quote:

Originally posted by V-Tail:
I have never seen, nor heard of, a Sundowner model manufactured by Piper.

Thanks V-Tail, you reminded me of a difference I had forgotten.

It isn’t a big deal and the OP’s daughter will adjust quickly, but the types differ a little bit in how they stop flying. As an analogy, if it could talk the 172 might say, “I’m going to stop flying here soon. … No really, I know I’m just sagging a little, but I am going to stop flying, …”. The Archer might say, “Yeah we’re in ground effect, but we’re bleeding off speed and we’ll be settling soon.”

What brought this to mind was your picture which reminded me of the Beech Sport a friend had for a bit and wanted me to fly with him very shortly after I got my private pilot certificate. We went out and did some slow flight then came back and did a couple landings. He was amazed that I made two good landings in it (most who flew it, including him, didn’t) before in a most uncharacteristic moment of wisdom calling it and taxiing in. It was all luck, just being very close to the ground when the airplane abruptly quit flying. At least for that specific Sport, if it could have spoken it would have said, “**** you, I quit.”

The transition from flying to not flying is a little quicker in the Piper Cherokee family than in the Cessna 172, but nothing at all like at least that one Beech Sport.