best piston aircraft for single pilot ifr...

firedawg1513

firedawg1513

Member
i'm sure this question has probably been posted dozens of times so i'll apollogize ahead of time, but what is the best (generally safest) piston aircraft for single pilot ifr? thanks in advance, i appreciate the insight....:cool:
 
A G1000 equipped 172 with a nice autopilot sure makes it easy...not necessarily the best though. It depends on what your definition of best is.
 
probably safest and easiest to handle. i like 172's, but a g1000 will be out of my reach for awhile. thanks for the response
 
It's all mission specific, however if you're looking to travel a couple hundred miles on the weekends, and still want to keep the costs down, IMO you can't really beat an Archer. Enough power to get out of its own way, low MX costs compared to other singles, quicker than a Skyhawk and just as efficient. An Archer with a decent panel, and autopilot is a great IFR platform.
 
firedawg1513 said:
i'm sure this question has probably been posted dozens of times so i'll apollogize ahead of time, but what is the best (generally safest) piston aircraft for single pilot ifr? thanks in advance, i appreciate the insight....:cool:
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Well, since you didn't specify a budget limitation...

Piper Malibu Mirage. :)
 
that would be awesome. maybe when i hit the lottery or have a long lost aunt whom i've never met pass away and leave me the mineral rights to her oil fields. one can always hope lol...
 
Really any of the popular singles from Cessna or Piper will work well. Having a good auto pilot and a decent GPS is probably the 2 most important things to consider when flying SPIFR. A glass panel would be nice but it usually out of the question for folks on a budget.
 
R Banger said:
This. You are betting it all flying hard ifr single pilot with one engine.
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Eh, sounds like he's asking about a personal plane. My observation is that people who buy twins for that mission often find that they can't afford to fly them very often, and when they do something is always breaking. My educated guess is that lack of proficiency kills a lot more people than engine failures do, so given the choice I'd rather spend the money on gas than acquiring and maintaining a second engine.
 
SteveC said:
The odds of losing the engine are very low. Some people find that an acceptable level of risk, others don't.
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Agreed but icing is the one variable that still gives me some nerves. Had a partial power loss on one engine from induction icing and only got worse as I tried to remedy it, ended up having to divert. Were I in a single it would have been a bad day. In a twin I still had to pull the seat out of my butt after the flight. :panic:
 
it's for personal travel. i prefer piper brand in general, however i love how cessna's glide for days.... just wondering other's thoughts. just wanna remain around to save other peoples asses and not have mine saved. or picked up in charcoaled pieces anyway :)
 
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