Yea, rather hear comms any day.

💃💃💃💃💃

its like a monkey doing me in the ear🤣

Yoko ono called, she wants her music back!

It was a woodcomp propeller, constant speed. Thanks! The ballistic parachutes are pretty amazing.

Brian Phillips load is 50lbs with two people full fuel, fuel is 100litres with range of about 900 NM, cost was $280k. My airplane was very custom, I have three floor ports that brings costs up significantly and brings load capacity down as they add fair mount of weight in my cargo compartment. My plane without the floor ports would be about $200k. Canadian.

Wow, everything but the price is excellent! (not that I really have a basis for comparison on price...) Thanks for sharing your info, and great video, and beautiful plane! Does your insurance company give a hefty discount for having the parachute?

Brian Phillips you can get the plane a lot cheaper depending on what you put in it for avionics, parachute etc. Also you save a lot by building the kit. I saved about $40k building my first one

Yeah, If I was seriously in the market, I'd have to be looking at used planes, of a later vintage... but this plane sure is nice!

Using the parachute does major damage to the aircraft, i'm assuming in most cases it's a write off, which doesn't save the insurance company money. It does in the fact that in most cases the pilot/passenger walk away without injury...I've actually never thought of asking them for a discount for this, they have never asked me if I have a parachute or not...

Agreed. Not sure why people feel compelled to put a loop of music in the background on a vlog when there's talking...etc. Darryl... rethink that decision. (4 years later... lol)

Everyone I've talked to says "Get the airbrakes, thank me later"

Holy smokes finally a comment thats not bitching and moaning about the music

@@samtatenumber1 Well now that you mention it....that music tho'

David Colhoun hey thanks! Stalls are very benign in this plane, mine isn't rated for spinning but the Canadian dealer just got his Pipistrel put under aerobatic category, they are doing loops and rolls/spins with this same aircraft now

I understand that the Virus SW is so slippery that you have to be especially careful about exceeding Vne (I think 163 knots) because the airspeed can come up very quick in spins or dives. Most of my experience is with Jabirus, which have something of the same issue, but not as much and they are not overengineered quite like Pipistrels. Cessnas must feel like driving a bus after the Virus.

Nick Good haha yes Cessna's feel like tanks compared to the virus. And yes it picks up speed very quickly. Which is why air brakes are so nice to have especially when descending from 16,000 feet, the Canadian pipistrel dealer certified his last year for aerobatics and they have done a couple air shows now with the plane. I haven't spun this plane, fearful of over speeding it.

I was over middle of a large city with nowhere to land. There was an airport in gliding distance but it shut down a few years prior and runways were in piles of rubble. The airport was also covered in 2 ft of snow with machinery everywhere. So I figured I’d rather pull the parachute mainly because ther was so much damage evident inside the cabin soon after the prop separated.

That would be a sweet setup. I've seen a couple of them at the factory with 914's. Although I do think it's overkill for this airplane unless your wanting to fly above 20,000'. I'll be doing some high altitude test flights/vlogs soon. I have heard there are more restrictions getting this aircraft in the US. It has been very easy to import this airplane, we can now even register it as an aerobatic aircraft in Canada.

I do. Watch for an upcoming video on this exact subject

Mark McGuigan less drag, less maintenance, I think they look better then trikes, more prop clearance for grass strips, also will come in handy for belly mounting oblique camera systems, no nose wheel in the way

All good. I have a dream to fly one day and do exactly what you are doing. Everything is more or less the same. I have researched the plane and the equipment but not sure if there is enough business here in Northern Ireland/Ireland for that type of surveying. Anyway heres dreaming and congratulations on living yours.

Mark McGuigan there's only one way to know if there is enough business in your area, try. I received this plane last spring when economy here was rough, this year should see a lot more work.

Darryl Zubot de

Mark McGuigan .Tail dragger is for real pilots. LOL

Chris Scharfenberger almost, it takes you right down to threshold but you still have to land the plane. I’d give it a few years and we will see full autopilot from engine start to shut down.

Jeff Kramer I wouldn’t recommend woodcomp to anyone. I had nothing but troubles with the prop. From the beginning it was slow to change pitch as it is electric not hydraulic like the MT prop. I believe my insurance company went after woodcomp. When I reordered the new plane there was no more woodcomp option.

Darryl, I am also interested in the SportCruiser, but I'm not sure if CZAW dumped Woodcomp or not. I know a lot of SCs have Sensinich props, so maybe they might be using them exclusively now.

Jeff Kramer i believe woodcomp has done design changes to the propeller since it’s failure. There was another one on a Pipistrel at my airport who had excessive vibrations before take off. They sent it to woodcomp and it came back with a modified design. The guy has been using it for a year now without issues. But there are many options now for the 912iS engine. I really like the MT and if you google MT props you don’t see anything about throwing a blade. Google woodcomp and that’s all you see. Maybe you can tell them what prop you want

Oh wow, that's not gonna be good for their business. Regardless of a new design, no one is going to trust their props.

Yup that was me!

Darryl Zubot lucky you! Hope that would never happen to you again!

Thanks Mitko! Same here. It was an intense experience.

Fuel

Fuel

He was over the old airport inside the city. He knew that they had started bulldozing the old runways. There was a fresh layer of snow over everything, and so he didn't want to risk landing on what appeared to be a runway only to hit a freshly bulldozed ditch at 60 mph... er, 100kph... or so. But the old airport was a big empty spot in an otherwise crowded urban environment. He was unsure of his ability to glide to a place to a place where he could land safely, and so decided his safest course of action was to use the ballistic parachute. Which worked well for him, as he landed without injury. Unfortunately, a subsequent gust of wind caught the parachute and pulled the aircraft upside down and destroyed it (after he was already out). Which is why I have a razor-blade knife tied in the overhead of my Pipistrel, ready to cut the parachute bridle right after landing if I ever have to use it (the bridle comes in on each side of the top of the cabin and loops around a structural member just above the pilot's head). Edit: Saw Darryl had answered a similar question elsewhere, so I'll copy it here... you can see I wasn't completely wrong: (Darryl Zubot 3 years ago) "I was over middle of a large city with nowhere to land. There was an airport in gliding distance but it shut down a few years prior and runways were in piles of rubble. The airport was also covered in 2 ft of snow with machinery everywhere. So I figured I’d rather pull the parachute mainly because ther was so much damage evident inside the cabin soon after the prop separated."

Agreed. This is one of my earlier youtube videos.

watch the video. It's no auto land, just click bait

That's what I want to know.

Hi thanks! Yes this is purely based on gps. But it can work with a garmin gtn 650 for actual IFR precision. This is just a really nice backup feature in the worse case scenario, ie fog.

Hi thanks for replying. Yes great backup indeed, no risk to get disoriented.

Pipistrel Virus SW. Ranges from 100k to 300k depending what you put in it.

Darryl Zubot ok thank you not too bad off a price the 300k be top off the range with all the kit on it. I'll google it and see if i can get one in the uk thanks again

The Canadian transport safety board conducted an investigation. Sent the remaining prop parts to a lab, conclusion was too much play in the prop motor gears to adjust the prop pitch. This movement fatigued the blade root ends and ended up causing the one side to snap after only 230hrs total time. They found similar cracks on the remaining blade root. Never found the blade that was thrown.

Back in the day pilots were taught to fly an emergency approach and landing absent power.. seems you might have a better outcome as opposed to being under canopy which certainly wrecks the plane. The chute probably only is viable above 400’ I’m guessing and with lots of flat terrain in the daytime seems a last option? Loss of control or unintentional IFR might warrant its use by low time pilots. An expensive option in lieu of training seems to me..

Glenn Phillips flight schools still teach emergency landings under no power. This happened over a city of a million people. I was over the downtown core of the city when my prop decided to bust apart. My only option was try to land in a park or use my parachute and walk away.

Elon Baartar 3:10

Poppa Bear thanks for subscribing! You will be able to fly this airplane in strong winds. I have flown in 20-25 knot straight crosswind. Because the back end is narrow the winds slips over it and makes it fairly nice to land, and with air brakes it kills the lift and plants you on the ground. I wouldn't get this plane without air brakes. Headwinds are fine up to about 30 knots. I'm sure others have flown in higher winds but I chose not to. Not in the US much sorry

Hey Darryl, I have been looking at the performance, glide ratio and other characteristics of the Pipistrel aircraft, and they appear to be amazing. Climb of 2000 fpm, incredible fuel economy, everything. What's the down side to this aircraft? Only carries maximum occupancy of 2, smaller luggage compartment, etc.. Those can be overcome by good planning. Have you found a downside to this aircraft? I was considering a Cirrus SR20 or SR22, but this appears to be an incredible little airplane for the money. I mean, you're the guy to ask.. you crashed one of these and bought another one. The Cirrus appears to be an incredible airplane as well, bigger which I like, and better performance.. however, it's 3x the airplane I believe and a much larger price tag. By the way, did insurance cover the old airplane when your prop came apart? Was that a rare incident? I feel like I'm talking to a ghost, because very few aircraft would have been able to still make it to the ground in one piece. Did you get injured? It said you walked away, but then again, a lot of things you can walk away from, but you still get injured. My father "walked away" from a very significant car accident early December of last year, but he should not be alive right now whatsoever. He broke 7 bones, and got knocked for a significant loop in the process. He got hit by a full size semi at freeway speeds which mangled his Ford Edge into an unrecognizable car.. Newspapers all said he walked away, but no, he was injured pretty significant. Do you know if the Virus can be imported into the US? We are currently relocating to the east coast, from the west coast US, and I will be purchasing one of these during the move. Also, I wish to use whatever airplane I purchase, as a long-haul aircraft, for traveling 1/2 way across the US, so I don't think the Virus is going to do what I intend.. However, I'm more interested in it for short hopper and exploring the east coast. I am in love with the huge windows. Thanks Darryl! I appreciate your videos and you taking the time to make them, edit them, and share a small glimpse of your life with us. PS: How's the baby? My kids are grown and I just became a grandfather this year. I still feel very young. I had 3 kids at a very young age, so I am a significantly young grandfather. lol. still can't believe I'm "Grandpa" so funny.

Poppa Bear hey glad that you are so interested in the virus. It is a long distance airplane, with 6 hours fuel, 900nm range, it's not a short hop type airplane. The downside is that it is light and you feel turbulence more then a typical plane but then you don't get the fuel economy with other aircraft. Cirrus is completely different plane, 4-5 seats vs 2. Really depends on your budget and how many people you want to carry. But for a 2 seater you won't find anything comparable to this airplanes specs, you also won't find a better built airplane. These Slovenians sure do incredible composite work. I've seen ctls and the build quality feels like it was made in a cheap Chinese factory. The virus feels like a Ferrari.

The only comparable airplane I've come across is the Sea Avio Risen. It's more expensive and comes with a different set of capabilities. But I'm a Pipistrel fanboy.

John Haser It happened over a city of 1 million people and I was in the middle of it at 1500’ when the prop flew apart

Yeah sorry about that. It was one of my first videos I did so didn’t have much experience with making vlogs

Thanks! Yeah wish I could remove it sorry

Ron Lawson hi there if you continue watching my vlogs you will know exactly what happened. But I can say it here, the propeller failed after 230 hrs, the Canadian transport safety board did an investigation and found excessive play in the propeller gears causing vibration to fatigue the blades until half of it separated in fight. It was a woodcomp propeller, pipistrel doesn’t make props for this airplane they use third party props. The prop I fly now is an MT prop on the same airplane. This was not pipistrels fault, it was solely Woodcomp propeller failure. I understand if this would turn you off of the airplane, but I can say this, the parachute system pipistrel built into this airplane saved my life. Pipistrel to my knowledge does not sell woodcomp props on their planes now.

Darryl Zubot Wow ! Don’t know if I would get an airplane with out the parachute. Good luck and keep flying ! No dis !

Ron Lawson q

gmcjetpilot I did crash this was pic from it in 2014