Dear "No Name",
Before you think otherwise, I don't feel Europa is perfect. However, they've
answered every question and met every expectation my wife and I had prior to our
purchase and have continued to do so. On the two occasions I've had a
complaint,
Europa addressed them quickly and to my satisfaction. That being said...
* Rumored accident at Kemble. If it turns out W.C. (ret.) Stoner did not
have
an accident as you described, what then? Even if there was an accident,
are
we to believe that Mr. Stoner is incapable of having one unless the
aircraft
design is flawed? I don't know any pilot that would claim such ability.
If
I did, I'd certainly never fly with them.
* Actual ground handling incidents. I've read most (if not all) of the
A.A.I.B's reports (published on their web site) on Europa accidents and
several of them quote the pilot as saying the accident was due to a mistake
on their part. Not really the fault of the design every time, is it?
* Demo Flights. It seems more than prudent on Europa's part to have the demo
pilot handle the takeoff and landing since the prospective buyer may have
little or no tailwheel experience, and certainly none in a Europa. I
wonder
what the liability would be if an accident occurred in such circumstances
and
the investigation found an unqualified/neophyte pilot (buyer) was allowed
to
handle the takeoff/landing instead of the demo pilot, especially if the
demo
pilot was not a qualified flight instructor. Any guesses? Couple that
with
the loss of revenues whilst the demo aircraft is repaired and any other
policy seems foolhardy.
* Europa resale value. I see no mystery there. Since many, if not most,
experimental aircraft of any design don't have a strong resale market,
expecting otherwise would not be very reasonable. Also, since any used
Europas on the market now would most likely be "Classics", why would
someone
want to buy the older model with the XS available?
* Suing a company out of business for making false claims. What false
claims?
500 hour build time? That's hardly anything that a lawsuit could be hung
on. Everything I've read about kit building includes the caveat to double
any manufacturers build time estimates. 150 mph on 80 hp? Kim Prout's
done
it, so there's no falsehood there. By the quote "You're not buying the Mk.
I, you're buying a fully sorted final version Europa!", I assume you're
saying you feel cheated that the XS version came out after you'd bought a
"Classic" kit. While this wouldn't be the best of news (buy a computer
lately and you get the same feeling), did this surprise you? I learned
when
researching kit building to be careful of buying any new design since there
are invariably some mods to the aircraft as the initial builder pool sends
feedback to the designer. I know full well that I've bootstrapped off the
efforts of the first builders and am very grateful that their work has
generated a better airplane than the original. In fact, I would be wary of
a
design that didn't receive any upgrades or changes after its initial
production run. Even Boeing does that.
* Numbers sold. If Mr. Shaw's airplane was all hype and no substance, the
initial sales boom would have slowed to a whisper in a year or two. (Just
ask Jim Bede how that works.) The fact that Europa sales continue to be
strong suggest that there is more to the aircraft than marketing. (A more
polite term than your reference to cow excrement.) Maybe all of those
happy
owners that have been flying their Europas have something to do with it,
no?
You say you speak for four unhappy owners and know of "many more." I'm sorry to
hear you're unhappy, but what do you expect to accomplish with this batch of
anger
and accusations? How will cursing and calling names benefit your cause? By
further depressing the market for used Europas? By shaming the "starry-eyed",
"rubber stamp[ing]" PFA into taking some unspecified action? By making all
persons getting demo flights demand to handle the aircraft from start to stop?
Whatever your goals (assuming they go beyond your anonymous letter), I'd wager
this is not going to be an effective way of reaching them.
Steve "One slightly overwhelmed (but happy) builder" Genotte
Dallas, Texas
TBa9161042@aol.com wrote:
> Monowheel Europa Bites Red Arrows Leader!
>
> There is a very strange rumour doing the rounds that Wing Commander Martin
> Stoner (ret'd) had an incident in Europa G-BWON whilst taxying at Kemble,
> causing serious damage to the a/c.
>
> If this rumour is true, what hope is there for us 'standard grade' pilots if
a
> very highly skilled 'pilote superiore' such as Martin Stoner - the No.1 Europa
> instructor - cannot handle the Europa on the ground, even though fitted with
> the factory-issued new tailwheel assembly.
>
> It begs the question 'Why have so many Europas had ground-handling incidents?'
> - resulting in over 40 separate repair claims, some of them very serious. It
> is very obvious that the insurance premiums are increasing, instead of
> decreasing, bearing in mind that the risk is greater for an insurance company
> when a new aircraft first hits the market, and lessens as more numbers are
> flown and 'proven'.
>
> Is the PFA fully aware of this apalling situation?
>
> Are they concerned that they rushed in 'starry-eyed' to rubber stamp the new
> British wonder-child, and are now regretting being so compliant?
>
> Why is the second-hand Europa sales market so poor?
>
> Remember: 500 hr build, 150mph cruise on 80hp, 680lbs empty weight, "You're
> not buying the MkI, you're buying a fully sorted final version Europa!" - and
> finally - the classic Ivan Shaw quote: "Hop in, I'll do the take-off and
> landing, and you can take it for some upper air handling". I wonder, is there
> anyone that ever did a take-off or landing in Europa's demonstrator? In any
> other business a company that made these many false claims would have been
> sued out of existence. Has that time arrived?
>
> If Europa (Mr Shaw) had told us all the truth, would he have sold 500
> aircraft? The answer is he would have probably struggled to sell 50!
>
> We need honest information, not constant Shaw bullshit.
>
> Four very disappointed Europa owners
> (and we know of many more)
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