prflyer

Jason, I'm really sorry this happened to you. Having that happen to an airplane you are so invested in must be incredibly hard. Thank you for coming forward and sharing your story. I had not seen the other thread where you discussed the incident. Best of luck with your next Mooney. Fernando

I just found another thread where this airplane was also discussed. I had not seen that one before.

One of the pictures shows N6XM on a flatbed inside of the hangar still in one piece. I still don't understand how the insured value could be so low that this would be sold for salvage. What does an engine teardown and new prop, with labor to put back together, run these days? If it was truly a taxi incident this should not have done that much damage. Where is Alan when we need him?

I was surprised to find that N6XM was up for salvage sale as it suffered an accident. http://www.trade-a-plane.com/search?category_level1=Single+Engine+Piston&make=MOONEY&model=M20C&listing_id=2250965&s-type=aircraft I had always admired this airplane when Paul owned it, and I thought it was an extremely nice example of a vintage Mooney. I don't quite understand why the photos show it as it has been completely taken apart, but the description simply says that the gear suddenly failed during taxi. How could that type of incident require that an airplane be deemed only worth salvage value? I understand a new prop and an engine teardown, but why salvage and take the airplane completely apart? What am I missing here? Paul, do you have any other info on this? Thanks, Fernando

I agree this is a sad looking Mooney, but I was hoping Ben would bring it back. He at least had it inside the hangar when I saw it a couple of years ago, but he did tell me it sat outside for many years. I'm sure the C model will have some great avionics . . . Ben does very nice work. Fernando

I'm sorry Paul. Glad to see you have a good attitude about this and that the airplane will be fixed right. Good luck. Fernando

I'm sorry to hear that. Looked like a very nice airplane. If I had the budget for a K I would have certainly considered it.

Alex, Congratulations on your new bird! I did see it on the Airmods' website and it looks very nice. I'm curious about the performance of the G models. Can you share what real performance you are seeing with the 180 hp engine? Thanks. Fernando

Congratulations George! Fernando

Sorry Oscar. I saw your airplane yesterday afternoon in the hangar while I was talking with Frans and wondered what was going on. Fernando

Thanks everyone. Looks like somewhere between 7 and 8 AMUs. Hard to justify, but I sure like the looks of it. Fernando

I'm curious as to the cost involved in changing a mid 60s Mooney windshield to a sloped windshield. Anyone done one recently who is willing to share the costs involved in this type of modification? Thanks, Fernando

Congratulations! Great way to start ownership with a cross country flight, and it sounds like the airplane performed well. We hope to see you and the new airplane around the bi-monthly Mooney breakfasts in the area. Watch out for the email from Seth Meyers with info on those. Enjoy! Fernando

Congrats Bryan! Nice looking F! Fernando

Congratulations Brandon! As others have said, we need pictures! Regards, Fernando

Astra, This is a great way to express your goals and get some motivation from the folks on this board. It should be an interesting year! I live on the east coast, so I can't provide any advice on routing for you. However, I have two suggestions, one of which was already mentioned. In light of your aggressive schedule, I would seriously consider an accelerated IFR program that can get you the ticket in about 10 days. It is gruesome and tiring work, but worth it in terms of efficiency and time. I did mine through PIC. Since you will be flying frequently, you will not forget that which you have learned quickly. It will become second nature. If you were not flying often I might discourage you from doing that. But, as Seth and others have said, getting your IFR should be your number one aviation priority. Second, if you are going to be regularly flying single pilot IFR, you need a good working autopilot. Period. Since you are doing some cheaper radios upgrades soon, that is great, but if you don't have an autopilot already I would seriously consider investing in one. It can be a life saver. Finally, I live near Seth in the DC area, so let us know if you get around this area sometime and we can get together. Good luck. Fernando PS - I would not mind trying to get my commercial ticket this year either. Hmmm.

Kelty, Very nice job handling the engine stoppage and subsequent emergency landing. Really glad you are both safe, and thank you for sharing your story. It helps me and others when we think about similar "lower fuel" situations that we all encounter. Fernando

Marauder, I have owned both, and went back recently to using the Halos. I bought the Clarity Aloft at Oshkosh, and had them fitted there. I can't explain why you experienced this issue, but they are excellent at keeping noise out. I think the CAs microphone is better, and I liked the more substantial construction. I even found the earplugs to be better than the Halos. However, after wearing them for a few hours on the trip back from Oshkosh, the wire on the side ended up pressing against the side of my head and it started to really bother me. The Halos do not have this issue for me, so I ultimately returned the CAs. But, I would encourage you to keep trying the CAs, they are excellent headsets and very quiet. Keep trying to fit them properly, and they should work. Fernando

Mike, excellent video and a great adventure for sure. Thanks for sharing. By the way, what camera are you using for the video shots of Cuba? regards, Fernando

Thanks Hank! I'm surprised it's almost 12 feet. Fernando

I'm resurrecting this very old thread -- does anyone know the dimensions of the horizontal stabilizer for the M20E? I know the wings are 35 feet wide, but cannot find the dimensions of the horizontal stabilizer. Thanks. Fernando

Very good news! Thanks George!

Clarence, Are the Comanches cheaper to maintain compared to Mooneys or Bonanzas? I would love your thoughts about that. Thanks. Fernando

Hi Josh. Nice looking plane. The link to your website with the logs did not work for me. Regards, Fernando

Hi Mike. I would recommend Gaithersburg, MD (KGAI), as you are close to the metro and can Uber or get a taxi there. We covered this in another thread recently. See here: Have fun. This is a good place to be for the 4th. Fernando