What Did You Think We Were Talking About?

Columbia Aircraft announced Thursday a retail incentive for first-time aircraft buyers called Columbia IPO (Initial Purchase Option).

Although the IPO name is a play on words, the fact is that purchasing a new aircraft is, in some sense, an investment. The dividends come in the form of all of the benefits that a GA lifestyle provides -- time savings, convenience, flexibility and fun.

"All too often, first-time buyers purchase an aircraft similar to their trainer so they feel comfortable – six months later they discover that they’ve outgrown the performance," says Randy S. Bolinger, vice president of sales & marketing at Columbia.

"The beauty of the IPO is that Columbia Aircraft offers both Entegra-and G1000-based avionics suites so pilots who trained in a glass-cockpit-equipped trainer can easily transition into a similarly equipped high-performance Columbia and get a level of performance that they won’t outgrow, the quality they expect with such an investment and the status that exclusivity provides."

Here is how the IPO works:

1. Complete primary or advanced flight training in any of the glass cockpit trainers listed below
2. Purchase a new Columbia 350/400 of any model within 12 months of an FAA check ride
3. Submit an IPO Affidavit signed by your CFI that verifies trainer aircraft eligibility
4. Columbia Aircraft will reimburse flight training expenses up to $7,500 upon delivery of a new Columbia aircraft

Any version of the models listed is eligible if equipped with either the Entegra or G1000 suite (i.e., DA40-FP, PA28R-201, 172S)

"Columbia Aircraft doesn’t have a trainer in the product line, but due to the fact that we offer such diversity in our avionics options and excellent factory transition training, our high-performance aircraft are a perfect complement to some of the finest glass cockpit primary trainers in the GA fleet today," Bolinger said.

Columbia Aircraft manufactures a variety of all-composite aircraft. The Columbia 350, 350i, 350SL and 350SLX are normally aspirated, four-place aircraft with a cruise speed of 191 knots. The Columbia 400, 400i, 400SL and 400SLX are intercooled, twin-turbocharged, four-place aircraft certified to FL250 with a cruise speed of 235 knots.

FMI: www.flycolumbia.com