In late July when Cessna announced at AirVenture that it would offer a BRS whole-airplane parachute for its emerging light-sport aircraft, the SkyCatcher, no one was very surprised. Chutes have become pretty standard fare in LSAs, so Cessna was just following suit.
But BRS, the company that makes the chute for the SkyCatcher, as well as for the Cirrus lineup of high-performance singles, recently announced that Cessna would offer chutes as options on all of its piston singles, starting with the 172 Skyhawk and 182 Skylane and progressing to the 206 Stationair, once a chute has been developed for it. The installations can also be done at Cessna service centers, a process that will begin soon.
Customers will be able to order their new Cessna single with a chute, though the installation would be performed outside the factory. Cessna hasn’t determined a price for the installation yet, but the identical aftermarket STCs performed on existing 172s and 182s go for $21,000 and $22,000 installed, respectively.
