Cessna 162 Skycatcher

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cessna_162_Skycatcher

The Cessna 162 Skycatcher is an American side-by-side two-seat, high-wing,
strut-braced, tricycle gear light-sport aircraft (LSA) that was designed and
produced by Cessna between December 2009 and December 2013. It was the most
recently introduced aircraft in the company's general aviation product line; its
intended market was flight training and personal use.

The Skycatcher received its ASTM LSA approval in July 2009.

At one time 1200 of the aircraft had been ordered. In October 2013 Cessna CEO
Scott Ernest stated that the Skycatcher had "no future" and in late January 2014
Cessna told its dealers to stop offering the 162. On 11 February 2014, Cessna
removed all marketing for the Skycatcher from their official website. A total of
192 aircraft were sold and the remaining 80 unsold aircraft were used for parts
until December 2016 when the balance were scrapped.

On 9 August 2007 Cessna Aircraft announced that they had orders for 720
Skycatchers totaling US$75M. By 24 November 2007 Cessna had 850 firm orders and
by the end of 2008 the company had confirmed over 1,000 orders. In July 2009,
orders were still reported at "over 1,000." Cessna vice president of propeller
aircraft sales John Doman said sales activity had been slow because customers
did not want to wait approximately four years for a delivery slot. In December
2009 the company delivered the first production Skycatcher to its initial
customer, Cessna CEO Jack Pelton's wife, Rose Pelton. The company intended that
the 2010 production rate would be 300 to 400 a year, but only 30 aircraft were
delivered in 2010. By late 2013 "droves" of position holders had canceled their
orders due to price increases and failure of the design to meet expectations.

In October 2013 at the National Business Aviation Association convention Cessna
CEO Scott Ernest stated that the Cessna 162 had "no future". Cessna Vice
President, Piston Aircraft, Jodi Noah, indicated that the aircraft had not met
expectations.

In February 2014 sales were halted. In December 2016 the remaining 80 unsold
162s were scrapped. These had been used to provide parts to keep the flying
fleet going.

In analyzing the imminent end of Skycatcher production Paul Bertorelli of AVweb
indicated that the reasons for ending production were high price, poor useful
load and lackluster flight performance compared to its LSA market competitors.

In a February 2017 review of the aircraft's history, AVweb writer Geoff Rapoport
blamed the aircraft's failure on an empty weight that was too high, fragile
construction and lack of cockpit space for taller pilots. He stated, "the
Skycatcher can’t keep up because it wasn’t really designed as an LSA. It’s a
scaled-down Cessna 152, which is a scaled-down Cessna 172, which is a
scaled-down 747. I hope I’m not bursting anyone’s bubble by pointing out that
Cessna is not exactly a modern innovator in design of light aircraft." He
concluded, "is this all the proof we need that LSAs make for bad airplanes?
Well, maybe it’s just proof that the Skycatcher was a bad airplane."


Role
Personal use and flight training aircraft

Manufacturer
Cessna

First flight
13 October 2006 (concept aircraft)
8 March 2008 (conforming prototype)

Status
Production completed (2013)

Produced
December 2009 – December 2013

Number built
275 (December 2013)

Unit cost

US$149,000

As of June 2018 there were 191 Skycatchers remaining on the US Federal Aviation
Administration registry.

Specifications

General characteristics
Crew: one pilot
Capacity: one passenger
Length: 22.8 ft (6.95 m)
Wingspan: 30.0 ft (9.14 m)
Height: 8.53 ft (2.53 m)
Wing area: 120 ft² (11.14 m²)
Empty weight: 830 lb (376.5 kg)
Useful load: 490 lb (222.3 kg)
Max. takeoff weight: 1,320 lb (598.7 kg)
Powerplant: 1 × Continental O-200D flat-four engine, 100 hp (74.6 kW)

Performance
Maximum speed: 118 knots (218 km/h (136 mph))
Cruise speed: 112 knots (207 km/h (129 mph))
Range: 470 nm (870 km (540 smi.)) at 6,000 ft (1830 m)
Service ceiling: 15,500 ft (4727 m)
Rate of climb: 890 ft/min (4.52 m/s)
Wing loading: 11.0 lb/ft² (55.0 kg/m²)
Power/mass: 13.2 lb/hp (8.04 kg/kW)




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