Craig,
We went thru the same questions last Fall. I am a 2000 hr pilot with inst
rating. Heather is <100 hr pilot. We hadn't flown during the build. Our
EAA Flight Advisor recommended this plan:
To get current and to get applicable experience for the mono, we got our
glider ratings. The glider (2-33) is a monowheel (no outriggers) and
tailwheel. We got our tailwheel endorsement from the glider operator in a
Cessna 150 converted to taildragger with 180 hp engine. That was fun! We
also found a glider club with a Scheibe motorglider which is very similar to
the Europa (monowheel, outriggers, less power) and got our self launch
glider endorsement. All this amounted to 20 - 30 hrs (2/3 glider, 1/3
tailwheel). I did first flight and first 6 hours in the Europa with no
problem. Heather then started flying the Europa and has 2 hrs (weather has
shut us down). Before first flight we reread the Europa Flyer articles and
on the flight really made sure airspeed was correct. I made a couple of
approaches before the first landing before I got the airspeed really nailed.
It's been uneventful since then but the grins are huge! We're alternating
flights to complete the test plan and fly off the 40 hrs.
For insurance we ended up liability only from Avemco. No one would offer us
hull.
Jim & Heather Butcher
N241BW
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