Sushee Perumal of Ontario, Canada, has owned a 1977 Cessna 340A since 2020.
Sushee Perumal, a technology-focused entrepreneur from Ontario, Canada, is the proud owner of a Cessna 340A. He has owned this pressurized six-seater for three years, during which he has accumulated over three hundred hours in the plane.
Perumal has been a pilot for over fifteen years, which he thought would be out of reach as a child. Since becoming a pilot, aviation has defined much of Perumal’s life. Flying has enabled him to experience the world from a new vantage point.
“I have had the aviation bug for as long as I can remember. But without family or friends in aviation, I didn’t know the path to becoming a pilot – so I just put it off. I never really thought about [doing] it; maybe one has to be super-rich or privileged to become a pilot. Luckily, my first job out of graduation had me working within view of Billy Bishop Airport (CYTZ) by the waterfront in Toronto. I saw planes doing touch-and-goes all day long,” Perumal recalled.
“So, out of curiosity, I signed up for a discovery flight. I learned this is completely attainable financially, as you can stretch out the ten to twenty thousand dollars it takes to get your private pilot for a year or even two years. As expensive as that is, it’s more about the discipline to study; the time commitment it takes (weekends, evenings) are the bigger factors for people. Also, the accessibility – it’s all about the instructors and the aircraft, so being close to a good flight school really helps.”
Perumal had found that not only was becoming a pilot initially a sacrifice, but this commitment towards training is also an ongoing endeavor. His mindfulness towards being a proficient pilot expanded in 2020 when he purchased his first aircraft – a 1977 Cessna 340A. At the time, he was considering a Cessna 310R, but the several models he went after didn’t pan out, and the opportunity to purchase another great 300-series Cessna presented itself.
“I’ve owned the 340A for what’s coming up to three years now. It was very well equipped. It has mid-time RAM VI engines (300 and 700 hours each), spoilers, S-TEC 55X, and an updated interior. I did some avionics upgrades when I first got it, as it didn’t have ADS-B Out, and I wanted Flight Stream 210 to integrate with the flight maps on the iPad. This just makes it so much easier to upload routes. I also got the taxi and landing lights replaced with LED lights and the locks replaced.”
Currently, the twin fits all of Perumal’s boxes; he flies for business and recreation – with his family of four.
“I think as the kids grow, I’d like to upgrade to something with more range and speed. I haven’t quite decided what that is, but it will be pressurized and be a turbine. There are planes out there with incredible value, like the Conquest, and also, there are planes that are more updated, sexy, and new, like Citation M2s. It will all depend on the mission and the budget three years out.”
“I fly in the Northeast [United States] mostly for business and mini-family getaways. I also volunteer with Hope Air, a non-profit that provides medical transportation to people living far from medical care in large cities, like Angel Flights. The timing hasn’t yet worked out for any flights, but it’s a great organization, and I’m happy to be part of it,” he advised.
“For personal trips, I was in New York for a day with my family a couple of weekends ago during Easter. We love Maine and did that a couple of times last summer, and we will be going camping this summer there, as well as Cape Cod and a day trip to Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard (as it’s impossible to find reasonably priced accommodation there). I discovered the Bahamas for the winter months, so that will be an annual trip from now on,” Perumal stated.
I’m constantly updating my checklists. I don’t think checklists are supposed to be static; you need to add to them.”
“With so many destinations I discovered through tribal knowledge, I created an app, fly2places.com – which allows pilots to discover destinations. It also has an itinerary builder for people to instantly put in parameters and get an hour-by-hour itinerary for their destination.”
With Perumal’s hundreds of hours spent in his plane, traveling between Canada, the United States, and the Caribbean, he understands its average performance well.
“With 65% power, [you see] 180 knots true in the 7,000 to 10,000 feet range, 190 knots in the teens, and 200s above FL200. I see fuel burns of under 19 gallons a side at cruise, so 38 gallons. I plan on no more than 3 to 3.5 hours [worth of fuel], which comfortably gives me around 500 nm depending on the headwinds. Of course, we have those times when I did 280 knots and 740 miles with over 1.5 hours of reserve,” he happily recalled.
Perumal flies roughly a hundred hours annually, including time spent with instructors and fellow pilots in the right seat. He noted that the practice of flying with others is one of the ways that he works to stay sharp in the cockpit.
“I got a commercial ticket, too, to advance my training. I am also working on an ATPL, so I can keep up to date and keep it all fresh. Flying is such a perishable skill. Just flying, and then the knowledge as well. If you don’t use it, you lose it! I have a couple of friends who are instructors, as well as one who is a 30,000-hour-plus pilot who I go up with frequently. He keeps an eye out on me and calls things out as an informal instructor, as he has enough experience to tell me if I’m being sloppy or need some correction.”
“Also, I’m constantly updating my checklists. I don’t think checklists are supposed to be static; you need to add to them. I had watched a video on someone who mentioned this idea, and ever since, even before, I have been ensuring that my checklists were always updated and reordered. The checklists for my plane were written in the 1970s, and not that there’s anything wrong with them – but you just find your own things to add to them. Flying the plane each time is a great part of plane ownership because you can find its nuances and the things you should add to a checklist.”
Perumal has found that a frequent piece of advice Twin Cessna owners give prospective ones is to not rush into owning the aircraft.
“Don’t jump into one without experience. It’s about the quality of experience, like my extensive IFR cross-country experience for a decade on the [Cessna] 182. It’s about skill stacking; putting a pilot into busy IFR airspace in a new high-performance machine is too much. I am not smart enough to handle it all on day one.”
Naturally, insurance demands also determine when it’s appropriate for a pilot to jump into twin ownership, he noted.
“Expect insurance to ask for twenty-five hours in type with an instructor. I initially did around fifty hours with an instructor, including cross-country time. Also, a good sim program is a must. I did mine with Aircraft Simulator Training (AST) in Burnet, Texas, specializing in Twin Cessna training. They throw everything at you and give you lots of nuanced information about your Twin Cessna. That’s invaluable.”
Perumal concluded his thought, “Twin Cessnas have incredible value. Even for a million [dollars], you can’t get the pressurized cabin class plane that goes at flight levels. So, expect similar maintenance and know you are getting into the restoration business. Do a good pre-buy and know what you are getting into. But don’t expect a perfect machine; just look at the maintenance pedigree and how often it has been flown.”
Perumal highlighted that regard-less of an airframe’s particular maintenance pedigree, pilots and owners of Twin Cessnas benefit from being technically minded.
“When you own any Twin Cessna, you are in the restoration business, so I keep up with the maintenance, not deferring anything. You need to be there for the diagnosis and keep up with the maintenance, with all the different schedules, and make the decisions. When the A&P calls and wants to discuss something with you, try not to get in the way by trying to be an expert, but be collaborative and pipe in if they need you to. With any A&P, it’s about your relationship with them. And that’s the underrated thing about owning your own plane; the number of partnerships you build. It really does take a village.”
Perumal clearly enjoys the aircraft ownership journey. He frequently contributes to various online Twin Cessna forums, discussing the pitfalls and joys of ownership with other aviators.
“Without aviation, my life wouldn’t be nearly as exciting. Both professionally – for the meetings I attend and the relationships I build to advance my business, and for the weekend getaways with family. Aviation makes this corner of the world smaller, and there are so many amazing destinations, many off the beaten path. Without aviation, business growth would be slower, and I couldn’t give my family the depth of travel experience they now enjoy.”
Perumal added that he enjoys storytelling and has been making home movies for nearly twenty years. Consequently, he created a YouTube channel to relive his flights and share aviation with family, friends, and those wanting to get involved with aviation.
Perumal’s adventures can be found under the channel name @susheeperumal.