Interview with a Pipistrel Panthera

[@jasongates5576]

Amazing plane, Irsh and the Panthera came to our airport recently with a perspective new owner, and we will have the privilege of maintaining his when it arrives.

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

It's a great plane

[@ph5915]

This is such a modern, beautiful-looking airplane, ever since I saw the 1st mock-up I was Wow'd. In general, I have admired all of Pipestrel's sleek and efficient designs! Thanks Mark!

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@PARTner91]

With Textron’s recent purchase of Pipistrel, I’m afraid this beautiful and innovative aircraft will fall by the wayside. Thanks, Mark, for sharing this one … she’s a beauty.

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

Totally agree

[@2005CessnaPilot]

Like Columbia. They'll probably bury it. Thank god there are Czech/Slov manufacturers that are challenging the status quo. A Cirrus selling for $900K? Experimental AC are the ones that can save Private Aviation. The 60's-70's pilots are aging out and losing their medicals. Just spoke with a 81 y.o. pilot that sold his Cherokee 6 after losing his medical. We need more Young Blood in General Aviation.

[@matte1402]

Saw this thing at Osh this year, and it's stunning. Surprisingly it doesn't sound like Textron is killing it. One more year of Experimental then they said they were getting certified. Cirrus money though.

[@patrickroher4760]

Beautiful, just beautiful.

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

Thank you very much, but what did you think of the plane?

[@stevecorry2118]

This is a very beautiful aircraft. I missed its horsepower and performance numbers.

[@chriskiwi2601]

WOW. What a great toy. Beautiful looking plane. Not cheap but I guess you get what you pay for.👍🏻

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

Totally agree

[@mr.ginnationfunlifestyle3891]

Hopefully Cessna learned their lessons with the controlled fail of the TTx and they don’t screw up this one. This plane got big chances in the market with some small optimized things. Even with Cessna in the background, if the management doesn’t do the same mistakes again.

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

I hope it survives. The Cirrus always needed to be a retract.

[@ronboe6325]

Windscreen and panel reminds me of an SST. :^)

[@golfnovember]

With Textron buying Pipistrel, I’m concerned that this design will go away. Same thing happened with the Columbia line.

[@amgguy4319]

Luv Luv Luv it!

[@speedomars]

This is a no-go product in the USA. It has retractable gear and is not certified (yet). Textron bought Pipistrel for the electric technology and will likely send this plane into the dust-bin with the Cessna TTx.

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

Which is a great pity.

[@andrewbeldin659]

Correct.

[@tjcrocker443]

Nice video, love the Panthera. You should try to get your hands on a Pipistrel Virus, would make a cool video.

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

Did you see the Pipistel Virus in the background of this video? We are going to do a video on it quite soon.

[@tjcrocker443]

@@skywagonuniversity5023I see it, it's a tail dragger. perfect, looking forward to the video.

[@AJpro88]

this thing looks sick!

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

It is.

[@1225drob]

I have also been a huge fan of this plane since Pipistrel was test flying it. I’m hoping Cessna does not shelf the product , but actually refines it to compete with Cirrus! I would rather have one of these for the price difference!

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

I'd have this over a Cirrus if I had to choose.

[@FamilyManMoving]

Textron/Cessna wanted to sell the TTX but never got over their mistake of moving the composite layup from the US to Mexico. I think the southern factory ended up being shut down (temporarily decertified) by the FAA due to delamination caused by the humid tropical air during the infusing process. By the time they figured it out, they were in too deep. Plus the old factory was gone, and the workers with it. My understanding is the Pipistrel sale requires that the original factory and workers remain, though Cessna can open other plants. I heard (not sure if this is rumor) that the sale also required Textron to keep producing the planes. Textron obviously wanted the hybrid/electric tech, but maybe they will actually sell the original, too? We can only hope. I'd buy a certificated version if it were available. I'll be in OshKosh. Maybe we'll find out this summer.

[@altergreenhorn]

According to the founder and previous owner of Pipistrel the deal was to keep current locations RD in Slovenia and factory in Italy both places are less than 20 miles apart btw also to employ some additional workforce on those locations. But Textron may build another factory for the US customers as well.

[@FamilyManMoving]

@@altergreenhorn Not sure if we'll get any answers from Textron, but I'll ask them tomorrow when I am in OshKosh. I think they are aiming for certificated versions next year, if rumors are correct. So 2025 if we are doing "aviation marketing math".

[@furball5553]

Wow skywagon that is a cool bird just wondering why when Mark takes off he calls out before left off this time they didn't super cool skywagon university thanks for that one 👍✌️

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

I'm not sure what you mean....

[@furball5553]

@@skywagonuniversity5023 before you take off mark always says the tail number and then says placerville this pilot didn't say a word jumped right in just wondering what the difference was learning a lot skywagon university thanks 👍✌️

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

@@furball5553 It's a private airport so he just didn't bother saying it. I always do because if I don't someone will pick me up on KZbin. There is no mercy.

[@furball5553]

@@skywagonuniversity5023oh lol you tuber's 👍✌️

[@leeway777]

Everything is perfect except for the front visibility. Can you see the runway well when you are landing? Could you show us a real-time view with a camera at the pilot's eye level exactly?

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

Sorry but that plane was only briefly available for what we did. The forward view was surprisingly good.

[@gmonnig]

$17k a year on insurance? Man, I need to start and insurance company. I was complaining about $1750yr on my old Comanche 250 and $1850 on my Mooney.

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

I know!!! But it is worth $750,000.

[@gmonnig]

@@skywagonuniversity5023 True! That hull coverage is eye watering. I’ll do my part and keep the older fleet flying though. A Comanche or a Mooney will do 85-90% of the Panthera on 10-15% of the price. You just have to live with the fact that they are getting old. Keep up the videos, they are some of the best out there!

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

@@gmonnig Thanks. Yes, My 65 Mooney M20C was $800 to fully insure 25 years ago and about $1300 two years ago and now it is $1800. It has gone from $35,000 in value to $75,000 and I have many hundreds of more hours in it and many other planes with no claims and I do not see any discounts for good behavior yet.

[@andrewbeldin659]

@@skywagonuniversity5023 The insurance is still crazy high. I have a brand new SR22T, so right at 1MM hull for insurance purposes. I was about 500hrs and IFR when I got it. Under 10k to insure, which still seemed like A TON since I was closer to 3500 for a 182T with ~500k hull value.

[@scotabot7826]

@@skywagonuniversity5023 Aircraft prices have gone through the fricking roof. Several years ago you could buy a nice 150M for 25K. Now they want 45 and 50K. No way under the Sun am I paying that. Iv'e seen some 150's in the 60/70K range. And 152's with 10/12 thousand hours for 50K. Just unbelievable!!!! I'm just going to build a Kitfox or Rans, and have a brand new safe aircraft!

[@stanislav770]

Très belle machine

[@lcprivatepilot1969]

Will Textron introduce as a Cessna or a Beechcraft? Hopefully they will offer dual panel Mount side sticks or dual ram horn yokes!

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

They will probably shelve it to get rid of the Competition.

[@markbattista6857]

Hey Mark , the airplane seemed a bit twitchy or maybe it was the pilot , I would have liked to see you fly it.

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

I'd like to have flown it but it was literally a 10 minute warning that it was coming and we had nothing ready. I was pleased that we got to fly it at all. It was here for a totally different reason.

[@paologarbelli6453]

beautiful plane I prefer it to the cirrus, the engine is ideal for the plane with brilliant performance and low consumption, then a good choice for Europe possible to use unleaded petrol which means 60$ less per hour in Europe, but the problem in Italy and Europe is certainly the high price even if lower than the cirrus, but prohibitive for Europe, I think it is the real reason for the difficulty of selling. However superior performance to the mooney with the same power and beautiful inside and out, too bad I can't afford it otherwise it would be my first choice.

[@gxlbiscuit]

I'm sorry to hear Textron is buying this. The American way will either overprice this plane or ruin it.....

[@chester8420]

It looks like the visibility out the front, especially to the opposite side that one is sitting, is poor. Was it better than the video showed?

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

It's actually OK visibility. In a Mooney from the pilot's seat there is not a lot you can see over to the right either unless you tip her over a bit.

[@yesode4201]

Nice video! Thank you. How do you like those headsets?

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

The Bose and the Lightspeeds noise cancellers are very good. Get one and you will never go back.

[@yesode4201]

@@skywagonuniversity5023Thank you! I have Bose but haven’t seen that kind.

[@susansticazsky9787]

I love my AKG headset!

[@paulo7200]

@@skywagonuniversity5023 Have you tried the DC 1x?

[@FlyingNDriving]

Yeah Cessna scared, they half assed the Columbia marketing and this will suffer a similar fate I worry

[@FlightSimDude]

👍👍👍👍👍

[@woodwelder]

So Mark was that a thumbs up .. cobber …?

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

One thumb is stuck up permanently, currently, mate.

[@Cancun771]

Do an Extra!

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

If one came here, I would.

[@conantheagrarian]

can’t see out of it … that’s a shame. ever looked out a cardinal?

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

When flying it, it was surprising what you could see.

[@dieterhauer8619]

Neat aircraft, but it looks like the console blocks about 85-90% of your forward vision.

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

It was actually OK.

[@hanerickafarmstay8951]

$750000 US , really.

[@jsteiger2228]

There are few modern planes that excite me enough to say - yeah, that's totally worth 800K, but this one of them. Waaaayy more sexy than a dumbed-down Cirrus. Of course, do I have $750k to drop for this plane right now? No..... Just making observations.

[@golfbravowhiskey8669]

She sure isn’t the prettiest girl at the dance. But at 200 miles an hour she can sure dance. Didn’t Textron just buy them out. Can’t wait to see how they missed that up like the Columbia and everything else.

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

Strangely attractive when you see it for real. You should have seen the crowd that we had to part to get to it to do the Video.

[@golfbravowhiskey8669]

@@skywagonuniversity5023 yeah it would be very neat to see it in person. I have flown one of their viruses. That plane was built extremely well so I imagine this one is too.

[@bryceread1]

Love your channel Mark, but Cessna’s mantra seems to be ‘we’re a jet company, but if suckers keep buying our 60-70yr old designs for 20 year old Cirrus money, why not’… Pipistrel is (was) a pioneer… sad to see them sell out & (probably) get buried like Columbia… And really- like a new Beech Bonanza- $750k + & no FADEC?! WTF!

[@jsteiger2228]

WTF are you talking about?? This is the best looking GA piston plane in the world bar none.

[@louissanderson719]

This is a gorgeous plane

[@ac583]

This airplane costs $600,000+. It will, at a stretch, fly 6000 hours in its life and probably MUCH less than that. But, let's just say 6000. That's $100 per hour in airframe cost. Insurance, hangarage, mainenance, two engine overhauls, and more at least doubles this, so let's say $200 and these are VERY conservative numbers. At more realistic 100 hours/year it could easily be double this. But, the point is - who that is willing to spend such money truly cares about the marginal cost of fuel or 6 vs 12 gph? Nobody. It's bullshit. Nobody who buys or operates this aircraft cares about the marginal cost of fuel.

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

Interesting perspective. My Grandmother, who was a multi-millionaire, reused all of her old aluminum foil. She'd fold it up neatly and keep it until she needed it again. She once told me, "It isn't what you make, it's what you save that matters." - Don the Camera Guy.

[@balsumfractus]

I'm sorry, but his accent is so thick, I can't understand much of what he is saying..... subtitles maybe??

[@friskytwox]

you're doing too much. his accent is fine, just pay attention

[@swolf950]

54 gallon of fuel for 260hp. Weak. This is America. We don't fly like our planes at 12.5 lop like these fuzzy little foreigners. We need more gallons in the tank. Also, the engine should either be 300hp or 210hp. Not this in-between bullshit. Mark, is there enough room up front for a 6'5 passenger in the panthera? It looks a bit cramped up there

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

So have you been in one? There is a lot of room and it is very efficient. The engine is as perfectly placed for economy and performance as it was in a Comanche 260.

[@swolf950]

Never been in a panthera and I've never seen one in person. Despite my petty ramblings, I'd be more than happy to ride in one or own one

[@timeatak5248]

As soon as he said $760,000 that made it a worthless plane. So you could buy a bonanza and an extra 300/pitts for that. Ridiculous.

[@skywagonuniversity5023]

Money is a relative thing.