Cessna Aircraft Company said on March 25 that it is fully committed to its Model 162 SkyCatcher program, despite two prototypes lost during the flight test program.
“The need for a modern, cost-effective two-seat trainer aircraft has never been greater, and we believe we are well positioned to meet that need,” said Cessna’s chairman, president and CEO, Jack J. Pelton. “The SkyCatcher program is an important part of our strategy.”
In the most recent incident, on March 19, Pelton said the aircraft was undergoing a very aggressive spin test regime – power on and cross-controlled – when it entered a spin that was not immediately recoverable. That spin test was one of more than 500 flown to date, he said, using various combinations of center-of-gravity positions, power settings, flap settings and control inputs. The pilot deployed the airframe parachute in accordance with the flight test procedure and emerged from the aircraft unhurt after it touched down. Last September, an earlier test aircraft was destroyed when the pilot parachuted to safety after being unable to recover during aggressive spin testing.
“We are making every effort to minimize the impact on deliveries to our customers,” Pelton said.
“We test all our aircraft well beyond the limits of what is expected in normal operation. By the time a Cessna aircraft enters service we have the highest degree of confidence in the design, flight characteristics, manufacture and quality of the aircraft,” Pelton said, adding that company engineers have obtained valuable data on the crashworthiness of the aircraft and the operation of the Ballistic Recovery System (BRS) airframe parachute as a result of the two incidents. The BRS is offered as an option on the SkyCatcher.
The SkyCatcher is a two-seat Light Sport Aircraft powered by a 100 horsepower Continental O-200 engine. The program was launched in 2007.
What floats do you recommend for the C-162? Have you tested any and if so, which ones did you like best? Which ones did you not like and why?
I haven’t been following this test program and didn’t know the plane wasn’t ready for market. I thought there was a large backlog of orders. Cessna always has desplays of this aircraft at all the air shows I attend. I’m glad these thing happen in the test procedures and not when I’m in the aircraft. We sport pilots need this aircraft.