This 2010 Cessna 162 Skycatcher Is a Rare, Rewarding ‘AircraftForSale’ Top Pick

The LSA-qualifying trainer has lots of fans but lasted only a few years on the market.

Cessna Skycatcher

Cessna sought to redefine the flight-training market with its 162 Skycatcher. [Courtesy: Charles Smithwick]

Each day, the team at Aircraft For Sale picks an airplane that catches our attention because it is unique, represents a good deal, or has other interesting qualities. You can read Aircraft For Sale: Today’s Top Pick at FLYINGMag.com daily.

Cessna designed the 162 Skycatcher as a modern trainer and personal aircraft that could take over where ancient Cessna 150s and 152s left off. Like the older airplanes, the Skycatcher has two seats and was marketed to flight schools as a durable, nice-handling trainer. For power it uses the Continental O-200 engine like the 150. The Skycatcher, however, is newer, so there are no kitschy carpeting or cracked plastic interior panels. It also has glass-panel instruments and a novel control stick that many pilots find especially intuitive.

Many pilots and aviation industry folks agree that there were several problems with Cessna’s big pushback into the two-seat trainer market, but few believe the Skycatcher was among them. Most found the aircraft thoughtfully designed and engineered, well behaved, and pleasing to fly. For more experienced pilots looking for compact personal transportation, the Skycatcher was a bit faster and better suited for traveling.

This Skycatcher has 499 hours on the airframe, 406 hours on its Continental O-200D engine, and 355 hours on a McCauley two-blade propeller. The panel includes a Garmin G300 PFD/MFD with traffic and weather, electronic engine instrumentation, GPS, terrain and obstacle data, Garmin GTX 327 transponder, and SL-40 com radio.

Pilots seeking a small two-seater for training, travel, or simply for the sake of flying should consider this 2010 Cessna 162 Skycatcher, which is available for $75,000 on AircraftForSale.

You can arrange financing of the aircraft through FLYING Finance. For more information, email info@flyingfinance.com.

Jonathan Welsh is a private pilot who worked as a reporter, editor and columnist with the Wall Street Journal for 21 years, mostly covering the auto industry. His passion for aviation began in childhood with balsa-wood gliders his aunt would buy for him at the corner store. Follow Jonathan on Twitter @JonathanWelsh4

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