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Something to remember.... takeoffs are ALWAYS optional. I'll be very interested in the NTSB report, but it sure looks like there were enough signs to make any prudent pilot stay on the ground in this case. Perhaps he had get-home-itis raging...who knows? I wonder what his WX brief revealed to him. I consider myself a cautious and prudent decision maker, but if a local pilot or airport manager recommended that I not launch at an unfamiliar and very challenging airport, I'd like to think that would be enough to make me stand down. Leaving Henderson field (Las Vegas) several years ago on an April afternoon, I got a very unwelcome surprise on my takeoff roll and was fortunate I didn't bend metal. Winds were strong and gusty (I think ~25G30 or 35) but mostly down the runway. That is fairly normal for my home base in KS, so I didn't think much of it as I have a lot of experience with those kinds of winds. A few seconds before my planned rotation, I got a HUGE gust that picked up a wing and weathervaned me while going into the wheelbarrow stance. Needless to say, I was shocked and managed to get the plane off of the runway and back under control (level, but crabbed), and stayed in ground effect until getting my airspeed safely above stall and then to climb speed. It happened so quickly I didn't really consciously think about what I did, but it worked out well enough that I didn't have a prop strike or even worse drag a wingtip. As I was climbing away, I heard a CIrrus that was behind me for takeoff ask the tower for a wind check, and the reply was 35 knots about 45 degrees to the runway (I don't remember the directions now) with peak gusts of 50 knots within the last minute. He wisely decided to sit tight and watch the windsock for a while to see if it was going to change again as I'm sure he saw my wild dance and thought he better not try the same thing. I wouldn't have even started the plane if the METAR showed what I ended up experiencing... We all need to keep in mind that takeoffs are always optional, unless your airfield is on fire and/or overrun with zombies and you have no other place to go...

Won't be making it to this one. Have family in from CA and dropping the plane off for the new audio panel.

A lot of good info here!! I opt'd for the "F" because it does 90% of what a "J" does for far less money. I was lucky to find one with a good auto pilot with alt hold and an HSI. Those are things that are just too cost prohibitive to install after the fact. Dual glideslopes and a 696 with Wx I fly hard IFR all the time. Maintenance for the "F" as others have mentioned is less than a "J". I agree that I often look to upgrade but having a good "F" I would never look at spending $40K more to get a "J". I look at spending $80K - $100K more and getting an Eagle or old Ovation......Then I wake up!! I also agree 100% with it depends on your mission. I use mine 90% of the time to commute to work, it's typically a 40-48 minute flight depending on winds. An extra 10kts buys me very - very little. Now when I use it to go on vacation and fly to FL those extra 10kts would be great.....but 10% of the time for $40K isn't worth it!! Again - that is my mission yours may be completely different. ********If I can give one piece of advice, when looking at a plane to purchase the first thing you want to do is see how many hours it has flown in the last 5 years....simple to do, just write down the hobbs for each annual and do the math. With the current state of the economy and fuel prices a ton a airplanes have been sitting around. They have been moved from hangars to tie downs to save money......If it doesn't fly - it corrodes!! Good luck!!

Sorry, mooneygirl, but I'm with Byron. He may have been an nth-generation Mooney pilot, but, as far as I know, airmanship isn't genetically transmitted. He was employed as an engineer, not a pilot. Hence a professional engineer but an amateur* pilot. And, condolences aside, his stupidity cost three innocent lives. *No pejorative intended. For example, Schliemann and Troy. (And after 50 years of flying, 40 professionally, I am now, again, an amateur.)

This is an opportunity for all of us to re-examine our personal minimums, and a reminder to do so realistically.

Well here is my two cents, so feel free to blast away. First, my thoughts and prayers are with Mr. Verhalen Sr. He lost his son, his daughter and his grand-daughter. Secondly we are only as safe as our last decision. So we need to make sure our last decision is our best decision. We have tragically lost several from MooneySpace, in what appears to be a kink in the decision-making process. I am not going to speculate, but John was a second-generation Mooney pilot, and he worked for Mooney. So I really wouldn't feel comfortable calling him an amatuer. What matters, for us all, is that our last decision is the best decision we have ever made in the air, or before we head out in the airplane. I hope we all can learn from these tragedies and be safer pilots. God Speed John. You will be missed.

Nothing like an amateur pilot with a few hundred hours in a travelling airplane who kills his whole family. Happens 100 times per year. Since 1933....

Camping by the plane!!! For those who don't think camping is for them, just try it one time. You will really get a lot more out of the experience. For what a hotel cost for 1 night you can buy a camping setup.

I'm fuzzy on my measurements. Is that more or less than a butt load?

Maybe the beechtalkers don't know how to convert from 50knots to miles per hour? Those are good guys over there, but it is humerous knocking on the guy for choosing a 200hp airplane to take off in 50knots - as if it would be fine with 300hp.

Your E will do 12,000 without breaking a sweat. The winds and bumps going through the pass can be severe if not just annoying. If you try to get V388 they will try to get you higher than 12,000 because of airline traffic (MEAs be damned). L.A, SoCAL and SNA seem happiest with you on V64. Just slow down to approach speed over Santiago Peak, because they will keep you at 8000 until passing it and then clear you for the approach, which you will not be able to make without speed brakes, so just plan on flying through the final approach course and circling back to the approach, which is what they will do after they figure out that you cannot drop like a brick. I always fly IFR into SoCal, the airspace is very complex and IFR makes it all go away.

I am a track up guy, but the raster charts that Foreflight uses also display the words and the other info upside down as well. The Aera has vector charts and can rotate the words etc as the map moves under you.

Your post makes absolutely no sense to me. I'm guessing liberal politics is your expertise. This is a pilots forum. Care to contribute? Oh and the seatbelt sign is off. So feel free to get up and move to another country!!!

finally got up the nerve to trust a suction mount - the ram mount is much better than what you get with the gopro Got this shot landing over the weekend - kind of hazy so the here to there shots weren't as impressive. http://www.youtube.com/embed/7lS81PJdmao

When Mooney/LoPresti made the J model from the F, various aerodynamic changes were made, some of which have not been disclosed. Cowl, windshield, gap seals, wing/stab root fairings are all obvious; the stabilizer fairing is there, wingtips to cover position lights, lower gear doors to cover more of the wheel when retracted, these we can also see. But in the quest to hit 200 mph on 200 hp, many additional minor tweaks were made, 1 & 2 mph at a time. I think the induction under the cowling was changed [when did the doghouse go away? I need to fix mine . . . ], an additional cover was put over the landing light, antennas were repositioned, etc. Either one [F or J] should do well, as inside they are the same [at least the electric F's]. Condition, maintenance history and installed equipment is what I would concentrate on. Search here for George Perry's excellent, detailed thread on what to know and what to look for when buying a vintage Mooney. Can't get any better information than that. If I ever replace my plane, that thread is what I will start with. Then of course, there is a PPI by a knowledgable shop who has not been working on the candidate plane. Have fun, relax and enjoy the search process. Haste makes waste, especially when buying an airplane.

I ran the T/O distance and with 2750lbs at 9000PA at 10 degrees C your T/O distance is around 3300 ft and that is with 0 ft obstacle hight. Goes up to around 5500 ft with 50 ft obstacle hight. Landing at the same 2750lbs would be 2000 ft with no obstacle and 3500 ft with a 50ft obstacle. At high PA's I have found in the KC-135 and T-6 your flare feels different more mushy and less control authority. Also the brakes and engine take significantly longer to cool. When I flew the T-6 out of KAPA I saw a PA of around 7500 ft and the performance was significantly reduced. Takeoff roll seemed like forever. Don't force the aircraft into the air. Based on the POH that I looked at liftoff speed is inbetween 58-59 KIAS. Also realize that at 9000 PA and an approach speed of ~76 kts your TAS will be 89 kts vs the closer to 80 KTAS at say 2000ft. So your gound speed will be higher depending on the winds. From flying a NA engine I would imagine you would not want to go mixture full rich when taking off. The book talks about leaning for smooth operation. It does however say mixture full rich in the landing section. Just run your TOLD before you go and fly the numbers. Also run the TOLD for the worst case conditions expected. Good luck