Is that the type of aircraft that Nature flies? I was actually thinking of making a short trip to the Corcovado area (Golfito or Puerto Jimenez) and was starting to think..should I fly Nature..or Sansa or rent an SUV and drive. Any thoughts as far as safety issues...Nature versus Sansa?

I used to work these suckers every year when they flew down to Antarctica

SR

Remember when flying a twin engine plane that if one engine fails the other one will almost always fly you directly to the crash site.

One other thing is that most runways (including the one at San Jose Int'l) are built for large, fast-moving aircraft, so small, slow ones have so much extra runway and margin for error that a "running out of runway" accident is extremely unlikely.

SR

....... The ballistic parachute on some singles is NOT designed to be used for engine-out landings. It was designed to be used in situations where aircraft control is lost, catastrophic airframe damage occurs, or a good landing site cannot be located (rare, as most singles can be force-landed on any patch of ground that is relatively smooth for a couple of hundred feet). The parachute is a last-ditch effort that will cause permanent loss of aircraft control in exchange for a relatively slow descent (although the aircraft will be damaged -- it won't be a soft landing). It's much better to fly your newly found glider to a controlled off-airport landing. Mountains can actually make the landing easier if done correctly as an aircraft landing on an upslope can land on a very small patch of land. Of course this requires proper pilot training and good judgment. If you've never been in an engine-out situation, the aircraft certainly doesn't fall like a brick. In fact, if you're up a few thousand feet in the air (typical even for a Caravan), it could take several minutes to reach the ground. The glide will be eerily slow, quiet and comfortable.

http://www.brsparachutes.com/lives_saved.aspx .........

SR