Does anyone have any actual experience with taking a NA SR20, M20C/J or any comparable NA 200 hp airplane up to those altitudes? What are the climb rates typically observed above 12000 feet?
FWIW, I have been to FL140 in the ST10 (IO-360-C1B) at approx. 100 kg below gross weight and still had a climb rate of approx. 400 fpm. Conditions were about ISA+10. POH service ceiling is 16.400 feet.
I have been flying the SR20 but don’t like the performance. I of course preferred flying the SR22T with Garmin Perspective, Infrared Camera, FIKI, Turbo engine :-)
Here a video from quite some time ago where I did a short flight in the SR22T from Rotterdam to Lille with my wife. It really is a great aircraft. And my wife did twice a partner-in-command course on how to deploy the chute in case of.
Aviathor wrote:
Does anyone have any actual experience with taking a NA SR20, M20C/J or any comparable NA 200 hp airplane up to those altitudes? What are the climb rates typically observed above 12000 feet? How much fuel do you burn in the climb? How does ATC like those climb rates (IFR)?
I´ve had the M20C at FL170 at ISA +20°C and out of an MTOW departure. Climb rate to 15000 ft was normal according to POH, thereafter about 300 fpm. Climb time was about 35 minutes, fuel used roughly 5.5 USG.
FL170 at this temp corresponds to a DA of around 22´000 ft.
As it was VFR ATC hat not much to do with it, but as it is a cruise climb, I don´t think theý´d have a problem.
DMEarc wrote:
In my view, the SR20 has a max ‘reliable’ altitude of FL100. FL120 is a serious struggle. I’d be interested other opinions but there is a power deficiency in and around these altitudes.
That is really surprising given the numbers in the POH. In which conditions did you fly it, is that something which you’d say is generally true or subject to ISA deviations? If the SR20 is that deficient that it comes 4000 ft short of POH values, never mind their claim of maximum operating altitude of 17000 ft which would make it a whopping 7000 ft, I reckon something should be done about it.
So far I have never encountered an airplane which was that deficient. I had my old Cessna 150 up at FL130 once, I recall taking the club Archer I had to fly for a while up to 15000 ft easily with max load, I do recall some Seneca I flights at FL160. And as I said, my 50 year old 180 hp M20C does 17’000 ft without any problem.
Mooney_Driver wrote:
And as I said, my 50 year old 180 hp M20C does 17’000 ft without any problem.
I remember flying a M20C, but newer than yours because it had electric flaps and gear, (1969?) from the Oslo Fornebu airport (sea level) at max gross on a warm day (for Norway). At 500’ I thought I would not get any higher. I slowly lowered the nose, gained speed and then inched it up to something like 8500 feet… Scary.
So I am impressed you will get up to FL170 that easily.
AeroPlus wrote:
a partner-in-command course
Beautiful!
Since I don’t have oxygen, I usually fly at FL90 – FL100. That seems to be a good altitude for the SR20.
FL130 is no problem though:
Thanks for the pic. 139kt TAS at 56% power if I see it correctly at FL130, and do I see it correctly, 8.6 GPH?
Would be almost 100% the POH value. (141 kt/8.4 GPH @ 55%)
139kt TAS at 56% power if I see it correctly at FL130, and do I see it correctly, 8.6 GPH
FWIW that is about the same as a TB20 i.e. there is no free lunch anywhere 
Except the TB20 will go to FL200 at ISA and MTOW, and I cannot understand why the SR20 should not. Even a PA28-181 will go to FL140.
Forget taking the SR20 to e.g. FL170 in summer time. Maybe if you wait a long time, it will work out, but in general in summer time you max out at around FL130. In the winter time you probably could climb higher. I don’t think FL170 or anything in that range is a “normal” flying range for the SR20 although it is a normal range for the SR22T as I flew the SR22 Turbo by default somewhere around FL180 if I had no passengers in the back.
I found this video of me flying the SR20 some years ago. Sorry for the slow ATC and I even turn on the engine with the avionics on :-(, but you can see that it takes forever to climb out to FL100 in the SR20. It will get there eventually and at that time I thought the aircraft was great and if you don’t compare it to the SR22 it really is. The Avidyne system is great as well. Not as great as the Garmin Perspective, but it gives you the information right there. The STEC 55 AP is doing its job, but not that great as the newer AP like the DFC 90.
