No Baggage Fees!

Thank god that Stack Air doesn’t charge for luggage, because it would cost me a fortune!  For our flight to Minnesota, we took quite a bit of stuff to make it through a nine-day vacation.  Believe it or not, we were well within weight and balance specifications with no problems.  This pictures shows all the stuff we took with us AND I carried 77 gallons of fuel as well! 

The family and "stuff" on the ramp at Brainerd.  This all came out of the Cirrus!

What was really funny about this trip, was that once we arrived in Brainerd we found out that our rental car (Ford Fiesta four door) was WAY too small and couldn’t carry all of our stuff you see in this picture.  Thankfully my father was there waiting for us and helped my wife take everything to the airport, while I departed for a short trip to Wisconsin.  There are very few planes out there that will allow you to carry the load that we did safely, and the Cirrus is one of those planes!  LOVE MY CIRRUS!

Midwest Aircraft Refinishing

I flew up to Hibbing, MN yesterday to visit with an old friend of mine that just bought a house and some acreage up there.  I flew into the KHIB and he picked me up at the GA side of the terminal.  As we were driving out, I noticed a sign that stated Midwest Aircraft Refinishing.  I wasn’t expecting this, even though I knew they were someplace in northern Minnesota.  After spending some time with my buddy, he dropped me off for my flight home and I stopped by Midwest Aircraft Refinishing to check it out. 

Sitting in their main hanger was several Cirrus aircraft all in different stages of getting repainted.  One aircraft in particular was almost complete and will be on display in Duluth for Migration 10.  I can very easily explain what I saw with one word – AMAZING!  GORGEOUS, PERFECTION, UNBELIEVABLE, just to say a few more in case I didn’t get the point across.  I have never seen paint jobs as nice as theirs on anything!  The paint is done to perfection and they apply a clear coat on top which makes the plane look wet.  There are no bumps or ridges between the lines, just simply perfect.  The pictures below really don’t do the plane justice, but you can get a feeling for it if nothing else.  A full-blown paint job will run $17-18K with no vinyl stripes.  If you want vinyl stripes, the price is around $15K.  These are really just ball park figures, so consult them for actual quotes.

On this particular aircraft (which was a white 2004 SR22 GTS like mine), the interior was completely redone by SCS interiors and the owner has also upgraded his G430s to GTN 650s as well as a DFC90 autopilot.  This is really better than a new Cirrus now!  GORGEOUS!!