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Jim,
The Saratoga you're planning on getting checked out in is just a glorified Cherokee-Six. They have the same airframe, Hershey-bar wing, club seating, and cargo door behind the left wing for passengers. They used to be called the Lance, too. If you're checked out in a 172XP, with a constant speed prop, it shouldn't take long to get checked out in the Saratoga. Maybe a little longer if it's a turbo model. This is a smarter way to go with the family.
About the Cherokee-Six, I've owned one. They are slow, but can carry literally a ton with full fuel. Because of their large cargo doors, they used to be retrofitted as air-ambulances. They used to be popular for drug-runners because of the huge payload. They would fly drugs across the border in them, land in the desert, and abandon them. They're relatively docile, cheap to annual, and rugged. They've been referred to as 'underpowered tuna boats.' But their value has doubled over the past few years, as people re-discover their utility. I flew mine through the Rocky Mountains several times, but they're better at the lower altitudes. If you don't need to get there yesterday, need a high payload, want plenty of room, with a low operating cost, in a plane that is cheap to annual, the Cherokee Six isn't a bad choice at all. It was just a tad too low and slow for me.
By the way, the hourly price for the Saratoga seems about right. 'Bout time to get that instrument rating.
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DJSchaut
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DJSchaut
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