Hey ya'll....I'm considering responding to the comments on Paul Berge blog, and Brent's comments in particular. IF you've read Brent's comments and Jason's rebuttal on the blog, I'd appreciate your thoughts on this draft reply below.
Here's the link to the Blog site; http://bergeflyingtheater.blogspot.com/ Here's the link to the comments (read Bent & Jason's comments - I'm mainly replying to those); https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=9129460132495073333&postID=2168211543851538132 Dan Hall N3968H &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& Jason, thank you for your support and comments. I agree strongly with your posts regarding the Ercoupe. Contrary to Brent's insinuations, my letter not claim that the Ercoupe was best or that it should have won; and that was not the reason I wrote the letter. However Jason's comments hit the nail on the head. Ercoupe owner are collectively extremely tired of 60+ years of often snide & belittling comments about the Ercoupe, often based on ignorance (and / or pride & arrogance). With that thought firmly in mind, I'd like to re-fresh Bent's memory with the following "objective" quotes taken directly from Mr. Berge's article; "Amazingly it will straighten itself out....the way a dead cow straightens out when dropped off a moving truck." "The Ercoupe, top, is an acquired taste savored by owners who can do without rudder pedals. Crosswind landings are faith-based flying." "The flight experience is best described as quirky, especially in cross winds, it has no rudder pedals." "If you have lazy feet, the 75 HP Ercoupe 415C may be for you..." "These legacy LSA's are not terribly comfortable, and if you can't fly coordinated and learn to use your feet they'll be neither pleasant nor kind, especially on the runway." (Ercoupes are pleasant & kind) "(....doing 95 MPH)" (try 100-108) "One broke up in flight due to center section corrosion." (Nope) "Ercoupe 415C is LSA eligible..." (and the 415CD??) "We can't say we're crazy about this plane...." (Ah, honesty!) "Last pick is the Ercoupe. They aren't cheap and, in our view, lack the charm of the tail draggers which except for the cub, are all bargain for beginner or lingering pilots." Here Mr. Berge comes out and most clearly his own obvious personal subjective bias FOR tail draggers and their "charm", and against the tricycle gear Ercoupe. Let's see; 4 rag & tube tail-draggers, one all metal tricycle gear model, and the only tricycle gear model comes in dead last in the comparison with the commentary noted above. Brent, do you honestly NOT see a pattern here??? Paul Berge clearly prefers rag & tube tail draggers, and I don't begrudge him that - all of the planes tested are fun little birds to fly. However I and MANY Ercoupe owners certainly DO take GREAT exception to the comments he chose to use to describe the Ercoupe in the Aviation Consumer. Those comments carry a strong personal bias and have no place in a national publication like AC. WHERE were the genuinely objective comments about the Ercoupes obvious advantages, such as; * Tri-cycle gear for stable landing & ground handling. * Superior cross wind landing capabilities. * Effective / good brakes * Stall resistant and spin proof. * Responsive full span ailerons. * Electrical system. * Excellent visibility. This is a great safety feature for avoiding mid-air collisions! * Windows down "open cockpit" flying experience! * Higher speed cruise than other LSAs with the same engine * Mostly metal or all metal construction. * Very simple systems: no fuel tank switching and no flaps. Do you still wonder why I and may other Ercoupe owners lost our collective sense of humor after (re) reading the quotes from the article??? While I have tail wheel experience and my next airplane may be an RV-4, for the record; I take far dimmer view of (tail wheel) snobs than Mr. Berge takes of Ercoupes. If & when the time comes for my next airplane I'm quite sure that I'll miss my 60 year old classic Ercoupe, and frankly would never give up the Coupe if I could afford to keep two planes. I just hope I don't regret the day the keys to my lovely classic Coupe are handed over to it's next 'care taker' (as virtually all former Ercoupe owners have lamented to me over the years). The Ercoupe is a unique and special gem of a classic flying machine. The Ercoupe deserves just as much respect as the rag & tube tail draggers (more IMHO), and that sir, is the point !!!!! Dan Hall Ercoupe 415CD N3968H
