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You are absolutely correct. My non-Mooney trained CFI who did my Mooney "transition training" taught me everything NOT to do in a Mooney. In fact, during our stall series, I got to see what a stall done poorly and the subsequent spin looks like from tree level after we leveled out. I'm fortunate in that I have a close friend who is a 4000+ hour Mooney owner with a CFII. I fly with him several times a year including IPCs that I do every 6 months. It is amazing how many bad habits you can pick up. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Fixed it for you :-)

Best looking piper arrow I've ever seen... Best regards, -a-

It's funny you can take the paint off and polish a 50 plus year old airplane and it looks beautiful as compared to my 50 plus year old airframe going out stripped. I would be arrested and rightly so

Any pilot can fly badly or kill himself with or without transition training. Any Mooney can have problems of some kind with or without a Mooney knowledgeable mechanic. Success in aviation, like all things in life, is built on odds. Your odds of being a better and/or safer pilot is better with better training, and your odds of getting better training (for Mooney flying) is better with a Mooney knowledgeable CFI. And your odds of having lower Mooney maintenance problems are better with Mooney knowledgeable mechanics. I think that Mooneys have a few more differences from brands C, C, P and B, that move those odds a little more than most, but this may be bias or ignorance on my part.

Well, that says it all. All you need is 2,000 hours test flying airplanes to not need Mooney specific instruction.

Made it to Austin. Ended up getting a little bit of a late start as we were enjoying the company of our host last night and got some breakfast on the way out. It was a pretty bumpy ride coming out of El Paso to our fueling stop at KFST and my co-pilot started feeling some slight motion sickness so we took a fairly long break there. Nice quiet little airport, almost so quiet and old you'd think it were deserted, but as soon as we landed someone came out and helped us fuel up, and were really friendly. We ended up coming inside and chatting with them for a while. I'd totally recommend going there if only for the fuel prices. It was a very pleasant stop. We probably should have gotten going a little sooner though, cause there were some pretty good buildups moving into our flight path. We ended up needing to divert a bit to stay clear of the nasty stuff. All in all though it was a pretty good flight. We were VFR the whole way and never got any real turbulence and just a few sprinkles. That definitely made the XM subscription worth the money. Eventually we got out of all that and landed at KHYI, picked up our rental car, checked into our hotel and headed out to meet gsxrpilot for dinner. He picked an awesome place, and a good time was had by all. Just got back from wandering around 6th street and people watching. Tomorrow, a little formation flying and then New Orleans!

This last line sums up my conversation with Don this morning nicely. Nothing in the report was terribly unapproachable. Just that it was clear this plane had not had a proper annual in a long time. Two of the inspection panels had to have the screws drilled out in order to open them. Tons of stuff that was overlooked in the recent annual, etc. Then on top of the poor recent maintenance there is a shitty wing repair, he recalls having been told by a previous owner that this plane as having been heavily damaged by a forced landing and a less than stellar spar cap corrosion repair. I went to the seller asked for a discount for the unsatisfactory repairs, to have the plane get a new annual at their expense at Don's as well as some other things that would have made the deal good enough to make it worth it. They declined so now we move on and keep looking for a plane that meets our requirements and hasn't been terribly maintained and dragged through some fence posts.

Getting ready for the longest XC of my short flying career in a couple weeks. Should be close to 6000nm over roughly 2 weeks in my Mooney with one of my friends. We have a number of destinations picked out along the way, and a few things we'd like to see but still could use a little guidance or local knowledge on some of them. Here's the basic plan. Day1. Fly Carlsbad, CA (KCRQ) to Moab, UT (KCNY). I know the area well and have friends that live there. Day2. Fly KCNY to Chicago/DuPage (KDPA) Again, have family in Chicago, but will need to find a lunch/refueling stop somewhere in the middle. Omahaish? Day3. Chicago to Dayton Ohio to see the National Museum of the USAF. Since I'm assuming we cant just land at Wright-Patterson AFB I could use some intel on what the most convenient place to land would be. After the Museum we'll be flying to Pittsburgh, and could use suggestions on landing locations there as well. Day4. Pittsburgh to 5B6 (Falmouth, MA) Will be spending a few days with my family on Cape Cod. Day5. Cape Cod to Myrtle Beach. Will be doing some scenic flying along the way and will probably need a refuel somewhere enroute as this is right at the edge of my fuel range if we fly direct. Day 6. Myrtle Beach to Marathon Key. Again will probably need to refuel somewhere along the way. Day7. Marathon to New Orleans. Day8. New Orleans to Carlsbad NM. Will definitely need to refuel enroute. Day9. Carlsbad, NM to Carlsbad, CA. Home stretch, and I'm fairly familiar with options along the route. I've only included the flight days here, but we will be spending some time in a few locations. Chicago we'll be spending a day in the city, we'll be on Cape Cod for several days, and we're thinking of spending an extra day in Marathon and Carlsbad NM as well. Mainly though I'm hoping to get some suggestions on places to refuel (cheap and with good food hopefully) and in some of the busier areas which airports will be more convenient for getting to hotels or attractions. Thanks guys!

Clear and a hundred miles at Oceano Airport this morning. We already have about 15 airplanes including two with their tails on the right way. I expect another couple Mooneys. Fly-In movie night is tonight. Activities start at 4 ish. All welcome. Oceano California. High today is 79 degrees. Camping on field. Free admission to movie night. Wing walking demo. Caddy Shack is our main feature. www.OceanoAirport.com for webcams.

Loosely aviation related topic. If you or family members are in the process or want to get a college degree please take a look at CLEP. Spend some time reading about it online and ask me for any help. I am sort of an expert on this topic having taken very many CLEP tests. I can help steer you in the right direction and complete a degree or just get a ton of credits affordably. Pm or reply here for details. I don't make money off of it. Just a CB helping others.

When I was in grad school I would spend Saturday mornings in some sh!tty laundromat and study a continental 737-800 manual while the dryer ran. I was that much of a nerd. I did learn a lot about systems though. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks. Wasn't sure it got what he needed. Getting decent light and focus is hard with a smartphone camera in close quarters.

Greg is correct. I am an instrument procedure designer in Canada. An RCAP approach is restricted by op spec. Only a commercial operator can obtain an op spec from TC. Usually the issue is climb gradient or airport certification

Right after I got my PPL in a standard trainer, I did dual instruction in my newly purchased M20C with a Mooney Safety Foundation instructor and former M20C owner. I did the 10 hrs required by insurance - he wanted to sign me off before this, but I actually would have liked to go beyond the 10 hrs - maybe I'll find some more instruction soon.

Let's see if I can help you Professor. [emoji6] I have a pair of the LS Zulus (not 2 version). I can stream my iPad Garmin Pilot output to it through Bluetooth. I don't do it often because it is a separate step to remember to turn on the Bluetooth. But when I do, it works. As for the Halos. There is a new softer foam that he sells that I bought before last winter and flew with. They work unlike the beige or yellow ones. Here is the link: http://www.quiettechnologies.com/index.php?route=product/product&path=66_60_61&product_id=53 Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I've been using Brian Kendrick (formerly of the Mooney factory) for the last four years. Brian is an absolute surgeon, and although he typically chooses to work on the M, R, TN, and an occasional J or K, I consider him the "Mike Holmes" of the Mooney maintenance world...in other words, people who have had things goofed up on their aircraft by the bigger shops (including a few MSCs I won't name here) come to Brian to get it done right. I bring Brian up to NY each year for my annual, or I go nearly 1300 miles to Texas - either way works as long as I have him doing my maintenance.

g3expert gave me a quick reply. 696 provides GDL39 with GPS position. Confirmed what you had said. 696 works like your unit when connected to GDL39 and receiving GPS signal. All good.

The video on that site looked like a clip from a horror movie where bugs eat something. Be careful of the splash!

You've hedged your bets by reading the whole POH. It's something I try to get every transition student to do. Sometimes there is a time and place for the know-how of someone who has been in the plane a lot. How fast the electric trim moves. When it's best to manually trim (quickly!) such as a go-around. From an insurance underwriter's perspective, we see the losses. Training and regular flying keep losses down. Infrequent flying leads to loss of good habits and technique.

There was a species of Eagle that lived in New Zealand until about 20 years ago that had a 20ft wingspan and was capable of killing adult humans and carrying away toddler humans. Can you imagine sharing the airspace with those bad boys? The FAA would probably have to mandate that they carry ADSB-out transponders. I bet they would make a mandate to the department of interior that the department of interior agents would be required to catch all the Heist Eagles (I think that's their species name) and tag them and mount a certified adsb-out transponder.

Waiting for the return. Non Texas people don't get it. When you are out of Blue Bell you are out of ice cream

Erik, I have tried all 4 brands ( bose, Lightspeed, David Clark and halo ) for several flights each and I would have to say that LightSpeed is my favorite, the fact how it covers your ear and quality of the product, specially in our Rockets that are quite loud with that bigbore engine in front. I used the Halo for alomst a year in C172 and Sundowner, they are great for non ANR, but they are a pain in winter... I kind of regret that I got 1 Bose A20 in exchange at Osh, I should have gotten 2 Lightspeed Zullu PFX, they are top quality...I now use the PFX as my primary and Zulu 2 as my secondary, the bose A20 for passengers....

Listeria?

Purchased at the beginning of the year. I am pretty mechanically inclined and got with a couple of A&P to help show me the ropes. These things are stone simple that can be taken apart and put back together with a basic tool set and about 5-10 mooney specific tools. What I have found is some A&P consider airworthy are not in my line of thought of airworthy. So there are levels of precision. Many annuals have been signed off with 40 year old hoses. I would suggest any person buying any old mechanical device be prepared to spend $10K over the first year no matter what the purchase price if it is over 20 years old. Once purchased create a maintenance plan of things to repair and or replace. My last order of airplane things included 2 engine mounts. My next order next month will have 2 more. I have some new brake line waiting for the Texas Heat to break. Texas people will get this

Yes, obviously used equipment it will be a less than new. Bob Bramble is absolutely first class and extremely reasonable. He oh'd my King HSI a year or so ago.

Since you're asking the question, then yes, you probably could benefit from some form of transition training. Little is "cosmic" under the cowling on a mooney. It's simplicity is part of its beauty. They are pulled by the same tractor engines powering most of the other high performance singles out there. Their are a few "gotchas" that an unfamiliar mechanic may not catch... But for your average experienced A&P not a challenging aircraft to work on. For specific issues, a MSC might be prudent. For general issues, you'll spend a fortune unnecessarily. But we each have our own opinions on that! Disclaimer: I'm not an A&P. I did not get specific mooney transition training either. But I do have a background in operational test flying and had over 2000 hours in prop/turboprop/jets prior to flying my J. 500+ mishap free mooney hours since....

After 17 straight years of attending, I always check with vendors whose products I have to see if they have anything new that I am interested in. This year I saw the new system 6.0 Garmin will be coming out with in a couple of months for the GTNs, I was surprised to see the new ESI 500 and immediately wanted one, and finally saw and played with the GMA 350C audio panel and will be upgrading my GMA 35 to the 35C. Obviously the problem is that you want all the new stuff.

I received training from many known Mooney sources including annual training. I think that formal training is a must for me because when I fly, I take people with me and I want them to have a safe and knowledgable pilot at the controls. Could I fly a Mooney without training in perfect conditions? Sure, but I worry about the abnormal stuff, building up ice, high altitude flying, landing gear issues, and deeper system knowledge that the POH doesn't explain. The maintenance is second to none. Maintenance is done in Don Maxwell's shop and getting it there takes a flight of 921nm. I'll pass several shops on the way but no one is better in my opinion. The price is also very fair and family lives about 4 hours away from his shop so its almost convenient to fly in, drop it off, and see family. Can a shop prove their Mooney experience? I don't think they can. Not like Don Maxwell. I've experienced a near perfect dispatch rate (can't think of a reason I've cancelled for maintenance but I'm sure I'm just forgetting something) and so if a plane is down for an annual, it's great that they seem to notice things that are going bad and fix them so that I don't have things break and be down between annuals. I don't trust any mechanic and some are really not specialists in Mooney's like they claim. Sure, he might have worked on a D or J model but I bring him a R. Does that seem like a good idea? Sure, some parts are identical, but engines are different and things need calibration. Does he really know how to balance fuel injectors on a Continental IO-550? Too many times, things get overlooked by mechanics that don't really specialize in aircraft and when it's my life in the plane and people I care about, I would like my best option. Besides, have you ever looked on the ramp in front of Don Maxwell's shop? It's nothing but Mooney's everywhere. Not one Cessna, Piper or Beechcraft. That is a true aircraft specialty mechanic in my opinion. In all truthfulness, bad mechanics probably don't stay in business for long. People build reputations fast and word gets around. You can probably take it to a mechanic and they can inspect it. Maybe they get out the checklist and do a thorough check on the plane. There are too many maybes for me to risk it. First annual was at a large chain FBO. Never again. They were paid to go to a MSC to learn how to re-rig a flight control system after they said the control cables needed replacing. They didn't know how to do the work and it still frustrates me to this day. I do wish you the safest outcome on all of your maintenance and flying. Something to think about is that if you use a reputable shop to fix an aircraft and there ends up being an issue later, they will stand by their work and will help pay to fix it if they did something wrong. Most MSC are this way I've noticed. Best Wishes!

Just happen to fly to Colorado today. This is at 17,500' not bad for a NA plane!

Marauder. His posts always push my already sensitive stomach just a bit closer to the edge.

Quiet Technologies Halo headset. You'll be glad you did. http://www.quiettechnologies.com

I had documented real world numbers using the sky radar WAAS GPS around here somewhere... 280hp O1 ground roll 1200' 310hp O1 ground roll 800' Initial climb rates might pin the VS needle on cold days... Keep in mind, I am far from being a test pilot. I used to use the 2,300' runway at 5B6, somewhat fully loaded in summer. There isn't enough room to get stopped after a late decision... As far as differences at altitude...my CB nature kicks in, LOP @2,550rpm... For real speed improvements at altitude, you would want the 310hp Acclaim... The factory reman with a pair of snails is like 35 AMU more. Unfortunately, the STC for the TNIO550 only applies to the M20S. Want to talk to my mechanic? (He did the O and Eagle at my home drome) Best regards, -a-

So are we!

I wasn't a big fan of polished airplanes until I started polishing mine, it has grown on me, looking forward to taking out into the sun soon and seeing what the shine looks like.

Did you guys do the Opera House and Taronga Zoo tour? Your pics are taken from familiar angles.

I will never understand the costs of painting a plane. It's just a shed that goes 200 MPH. Oh, and has a few less old videos of strippers.

My hangar "neighbors" stripped their plane themselves and had a professional painter come in to paint it last year. That is, partially, what motivated me to strip mine. They said the amount of paint cost $4,000, the labor was $6,000 and they stripped the plane themselves! I was washing my plane and when I pushed it back into the hangar I noticed the ground was covered with white paint specs, the paint was literally flaking off. http://mooneyspace.com/gallery/image/36646-/ Originally I was just going to strip the wings and possibly repaint, but the more I stripped the plane the more I liked the aluminum look.

Today I went out and put that terrible landing behind. Did 2 departures climbing to 2000 AGL turning around and returning for the 45 both approaches were on the numbers and both landings were smooth with no floating or bouncing. I would have done another but the smoke from the big fire burning near by was so thick and getting worse so I called it a day. I must admit I was a little nervous and can say it's not good to let too much time pass before you get after it. It Can cause self doubt. Took away a good lesson learned and thought about many of the helpful comments posted here.

Re: the DC airspace: Just take the course. It's not a big deal, all of maybe half an hour. Then you can just say yes when they ask if you are 'familiar with the Special Rules DC airspace, And you don't have to go way out of your way to avoid that 60nm ring, say if you have to deviate to the west of your planned route to avoid buildups. Potomac Approach has always been very nice to deal with.

Actually he might be okay. 6000 NM at 140 knots (average) is only about 43 hours. Worst case he could just drop the oil and add more without even taking off the cowling. Walmart will take the old oil to recycle. Regardless, a great adventure.

I too vote for KFFA- First Flight Field... and Saint Augustine. decent fuel price and nice restaurant right on the field. Bill

Since you will be going right by it: First flight KFFA

Re: midatlantic refueling, I've heard good things about Atlantic City NJ, never stopped there. I'm quite partisan about KEDE, my lovely little adopted home town on the Albemarle Sound. Gas is cheap-ish, the scenery is nice.. If you find me at home, I'll find lunch for you. A huge second to the idea of stopping in Pensacola, for beach, seafood, and the Navy museum, which is outstanding. Mountain flying: cross those rocks as early in the morning as you can stand when the winds are calmer, the air cooler. It can be a brutal ride later in the day. We enjoyed Sedona, AZ, the restaurant on field was excellent, scenery spectacular, and Mojave Spaceport also boasts a pleasant restaurant and fascinating boneyard.

Once you clear the Rockies, it will go easy. I've not flown my C west of Cody, WY yet. Went there from West Va. with my wife and luggage for 10 days, no oxygen, no mountain flying required. Plan your route over/through the mountains carefully, them's big hills. Greene County is a great stop for Wright Pat. On the coast, there's a good restaurant at KJGG Williamsburg/Jamestown, also a good place to spend a day or two. Coming out of Florida, send me a PM. I'm I'm east AL, and will take you to lunch Fri-Sun (Auburn KAUO has an ILS if needed; or go the extra 15 nm to 06A and see where the Tuskegee Airmen learned to fly. Their two brick maintenance hangars have been rebuilt and are a museum run by the National Park Service, you can see them in a couple of hours. New Orleans Lakefront is supposed to be nice, closer to town and less expensive than the international airport. I was supposed to have gone over the weekend, but instead am having a mag overhauled . . . West of there, take the advice of the Texas & Arizona folks here. And remember, have fun, take lots of pictures, and fly safe!

Few questions... Do you have an instrument rating and on-board weather? Indispensable for a trip like this when you'll be flying across weather systems. Do you have portable oxygen? It helps with high altitude flight of course, but it is equally valuable on very long trips like this to keep you fresh. How high have you flown your C? Do you have any mountain flying experience? Your course from Moab to Chicago is asking a lot of a non-turbo C, especially in the summer. You're guaranteed to have pretty significant clouds and turbulence over the Rockies in the afternoons. I'd consider taking the southern route unless you know what you're getting into. I assume by the comment "short flying career" that you likely haven't ventured into/through/over the Rockies yet but perhaps you have. Flying over the Rockies entails a lot more than just climbing high and following the magenta line. If you get in the clouds you'll likely get ice, even in August. airnav.com is helpful for finding cheap fuel, and www.fly2lunch.com is a nice cross-reference to find places to eat during en-route stops. New Orleans Lakefront is an easy airport. I can't remember which FBO I used, but there are a couple of options. Between New Orleans and NM I'd consider College Station and Pecos for fuel stops. I'm sure there are plenty of other options. CLL has a car and lots of eating options within a few miles of the airport. Pecos is a legendary fuel stop in a desolate location. I'd make a plan for hydration and the associated draining during long flights. Hydration will keep you sharp, but there are side effects. My preferred relief nowadays is a gallon ziploc with diapers inside it. Easy to stow, and even I can't fill one up in one session. (I drink a LOT of iced tea and water) You might bring a small cooler with snacks too, or at least some snack bars. Bottom line, be safe, be flexible, and have a great time! You'll gain so much valuable experience on a trip like this, and have a blast while doing so.

The 0681 in mine The 0681 in mine is the day I passed my private checkride, June 1981.

Makes me wonder if the noise gear had the trusses damaged due to improper towing?