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On 5/20/2003 7:13:23 AM autofixer wrote:
Thanks Leftrudder. I will be flying over mountainous terrain at night in the weather.
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Make sure you consider the single engine performance. That is a lumpy section of the country. Some of the ultralight twins (Duchess,Twin Comanche, Seminole, etc) wont give you many options with one caged in high terrain.
From personal experience the 260 horse 310''s can be a little weak on one also (When heavy)
Its hard to beat a Baron, but it in no way falls under the catagory of "Economical" I do know for a fact that it flies very well on one engine, even heavy.
If it were me I would look at the Baron 55 E models (The big engine model) or the 58 baron. If they are too pricey look for a Q or R model 310 with the 285 horse engines or better. (Q model came with 260''s or 285''s from the factory)
If you are not going to be at gross weight across that route the b-55 baron with the 260''s or a Seneca 2 or 3 probably will satisfy your speed needs with a measure of single engine performance for the high terrain.
The ultralight twins, speeds run around the 150 to 160 kt range. (Duchess, Comanche, Seminole etc)
310''s and the barons will get you 175 to 200 kts depending on model.
Prior to the airlines I spent a good bit of time as a freight dog. Flew most of the popular light twins out there. At night, IFR, with one failed, my choice would be a Baron every time. Not the cheapest by any means but you can see where the extra money went. It flies more like a much larger airplane while on the gauges, and the fit, finish, and construction is way above Cessna and Piper products.
Hope this helps.
"Another USAir orphan."