MY SEAWIND Vs A LAKE RENEGADE
FLYING AMPHIBIANS-Lake Renegade landing: Rounding a bend along the winding Pemigewasset River like a mature eagle on the hunt in central New Hampshire on this final landing leg I reduced the power of the Lake Renegade and called out “Gear up!” to my instructor. Just over the trees I put in my last notch of flaps and I added a little more power to slow our descent down into the narrowly open jaws of two opposing hardwood forests coifed with leaves of scarlet and gold.
Flaring at fish-jumping height over the river and pitching the nose slightly upward, we glided over the current below as we waited for the hull to touch the icy water just below. We held our breaths for a seemingly small eternity as a looming bridge grew closer and closer. Did I have too much power? Did miss seeing obstacles in my clearing go-around water check? I thought. No, just be patient I concluded just as the tail contacted and the current flowing against us quickly pulled this ton of metal off the step and onto a water taxi.
Next,
Next, I dropped the water rudder and put in take-off flaps as I steered up river toward the bridge from which some passing motorists overhead likely gasped because they couldn’t believe their own eyes. Aided by the water rudder and a little power, I turned the amphibian 180 degrees and retracted the water rudder.
Caught by the current carrying us toward the narrows, I immediately pushed the throttle to the wall. As the Lake’s 250 HP lifted us to the step I released back pressure on the yoke and held my breath once again. The current had given us a little airspeed boost and soon we were rising and rising elevator-like clearing those forest’s jaws that seemed more like giant metal-crunching teeth waiting for just one mistake. Arriving back at Laconia airport I was surprised and delighted on how well this river landing went, but most of all I was happy to complete my transition training because the next stop for me was land and water operations in my very own Super Seawind, N71RJ.
Enter the Super Seawind:
The first time I remember taking off from water was on Lake Miaka in Florida. Although water landings were similar to Renegade flying, take offs were distinctly different. First, due to the higher thrust angle, I held the yoke full aft to counter it. Second, N71RJ came up on the step very quickly. I released back pressure and I watched the airspeed needle rapidly rise. In 3-4 breaths this all composite plane began climbing at an exhilarating 1,000 FPM – and that was using only 350 of its 550 horsepower. The 5-bladed forward facing MT propeller delivers far more thrust and climbing power than the Renegade tractor 3-bladed one.
Also, N71RJ has more space for passengers and cargo (over 10 feet), more fuel capacity, a far more reliable PT6 power plant with more than twice the available horsepower than the Lake Renegade’s IO-540-C4B5 and a significantly longer range. Other differences included in my Super Seawind are redundant glass avionics backed by traditional gauges and an all composite hull structure that unlike Lake airplanes doesn’t rust and is generally easy to repair. Furthermore, the biggest differences are simply performance. N71RJ climbs faster, lands slower, flies much higher, and reaches turbine-powered true airspeeds that the Renegade pilots can only dream about.
An experimental Seawind contrasted
An experimental Seawind contrasted with a type certificated Lake Aircraft is another major, major difference. In the experimental category the owner can make any change without FAA prior approval so long as it does not change the airworthiness of the airplane. Not so with Lake Amphibians. Every significant change must be approved by FAA – and that could take months, even years and it could also have huge costs. Further, and most importantly, with Lake Aircraft Co. reported up for sale yet again by Flying Magazine and Flight Global (both in Aug, 2018) there’s a risk of bankruptcy. If that happens, replacement parts could become scarce at best. In contrast, Seawind parts are widely available form the general aviation (GA) community.
Whether it’s performance or resale value the Super Seawind shines. Both amphibians are fun to fly, but flying N71RJ is like finding a dream dancing partner; you can perform like your dancing with stars. One flies like a ton of metal, the other like an eagle. One rusts, one doesn’t.
Compare the numbers for N71RJ and other high performance airplanes are published at www.superseawind.com/performance.
Lake Renegade performance numbers can be found at www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Renegade
Flying my PT6-powered composite airplane combines all the best qualities of a Cirrus SR-22 with the Lake Renegade’s amphibious prowess to find an experience fit for James Bond himself; fast, fabulous and like the best of friends, full of fun!
ALSO READ MY IFR FLIGHT REVIEW
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