NEWSLETTER MAY 2024
Our Customers, their aircraft…
An MCR above all!
The list is therefore not exhaustive! It’s already very impressive, proof that Gianmarco has a great experience of aviation. However, in 2024, it is not with a PA-28, a Cirrus, a Beechcraft (or even a P-51!) that he will be crossing the mountains and criss-crossing Europe, but with an MCR!
It was in 2003, in Sardinia, at La Tana Del Volo airfield (where he started flying) that he discovered MCRs. More precisely, a Sportster whose kit was bought and assembled by a local pilot who wanted a fast, low-cost machine. After a test flight, Gianmarco was won over but, at the time, he didn’t have the budget to buy one. Three years later, he built his first plane: a Eurofly Flash Comfort 100, with which he travelled throughout Europe for many years.
As much as he appreciates his Flash, Gianmarco still has in mind that little MCR Sportster that impressed him so much. In 2010, a British friend got him to try out another MCR: an MCR-01. Once again, he was blown away by the performance of a machine powered only by a small 80hp Rotax. Some time later, he learned that the Sportster that he had flown in Sardinia was for sale. However, the price was well above the market and Gianmarco decided not to buy it.
The years went by, the trips with Flash followed one another, but Gianmarco always thought about MCRs. Then, in 2016, he found out that an MCR-01 had been put up for sale in Tuscany. With a friend of his, Antonio, he went there, but the aircraft was in very poor condition. No problem! He wanted an MCR, he got an MCR. The two men bought it at a very good price, because the machine (registered I-KRAN) requires a lot of maintenance. In fact, here we’re even talking about ‘restoration’, as the aircraft has spent so much time outside without flying…
But while the two men were restoring the MCR-01, another friend contacted Gianmarco. He informed him that he had just bought the famous Sportster he had tested in Sardinia a few years earlier. What’s more, he’d bought it at a very low price and wanted to sell it for the same amount. What a godsend! Gianmarco offered to swap it for his Flash and pay him the difference. It’s a deal! The trade was agreed and, at the beginning of 2017, the two men met up in Pavullo to carry out the swap and Gianmarco Rizzo finally found himself the owner of a Sportster… but there was work to be done on it!
The aircraft has only 250 flying hours, has been fairly well preserved, but had been out of the skies for too long. Like the MCR-01 he bought with Antonio, this Sportster also needs a lot of maintenance. But, as you can see, Gianmarco doesn’t do things by halves. He registered the aircraft in the Italian Experimental Register, restored it completely and even made a few improvements, mainly to the avionics:
“Now my Sportster (registered I-SPDY) is equipped with Dynon D10, Garmin G5, 2-axis autopilot, digital engine monitor I built myself, mode C transponder, 8.33 Trig radio, Garmin 496 GPS, Alisport 3-blade propeller with electric control and Flybox governor.”
It’s hard to beat that! What’s more, although this Sportster doesn’t have an airframe parachute, Gianmarco has installed our new flap control system, and he doesn’t intend to stop there: the I-SPDY is currently being fitted with an antishimmy damper and a new non-structural fuel tank to increase its range. Because, just as he did with the Flash, the pilot travels a lot in Europe with his Sportster. But there’s a huge difference: with the Sportster, the flights are shorter. Much shorter!
Enjoy your flight, Mr Rizzo!
When Gianmarco talks about his Sportster…
It’s a joy to fly my plane because it’s fast, nimble and excellent climbing performance. The Sportster has the reputation of being a dangerous or difficult aircraft. I disagree! It’s true that you shouldn’t underestimate it, but operated within its parameters, the Sportster is a very safe airplane, and I don’t find it difficult to fly, but one should never forget this is a high performance machine.
Regarding SE Aviation Aircraft, they provide fantastic support for MCR owners, and the quality and engineering of the components is absolute top class.
WHAT IS NEW AT SE AVIATION AIRCRAFT?
A look back at AERO 2024 Friedrichshafen
We were also delighted to meet many of you, including Mihai Silvestru, who was featured in our April newsletter. More generally, we had a great time meeting all the people who came to our stand, and answering all their questions about our aircraft or the DRIADE programme.
This 2024 edition of the AERO show was definitely a good one, and while we’re looking forward to returning to Friedrichshafen soon, here are a few images that you will be able to find in the full version on our Facebook page.
