Hey everyone! I am a realtively low time pilot at 165 hours. I am in the middle of my IFR and have about 85 hours in a TR182, building my complex and high performance time. I take the family on trips often and would like to expand my horizons on how far and how fast we travel. Plus the family will be growing soon. My wife really like the club seating in the back, it makes longer trips easier to care for the kids instead of having to trun around all of the time in the 182.

I am looking at an A36. Any tips or suggestions out there for a low time pilot with a young family flying in a Bonanza? Ideally, I would like Bonanza with one of the tip tank options to allow for the higher gross weight.

I look forward to learning from some pro's and hope to join the ranks of a Beech owner soon!

I bought my Turbonormalized G36 when I was a 150 hour pilot. I put 1000 hours on it flying all over the country and the islands. Transition time from the Piper Archer I was flying prior took about 10 minutes.

Go for it.

Welcome.

Do a search on "last airplane first," that will keep you busy reading for awhile.


Or, just read all of JC's posts start to finish. We have covered a lot of real estate over the last few years, some of which you may find relevant, some not.

Remember, you are on BT, the "just do it" capitol of the world.

100% true. You've been warned.

Sheldon, welcome to BeechTalk!

I don't know (nor care) what is your budget limit for a model 36 purchase. If you're in the bottom third of the market you will find the older 36's have the highest useful load.

Good luck on your search.

Sheldon,

Welcome to BT. We love to spend other peoples money!
We have lots of threads on here covering the merits of specific models. make sure to search and read up some on those. Next when you are ready, start a thread providing a little more information on the models you are considering, why you want them, the mission (range, locations -- east/west/flat lands, passengers, cargo) and you budget. Both for MX and purchase. We have enough people on here to guide to a good plane. I would also suggest you consider engaging a plane broker. For what you pay, it will save you a lot of money in the long run (this is my assumption that you have never owned a plane before or been through the plane purchase cycle).

Good luck,

Tim

Welcome aboard Sir! You came to the right place to get questions answered about Beech products.
I flew a turbonormalized A-36 with tips for six or seven years. Great plane with a lot of altitude options and about half the country in range. Hope you find the answers you need here!

Best,

Dave

Sheldon,

Few questions that might help people guide you

1) Which airport are you based at
2) Any place you fly to that is notably different from your base - shorter, higher, hotter etc
3) What will be your most common missions in terms of distance and weight
4) 2 kids, third on the way?
5) As noted above, what is your acquisition budget?

Thank you all for the quick tips and suggestions. I too want this plane to be my last palne and that is why I want to take the jump to a higher performance six seat single. Here are my answers to a couple of the questions:

1) Which airport are you based at: KFFZ Falcon Field, Mesa, AZ
2) Any place you fly to that is notably different from your base - shorter, higher, hotter etc: I fly regularly to both SoCal and UT. We have a trip planned for next year to Yellow Stone in the summer.
3) What will be your most common missions in terms of distance and weight: Most common mission will be a weekend trip with the family. We have done several trips to SoCal and Utah, 200 to 600 nm. The main reason (and how I got my wife to agree to the upgrade) is to visit her parents in Washington. They live near Pasco, WA. We would be flying into KRLD, Richland, WA. So the farthest I see us traveling would be 900nm. Even though I know we can do it non stop, the kids will determine whether or not we have to make a stop in between.
4) 2 kids, third on the way?: 2 kids now, looking forward to adding 2 more.
5) As noted above, what is your acquisition budget?: Aquisition cost is under $175,000. I will not be paying cash, looking to put 20 to 30% down and finance the rest over 20 years.

In addition, I am also interested in a partner or two, but that wont be mandatory.

There is an A36TC for sale on Controller for $155,000 in AZ that I am looking at. Only problem that I can see so far is that I would be purchasing the plane and then need to spend some money to upgrade the avionics. I woul want at a minimum a 430W.

Any idea on what insurance may cost for a low time pilot such as myself. I will also have my IFR by Jan 1.

That is a looong flight over some very desolate, mountainous, MOA-ful, high MEA terrain.

I am going to be a killjoy and suggest neither a bonanza nor anything unpressurized is suitable for that mission.

Pressurization is the first issue. In casual perusing, I had a hard time finding IFR routes with MEA's below 13-14K. Some are as low as 9K, but didn't see a way to get the entire way there at non-oxygen altitudes.

You could restrict yourself VFR but that long of a trip lowish AGL, out of radio/radar range would not be a trip I'd like to take with small kids (or myself). You also have the issue of hot and bumpy afternoons since you can't finish flying that trip before it heats up.

Have you looked at a P210 or a Malibu. I sold my Malibu to 3 guys in Phoenix - might be able to buy 1/3 or 1/4 from them. P210 can certainly be had for $175. Malibu will probably be more like $200-$225.

All that said, a PBaron or Cessna 340 seems like the best fit for an upgrade premised on visiting your folks. Both available under $175 though operating expenses will be in the $500/hr range all in.

Thoughts?

Charles,

It can be done. See the attached flight plan using FlyQ (it was handy). Highest MEA is about 11K.

In addition, pilots have been flying cubs and other aircraft through the valleys all the way to Seattle from the Midwest for a long time. It just takes planning and a some training by a mountain flying instructor. It is very doable. Certain times of the year, you just need more schedule flexibility.
Pressurization makes it a lot more convenient/comfortable, but any plane which has it increases the cost very significantly.

Tim

OK - so it's doable. Still don't think it's a good fit for the mission. If it was a one-off trip, sure. But this is the defining mission for buying the plane. A 900-1000nm trip over mountains to Grandmas with 3-4 little kids. We want mom to agree to take this trip a second time.

I still say P210 or better. 4 little kids bumping around at 10,000 feet for 5 hours is not going to be fun. Not to mention trying to pack for a family of 6 in a bonanza.

That is a looong flight over some very desolate, mountainous, MOA-ful, high MEA terrain.

I am going to be a killjoy and suggest neither a bonanza nor anything unpressurized is suitable for that mission.

Pressurization is the first issue. In casual perusing, I had a hard time finding IFR routes with MEA's below 13-14K. Some are as low as 9K, but didn't see a way to get the entire way there at non-oxygen altitudes.

You could restrict yourself VFR but that long of a trip lowish AGL, out of radio/radar range would not be a trip I'd like to take with small kids (or myself). You also have the issue of hot and bumpy afternoons since you can't finish flying that trip before it heats up.

Have you looked at a P210 or a Malibu. I sold my Malibu to 3 guys in Phoenix - might be able to buy 1/3 or 1/4 from them. P210 can certainly be had for $175. Malibu will probably be more like $200-$225.

All that said, a PBaron or Cessna 340 seems like the best fit for an upgrade premised on visiting your folks. Both available under $175 though operating expenses will be in the $500/hr range all in.

Thoughts?

Welcome to BT Sheldon