CELEB RATIN G 1 5 YEAR S!

VOL. 16 ISSUE 07 JULY 2019 cessnaflyer.org

3126 310 MODIFICATIONS

YouTube's "310 Pilot" 172RG Cutlass: An Owner's Guide

Planning for an Interior Renovation Page 24 AL RICE, CHIEF PILOT of SILVERHAWK Pilot Practical Power: ACADEMY talks about why TO the 172XP works for his A Fleet of Upgraded 172s flight school. Pilot eople look at upgrading their Cessna 172 Skyhawk engine for a number of reasons, and there’s a P great deal of validity for them all. It’s not that much more expensive than a rebuild for TBO. It goes faster, climbs faster and gives the owner a bit of brag- ging rights on the ramp. For Silverhawk Aviation Academy, there were more practical reasons. We just added our sixth 172, and all have the Air Plains 180 hp upgrade, known as the 172XP. (The Air Plains 172XP conversion differs from Cessna’s stock R172 Hawk XP and XP II. —Ed.) We think the added horsepower gives us the best utility and value from the

CESSNA FLYER (32) JULY 2019 CESSNA FLYER (33) JULY 2019 airframe for our requirements, which are not unlike many other flight academies. Silverhawk is the leading flight acad- emy in Idaho for both rotor and fixed- wing . We offer a variety of Part 141 degree programs through our asso- ciation with Treasure Valley Community College as well as Part 61 training for U.S. and international students. We also offer FBO and charter services, all at our facilities at Caldwell Industrial Airport (KEUL), just outside Boise. We started as a helicopter flight school just over 20 years ago. As our reputation grew, we expanded our service and fleet, now operating 14 Robinson helicopters, six Cessna 172s with the Air Plains 180 hp upgrade, one Cessna 172RG Cutlass RG and one Cessna 177RG Cardinal RG and a Beechcraft Model 76 Duchess. The com- pany has more than 30 flight instructors, administrators and mechanics, all with a passion for training and helping people Silverhawk chose Air Plains’ 180 hp engine modification for its 172s begin new careers in aviation. because of its solid reputation. The additional safety margin is useful But back to our 172s. When we started when operating at higher density altitudes in Idaho. to add fixed-wing aircraft, we specifically targeted the Air Plains 180 hp Cessna 172 modification, primarily because both the modification and the company have solid reputations. Caldwell is at the western entrance of the Treasure Valley, and although our home field elevation is not all that high (2,432 feet msl), the surrounding area has airport elevations up to 5,000 feet msl. During the summer months, this can equate to density altitudes (DAs) up to 8,000 feet. The 180 hp engines add an additional safety margin when operating at the higher DAs. The Air Plains 172XP upgrade also brings a gross weight increase that gives us more than 1,000 pounds of useful load. That makes it a true four-place aircraft; so useful for lessons with more than one student. Because of the unique nature of Silver- hawk, we found another useful reason to employ the Air Plains conversion. The Lycoming O-360 engine used on all six 172XPs gives us commonality with nine of our Robinson helicopters that are powered with either an IO-360 or O-360. This makes for a much more manageable parts inventory and mainte- nance knowledge and familiarity. The annual flight time for the school continues to grow, and in 2018, we flew over 10,000 hours. The Cessna fleet flew 3,000 of those hours, with most of those flown by the 172s. Al Rice (left), chief pilot, and Catherine Weber, owner of Silverhawk From the start, we’ve opted to go after Aviation Academy in Caldwell, Idaho. Silverhawk has expanded its fleet 172s already upgraded with the Air Plains and its services considerably since the company’s founding in 1998. upgrade, and even though we purchased

CESSNA FLYER (34) JULY 2019 our aircraft with various amounts of engine time, we have had few issues. When we do have issues, the Air Plains staff has always been friendly and helpful. For us, the STC is well-designed and trouble-free. Left: The 172XP’s The market for 172s with the Air Plains gross weight increase VISIT US AT OSHKOSH 180 hp upgrade seems to be getting tighter, makes for a true four- and they are harder to find. But for Sil- place aircraft and verhawk Aviation, I have no doubt that allows Silverhawk to when we need another aircraft, we’ll conduct lessons with have Air Plains at the top of our list. more than one student.

Al Rice was born in Winnemucca, Nevada, and earned his private pilot Below: Three of certificate in 1969. He graduated from Silverhawk Academy’s the U.S. Army Flight School in 1972 Cessna 172s. The flight FLY and was an army aviator. Rice has years school just acquired its of experience flying both airplanes and sixth Cessna 172XP. helicopters as well as 18 years of service in the Department of the Interior’s Office of Aviation Services. Today Rice is Silver- FASTER hawk Aviation Academy’s Chief Flight Instructor. Send questions or comments to [email protected].

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