benpilot

I have Stick and Rudder a good book. Will check out these recommended books as well.

Hmm who is the Robert guy? I am pretty new here.

@Corvus, well many engineers in the bay area are pilots so it makes the process easier than in many places. Good to know you are the owner of the Mooney at WVFC in Palo Alto. I am in no rush and taking my time to become a good safe competent pilot.

Very nice and 201J is lot more affordable than the 252/Ovations for a new pilot on a budget :-) Was it difficult flying to Bahamas? Did you have to get special radio operator license? I want to fly to Caymans and Mexico after having a plane.

This is an excellent topic that deserves more attention paid to in flight training. I've done a fair amount of stalls and slow flights and agree. Fortunately the Cessna 172 is hard to stall compared to other aircraft. I do remember the tip last week an experienced Mooney pilot gave me on my demo flight in the wicked fast Rocket to center that ball on the TC.

me? airshows, club events, travel, business. Lots of pilots use their planes for business travel. I know of guys that are luckier than me who hit it big and own several aircraft like a fast twin as well as aerobatic planes and singles. I'm just a techie who digs aviation and flying. Looking forward to earning my ticket so I can fly something faster and better than a cessna 172.

hope u guys are not sore about this. Just my initial feedback and the plane is well built for speed :-)

+1 skywarrior, I agree.

easy the clubs have different aircraft for checkouts after I have my PPL. That will give me a feel for the best fit for me whether it be Mooney, Cirrus, Beechcraft, or Socata.

cool well I plan to get checked out in different Mooney and other aircraft to get a feel for them better.

Huh?

No worries folks, I will continue to build experience flying different planes. Never said that I have all the answers and don't know how that got interpreted? BTW I understand how fanatical folks who own a particular type of plane are after all you spent many tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars, time and effort to acquire, maintain and fly a Mooney. Not knocking it, it felt very stable in turbulence and a speed demon compared to Cessna and Piper I've flown.

ok

Well for what a new Cirrus costs or even a used one, I can buy both a used Bonanza and Mooney! So have backup plane and one for single guy commuter shuttle right? Anyways, I need to fly some more different models of Mooney and Bonanza then make decisions. Not rushing it and there is a Mooney 20F for rent to get checked out here at KPAO so that would get me my complex endorsement and time flying it. I do like Mooney better than Piper and Cessna for same amount of money.

I think folks misunderstood my review of the first Mooney I flew a 1979 Rocket. Never had anything bad on the plane, it is fast looks awesome just a bit tight for me and the heavier controls are different. I did not ever say that Mooney sucks. There are things I like and don't like about Cessna as well. I know that folks here are Mooniacs and believe their bird is better than sliced bread so relax :-)

Ovation is starting to look good once prices come down on used ones since it may be more roomy than older Mooneys.

Yeah getting far quickly is the point of flying. Otherwise most folks would drive. I will look into the long body Mooney and see if they fit me better. Controls might be lighter as well :-) I've heard Rocket is heavier in controls than other Mooney.

I am going to flew a few more Mooney models to see if it works for me long term. Most of the stuff from the Rocket I really liked.

Corvus, I know MANY new pilots who get trained after PPL with instructor and do fine in complex airplanes. Not rocket science you can kill yourself as easy in a Cessna as a Mooney or Cirrus or Bonanza. So I agree to disagree. If 17 year old kids can get trained to fly jets not see Bonanza or Mooney as that hard to learn safely with dual instruction and time.

Which is why I drive a BMW instead :-) Anyways will see how it goes when I have chance to ride along in the later Mooney planes like Ovation. Might change my mind

Its a question of personal ergonomics. I've heard the newer long body Mooneys like Ovation and later are roomier. So would need to sit in one of these before I completely ruled out Mooney in the future. I did like most of the plane just the few things not to my taste that is all. I train in Cessna 172SP and they have plenty of room but are dogs and not great for long range travel.

Oh well guess I don't like stiff heavy controls and cramped for me cabin. Guess there is a plane for everyone. I fit a lot better in the Bonanza and Socata. Then Piper was cramped as well.

For me, Mooney is tight fit and controls way too heavy even at lower airspeeds. I did fly with owner of the Mooney Rocket and just not right plane for me. I fit in better as a short big guy in planes like Bonanza. I even flew in the Mooney with pedal extenders and still felt the yoke was close to my chest. I am not knocking the plane, I think if you are a tall thin single bachelor the Mooney is perfect plane. But for a short fat guy not the right one.

No, the owner/CFI selling his Mooney Rocket took me for a demo flight. Nice guy, Geoff Lee with 50 years flight experience. Bought his Mooney from factor years ago and was kind to fly me in it as long as I paid for fuel.

I've driven Lotus, Porsches (Cayman/911 Turbos) and Ferraris. You are right, the BMW M3 is heavier compared to these cars but much more comfy and luxurious. Yes, I trade pure performance for better balance of comfort and some good performance. I like the Mooney design and speed but not sure I can deal with sitting in such a cramped cabin for more than short flights. So yeah, Bonanza more roomy to me. Nothing against the Mooney in fact the climb performance and speed as well as felt very stable in turbulence make for a great aircraft just not the right fit for me. Sorry. Then again, I am not crazy about Cessnas and Pipers either. I am more of a Beechcraft Commander type guy that values comfy plane with decent performance. Maybe I can fly another Mooney model other than Rocket since I heard the controls are lighter in the 231 and 201J than the Rocket.