AOPA review of 200 hp Aviat Husky

[kwmoore]

...pp. 60-65 of the January 2007 issue.

Two seats
Full fuel payload 380 lb
Takeoff roll 265 feet
ROC 1700 fpm
125 kt cruise
Vso 46 kt
Landing distance 398 feet
$212K, not all that well equipped (VFR, no gyros)

Huh?

For about the same cost (comparably or better equipped), one can get a Katmai:

Four seats
Full fuel payload 600+ lb (and more room for stuff)
Takeoff roll 310 feet
ROC 1600-1700 fpm
130-150+ kt cruise
Vso 31 kt
Landing distance <400 feet

And, you don't have to pry it off your butt with a crowbar after a 3 hr flight.

Granted, Huskies are fine airplanes with a good reputation, but where's the value proposition here?

It's the Yellow paint, it makes it look like a bush plane. Someone should build a Katmai in that Yellow with Black numbers, it would look great.

The benefit of the husky - and no one prefers the 200hp over the 180hp unless operating at high density altitudes - is that it is a much better back country and float plane.

First, tail wheel vs nose wheel is obvious. Then the size. And of floats, which the 182 can't do without work and an stc, the Husky does really well.

But your broader point is that for airport landings - where none are so short that the difference matters - the 260 or 182 are more practical, etc. which I think most will agree with. And on the hard surface, the nosehweel is an advantage.

While I have always been a Super Cub guy I think the Husky is a great airplane. The Husky would be a superior airplane for cross country work compared to the Cub but for getting in and out short my money is still on a Cub everytime.

I have found some benifits to flying a tri gear airplane in the bush in a couple of areas. The first is soft sand. Having three big tires to distribute out the load works better than two. Short strips with heavy cross winds also find favor with the tri gear. Extremely narrow strips favor the tri gear and its improved visibility and ground handling. I also find I can negoiate sharp curves in narrow strips better with the tri gear. Flaring for a landing with one wheel on the ground, while coming out of a steep turn, also works consistantly well with the tri gear. One of the biggest advantages of the Katmai is the eight foot long cargo area, a flat floor and a 1100 lb useful load. In addition speed, cross country comfort, having an IFR capable platform and a really, really good heater for winter flying are all positives. Now various companies offer floats as an option which is an improvement as well. As many of have you have seen the Katmai is also capable of being down and stopped in 150 feet. Under the conditions I had at the time I think it was shorter than the Husky could have done but not as good as a Cub.

With all that said if I were operating off 300 foot sand bars in the middle of a river with really big rocks all over the place I would undoubtably take the Cub. Unfortuantately everything else suffers, including you butt, when you need to go someplace or haul a load.

We had a customer in not too long ago that had taken a demo flight in a Husky and if memory serves me correctly, he said the price of the Husky he flew in was just over $250,000. A good airplane but definitely not inexpensive.