Now, three years later

The FAA inspection was done, passed the first time with no unusual discrepancies.

Taxi tests were completed.

Then, the scary first flight. New airplane, new to me handling characteristics, and yet the first flight was successful!

Now, three and a half years later, 135 hours on the plane, flown on floats for two summers, I can say that the Challenger II is a truly capable and especially fun airplane.

My wife and I have flown to places that we never expected to be able to explore. I have landed at small turf strips, lakes, rivers, large airports, and back-country areas normally not accessible to humans.

One of our favorite trips was when we departed Princeton airport, flew to a remote Maine lake, picked a tub of blueberries, and flew home watching the eagles and moose as we traveled. What an adventure!

We have found the Quad City Challenger, equipped with a Rotax 503 DCDI, Puddlejumper floats and Tennessee wooden prop to be quite adequate for our needs.