I finished my second hour in the two-ten, which probably doesn't mean a thing to most people and means something entirely unrelated to the myriad others who have a different reference. The two-ten (or more accurately 210) is a Cessna Centurion model 210. It's the second type of plane that I'm learning to fly, after the Cessna Skyhawk, which is referred to by it's model number, 172. The Skyhawk is a fairly simple plane, and therefore a common trainer. The Centurion is what's called a complex aircraft, and though it doesn't have the huge panel of instruments you'd find in a large, or even a small jet , it is significantly more complex than the plane I learned to fly.

For one thing, the 210 has retractable landing gear. That might not seem like a big deal, but it is for several reasons. First, being able to tuck in the wheels means that you can reduce the drag and fly faster. Second, the landing gear requires a separate system, in this case hydraulics, to control its position. If you lose hydraulic power when you are in the air, you have to try to manually pump life into the system to lower the wheels to a landing position.

Another reason the Centurion is considered a complex aircraft is that is has a constant speed propeller. The Skyhawk has a fixed pitch prop, which means that when you open the throttle, the propeller turns faster and you increase your speed. With a constant speed propeller, you can instead change the angle of the blades, which creates more of a bite into the air. You want the prop digging hard into the air when you are taking off, but when you are cruising, the engine runs more efficiently with a flatter prop pitch. When you are landing, you will change the pitch back to a more angled configuration, in case you need sudden extra power to abort and climb back up into the sky.

I was pleasantly surprised to discover how similar was the flying of the complex Centurion to the basic Skyhawk. There is much to learn, of course, but most of it would require experience rather than study. Probably about twenty hours of flying with my instructor, practicing slow flight, stalls, steep turns and landings.

One of the critical differences with the Centurion is that it flies much faster than the Skyhawk; the 210 cruises at 180 while the 172's cruise speed is about 105. With the Skyhawk, when it was time to come in for a landing, I would cut back on the power, the plane would slow, and I would shed the necessary altitude. With the Centurion, you have to plan your descent to allow the engine to cool as you are lowering your speed and reducing altitude.

The Centurion also carries more than twice the amount of fuel, travels 50% further and carries twice as many passengers as the Skyhawk. Interesting new features and concepts. Complex, but not complicated.