Turbo is not only good for climbing/cruise but it also has advantages on take off (of course). Think of a grass runway with an upslope in summer…
with free coffee and croissants last Saturday morning. 
On such a runway, the slope is our “turbo”, but there are others (shorter, higher, with obstacles) where a turbo, or turbine, would help the poor old Maule on climb out.
In the US, there are many more airfields with higher altitudes and temperatures. That might be an aspect as well in this discussion. Europe’s highest is Samedan, 5.600ft, the US have places like Grand Canyon National at 7.600 which are also hot. There, you better have a turbo. Over here in Europe, you can do without…
EuroFlyer wrote:
Over here in Europe, you can do without…
What??? Think of all the 600 m grassfields? You’d miss out >50%.
I can understand a turbo helping with density altitude, but not in turning a normally aspirated aircraft into a better STOL performance.
I haven’t decided what my next aircraft will be in terms of whether I want another IFR tourer or whether I want an LSA or ULM and just fly around the south of France….. but if I want another IFR tourer it will most definitely have a turbo charger…for the same reason as @Pytlak et al…making ca. 200fpm at 10k’ is the pits…
Well, a C172 will be doing 200fpm at 10k; sure Probably more actually since a PA28-181 gets to 14k.
RobertL18C wrote:
I can understand a turbo helping with density altitude
That was the only point I wanted to make. And we all know, that density altitude is not all about altitude.
600m grass is quite common e.g. in Germany or France and a slope not unusual either. As is a temperature of >25°C in summer. That is when I’m not keen on praying, if I can clear obstacles at the end of the RWY at MTOM.
Peter wrote:
Well, a C172 will be doing 200fpm at 10k; sure
No
Peter wrote:
Well, a C172 will be doing 200fpm at 10k; sure Probably more actually since a PA28-181 gets to 14k.
Well an M20J is rated to 18.2k’ but fully loaded out of say Cannes on a summer’s day.. 2-300fpm is about all you see at 10k’….not fun.
Edit: for reference at 10k’ ISA conditions at MGW the POH climb rate is 500fpm dropping to 450fpm at ISA+15….so maybe I’m doing something wrong…But even by the book the RoC drops by 125-150fpm in the next 2000’
ISA plus or minus makes a big difference. I have seen 300fpm at FL200, in ISA minus 17. It would have gone to FL230 or so. And I have seen FL175 as the absolute max, in ISA plus 15, at MTOW.
