Cessna 210 Pressurized Specs Plus The Benefits#

At that time, theyвЂ™d just traded up from a Skylane and were flying a вЂ™79 T-210N they were convinced theyвЂ™d live with forever. The pressurized differential provides a 12,000-foot cabin at 23,000 feet.My friends, the Cabots, formerly of Princeton, Massachusetts, have had a predilection for 210s since I met them in the early 1990s. The turbo system is altered such that the installed IO-550 becomes a turbo normalized IO-550 with dual aftercoolers.For example, when shopping for a turbocharged or pressurized 210, you should know before starting your search that Cessna provided these aircraft with, what.CessnaвЂ™s top-of-the-line high wing cruiser, now out of production since 1986, still merits a second look.In 1978, Cessna introduced the worldвЂ™s first pressurized single-engine aircraft, the Pressurized Centurion with standard seating for six, the economy of up to 77 seat-miles per gallon, and a payload of more than 1,100 pounds with full fuel. It replaces the TSIO-520 with an IO-550 but retains the turbo charging system from the TSIO-520. Finally, a bit more specialized conversion is designed by a company specifically for the turboвЂ™d T210 and the pressurized P210.

If they decide to sell now, it will be to get out of aviation altogether.As mentioned above, the Cabots are dedicated Cessna fans. Today, theyвЂ™re retired in Mexico, and they fly back and forth to Texas, Arizona and California on a regular basis.Both Michellee and Hal Cabot are pilots with time in a variety of competing models, so they understand the market, but they say theyвЂ™re extremely pleased with their current big Cessna and the one before it. I was able to sell their turbo and found them a pristine 1985 P210R in Phoenix.They jetted out from Massachusetts the following day, bought the airplane on the spot and have lived happily ever after. They decided pressurization was a better way to go and asked if I could sell their turbo model and find them a nice P210RвЂ”both the last and the best of the Centurions. The pressurized P210 shares essentially the same turbocharged engine as the.It didnвЂ™t turn out that way.

Cessna 210 Pressurized Specs Plus The Benefits

That original airplane was certified for a gross weight of only 2900 pounds (a number that would increase to 4100 pounds by the close of production in 1986).The full cantilever, laminar flow wing came along in 1967, and power was bumped up again in 1970 to 300 hp. Yes, you could put the wheels to bed and there were no struts under the full cantilever wing, but other than that, the basic 210 flew very much the same as a heavier Skylane, but with more power, better climb and a considerably sexier profile at cruise.Back in 1960, the first 210s began life with four seats, struts and 260 hp, but the latter only lasted until 1964 when Cessna upped power to 285 and increased seating capacity to six. The normally-aspirated model was initially attractiveвЂ”and no wonder, the level of complexity was relatively unchanged. The lure of extra hp, better speed and climb, plus the benefits of a big cabin and extra payload seduced them into buying a retractable.A 210 was an obvious next choice.

It felt strange to fly a 340 or 414 one thousand miles west with a panel bare of everything except basic flight instruments. I know, as I delivered about a dozen of those airplanesвЂ”singles and twinsвЂ”from Wichita to the Los Angeles area. One unexpected result was that literally hundreds of new Cessnas were delivered totally naked of any avionics at all. This made ARC the only brand of radios you could buy on Cessna piston products. As a result, many buyers purchased King radios and Cessna eventually responded by refusing to offer any competing avionics for a time.

Even so, the T210 was a great high flyer, capable of topping everything but the most aggressive of thunderstorms.CessnaвЂ™s project engineer on the P-210 program, Phillip Hedrick, had his work cut out for him in attempting to sandwich a larger capacity turbo under the bonnet of the 210. The AiResearch TEO-4 turbo allowed flight as high as a theoretical 27,000 feet, though oxygen systems of the day werenвЂ™t rated for anything above 25,000 feet. Since the Cabots now do much of their flying in the Mountain West, a blower out front seemed a good idea.

The finished P210N was about 180 pounds heavier than the T210N, one of the inevitable costs of pressurization.I can remember writing in an early pilot report that вЂњCessna may have a tough time selling a single-engine airplane with a base price of $104,100.вЂќ Wrong! They sold a bunch of them. Cessna fitted an airtight bulkhead behind the rear seats.The first P210 was introduced in 1978, utilizing the push-pull P-SkymasterвЂ™s 3.35 psi pressurization system. To help seal the cabin, the pilotвЂ™s door was fitted with multiple, heavy duty pins and the windows were rounded and reduced in size.

(Interestingly, rather than mount a second door on the P-Skymaster, Cessna chose to limit the airplane to five seats.)By 1983, base tab for a P210N had risen a full $100,000вЂ”enough so that PiperвЂ™s introduction of the world-beater, 1984 Malibu caused Cessna to shelve the P210 for a year while they rethought the design.The P210N was actually a little slower than the CabotвЂ™s T210, not a surprise, since the pressurization system drains away some of the turboвЂ™s power as bleed air is used to keep the cabin pumped up. To satisfy the FAAвЂ™s requirement for two exits on any six-place airplane, Cessna mounted a half-door emergency exit that folded up against the bottom of the wing. Mooney shelved the Mustang after only three years of production.)Pressurization doesnвЂ™t take kindly to large openings in the fuselage, and for that reason, the first P-210вЂ™s left door was significantly reinforced to help seal the cabin, and the beloved right door had to be excluded. MooneyвЂ™s M22 Mustang preceded the P210 by a decade, though it was overweight, ran hot and offered disappointing performance. (The P210 wasnвЂ™t the first pressurized single, but it was the first successful P-model.

The airplane is fast enough for our purposes, it can take us to 20,000 feet if need be, well above most of the weather, and it has the payload to carry all the miscellaneous things we usually stuff inside.вЂќHal Cabot feels the 210RвЂ™s pressurization system is the principal benefit. Getting into the rear seats can require the agility of a gymnast, so that area is usually reserved for extra baggage. вЂњItвЂ™s a very comfortable airplane for four folks and can sometimes accommodate six if the aft two arenвЂ™t too big or heavy and the fuel load is light. вЂњThe P210R suits us well,вЂќ says Michelee.

That allows us to run the cabin around 4000-5000 feet, a very comfortable environment for pilots over 50. We spend most of our time in the middle altitudesвЂ”13,500 to 15,500 feetвЂ”where we can clear all the mountains in the lower 48 states. вЂњWhen everything is working correctly on our P210R, we see a cabin altitude of between 10,000 and 11,000 at 20,000 feet, but in fact, we rarely fly that high. Accordingly, the P210вЂ™s system wasnвЂ™t nearly as stout as the MirageвЂ™s 5.5 psi.вЂњThe Malibu Mirage was designed from the outset for pressurization, so itвЂ™s more than coincidence that the fuselage is roughly cylindrical and the differential is greater,вЂќ Cabot continues. Pressurization was added later, and for that reason, the basic fuselage shape remains more rectangular than round. Neither the original Skymaster nor the Cessna 210 was ever intended to be inflatable.

вЂњThe Piper was quite a bit wider than the 210, but the cabin wasnвЂ™t nearly as tall. Hal is about 6вЂ™4вЂќ, and he simply couldnвЂ™t fit into the front pit of a Malibu without having to cant his head inboard. That can be a big help if youвЂ™re flying in the proper direction.вЂќOne area where the 210 still had an advantage over the Malibu was vertical cabin space.

You can sandwich the big Cessna into 1500-foot strips, and while the retractable gear isnвЂ™t ideally suited for unimproved dirt runways, youвЂ™re probably better off than with any low wing aircraft. A combination of large control surfaces and high aerodynamic loads make for an unusually fast ability to maneuver.When itвЂ™s time to return to Earth, the P210R is, after all, a big-wing Cessna, and that means those huge flaps are available to give the airplane near-Skylane short field performance. The 210вЂ™s ailerons are remarkably quick, despite the airplaneвЂ™s two-ton weight. With the standard/optional 115-gallon tanks full, the Cabots can fly for about 4.5 hours plus reserveвЂ”enough for cross country trips of 800 nm.Control response on the big Cessna is about what youвЂ™d expect in pitch and yaw, but not in roll.