Diamond to increase production

[pelmet]

https://aviationweek.com/business-aviat ... 88df628330

Good news. I have toured both factories and it is an interesting visit. They are all interesting to fly, although I have never flown the -62. Any opinions on how they compare to new Pipers and Cessna's in the same category?

[C-GGGQ]

Flew the 20, 40, and then only the 42 simulator at the London plant. I like their handling, seats in the 20/40 I find could be a little more upright vs inclined for my preference, I did all my training in a high wing Cessna and prefer the high wing for circuits vs staring at/ around the low wing. Minor gripes that in no way keep me from flying a diamond when presented. Da40 kicks butt for a good single engine cruise aircraft over a Cessna until you step up into something more hot rod like a cirrus or a Mooney. Fadec makes the 42 and 62 virtually idiot proof. Lots to like if you were looking for a personal craft

[Scuderia]

I find the -42 to be comparable to other high perf singles in terms of payload.

Haven't been in a -62, but I imagine it's a step up to compete with other twins.

[youhavecontrol]

I've put quite a few hours in the DA20-C1 and the C172 and I am continually puzzled by the DA20. Compared to a C172, it's impressively efficient, extremely robust (especially to hangar rash) and safe to fly with a great glide ratio and can climb like crazy... but the seats are so uncomfortable I find myself getting a little crazy after a 3 hour flight. The engine cooling and baffle system in winter is so awful, you constantly find yourself flirting with over temps and either have to stop climbing and level-off, or reduce the rate of climb to cool it down, and I can't figure out why they didn't just put a cowl flap on the stupid thing. The aircraft handles crosswinds so amazingly well, that students actually end up really awful at rudder control because 90% of the time the aircraft will shrug-off their crappy rudder inputs. The rudder petals are adjustable, which is interesting, until you actually need the rudder petals fully forward (long legs) and realize they didn't design enough room for your larger feet to have full deflection. The non-adjustable seat will cause your legs to fall asleep if you have long legs, because you're legs will rest sharply on the top edge of the bucket seat while they're extended. The engine gauges look like they were stolen from a snow blower and have a history of failing. The starter motor for whatever dumb reason has the flywheel INSIDE the engine, which means if the starter is engaged with the prop rotating, you'll have broken metal bits falling into your engine oil system, which can cause problems (like a loss of oil pressure due to metal jamming a pressure release valve, as happened to me) That being said, the thing can handle 25kt crosswinds, with 20kt wind shear, can be pushed into a hangar door and suffer only paint scratches, burns less fuel at cruise than the already impressive 5.4gph they publish when leaned properly, can climb high enough for spins WAY faster than a 172 can, can spin WAY better than a 172, is almost never out of the weight and balance limits for anything you wish to do, and the airframe is so strong it's amazing how well protected the cockpit is in the event of a crash. This is why I am puzzled by the aircraft. It's like a brilliant engineer designed the aerodynamics and performance specs, and some other lazy engineer filled the rest of the details with cheap crap. It looks like an ultralight, flies like a rocket and has the creature comforts of a amusement park go-kart.

While I haven't flown any of their other aircraft, the performance specs seem to put them above most of the competition. I'd love to see how the DA42 compares to a Seneca or Seminole. The fuel burn alone is impressive. The only concern I have is that the FADEC systems looks great and is a nice safety feature for a personal twin, but as a trainer, I worry that someone who's accustomed to two "idiot sticks" for throttles, without any form of carb heat, prop control and mixture control is getting a real dis-service in their training... especially if their next aircraft is something older and more complicated like a Navajo.

[C-GGGQ]

That post sums it up nicely. Your concerns about a fadec trainer mirrors my own when people say "well we might not be any where near electric airliners but we could start with electric trainers" yeah but then these kids won't be trained on leaning, carb heat, cowl flaps, etc that's going to come into play on that first job.

[LifeAt90Kts]

My biggest issue with the Da-40 was for an airplane built in Canada, the cabin heat was so weak that it made the airplane unbearably uncomfortable when the OAT dipped below -10. Because of the giant bubble canopy and two breathing people inside you had to have the defrost running constantly or your whole canopy would frost over. But this meant there was zero heat hitting your feet. Anything less than full defrost wouldn’t keep the canopy clear. Every student I had on the 40 switched back to the 172 over the winter so they didn’t freeze to death on cross countries.

[iflyforpie]

My carb heat and cowl flaps time was invaluable for my first job.

[youhavecontrol]

My carb heat and cowl flaps time was invaluable for my first job.

I just imagine some flight school in the future advertising a Carb Heat / Cowl Flap Checkout module.

[DadoBlade]

Indeed. The DA-20 needs a new cowl design.

A skilled aviation upholsterer with access to some ergonomic and orthopaedic foam should be able to correct the seat problem, with a next-to-zero weight penalty. I do know a guy...

Anywayze...Cowl flap(s) on the Diamond? Of course! A singular lower cowl vent could easily be accommodated. A minimum of three (3) stainless-steel rods, 12 Teflon bushings and other "assorted fittings and fasteners" and Bobs your Uncle! A Cowl Flap! It will just cost a few buck more.

[iflyforpie]

Or maybe they could just put a dummy lever. Like they did on the Champion Lancer to get students used to the idea of putting gear up and down.

[Meatservo]

I've never really yearned for my own plane- but if I did have enough money for one, I think I'd get one of those hot little twins, with the diesel engines. That thing could get you where you need to go. I don't have any actual numbers to hand, but for travelling between cities, I think that thing might actually make sense.

[pelmet]

Indeed. The DA-20 needs a new cowl design.

I have read about the cowl design leading to a lot of cracked cylinders. I did rent a C1 version in Chicago for a while and it needed a cylinder replacement(I did experience a slight engine miss prior to the replacement with a checkout instructor that he attributed to possibly the climb attitude creating a fuel flow issue that happened on occasion. We returned to the airport as a precaution).

After the cylinder replacement, I remember renting the aircraft two days in a row. It was winter and the OAT was near freezing each day. On the first day it was just above freezing so there was no winter kit installed and the oil temp was uncomfortably low. On the second day it was around minus 1 so the winter kit was installed to restrict airflow, resulting in the oil temperature at the max limit. I said perhaps they need to modify the size of the kit but was told that these are Diamond parts and modification is not allowed.