Enough Of The Excuses... Here's The Final Decision

OK... a little more quibbling and we'll get right to the meat of the matter... as this was the TOUGHEST year to make such decisions in all the years we've been making these judgments. No kidding. It was tough.

Based on a possible 100 point score, representing 12 categories of judging criteria and several weeks of consults with over 30 trusted experts and several hundred reader inputs, the final decision came down to a total of a three point difference... while second and third place were a dead heat. That's tough company!

ANN's Final Selection for Best Certified GA Aircraft of 2005

The top three selections consisted of Cirrus Design's deluxe SR22-GTS (that's the 310 hp beastie with all the options), the recently upgraded 235 knot Columbia Aircraft turbocharged Columbia 400 and Diamond Aircraft's innovative, JP-4 sipping, DA42 diesel twin.

Cirrus got incredibly good marks for customer service and quality, and the fact that it was more than $100K less than the Columbia definitely earned it points in the affordability factor. We received very positive reports from owners lauding the bird, and more than a few of the respondents, to our requests for feedback, were two-time Cirrus owners. That's a pretty impressive factor. The total point tally for the SR22-GTS, out of 100 points was a staggering 88... the second highest score ever recorded. Incidentally; if a few projects turn out well for Cirrus over the next year, keep an eye out for them to be seen in the winner's circle once again. This is an extraordinary company and the products it offers are every bit as impressive -- but they may get to blow your mind (again) as early as 2006.

Diamond got truly amazing marks for the DA42, even though the bird has had some teething pains getting to market. Still, the innovative nature of this bird was not lost on our consultants and everyone agreed that Diamond pulled off quite the coup with the introduction of this highly accomplished and surprisingly affordable high-performance light twin. With only a few owners available to give feedback and some aspects of the aircraft not yet completed until just this week (known icing and a promised gross weight increase), the bird still notched up 88 points -- tying the SR22-GTS. With known-icing now under it's belt and another year to fine-tune the bird, the DA42 may turn out to be unbeatable by the end of 2006. Overall, this is the single most impressive new offering delivered this year and a little time maturing the design is going to yield great dividends for this outstanding company. 

Finally, the Columbia 400 actually started out with a few strikes against it. It was the most expensive bird of the lot, by the better part of $100k, and was still fairly new and dealing with the usual issues associated with a new bird. However; Columbia responded very well to minor complaints about some early creature comforts and turned those complaints into mandates for a better airplane. And by the end of the past year, the Columbia 400 had new seats, a redesigned cockpit, and one of the nicest panels we've seen all year with the introduction of the G1000 (though the the well-proven Avidyne Entegra is still available as well), the very-handy ReadyPad and an outstanding climate control system. Production issues were smoothing out rapidly and owner comments were over the moon... especially in regards to the company's willingness to respond to customer requests, and the phenomenal performance of the machine. When all was said and done, the final point score was 91... edging out the other two top contenders by only three points. Whew!

The Winner: Columbia Aircraft Columbia 400

As a result, the Columbia 400 has been selected by ANN as the 2005 "Best of The Breed" Plane Of The Year. It was a tough choice and the separation of only three points among the top three candidates speaks volumes about the quality of the choices presented to the GA world by these very fine companies... and we can't wait to see how tough our choices are going be 12 months hence.

They're all winners... and so are the fortunate folks who get to call these birds their own.

ANN's Final Selection for Best SportPlane of 2005

Of the six sport birds that made the final cut for the 'Best of the Breed' list for 2005, the final choice was not much easier than it was for the GA selections. Since the SportPlane business appeals to a number of people for widely different reasons, our selection process had to separate itself from what made them different and strictly concern itself with the quality, safety and overall value of the aircraft.

All six aircraft did surprisingly well... but customer service and support issues were major swaying points in this year's decision-making process. AAI did very well for an aircraft with such a specialized appeal while the SeaRey continues to be everyone's favorite bargain Amphib. The RV8 has a (justifiably) fanatical following, as does the Velocity SE (and it's bigger brother, the XL), while Flight Design's CT is off to an amazingly good start as one of the newest birds on this list...

But... for the second time in a row, the second generation GlaStar, Glasair Aviation's Sportsman 2+2, proved itself to be impossible to beat. Excellent customer service, a comprehensive builder assistance program, serious Bang for the Buck, and the quality of the aircraft, overall, kept the Sportsman 2+2 in the lead with 89 points... a 4 point lead over the number two aircraft (Van's RV8) and five points away from the third-place Velocity SE.

The Winner: Glasair Aviation's Sportsman 2+2

ANN congratulates Glasair Aviation's Sportsman 2+2 for their selection as the best SportPlane of 2005 and offers additional congratulations to all six final selectees... there were but 9 points separating the first from the last, in overall point score. Darned impressive.

FMI: 2005 Year-in-Review Comments?