Because some people here have compared the RV-12 and the RANS S-19, I thought there might be some interest in my demo flight in the S-19 last Saturday. I'm a brand new private pilot, less than a week since getting my certificate, and all my hours are in the Diamond DA20-C1. Last Friday and Saturday there was a RANS fly-in at a little private airport about 40 minutes drive from my house (near Provo, UT). So I went.
I hoped but didn't expect to see the S-19 or Randy Schlitter (the S-19's designer), but they were both there. They'd brought two planes (the S-19 and an S-7) from the plant at Hays, Kansas, about 600 nm. I asked about flying over the Colorado Rocky Mountains, but from the way they responded, I guess it wasn't even an issue to think about.
As new pilot I just watched things the first day (and chatted with people). But the second day Randy was just taxiing in as I drove up and got out of my car. So I asked how one got in line for a demo ride. Well, the line was short; I was next!
Unfortunately, I forgot to start my GPS before I got in, so I don't have a log of the initial climb, but I do have a log for everything else. The ride was about 20 minutes long. Even thought I told him I was a brand new pilot, he had me fly pretty much everything. We climbed out (from 4800 to 7000 MSL), did a normal cruise, some steep turns, slow flight, power-off stall, economy cruise, and then came in to land. Overall, I'd say this plane is lighter and a bit more responsive than the the DA20 I've been flying, but with quite similar performance. The stall was less of an event than the DA20 - a bit of nose drop, but pretty much straight ahead. The plane trims up nicely and flies straight hands-off. All of the DA20's I fly have some kind of tab on the rudder and some have it on one wing to facilate straight and level flight, but there were none on the S-19.
It really is a delightful plane. It's very pretty and quite seems to have a very high level of "fit and finish". I found it very nice and easy to fly. The controls seemed well balanced. I used almost no rudder, but it seemed like I didn't need to. The visibilty is wonderful. It's seems quite roomy - more so than the DA20. I watched many engine starts, and it always seemed to start in an instant - not like the Continental in the DA20, which takes a few turns before it catches. The engine also seemed smoother and quieter than the DA20, but I wasn't using my normal headset, so I'm not sure about that.
My logs showed about 125 kts cruise with a tailwind, and 90+ with a headwind (at 7000 MSL). That matches pretty well the 110 kts Randy reports that they're seeing so far.
I flew quite a tame flight, but I watched several other flights. I saw this plane do loops and rolls and much more agressive flying than I did (or would want to do yet). Needless to say I came away quite impressed.
I took quite a few pictures, and if there's an interest, I'll try to figure out how to post them.
The kits are supposed to cost about $43,000 including engine. They're supposed to start shipping this week but they've already sold lots of kits - three are coming to the airport where we had the fly-in. The waiting list is currently 7 or 8 months. Randy said that you ought to be able to finish a plane for about $50,000. They expect about 1000 hours build time. And they're also working on a finished factory-built plane for about $110,000.
A one point Randy commented that if he was building and flying the S-19 here in Utah, he'd build it with the Rotax 914 engine instead of the 912. He said he'd expect it to get 170 MPH (I think he said MPH, not knots) at altitude, and still burn the same or less fuel than the 912. I asked if that wouldn't disqualifiy it as light sport. And he said something about the light sport limits testing being done at sea level, not altitude. Perhaps I didn't understand everying, but it's interesting.
I hoped but didn't expect to see the S-19 or Randy Schlitter (the S-19's designer), but they were both there. They'd brought two planes (the S-19 and an S-7) from the plant at Hays, Kansas, about 600 nm. I asked about flying over the Colorado Rocky Mountains, but from the way they responded, I guess it wasn't even an issue to think about.
As new pilot I just watched things the first day (and chatted with people). But the second day Randy was just taxiing in as I drove up and got out of my car. So I asked how one got in line for a demo ride. Well, the line was short; I was next!
Unfortunately, I forgot to start my GPS before I got in, so I don't have a log of the initial climb, but I do have a log for everything else. The ride was about 20 minutes long. Even thought I told him I was a brand new pilot, he had me fly pretty much everything. We climbed out (from 4800 to 7000 MSL), did a normal cruise, some steep turns, slow flight, power-off stall, economy cruise, and then came in to land. Overall, I'd say this plane is lighter and a bit more responsive than the the DA20 I've been flying, but with quite similar performance. The stall was less of an event than the DA20 - a bit of nose drop, but pretty much straight ahead. The plane trims up nicely and flies straight hands-off. All of the DA20's I fly have some kind of tab on the rudder and some have it on one wing to facilate straight and level flight, but there were none on the S-19.
It really is a delightful plane. It's very pretty and quite seems to have a very high level of "fit and finish". I found it very nice and easy to fly. The controls seemed well balanced. I used almost no rudder, but it seemed like I didn't need to. The visibilty is wonderful. It's seems quite roomy - more so than the DA20. I watched many engine starts, and it always seemed to start in an instant - not like the Continental in the DA20, which takes a few turns before it catches. The engine also seemed smoother and quieter than the DA20, but I wasn't using my normal headset, so I'm not sure about that.
My logs showed about 125 kts cruise with a tailwind, and 90+ with a headwind (at 7000 MSL). That matches pretty well the 110 kts Randy reports that they're seeing so far.
I flew quite a tame flight, but I watched several other flights. I saw this plane do loops and rolls and much more agressive flying than I did (or would want to do yet). Needless to say I came away quite impressed.
I took quite a few pictures, and if there's an interest, I'll try to figure out how to post them.
The kits are supposed to cost about $43,000 including engine. They're supposed to start shipping this week but they've already sold lots of kits - three are coming to the airport where we had the fly-in. The waiting list is currently 7 or 8 months. Randy said that you ought to be able to finish a plane for about $50,000. They expect about 1000 hours build time. And they're also working on a finished factory-built plane for about $110,000.
A one point Randy commented that if he was building and flying the S-19 here in Utah, he'd build it with the Rotax 914 engine instead of the 912. He said he'd expect it to get 170 MPH (I think he said MPH, not knots) at altitude, and still burn the same or less fuel than the 912. I asked if that wouldn't disqualifiy it as light sport. And he said something about the light sport limits testing being done at sea level, not altitude. Perhaps I didn't understand everying, but it's interesting.
(praying for it, anyway...)
