What Makes a Modern Aircraft… Modern?

A look beneath the cowling—and the technology that changed how we
operate, maintain, and teach in our Diamond fleet.

If you’ve spent most of your time flying traditional general aviation
aircraft and haven’t flown a Diamond yet, I understand. That’s where
we started, too.

When we started Take Flight, like most flight schools, we operated
traditional general aviation aircraft. As we grew, we experienced
firsthand many of the challenges that come with operating an aging
fleet—older avionics, increasingly difficult-to-source parts,
maintenance downtime, and aircraft technology that simply hasn’t
changed very much in decades.

Those experiences ultimately played a major role in our decision to
transition Take Flight toward modern Diamond Aircraft.

Today, approximately three-quarters of our fleet is powered
by Austro engines, and we’ve accumulated a tremendous amount
of real-world experience operating these aircraft in a demanding
flight-training environment.

It Starts With What’s Under the Cowling

Our single-engine DA40 NGs and twin-engine
DA42 NGs are powered by the Austro Engine AE300
series—a turbocharged, Jet A-burning engine that takes a very
different approach to piston aircraft operation.

If you’ve spent your flying career managing mixture, magnetos, hot
starts, and engine temperatures, flying an Austro-powered Diamond
can be an eye-opening experience.

FADEC: Let the Engine Manage the Engine

One of the biggest differences is FADEC—Full Authority
Digital Engine Control. Instead of requiring the pilot to
manually manage many aspects of engine operation, FADEC electronically
controls critical engine functions.

For the pilot, the result is remarkably simple:
single-lever engine operation.

No mixture control. No traditional magneto checks. No complicated
hot-start procedure.

You command the power you want, and the engine management system
handles the details. For a student pilot, that means less time
managing legacy engine procedures and more attention available for
flying the airplane, situational awareness, and decision-making.

Why Liquid Cooling Matters

Many traditional general aviation piston engines rely primarily on
airflow for cooling. The AE300’s liquid-cooled design provides more
controlled engine temperature management, including during extended
ground operations on hot days. It’s one of those technological
differences you may never think much about—until you’ve experienced both.

What Happened to the Magnetos?

Magnetos have been part of aviation for more than a century, and
there’s a very good reason they’ve lasted so long. A traditional
magneto generates its own electrical energy; it doesn’t depend on
the aircraft’s battery or alternator to produce the spark that keeps
the engine running.

Rather than relying on traditional mechanical magnetos, the Austro
architecture uses electronically controlled engine management with
the redundancy and backup systems necessary for aircraft operation.
The result combines modern electronic engine management,
fuel injection, single-lever operation, and aviation-focused
redundancy in one powerplant.

Why Does Any of This Matter?

Because the technology in the airplane affects the experience you
have flying it. When we began transitioning Take Flight to Diamond
Aircraft, we weren’t simply looking for newer airplanes.
We wanted an aircraft platform that approached general
aviation differently.

These aren’t technologies we’re reading about in a brochure. They’re
technologies our team operates, maintains, and teaches with every
day. That’s what I want this series to be about—sharing what we’ve
learned operating modern aircraft in the real world and explaining
why we’ve made the decisions we’ve made as a flight school.

Come Fly One

Experience an Austro-powered Diamond for yourself. Schedule a discovery flight or speak with our team about training at Take Flight.

(845) 457-4188  •  fly@takeflightoc.com

49 Hangar Road, Hangar D
Montgomery, NY 12549Unsubscribe