achimha wrote:
Well, that 337 is never going to be sold because for 337s, the market price corresponds to the spot market price for scrap aluminium.
I never quite understood why. The 337P is not that bad a variant, basically a 210P with a 2nd engine. I remember seeing two of them in the movie of P&F on the Oskosh trip.
In Switzerland I was told they are too noisy, which could also be the reason they are not welcome in Germany and possibly Austria. But the rest of Europe?
I always felt the 337 is not a bad airplane for pilots who do not fly that much as it obviously does away with the critical behaviour of “normal” twins. But like your reaction, every time I talk about this plane people run far, fast and furious.
Just a unjustified bad rep or what is there to it?
Here is another one:
http://www.planecheck.com?ent=da&id=21461
Engines 16 hours after Overhaul (albeit 3 years ago), all EASA SID done, would need a set of 2 GTN’s to bring the avoinic up to shape (or two used GNS430W) and then it is a pretty capable aircraft?
Mooney_Driver wrote:
In Switzerland I was told they are too noisy, which could also be the reason they are not welcome in Germany and possibly Austria. But the rest of Europe?
They are incredibly noisy inside and not that roomy.
Engines 16 hours after Overhaul (albeit 3 years ago)
Quite…. 
Never buy a hangar queen. Well, not unless you are prepared to pay for a lot of stuff OR don’t mind flying a plane full of issues.
Noise is the main problem of the 337, no small airport likes them. …
If it has to be a twin, I would seriously consider Adam’s Aerostar. Great airplane!
achimha wrote:
They are incredibly noisy inside and not that roomy.
I see, inside as well? Strange for a plane with pressure cabin that it should be that bad. But that would be a reason indeed.
Flyer59 wrote:
Noise is the main problem of the 337, no small airport likes them. …
I reckon this is for Germany and Switzerland where even some gliders are considered noisy… You can´t even fly some Arrows here anymore as they are considered too noisy. But then again there are plenty of Avantis which are the worst planes short of a AN22 I have ever heard from the outside…
I never came across one live, never heard one from in or outside, not even a proper pilots report let alone a POH so I don´t know anything about its performance, I just noticed them in the said PnF movie about their Oskosh trip and thought it must be a quite capable plane.
Peter wrote:
Never buy a hangar queen. Well, not unless you are prepared to pay for a lot of stuff OR don’t mind flying a plane full of issues.
Well, any plane you want to buy should go through a thorough pre-buy anyway. But looking at the figures and seeing that at least from the paperwork you have an airplane which has
- SID done
- Engines which at least on paper have full potential and are in calendar up to 2025
- Props which have most of their potential still open and are in calendar
Basically, looking at that airplane (and I am NOT in the market) I´d say it would need two GTN´s and a very thourough engine check and could be gotten for much less money than the “asking price” but then could be one to be flown (outside the noise sensitive countries) for quite a long time without any time sensitive issues. And it is a pressurized twin.
It is indeed tight inside. Moreover, the cabin (especially in the back) is very dark, due to no rear window (obviously…) and the side windows being rather small. A fifty year old design that feels like it.
I think the Cessna O-2 is a very attractive plane though and I would prefer that over a 337. There are a few civilian flying today.
If you’re not into dropping bombs, there is another nice STC: AVE Mizar
This was the best looking version
Silvaire wasn’t this version the Cardinal adaptation, with smaller engines?
This one wins on ramp appeal grounds and is within the OP purchase budget!
http://www.ataviation.uk/inventory/beechcraft-b60-duke/
If produced today the Duke would probably retail at $2mn+. Having operated normally aspirated twins I would suggest an annual maintenance budget direct/reserve (TBO type items) of $30-50k is a reasonable working assumption. To keep the Duke to the standard it deserves (you are looking for weather/IFR/FlightLevel high despatch capability), you might need to double this.
