There has been some conversation within the BCP community on what constitutes a "back country" airplane, desirable features etc. So lets hear it; what are the must have, nice to have airframe and engine or other enhancements that are essential for a back country set-up. Provided some support for your opinion; safety of flight, ultimate performance, budget limits etc.

I'll go first, flaps or other such lift enhancing features. It's my preference to land going as slow as possible for the prevailing conditions and use as little ground roll as possible for both landing and take off. By extension I will include leading edge devices as well.

Depending on the mission

One BIG area I think people muddy the waters is this, IS IT competition where you’re being measured by the inch, OR IS IT backcountry flying
Though there are some broad similarities in general types of airframes and technique, I think they are different “sports” if you will

Many of those super STOL planes would simply fail in backcountry flying, they lack the range and interior space to even get to some of the spots, and the lack of speed and comfort flying XC would get old quick even if they could get way out there and back


But to your question

A aircraft you have Familiarity in, or one you’re going to spend the time and gas/instructor time in to get it

Most of the close calls, most of the beautiful approaches departures and landings were more based off how well the pilot can wear his airplane like an extension of his body, vs how much airframe Alaska $tuff he put on it.

It’s the Indian not the arrow

Yeah not saying a Lancair 360 is a smart idea for anything but golf course level grass, but a good pilot can get your very average “well loved” rental 172 into most of the backcountry strips out there, same is true of a no electric J3


Now if I was going to make a few airframe recommends

Take the wheel pants off
If you choose to fly a trike, the rubber hose on the nose strut trick is a good one
Good shoulder harness (reels)
8.5 ish sized tires are nice
CS or climb pitched prop is good
Scott 3200 tailwheel or smaller tailwheel on a T3 to save the bumps is nice

Power and weight is mostly to do with mission, what my woman flying solo with her backpack needs for HP is going to be different than what a couple of 300lb men who pack heavy and bring generators and will bring back a moose will need.

Same with avionics, if part of the trip is going to be IMC you’re going to need a very different panel than if it’s day clear blue and 22 flying obviously

"Must" have? In my mind not much really.
I haven't seen it yet but I can picture a crazy person who shows up at a backcountry strip on an airbike with a backpack of ultralight gear and sets up for the night. Now would I do that - heck no, but whoever does would be a hero.

For me the primary drivers are:
- aircraft capable of carrying me +1 or more with gear to the strips I want to visit
- speed and fuel capacity for convenience of getting out for an overnight or weekend trip
- envelope large enough so the above is satisfied while also being able to crash into the trees with a likely outcome of scrapes and bruises instead of splattered to pieces.
- let's be honest, has to look cool too(sorry Maule, that's a tail even a mother would be ashamed of ).

I have a buddy who converted a J3 to an L4 clone who gets in and out of some pretty cool places. O200, no flaps. He weighs about a buck o five and generally doesn't/can't carry passengers to shorter mountain strips but it works for him.
Any airborne rig that gets me to cool places where I can spend time in the woods with or without friends new and old is good by me - flaps or not.

Well 93K the question was enhancements for "back country ops" not STOL comps or landing on a golf course like surface. That said STOL capability does fit well within the BCP community, gravel bars locations come to mind or where serious constraints exist. As for golf courses maybe not so much unless your aviation idol is Harrison Ford !!

All training and skills development is essential, I will agree on that 100%.

Hmm

I’d say the shock bumper on the nose wheel is a very very good one for nose strut planes who want to places that may be bumpy

Remove the wheel pants

Tires (and tailwheel system) big enough the plane doesn’t feel like you’re going to crack something when you touch down, or are sinking into the ground, anything bigger is just a negative in performance

Panel wise, a AoA is nice, though the GA retrofit ones are not true full flying AoAs,

I’ve also toyed the idea adding a variometer to my 7AC to better take advantage of the yuuuuge wing around mountains and in the summer

Not part of the plane as much but a iPad with foreflight and all your reference docs,

it’s nice to have the 3D day/night view of places I might land, and to be able to reference text search everything from my POH, overhaul manual, FAR, SEAR manuals, plant identification, property lines and owners, radio frequencies, bathometric data for rivers and lakes, IAPs, etc Plus the obvious moving map GPS


Per Ford, well have you have made the Kessel run in less than twelve parsecs?!

DreadPirateWill wrote:"Must" have? In my mind not much really.
I haven't seen it yet but I can picture a crazy person who shows up at a backcountry strip on an airbike with a backpack of ultralight gear and sets up for the night. Now would I do that - heck no, but whoever does would be a hero.

For me the primary drivers are:
- aircraft capable of carrying me +1 or more with gear to the strips I want to visit
- speed and fuel capacity for convenience of getting out for an overnight or weekend trip
- envelope large enough so the above is satisfied while also being able to crash into the trees with a likely outcome of scrapes and bruises instead of splattered to pieces.
- let's be honest, has to look cool too(sorry Maule, that's a tail even a mother would be ashamed of ).

I have a buddy who converted a J3 to an L4 clone who gets in and out of some pretty cool places. O200, no flaps. He weighs about a buck o five and generally doesn't/can't carry passengers to shorter mountain strips but it works for him.
Any airborne rig that gets me to cool places where I can spend time in the woods with or without friends new and old is good by me - flaps or not.

^ that

DreadPirateWill wrote:Any airborne rig that gets me to cool places where I can spend time in the woods with or without friends new and old is good by me

PREACH!!

The only thing you really need is a plane that is fit for the mission. Backcountry is an extremely broad term. Being able to land and take off short is really not an issue in a lot of Backcountry flying, skis on big lakes or Glaciers, lots of big runways and flat hilltops to play on. As mentioned big fuel is important is some parts of the country, others not so much. Big tires/Tall gear/Big tailwheel/full IFR with ADSB all can be just excess weight for short fun trips. Sometimes you need to carry 1,000 lbs or more to the strip. Figure what you want then what you need prioritize the mods/plane from there.
DENNY

DreadPirateWill wrote:I haven't seen it yet but I can picture a crazy person who shows up at a backcountry strip on an airbike with a backpack of ultralight gear and sets up for the night.

If I saw that, I'd go slackjawed in awe, wonder...envy. That guy is totally unencumbered. Living in the moment, free of the useful load to accomodate distractions. A clean soul. An inspiration.

Some days I miss having a '41 Taylorcraft for the backcountry. The stakes were a little lower back when the entire plane cost less that what a prop costs today.

-DP

My early exposure to "off strip" was as a co-pilot North of 60 on big wheels with a DHC6. The one thing all of the extremely Skippers did to a man was use a little terrain as possible. You never know what you might roll, slide or float into, get down and get stopped. This is likely where I developed my obsession with lift enhancement devices. Anything that allows me to hit the Earth going as slow as possible, use as little of the available surface as possible is my mission.

Dang! Nobody so far has noted my primary criteria: Ability to safely carry a cooler of sufficient size to house the requisite steaks, burgers, breakfast sausage, and of course, the appropriate volume of Gin and a good supply of tonic water. And please don't even think of forgetting the requisite lime....

Everything else is simply details.



MTV

mtv wrote:Dang! Nobody so far has noted my primary criteria: Ability to safely carry a cooler of sufficient size to house the requisite steaks, burgers, breakfast sausage, and of course, the appropriate volume of Gin and a good supply of tonic water. And please don't even think of forgetting the requisite lime....

Everything else is simply details.



MTV

Whisky man, whisky

Mapleflt wrote:

mtv wrote:Dang! Nobody so far has noted my primary criteria: Ability to safely carry a cooler of sufficient size to house the requisite steaks, burgers, breakfast sausage, and of course, the appropriate volume of Gin and a good supply of tonic water. And please don't even think of forgetting the requisite lime....

Everything else is simply details.



MTV

Whisky man, whisky

One must always consider the scourge of scurvy and, of course, malaria......can't be too careful.

Zzz wrote:

DreadPirateWill wrote:I haven't seen it yet but I can picture a crazy person who shows up at a backcountry strip on an airbike with a backpack of ultralight gear and sets up for the night.

If I saw that, I'd go slackjawed in awe, wonder...envy. That guy is totally unencumbered. Living in the moment, free of the useful load to accomodate distractions. A clean soul. An inspiration.

I once took a gent to the south end of Kodiak Island and dropped him off, at the very south end of the Rock. He had a very small backpack, sleeping bag tied to it, no pad. Whole rig may have weighed 30 pounds.

He was a Recon Marine, on leave, visiting his sister in Kodiak, who was married to a Coastie, who I assume wasn't welcoming of a Recon Marine.... He was a very nice guy, a friend hooked us up. He said he just wanted a walk about for a few days. I gave him the full out horror story of what it's like to hike in Kodiak, bears, etc. Wanted to go anyway.

So, I loaded him up and flew him out. Asked him where and when to pick him up. His response: "No worries, I'll call you when I get back to town." Seriously.

I let all the air taxi guys know to keep an eye out for the dude. A week later, he called. I asked how he'd got to town....."walked, of course". I drank a couple beers with him that night. Always figured if I were in a back country accident, that's the guy I'd want with me.....

MTV

Zzz wrote:If I saw that, I'd go slackjawed in awe, wonder...envy. That guy is totally unencumbered. Living in the moment, free of the useful load to accomodate distractions. A clean soul. An inspiration.

Right? Probably retired too since that would take approximately metric forever, but the idea is inspiring.

mtv wrote:I once took a gent to the south end of Kodiak Island and dropped him off, at the very south end of the Rock. He had a very small backpack, sleeping bag tied to it, no pad. Whole rig may have weighed 30 pounds.

He was a Recon Marine, on leave, visiting his sister in Kodiak, who was married to a Coastie, who I assume wasn't welcoming of a Recon Marine.... He was a very nice guy, a friend hooked us up. He said he just wanted a walk about for a few days. I gave him the full out horror story of what it's like to hike in Kodiak, bears, etc. Wanted to go anyway.

So, I loaded him up and flew him out. Asked him where and when to pick him up. His response: "No worries, I'll call you when I get back to town." Seriously.

I let all the air taxi guys know to keep an eye out for the dude. A week later, he called. I asked how he'd got to town....."walked, of course". I drank a couple beers with him that night. Always figured if I were in a back country accident, that's the guy I'd want with me.....

MTV

That is awesome. Nuts, but awesome. I'm too pampered, I'd at least want a sleeping pad. And with my luck I'd be bear food for sure.