Originally Posted by
FrequentFly3r
Maybe the -200... I've never flown it but I've heard things like this about it.
I was climbing through FL300 the other day at .82M still getting 1500 FPM in the CRJ-900. I'll admit I don't have much to compare it to, though. I've only flown the E145 and the CRJ700/900.
I fly all three variants of the CRJ, and the -700/-900 is indeed a different beast from the -200. The -200 runs out of steam at FL250, so by the time you're at 300, you can only expect a climb rate of around 500 fpm. And the beat-up, tired old -200s at OO are hard-pressed to hit .77 in cruise, let alone the .83 we use for go-home legs on the -700.
Still, I find the -200 the most fun to hand-fly and the easiest to land softly, thanks to the trailing-link gear. But the lack of FADEC is highly irritating, the temp control system is a joke, the APU is laughably inadequate for cabin cooling, and passengers detest the -200. So whenever possible I try to avoid the -200.
My affection for the -900 springs from 2 things: 1. The dual FMS CDUs and 2. The presence of fresh bananas on our Delta-badged -900s. On UAX 200s, you're lucky if you snag a stale bag of pretzels.