DA-42

[Roger, Roger]

Alright CFIs-

Anyone else instructing in the DA-42?
If so, are your Thielerts getting close to TBR?
What is your management planning to do when that happens?

We are supposedly looking at putting Lycomings on. The 33% horsepower increase at sea level is pretty sweet. However, from working on those planes and seeing the innards it looks like a major project to a) put 6 (count 'em, 6) levers in the center console of that machine and b) run cables all the way out to the engines. There's not much room underneath the seats. That conversion could take a while.

I'm interested to hear if anyone else is in this situation and what they're doing about it.

 

[Maurus]

I would assume most flight schools didn't buy it because of the 1000 hour TBOs on the engines. We got a new DA40XL instead of a DA-42 for that reason here.

 

[Roger, Roger]

Well, when you need a multi...

Also, the engines are a 1200 hr TBR, with a complicated program that basically came down to the first replacement being paid for in the initial aircraft purchase. Unfortunately that program was canceled with Thielert's bankruptcy and at 1200 hrs. we would be stuck paying full retail for new engines.

 

[surreal1221]

No idea what my previous employer is doing. We (they) have 5 -42s in the fleet, and at the time, and as far as I know, it was (is) our (their) only multi-engine aicraft that was really being utilized.

We did pick up an old school Baron a few months before I left, but it never really flew. Had a lot of work that needed to be done.

 

[ILS37R]

Alright CFIs-

Anyone else instructing in the DA-42?
If so, are your Thielerts getting close to TBR?
What is your management planning to do when that happens?

We are supposedly looking at putting Lycomings on. The 33% horsepower increase at sea level is pretty sweet. However, from working on those planes and seeing the innards it looks like a major project to a) put 6 (count 'em, 6) levers in the center console of that machine and b) run cables all the way out to the engines. There's not much room underneath the seats. That conversion could take a while.

I'm interested to hear if anyone else is in this situation and what they're doing about it.

We have a DA-42 and a Seneca. The Twin Star is (and since early summer has been) grounded; I think it has about three more hours in it before the clutch overhaul. There's a rumor going around the school that the owner was able to get a good deal on the requisite parts and we may get it back upish soon, but that would still only be a temporary fix. Long-term we're in wait-and-see mode. Thankfully (or not, for those of us who have to fly it), we do have the crusty, old Seneca I to train in.

Our hope is that Diamond gets their new engine certified and into manufacturing, what with its similar economy and 40 more bhp per, but who knows how long that will take.

Alternatively, I know there was another school in Florida that simply raised their hourly rate on their Twin Stars by $400. Ouch.

 

[PilotBeckfizzle]

Our DA-42 is back in service after the dreaded gearbox replacments. I think our hundred hour was in the $35,000 dollar range to do this.

 

[Roger, Roger]

Yeah, that sounds about right. I was hearing in the range of 15,000 per gearbox. You know, there is a reason Lycoming engines are still basically the same-it's because that design friggin' WORKS for airplane engines. Thielert's 300 hr gearboxes were never efficient and are now completely impractical.