Il giorno domenica 14 marzo 2021 alle 15:20:23 UTC+1 ha scritto:
I am considering a Pipistrel Apis 15m with the Hirth engine. My searches of RAS have not uncovered much discussion of this glider.

I'm interested in the good, the bad, and the ugly (especially the ugly) of this ship so I can make an informed decision about it.

This ship would definitely be a "floater" as the max wingloading is 5.4 lb/ft2.

My background: I co-own a DG-101 (which I love) but cannot fly nearly as often as I would like due to distance to the soaring club. I am transitioning from the "staying up around the gliderport" stage to cross country pilot.. Still quite inexperienced and am looking for a forgiving ship with simple engine operation. At the same time, I'd rather not buy something that I will quickly outgrow, and I want to fly more than I want to turn wrenches.

Other ships I am considering:
DG-400
Silent-IN

-Matt


Matt, I do not know the Apis, but I know something of the Hirth engine, being it almost identical to my Silent IN Zanzottera engine. I would say that you will definitively have to "turn wrenches", with both of them.. They do show some technical problems, and they are not in production any more, though they produce a copy of the Zanzottera in China. So, it's hard to find spare parts and it's hard to find a techician willing to learn how to work on them. Of course, if you want to dedicate time and efforts on the engine, in some way you will have it running, but forget to just call the mechanic when you have a problem. It will always be a challenge. For this reason, after 10 years, I am resolving myself to modify my Silent with an expensive electric powertrain.
Talking abouth the handling: Again, I do not know the Apis, but the Silent IN is lovely. Manouverable and forgiving at the same time, a pleasure to fly. Of course, if you look at performances, its 12 meter wing gives it a glide ratio of 31 at 49 Kts. Apis and DG 400 are better than that, of course.

Alfredo