Any thoughts on the most comfortable plane to spend the night in? How to achive the best results?
I suppose two different types of camping that come to mind., The night in the plane for whatever reason and the camp trip using the plane for hammock holder, extra roof etc.

Tent cot. Weighs about 35 lbs and is a bit bulky but has made fly out camping trips absolute bliss for me in my Cessna.

https://amzn.to/2DkTYVF

I have slept in an airplane on occasion, but frankly, an airplane is not a very good “camper” for a lot of reasons.

Either something like Aryana posted or just a good stand up family tent is a lot better.

MTV

45 years as a truck driver may have some what inclined me towards sleeping in my vehicale. I still sleep best in a pickup bench seat.

I’ve slept comfortably in my old 170 and my 180 many times. Both with extended baggage compartments and the rear seats out then slide the front seats all the way forward. There’s enough room for my 80”x30”x4” sleeping pad.

Been forced to sleep in a plane a couple of times.

most comfortable was a C-206

Most "I'm Never Doing This S@&T Again" - Taylorcraft

I camped next to a guy at High Sierra a few years ago that slept in his C180. To do so he pulled his passenger seat out.

I totally understand the desire to sleep in ones plane. I have a hammock I sewed that hangs from the frame inside my BH; I think it is going to be awesome. My exposure to Cessna's is very limited (3hrs in a 150, 1hr in a 207 and 1hr in a T206) but if I were looking for a plane to use as a camper, ie sleep inside without having to pile everything on the ground outside, I'd be looking for a C207.

One of the reasons I noted my displeasure with sleeping inside a plane was based on doing so in cool, damp climates. The inside of the plane can become a rain forest pretty quickly in those kinds of conditions.

In dry climates, not so much of an issue. There, it's mostly comfort. And, to do so, you have to take all (or at the very least, most of) your "stuff" out of the plane. Where do you put that stuff while you're sleeping in the plane? In my experience, that's called "bear bait"....

But, whatever winds your watch. A Beaver works great for camping.....once it's empty.

MTV

Ya...never understood emptying the airplane so you could sleep in it, while mice stow away in all your gear that's sitting on the ground outside the airplane.

An airplane big enough for a 300 lb man and his gear is definitely named after something in nature...Beaver, Otter, Kodiak, etc..

But hey, if a million-plus dollar airplane is worth it not to pitch a tent, more power to you!

Another major plus of the tent cot is that it deploys in about 90 seconds.

I love standing around drinking a beer or two watching everyone else set up camp. There is always quite a bit of jealousy that results in someone buying one when they get home!

Grumman Albatross ,,,Lots of room

Aryana wrote:I love standing around drinking a beer or two watching everyone else set up camp. There is always quite a bit of jealousy that results in someone buying one when they get home!

Except...there's probably room for a woman/mate/organic heater in their tent.

Zzz wrote:
Except...there's probably room for a woman/mate/organic heater in their tent.

Good point! I’m SOL on that front because my wife stays in hotels and doesn’t camp out in the plane.

There is a double tent cot if you’re so inclined [emoji16]

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000I6420U/re ... qCbMRNE2NV

Aryana wrote:

Zzz wrote:
Except...there's probably room for a woman/mate/organic heater in their tent.

Good point! I’m SOL on that front because my wife stays in hotels and doesn’t camp out in the plane.

Time to upgrade your kit...

I like sleeping in my plane mostly because I’m lazy, it’s much easier that setting up a tent. My clothes bag and other random stuff is piled on the front seats and the only things I leave outside are my cooler, table, bbq, and chair... which would be outside anyways. This is only when I camp alone. If I have my family with me I bring the big tent and a lot more stuff.

I can't imagine sleeping in my airplane except as a last resort. Better than freezing to death, I suppose, but at my age, I wouldn't be able to walk for awhile after sleeping all night (if I slept all night).

At OSH one year, I saw a 208 Caravan that the people were using as their camper. No tent, just a screen room for their daytime activities. Otherwise, they slept in the million dollar camper. As I recall, it was a couple with 2 teenage kids. I didn't look inside their airplane, so I have no idea how they set it up.

Also at OSH, I've seen several old big twins (Grummans, C47s, etc.) which appear to be the RVs for the people around them, but it's often hard to tell how many are part of the camping party and how many are just visiting.

For our kind of backcountry fly-ins, though, I'll choose a tent any time, and I prefer my Big Agnes Big House 4, with a cot and other accouterments that make life comfortable.

Cary

Got stuck for weather one night and slept in the back of my 150 (popped the pass seat). Wore a Mustang survival suit to keep warm. In the never again category.

Zzz wrote:

Aryana wrote:

Zzz wrote:
Except...there's probably room for a woman/mate/organic heater in their tent.

Good point! I’m SOL on that front because my wife stays in hotels and doesn’t camp out in the plane.

Time to upgrade your kit...

Oh man, being of Persian descent I would never hear the end of it if I busted that out!

[emoji16][emoji1360]

My first RANS S-7 had a slightly different arrangement of the interior tubing behind the pilot seat, and while I was building it I realized that my aircraft plywood cargo platform that I would use (when flying solo with the rear seat out and hauling a lot of gear) if doubled up, could unfold and once the pilot seat was removed (2 QR pins) I would end up with a 6'4" flat cockpit wide sleeping platform. The cool thing was the way it worked out, it was also perfectly level. It took 2 or 3 minutes to turn into a camper. My baggage bay LED light served as a reading light, and all in all it was quite comfy. I used this feature maybe 20 or 30 times, a few times in conditions so bad my weight in the plane helped keep it in place. It was like sleeping in a rocking boat, but at least those nights I didn't wonder, if I was tent camped away from it, if the plane was OK I did have a few times when I contemplated what it would be like to be laying down in it while it tore loose from the tie downs and flipped over, but it never happened.

BUT, all my gear would be outside, and it didn't have enough room to get dressed or do anything but sleep. The InstaTent I've been using the last 8 years or so allows me to stand up, and has a ton of room on the floor. Plus the airframe I have now is not conducive to the same arrangement. Being able to sleep comfortably in a plane is just another tool in the kit, and I sort of miss knowing I can do so.

If I wanted to sleep inside an airplane, I’d have to say my Aeronca Sedan would have been the best. I could (sorta) walk around inside the cabin of that plane...can’t do that with the 170.