Delivery delays in the Cessna Skycatcher program appear to be ending. Seven of the two-seat light sport aircraft were in final assembly at one time.
They arrive in crates from China and are reassembled and tested by technicians at Yingling Aviation in Wichita, Kan. The firm is one of the reassembly points for Cessna's 162 Skycatcher. The Skycatcher is Cessna's entry in the LSA category and is priced at $112,250.
Yingling’s flight school, Kansas Aviation, has a Skycatcher available to rent for flight instruction for $98 an hour. “We wanted to make it intriguing,” a Yingling official said, referring to the pricing. “We have four people training in it, and two people came from out of state just to check out.”
As reported in AOPA Pilot , the door latch on the pilot’s side tends to rip men’s belt loops, and that has proved true at Kansas Aviation. “We had two gentlemen from EAA come to look at it, and they tore their belt loops. We have a new symbol of the first solo. Instead of a cut shirt, it’s a torn belt loop,” the official said.
