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I live with family in the Engadin and work as an asset manager between Zurich, Milan and Vienna. My profile is high-alpine and international at once - home elevation 5,600 ft, business addresses spread across three countries.
I chose the DA62 after long research. Two Austro diesels at altitude are a safety plus you don't give up lightly; at the same time the G1000 NXi avionics give the clean IFR profile my routes need.
Standard route: Samedan LSZS → Mariazell LOGM for a family weekend, ninety minutes. Or Samedan → Zell am See LOWZ, just under ninety minutes, or direct to Salzburg LOWS, two hours.
Samedan is demanding - no ILS, funnel approach to RWY 21, no go-around below 7,500 ft MSL. With two engines at a 5,600 ft home elevation more margin remains: the turbocharged Austro diesels hold performance honestly up to FL200.
Cruise 356 km/h, range 2,622 km - my Vienna leg I cover non-stop with a full load. I keep MEP currency and IFR training strict; twin operations in high-elevation home country aren't routine, they're ongoing practice.
Samedan LSZS is home - demanding but spectacular. Zell am See LOWZ is my favourite one-hour hop with family: lake approach, mountains close. Mariazell LOGM for weekend escape, Salzburg LOWS for business and the Hangar-7 visitor apron.
Sion LSGS occasionally when I visit Swiss colleagues. Twin speed makes the longer leg feel short.
We had the DA50 RG on the table for a long time. At Samedan, the DA50 is widely flown - turbocharged single, cabin-class comfort, lower acquisition. For family pilots without regular international business missions it's the natural choice.
My additional axis is the international one: regular IFR legs across the main Alpine ridge, occasionally with demanding weather. In that mission the second diesel gives me an argument the DA50 structurally cannot have. DA50 pilots have a different profile - not a worse one, a different one.
“At a 5,600 ft home elevation you want every argument twice - the DA62 delivers.”
What I'd do differently today: a dedicated mountain-flying instructor for MEP altitude operations from day one. The DA62 is clean on approach - but Samedan isn't the Wiener Neustadt valley.
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