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The typical cabin-class piston twin buyer is generally moving up from a high-performance single, or perhaps even stepping down from a jet or turboprop. With a need to go places comfortably and efficiently, these buyers recognize that a serious business airplane needs a decent cabin, credible speed and the ability to hack it when there’s ice or other rotten flying conditions in the forecast. Pressurization is nice since passengers don’t want to spend several hours with a plastic hose stuck up the nose.

However skilled (or not) general aviation pilots are, they have proven consistently good at one thing: losing control of airplanes and digging smoking craters in the verdant earth. The reasons arent necessarily understood but the solution is becoming increasingly laser focused on providing autopilots that wont let you crash, but will nudge and prod and do everything short of seizing control of the aircraft. Except now, theyre even doing that.The latest comes from Daher in the companys new TBM 930 cabin-class speed merchant.

Admit it. Despite your protestations to the contrary, youve lusted in your heart for an old airplane. It may be a classic such as a postwar Piper J-3 Cub-well use EAAs classic definition of aircraft built from September 1, 1945, through the end of 1955-an antique such as a Beech 18 or one of the many Wacos, or-yes, you know you want it-a warbird. Believe it or not, ownership of a classic, antique or warbird (CAW) isn’t as esoteric or unreachable as you may think.

As this is being written the stock market is in record territory, aircraft insurance rates are at record lows, the Fed has just started to raise interest rates out of the basement, the economy is at full employment and the incoming administration is promising to cut taxes while spending massive amounts on economic stimulus. Is this a great time to finance an airplane or what?

A six-seat retractable single can be a logical and compelling. step-up aircraft. Some are as fast as many twins, can carry sizable payloads, can accommodate plenty of modern avionics and generally are straightforward to fly. A single engine avoids a twins upkeep costs, while most systems (with landing gear being a notable exception) arent overly complex to work on. So which model do you buy? Despite all the appeal, the market isn’t littered with obvious choices.

Unless you own a seaplane, the buzzkill after earning the seaplane rating comes when you try to rent one, or at least it was for me. With the ink still wet on the certificate and my chest puffed with confidence, I was ready to ditch the shirt and go splashing in the central Florida lakes, but couldnt go solo because Browns Seaplane Base in Winterhaven, Florida, doesnt rent its training fleet. I totally get it; Browns fleet of J3 floatplanes are too valuable to day-to-day cash flow to risk getting crunched and grounded, plus the insurance is off-the-charts expensive. If Michigan is a destination, Northwoods Aviation in Cadillac might let you rent its SuperCub on floats (skis, in the winter) after 10 hours of type experience and a signoff. Bring your own seaplane insurance-it isn’t included.

The big announcement last month from Cirrus is that it achieved FAA certification for its Vision personal jet. With a couple of deliveries expected by the end of 2016-and perhaps as many as 50 or so for 2017-you can bet all eyes at the Cirrus flight ops department will keep a close watch on early adopters. Just how these Williams FJ33-5A turbofan-equipped singles will fare in the hands of jet-world newbies is anyones guess, but I asked Matt Bergwall at Cirrus what the training department is doing before the sales department hands over the keys to proud new Vision jet jockeys.

At one time, a normally aspirated 200-HP Piper Arrow was our go-to aircraft for travel around the Northeast and occasional hauls from Connecticut to the Carolinas. While the Arrow lacked the excitement of a Mooney 201, it was stone simple to fly, had reasonable operating costs and most important to our mission-it delivered good dispatch reliability.

It seems that one of the branches of Murphys Law, Aviation Division, takes great glee in occasionally causing an aircraft and its owner to be geographically separated under circumstances where the owner needs outside help to achieve reunification. Thats where aircraft delivery companies can make aeronautical life much easier for owners. Whether your machine needs to be moved a few hundred miles or halfway around the world, there are companies that exist to provide that service.

Mooneys J-model is one of those rare ideal compromises between speed, economy and payload. Its not the fastest retrac on the block, but as complex aircraft go, its relatively affordable to own, plus its easy to fly and maintain. Mooney pumped out nearly 2200 201s between 1977 and 2008 and the current used market has plenty for the taking. There’s a lot to like, which makes it easy to overlook some of the aircrafts nits.

The management at California-based Plus One Flyers-the oldest and largest flying club in the country-believes it has found the ultimate solution to both problems. It has nothing to do with making a profit, but more about sustaining aircraft ownership. Plus Ones president Tom Reid calls it the magical triangle thatll work for any flying club.

At some point, you could be faced with having to fly an aircraft thats technically unairworthy. To legally do that, there are several steps you must take before even thinking about climbing in and launching. This includes getting an FAA-issued special flight permit. For many folks, the process may seem complicated and intimidating, but the FAA has reasonable rules in place that can make it straightforward. Heres how it works.