The most exciting news to come out of the big Oshkosh AirVenture show last July was that Cessna committed to building a light-sport airplane, the Model 162. The new two-seater will have a standard price of $109,500 complete with an exclusive Garmin flat-panel glass cockpit, a price well below half of any other Cessna single.
The new Model 162 is the culmination of years of work by the EAA, which spearheaded development of the Light Sport rule, and by Cessna, which is committed to a strategy of maintaining its position as the world’s leader in flight training. The simplification of the LSA rule, combined with Cessna’s more than 60 years worth of experience in building metal two-seat trainers, will allow a person to earn a basic Sport Pilot license for a fraction of the cost of a traditional private pilot certificate. And, Cessna expects the training package for the full private license earned in the 162 to be much, much less than what it would cost in a new 172 Skyhawk.
