/21/13 Posts: 398 Post Likes: +371 Company: Horizon Aviation
Aircraft: T303, Pitts M12, T-6
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I imagine Ken Wheeler would shudder to see his original design turned into a turbine. He never designed it for that much power and I believe he was a fairly conservative engineer. The original Express was elegant, big wing, big cabin, and very efficient.
It reminds me of the difference between a Lancair Evolution and the original IV with a turbine strapped to the front.
The original Wheeler Express had a cruciform tail. I liked the look of it. However, the factory demonstrator crashed on the way to Oshkosh in the early 90s. Killed the demo pilot (not Ken) and whomever else was onboard. I don't remember all of the specifics, but it was over WY (on the from Gig Harbor to OSH). I think they were doing acro at the time. The company never seemed to recover. Ken was a remarkably pleasant person.
I don't know if it was related, but shortly thereafter they switched to the lower horizontal stab.
Zeke
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Post subject: Re: Express 2000 RG Posted: 22 Jun 2022, 16:05 |
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Joined: 07/11/15 Posts: 32 Post Likes: +17
Aircraft: 58P Harpoon
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I actually flew the turbine Express probably 5 years ago. I am trying to remember details, pretty sure it had a PT6-20 in it, and wasn't overly fast but burned ALOT of gas. The old PT6's didn't have the new efficient burner cans. If I remember correctly it was only about a 210kt airframe. At the time I owned a 2000, and was probably the only current CFI with Express time, so I got to fly a few different airframes. Every express I flew, was fairly benign, honest and easy to fly. It is a great airframe, just un-supported and probably un-insurable at this point.
This one flew nice, stalled straight, etc. Other than the inefficiencies I don't remember anything overly dangerous or "death trap" about it.
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