AOPA Pilot Magazine - May 2018 - 77

MONUMENTAL HELICOPTER'S Seth Clute (left) said that

students are learning faster in the Cabri than they have
in the Robinson R22. Part of that is the advanced EPM
display that makes it easy to descipher percent power
limits, and more. Plus, students like the modern and
comfortable interior and safe composite construction.

the controls feeling like a simulator joystick without force feedback. According to Clute, the Cabri uses
Teflon tape to guide the swashplate up and down the
mast, which requires a lot more force to operate the
cyclic and collective. That increased control pressure
means overcontrolling is easy to do.
Combine that with a Fenestron tail rotor, a system
known to require more pedal travel than an unshrouded
rotor. Pushing strongly toward the floor, it felt like an
eternity until the Cabri decided to take notice and
begrudgingly give in to my demands. Of course, Clute
clued me in to all this before we flew, but it didn't matter. I was lousy.
The other side to the control issue is that autorotations from both a hover and at altitude are more civil
in the Cabri than a Robinson, which implies that a successful landing is easier in the case of a real emergency
as well.
Clute further rubbed in my performance flaws
when he took over to show me the maneuverability of
the Cabri. We screamed down the airport, Clute pulled
up at the end of the runway, airspeed bled off, and he
pedal-turned as the nose hunted for the ground. This ag
turn would be suicide in a Robinson (at least it would
feel that way), but the Cabri handled it well. Clute then
dropped into a confined clearing and showed the maximum performance capabilities. Until recently the Cabri
struggled with maximum performance takeoffs. Heavier
than an R22 with only a few more horsepower, lack
of power was a major complaint from operators. But
approval has come to use the engine's full 160 horsepower for five minutes, a change that Clute says brings
major improvements in performance.
Monumental's instructors transitioned to the Cabri
in just a few hours, and Clute said most pilots seems to
take about five hours to get comfortable. He doesn't see
the Cabri as inherently harder to fly, which is attributable in part to his experience with students starting
from zero. According to Clute, on average students are
soloing the Cabri faster than the R22, and total flight
time to a checkride seems to be lower as well.
Every new aircraft goes through growing pains, but
Clute says his ship has only given him fits with electronic sensors. Clute says otherwise the Cabri has been
a welcome addition to his fleet.
The market agrees.
AOPA

SPEC SHEET
Guimbal Cabri G2
PRICE AS TESTED: $410,000
SPECIFICATIONS

Cruise speed at 85 percent power |
90 kt
Hover ceiling, IGE | 5,000 ft
VNE (never exceed, power on) |
130 KIAS
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Contact Hélicoptères Guimbal,
Aerodrome d'Aix en Provence, 1070
rue Lieutenant Parayre, 13290 Les
Milles, France, 33 4.42.39.10.80.
www.guimbal.com

Payload w/full fuel | 348 lb

All specifications are based on

Fuel capacity, std | 45 gal (44.6 gal

manufacturer's calculations. All perfor-

usable), 270 lb (268 lb usable)

mance figures are based on standard

Fuel burn at 85 percent power |

day, standard atmosphere, sea level,

9.5 gph
EMAIL ian.twombly@aopa.org

Max range cruise speed | 80 kt

Max range, 15 min reserve | 380 nm

gross weight conditions unless otherwise noted.

www.aopa.org/pilot AOPA PILOT | 77

http://www.guimbal.com http://www.aopa.org/pilot

AOPA Pilot Magazine - May 2018

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