Fernando wrote:
circumstances around the purchase time
Same here. I was looking for an affordable reasonably fast 2+2 or 4 seater, and ended up with an Arrow (the unpopular T-tail one). It could just as easily have been an AA5B or M20E, but these are still in the same general category. I think it’s an indirect effect: personality > mission profile > aircraft choice.
My idealised mission profile is day trips with the children, ideally in rural France. No interest in doing aerobatics, gliding, turbines, homebuilding, commercial, microlights, warbirds. This probably correlates with me being self-centred and antisocial 
but could also be I’ve been conditioned by the aeroclub-type flying from my PPL days.
I just had a look at Myers-Briggs, but don’t relate to any of the profiles, which look bogus anyway.
Marketing mostly applies to new products, although there must be a trickle-down effect that certain types get a certain reputation. Main example Cirrus.
I agree mission profile is the most deciding factor for aircraft type (and opportunity / situation when purchasing is the second one). There’s (arguably) more rationality in purchasing aircrafts than cars, especially given the amounts of money involved.
Then again, the two most important personality traits are present in all mission profiles and aircraft types:
Maybe owners of doctor-killers or of Cirri care a little less for the competence (just want to get places) and have too little self-doubt (success in life etc.), but I would be surprised if it’s actually measurable.
Didn’t take long 🤪
Capitaine wrote:
I just had a look at Myers-Briggs, but don’t relate to any of the profiles, which look bogus anyway.
Myers-Briggs is totally bogus. No evidence whatsoever and based on Jung’s theories which themselves are dubious (to put it kindly). Two particular problems with MBTI are that 1) Each of the dimensions are binary and not a scale which is obviously not a reasonable way of describing personalities and 2) the same person can get substantially different results on retaking a Myers-Briggs test.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_aviators
Not on the list? Then you’re just a pilot, like me 😌
Even if it were true that there would be a correlation between personality types and aircraft types, the non-availability of money clouds the issue.
Yup, a light aircraft can be anywhere between 20k and 7M…
maxbc wrote:
Maybe owners of doctor-killers or of Cirri care a little less for the competence (just want to get places) and have too little self-doubt (success in life etc.), but I would be surprised if it’s actually measurable.
I must be suffering from a personality disorder…. 
While I like to think my old 90 HP no gyros, no electric, Super Cub suited my personality (grew up in the boonies in a one horse town), the Piper tailed Bonanza is quite benign, but is a by the numbers airplane. The Super Cub wasn’t too far from a one number suits all, although arguably two numbers, 55-60 mph IAS, and 80 mph IAS :)
RobertL18C wrote:
The Super Cub wasn’t too far from a one number suits all, although
When I change personality and fly my motorglider, I use the same numbers as my Bonanza only in km/hr. ..the landing is much more challenging in the Xi though……fuel burn is the same gallons versus liters…;-) funny in a way
