slvrbck

folks, replied on the modern mooney thread "mooney bravo" Just following up as I got a lot of good advice with this thread! Apologies for being absent but have been in ground school for my new airplane with the airlines. On breaks I still love following GA. I have signed a pre purchase agreement on an A36. Still love the mooneys but kids, girlfriends and dogs leaned in favor of the beech. I will continue to lurk and maybe when kids are out of the house go to a mooney! Again thanks for all the input. It's been great. v/r Bob

Yes, you probably met me. I flew F-16's with Dan and I believe we talked about that. You were updating the AOA on your 252 I believe. v/r Bob

well folks, I'm back after a hiatus of 3-4 weeks. I started a thread on looking for a Bravo to commute to republic airfield on long Island from Burlington VT. Got much good advice and am just updating in case anybody cares:). After sitting in a long body mooney and an A36 I have signed a pre purchase agreement for the beechcraft. I flew the A36 and loved it. I never flew the mooney but am sure I would have loved it also. However, I have 3 teenage girls and someday a girlfriend (maybe ) so the space of the A36 compared to the mooney was the deciding vote. I just wanted to thank everybody on this site, and Beechtalk, and COPA, for all the valuable insight! As I get familiar with my new to me airplane I will return the favor. As I mentioned I am a member of ABS, MAPA, and COPA and the minimal fees associated with them are minimal compared to the the wealth of information available. Once again, thanks for all the help, I close on Wednesday! I will continue to lurk here, still love the mooney lines! v/r Bob

Carqwik, thank you for the validation of issues I have been debating with myself! Seriously, those are my exact same thoughts. I've been debating these issues for a while now. Have talked to chief pilots and got their "thoughts". I take those with a grain of salt as chief pilots change and what they tell you is sometimes different than what they tell their bosses. Wx is a factor. Even if I get a FIKI Bravo, I know. However, with todays ability to forecast and have inflight xm and adbs and such ....it gives more flexibility. The need to be there, for the job, trumps the need to be home. What I mean by that is if I'm going to work, I make a go-no -go decision when i still have the JB option. Coming home I just get hotel if I need to. With 52 weeks in a year if I can fly half of those then that is half my stress reduced. For those times when shit just happens, well I hope it's not often but I will compare it to cars breaking down and things beyond my control. If I can show good back ups and doesn't happen very often then I think I can defend that, Again, thanks for the thoughts and we are on the same page. v/r Bob

Gent's Thanks so much for all the offers and advice! I am going to sit in a Eagle2 tomorrow. As far as I know the long bodies are all the same vs bravo, acclaim,ovation,eagle. If I am wrong please, please please let me know. I've been wrong so much in my life it really doesn't bother me:) As I posted on BT I flew a A36 the other day and loved it! Great airplane. Now I need to fly a Bravo to compare. I recognize that they are both great airplanes and fill different missions. At the risk of boring people I will explain my mission and would love any advice. So here goes...... I am an airline pilot based at JFK. I recently retired from the Air Guard (F-16) and am divorced with 50% custody of 3 beautiful girls. I am not willing to to move from the BTV area as I really like the school system and want the girls to grow up in Vermont. My life is very good with the exception of the commute to JFK. I generally jumpseat down on JetBlue (shout out to JB folks as you guys rock and have treated me so well). However, it still sucks waiting on flights, hanging around airports, and begging rides, any airline commuters can relate! So I got to thinking .....How can I make this commute easier? I'm a general aviation fan as I used to own a kit fox and 182. Trying top see if commuting to FRG (republic) in a Bravo/A36 would work. I KNOW it will not save money. That is not my goal. My goal is to reduce stress and perhaps enjoy going to work. Looking at Bravo for ability to get up and out of ice (TKS a plus). Looking at A36 for ability to do the commute 80% of time (bravo 90%) but still be able to load kids and go to Florida on break. Hope this is not to much information but is where I'm at. Anybody has any other ideas I would love to hear them. Thanks again for listening and love the amount of expertise on this site and BT. Cheers Bob

Thanks for all the replies. I've spent a lot of time defining my "mission" and it's best served by a 182. I've had one of those, loved it, ready to try something new. Both the Mooney and the Bonanza will fit the mission. I recognize each airframe has a certain "niche" it better fills. I would be happy with the right airframe in either category however I want to make sure that I fit,( I'm pretty standard size ) and that it's comfortable. I flew a Citabria for the first time and really did not like how it felt to me. Very cramped and awkward (chute on in winter). v/r Bob

Hey folks, been lurking on this sight since I've been debating getting back into GA. I've owned a kit fox and c182 in the past but have never flown a Mooney or Bonanza. Looking at purchasing a Mooney Bravo or F33A/A36. I've been doing a ton of research on both brands and don't think I can go wrong either way if I find the right airplane. However, having said all that I think I should at least sit in one and preferably fly one before such a large purchase! Anybody in the KBTV (Burlington, Vermont) area willing or able? Gas and lunch on me. v/r Bob PS I posted this on Beech-talk also, hence the Bonanza reference. v/r Bob

Ahh......... Thank you. Just turned 49. I guess I'm getting old. Didn't see it at first!

There is no spec sheet attached.

Congrats.