Is there a list of annual improvements to the G36 since 2006? I'm guessing it could fit on a post-it note.

Most of the whiz-bang stuff on the G36 is from third parties--namely the avionics and interior. Oh, and the AC.

I could hardly tell the difference.

I wonder how much they saved by not investing in a wind sock for the microphone.

Lots more detail about the structure and construction of the airplane, though I noticed some errors. I think I also noticed a nasty smudge on the PFD, and did she just start the engine with the mixture at idle cutoff?

Is there a list of annual improvements to the G36 since 2006? I'm guessing it could fit on a post-it note.

Most of the whiz-bang stuff on the G36 is from third parties--namely the avionics and interior. Oh, and the AC.

Cirrus success is mostly attributed to their PR department. Like most businesses, the sales people are the ones that make a company, not the RD department...
If you don't bring in the cash, it does not matter how good of a product you have... You won't make it...

Cirrus has been an amazing company so far.

Textron needs to quit "touting" that the Bonanza is a "1947 design". That is NOT what their target market of younger, affluent potential buyers want to hear.

It is no wonder that they sell single digits each year. I actually am surprised that they sell that many.

And now Diamond is about to enter the SEL retractable market....not good for Textron!

Exactly! They should change that to say "a 1968 design"!

Even with 8000 planes delivered, Cirrus is still a tiny percentage of all GA airplanes out there, about 5% of piston singles flying today. The fleet size has shrunk way more than the number of planes Cirrus has produced, for example.

If Cirrus had never existed, GA would be about what it is today. They didn't "save" GA.

Mike C.

Agreed. People are just generally bad with small and large numbers. 8000 sounds impressive as a number, but that's 8000 planes over many years. In a country of 300MM+ people. 8000 doesn't even move the needle for GA.

Cirrus has been a remarkable success story, even as the size GA market has changed dramatically.

GAMA posts data about new aircraft shipments, sales, etc. on its website.

For example, from the mid-1970s through the end of that decade, total annual shipments ranged from about 14,000 to 18,000 units, the vast majority of those piston singles.

I think it’s more significant to note what percentage of new aircraft sales they represent. Looking forward I see a predominantly Cirrus fleet. Beech, Cessna, and Piper can only hold on for so long putting a fresh paint job on old riveted metal airplanes. Don’t get me wrong, I like old riveted metal airplanes. I like old classic cars too, but they wouldn’t be my daily driver.

Exactly! They should change that to say "a 1968 design"!

For 2019, last full year with data, Cirrus SR series was 47% of all new piston single sales by count.

Textron and Piper tied 25% each. Not too bad for old metal planes, they actually out sold Cirrus together.

Cirrus: 384
Textron: 203
Piper: 203
Others: 35
Total: 825


Cirrus will never be the majority of piston singles flying around. Way too many old metal airplanes out there and those plastic ones do wear out, too. It wouldn't surprise me if the Cirrus has a lower average calendar lifetime than the old metal planes.

Mike C.

I loved flying every Beechcraft that I've flown, the Cirrus that I flew was just ok. Nice, but ok.

The Cirrus marketing makes me want to bo buy the airplane.

Beechcraft (Textron) marketing makes me want to take a nap...


I have owned four Beechcraft aircraft over the past 23 years and not once have I heard from their sales department, not even a post card...

I'll bet prospective King Air customers got some cards.

But you're absolutely right, Beechcraft's decline was caused not only by the overall decline in general aviation, but through the neglect of their piston customers.

A LOT of Cirrus owners have moved up to turbines. Beechcraft forgot that Bonanza owners become turbine owners and there is no better audience to market to.