When shopping for their first airplane, most new private pilots tend to focus on predictable, safe types that are a known quantity and easy to own. Types like Cessna 150s, Piper Cherokees, and the like typically top the list of contenders. Types that were produced in great quantities, that any mechanic can easily maintain, for which replacement parts are cheap and plentiful.
Cameron Shepard had a decidedly different philosophy. When he was a poor 19-year-old aircraft maintenance student, he opted to become part owner of a 1978 SOCATA Rallye. Relatively common in Europe, the French airplane is a rare sight in the U.S., with about 60 examples appearing on the FAA registry. It features an enormous bubble canopy that envelops all four seats, side-by-side seating with control sticks, and automatically deploying leading-edge slats that enable great control at low airspeeds.
