Surprise: All high-wing Cessnas are not created equal! While it may be tempting to simply meet your CFI, chat about the new aircraft, then fly a few patterns, it is not enough. Maybe we can learn a thing or two from these pros as we transition to heavier, faster and more capable airplanes? First, Get In The POH! They routinely size up a new aircraft and successfully fly them the first time. However, in the absence of a formalized program, how might a new pilot make the leap from a 100-knot two-seat trainer to a technically advanced, sophisticated cross-country machine? Our test pilot friends might provide some tips. These abbreviated training encounters gave rise to the saying, вЂњturn on the shiny switches, donвЂ™t touch the rusty ones, and grab the red or yellow handles in an emergency.вЂќ Flash forward to today, and these types of experiences, some good and some not so good, led to the excellent formalized aircraft type rating training programs we see today in commercial and military aviation.

During World War II, the WomenвЂ™s Air Service Pilots (WASP) and the RAF Ferry Command pilots made an artform out of transitioning from bomber to fighter to transport with little more than a set of pass-on notes and a quick cockpit familiarization.

Copa cirrus