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S35 V-Tail Bonanza 1st Solo

One of my favorite things about aviation is being able to fly as many different kinds of airplanes as possible.   I'm still in the process of entering all of my flights since 1997 so I can get an accurate count of the number of different types I have in my logbook.  It seems that I have logged almost every major type out there.  C150, C152, C172, C177, C182, C206, C208, Pa-28, Pa-28R, BE20, BE36, BE35, BE23, Navion, GA7, and many more.   

The Bonanza S-35 V-Tail

I was recently added on to my buddies insurance policy for his S-35.  The insurance company required that I fly 2 hours Solo before carrying passengers.   Last night I worked it out with my buddy to take his plane and meet my solo requirement.    I have been flying my A36TC lately, so it was interesting comparing the A36 to the S35.   Of course the big difference is my plane is turbo charged, and the S-35 is normally aspirated.   You fly these two planes very differently.  But the actual handling of the airplane is very similar.  Once the power was set, I honestly couldn't tell the difference between the two airplanes.  The S-35 burns less fuel, but the TAS is about the same, take off and landing is about the same.  

The S-35 has a 12 volt electrical system and my A36 has a 24 volt electrical system.  If you ever have the choice between the two, ALWAYS choose a 24 volt system.  The landing gear, flaps and trim wheel move so much faster in my 24 volt system.  The S-35 had about a 10-12 second gear swing, where as my A36 has a 3-4 second gear swing.  This difference is huge!  

The one thing I really did like about my buddies S-35 his the speed brake option he has.  With the lower gear extension speed in the S-35 (142kts) vs the A36 (152kts), deploying speed brakes really helps.  

The Flight

I decided to fly from Georgetown, TX (KGTU) to Galveston, TX (KGLS).  One of my partners in my A36 lives there.  So we met and had a good dinner.  I flew 9,500 going there.  Flying solo with full fuel (74gal usable), the plane climbed at 800-1,100 feet/minute.  I tried to fly direct.  Despite being cleared into the Class Bravo of Houston, I was still vectored clear of the Bravo (Why do they do this?).   During the flight, I was able to get used to the Aspen and the Avydine GPS.

Landing was uneventful.  Just like landing in my A36.   

Flying Home

Flying home, I decided to stay under the Class Bravo and squawk 1200 the entire way, not talking to anyone.  I rarely do this, and it was fun.  The S-35 is ADS-B OUT equipped, and with my Stratus I had a pretty good picture of traffic in the area.   After clearing the Class Bravo I climbed to 6,500 and flew direct to GTU.  First radio call I made was to GTU CTAF (tower was closed by the time I got there).  Landed nicely and taxied back to the hangar.  

Conclusion

How did the S-35 do vs the A36?   This is the kind of question that you should choose: D) All of the above.  They are both great airplanes.  There is defiantly something sexy about a V-Tail airplane.  But once you get behind the controls you don't even notice that it is back there.   I am just fortunate that I now have both options available to me.   The Bonanza as a whole is one of the best flying platforms out there.