10 Perfect Airplanes For Special Missions

So, grant us a little editorial license in naming what we regard as the 10 most perfect airplanes for our special missions. You won't agree, of course (what fun would that be), but the process of winnowing down the selection from, oh, perhaps 100 or so models, has been barrels of fun.

We can almost anticipate the response from some readers. "You idiots! How could you possibly leave out the Funk B and the Fox Jet?" "What? Where's the Champion Lancer and the Antonov Flying Tank? You guys have totally missed the really impressive machines."

Our choices are, by definition, subjective, but there's a reason the car magazines always seem to name BMWs and Porsches to their Top 10 list every year, and we have our favorites, too. Despite the pigeonhole tasks we've chosen for our selections, these airplanes often are called upon to fly missions they were never designed for.

We've tried to confine our choices to general aviation machines, but we just couldn't resist throwing in one selection well outside the GA market. Here's our list of 10 iconic airplanes, pulling from the best of the world of general aviation and, oh yeah, one 70-year-old military fighter.

1 Perfect World War II Fighter
North American P-51 Mustang

Sorry to be so predictable, but piston fighters don't get much better than the P-51 Mustang. Personally, I loved the Grumman F8F Bearcat, and I know some Navy types who claim an F8 could wax a P-51 in a flat-out dogfight. Still, in the final analysis, I had a hard time choosing anything other than the Mustang. Today, the price of P-51 perfection is probably $2 million to purchase one of the remaining 100 or so refurbished Mustangs, plus plan to burn a gallon a minute at mid-cruise, much more if you're determined to fly acro.

I'm not old enough to have flown P-51s during the Big War, so perhaps my choice is skewed by the dozens of interviews I've done with fighter pilots of that period and a couple of hours of stick time in Lee Louderback's Crazy Horse at Stallion 51 in Florida. Still, practically everyone agrees the Mustang was and remains something special, perhaps the ultimate development of a piston fighter before the age of jets. Its bubble canopy provided 360-degree visibility, control response was superior to anything else, speed and climb were unmatched, and the P-51 could outdive practically any enemy aircraft. With 430 mph speed and range from England to Berlin and back, the Mustang literally saved the lives of bomber crews.

The Mustang's response in every mode was so outstanding, fighter pilots stepping up from the P-40 or P-39 thought they had died and gone to heaven. Fortunately, that's exactly what the talented P-51 allowed them to avoid.

2 Perfect Aerobatic Aircraft For Fun
Extra 330LT

If you're into vertical and inverted fun, but you're not willing to give up cross- country travel, the Extra may be the perfect choice. This is the standard Extra 330, but fitted with a glass panel and optimized for high-speed travel, as well as acro maneuvers. With 315 hp out front, an inverted fuel and oil system, Aspen PFD/MFD, a 55-gallon fuel capacity and even an optional autopilot, the 330 LT can endure for 2.5 hours at a surprising 200 knots. Better still, the airplane won't mind a bit if you decide to throw in a few Cuban eights, hammerheads, humpty bumps or vertical rolls.

Extras of all varieties have long been known for their ability to take on virtually all comers in the aerobatic arena and come out on top. Whether flying a Lomcevak, rolling 360s or multiple snaps, Walter Extra's talented aerobat helps redefine what's possible.

3 Perfect $100 Hamburger Hunter
Flight Design CTLS

Too often, people regard LSAs as second-class airplanes. Not so. True, they're not certified to the same standards as Part 23 airplanes, but they can be great fun to fly, they're comparatively inexpensive to purchase and operating costs are among the lowest you'll find.

The last feature makes the CTLS nearly ideal for airport hopping. If your mission on weekends is to explore new destinations in search of the perfect hamburger, this is your airplane. The little Rotax 912 or optional 914 turbo offers your choice of 100 or 115 hp, respectively, the cabin is a surprising 49 inches across and the visibility is reminiscent of a helicopter's. With a cruise speed close to the FAA's allowable limit of 120 knots and 34 gallons aboard, the CTLS boasts a best economy range over 700 nm. It may be a light-sport design, but the CTLS doesn't know it.

4 Perfect Out-Island Commuter
Cessna Skylane

If you're looking to buy an airplane with good performance and excellent look-down capability, you'll be hard-pressed to find anything better than a Cessna Skylane. Whether it's the old-generation Continental model or the new-era Lycoming version, the Skylane is almost ideally suited for commuting around such scenic locales as the turquoise water of the Bahamas, the exotic isles of the Mediterranean or even the coral atolls of the South Pacific.

Whichever vintage Skylane you fly is almost guaranteed to provide one of the safest rides in the sky, the perfect vehicle for watching the Earth or the ocean unroll toward far horizons at 135 knots. With 230 hp on tap and that big 174-square-foot Cessna wing overhead, the Skylane can fly fast or slow on missions long or short.

Its greatest talent, however, is that practically any pilot can fly it. Stall speed is down around 45 knots, so runway demands are minimal, and these days, there's even a diesel Skylane that will burn jet fuel in case your island destinations are out of avgas. Perhaps it's true that Skylanes truly are forever.

5 Perfect Family Transport
Beech A36/G36 Bonanza

It's almost impossible to exclude the Bonanza from any list of superlative airplanes. The straight-tailed Bonanza in general and the six-seat model 36 in particular have been outstanding in practically every respect for a half century, and any pilot who has flown one understands why. Beech has a long tradition of building quality products with smooth, crisp controls, more than enough power and luxurious accommodations.

It's an imminently comfortable airplane with enough climb and speed to satisfy pretty much anyone. The six-seat A36 is near perfect for Mom and Dad up front, three kids in back and enough luggage for a weekend or more. Count on ultimate flexibility in the bottom two miles of sky and 165 to 170 knots cruise. The 36 is a delightful IFR vehicle, with excellent stability and smooth, fluid controls to help make quick corrections.

With 300 hp on the nose, conference seating in back and 74 gallons in the wings, the A36 provides one of the best family transports above the planet.

6 Perfect High-Speed Transport
Socata TBM 850

If luxury and speed are your thing, you can't do better than the TBM 850. This is a consistent 300-knot airplane at flight levels in the mid-20s, flying behind perhaps the world's most reliable engine, the Pratt & Whitney PT6A-66D.

At nearly 7,400 pounds gross, the TBM-850 rockets uphill at 2,300 fpm to airline country, FL310. The aft cabin measures 48 inches tall by the same dimension wide and is swathed in fine Corinthian leather reminiscent of a corporate boardroom.

For the last 15 years, VLJs have allegedly been just over the horizon, but so far, only one has actually arrived. For the time being, Socata's single-engine TBM 850 continues to offer near-jet performance for near-piston twin operating costs.

7 Perfect Compromise Of Speed & Efficiency
Mooney 201

Roy LoPresti's aerodynamic miracle from the mid-1970s proved exactly what could be done with 200 hp and some clever engineering. LoPresti and his team converted the old Mooney Executive, already a good airplane, to the 201 with a swept windshield, improved cowling and a dozen other aerodynamic tricks, and picked up 15 knots without a power increase.

The 201 was a revelation when it was introduced, and though it has been out of production since 1998, it remains one of the most efficient airplanes in the sky today. There are few production airplanes that can even come close to the 201's fuel efficiency, as good as 18 statute mpg at 190 mph. Perhaps best of all, prices for 201s from the mid-80s are below $100,000, a best buy by any measure.

8 Perfect Four/Five-Seat Cross-Country Transport
Cirrus SR22

Dale and Alan Klapmeier created a nearly ideal cross-country airplane with the Cirrus SR22. They combined the first Avidyne glass panel with a full-airframe parachute, an interior adapted from a 5-series BMW and plenty of room to accommodate 2+3 seating.

The rest is history. The SR22 has become the world's most popular airplane, displacing the venerable Skyhawk from the best-seller spot. With swing-up doors on each side enclosing a 49-inch- wide cabin and 310 hp out front, the SR22 offers excellent cruise (180 knots) and enough range to make eastbound one-day one-stop transcontinental flights. If all else fails, there's even a full-airframe parachute designed to let pilot and passengers walk away.

The SR22-G3 is a quiet comfortable place to spend several hours or several days, and the SR22T expands the possibilities by adding turbo performance. The Klapmeier brothers never set out to build the fastest cross-country cruiser, just the best. If sales records count for anything (and they do), they've arguably succeeded in doing exactly that.

9 Perfect Off-Airport Bushbird
Aviat Husky A1C

Take a basic Super Cub as your model, improve it here and there to iron out some minor problems, add 30 hp out front, and you wind up with a Husky A1C.

Here's an airplane designed from the outset for every aspect of bush operation. Mounted on bush tires, skis or floats, the Husky goes practically anywhere you ask without concern for such frills as smooth, paved runways. Takeoff and landing distances can be less than 500 feet if that's what you need.

And yet, the Husky's talents aren't strictly confined to off-airport tricks. The airplane carries two in tandem seating with copious room, plus there's a cargo compartment in back with its own baggage door and even an available cargo pod. The option list seems to go on forever, allowing buyers to customize the airplane to their individual specifications.

10 Perfect Heavy-Hauler
Cessna Caravan

Hardly anyone has ever questioned the Caravan's talent for hauling pretty much anything from pretty much anywhere to someplace else. On newer models, the Oasis interior option converts the airplane from truck-like utility to limousine luxury. The Grand Caravan can be configured for up to 11 folks if your load is strictly people. Better still, it offers a variety of quick-change loading options for combinations of people and cargo through as many as four doors. Add the belly cargo pod, and you have capacity for as much luggage, packages, equipment and miscellaneous stuff as you could possibly imagine.

The original Caravan offered a 600 shp P&W PT6A out front, later displaced by a 675 shp model, and just recently, upgraded (optionally, on the Grand Caravan EX) to 867 shp. The idea was to create an ultimate load lifter, and the idea worked. More than 1,500 Caravans have been built since the model premiered in 1985. FedEx, the world's largest package company, operates some 250 of the type on short-haul routes all over the planet.

The Caravan doesn't offer much speed or range, but its talent is how much it can carry and where it can go, not how fast it can get there. It's one of the ultimate, reliable, heavyweight transports, even into the world's outbacks.