StevenL757

Well-said. I wish more people in aviation…particularly GA…had that attitude.

I heard this airplane fly directly over my house at about 3800’ last night. Given WX conditions, including an icing Airmet from the surface to 12,000, I flipped on “traffic” in ForeFlight, tracked him, and saw he’d just departed JFK. Followed him for awhile, watched him climb, level off, then lethargically climb, then descend, and then start turning. Called my wife over to look over my shoulder, and mentioned something like “I sincerely hope I’m wrong, but this looks suspiciously like an icing encounter or an engine problem, and that this doesn’t look like it’s going to end well”. Sadly, I was right. Prayers for those two onboard and their respective families.

Good points @Will.iam,and I largely-agree; however, that family dynamic in today's airline cockpit can be similar...and different. Our FOM, checklists, briefing quality, etc., demand a consistent level of performance and overall demonstration of safety. We double-check, and in many cases, triple-check just about everything from the preflight to shutdown/leaving aircraft. We're expected to question anything that doesn't sound or look right at any time. This is especially true when surface-navigating. The AA crew's level of attention-to-detail (or alleged lack of) at this phase of flight should have been high enough that at least one pilot should've caught the error and called it out (on the AA 777 to London, there was likely a third crewmember aboard, and possibly another jumpseater, so that's three or even four sets of eyes looking out for hazards.). Any of those in the cockpit are expected to offer the same level of situation awareness, adherence to sterile cockpit rules, and observation skills as the PF and PM (this is outlined in ALPA's jumpseat criteria/guidelines for Delta pilots...as well as other carriers). An expression I learned from a mentor and LCA in my company (with whom I try to pair whenever possible) is "We sell safety here". We repeat it to each other periodically in casual conversations, and firmly believe in it. My passengers expect perfection. I agree with your message that we aren't perfect and never will be; however, we have a responsibility as professional pilots to train and conduct ourselves to that standard.

Considering the way neither pilot caught the incorrect turn despite a correct readback, I'd have to answer "most-likely yes". This is SOP for us, actually. When I was going through indoc, one instructor described the act of taxiing the aircraft as "surface navigating". Although he spent the next hour citing examples to support his naming it this way, he could've gone all day with plenty of material in reserve.

Echoing @carusoam, With top overhauls done that frequently I assume it has - and continues to be flown - ROP?

With cloth seats, 1600+ SMOH, and no updated cockpit., etc. etc., absolutely correct.

Correct. Everyone has given great feedback here. I’m assuming by “big-bore Continental”, you mean an IO550. If this is the case, the plugs should go back in at 30ft/lbs (360 in/lbs), with a fresh gasket; and as Rich suggested, with a small amount of anti-seize (on the first 2 to 3 threads from the bottom). Personally, I’d spend the extra $$ on fine-wire plugs when your massives go out, but I won’t re-start that dogfight here…again. Steve

My tax rate is only 4%, and for over $250 purchased, they ship free. So essentially about 68 bucks tax.

Honestly (and I'm not sure what taxes you'd pay), Spruce has the best pricing I've seen. I can't even get close to this with my Aviall account, so I'm relegated to Spruce until someone comes along and beats their pricing.

@r0ckst4r - This ^^^

Hey Don, I could’ve sworn the 345 was 1090 and 978…which is why I replied the way I did. Apparently, I didn’t read the Garmin web page’s description of it carefully-enough. If it’s only 1090, then I’ll reconsider my reply.

In a word…Yes.

What does your AFM/POH say? I would venture to say that if 120mph is your extension speed, that would be your limitation to stiff-leg it to a MX location. Personally, I would back this off by a few MPH to account for un-forecasted wind gusts…unless you want to replace a gear door or two.

A brand-new installation of the GFC600 autopilot for a C340A or a T310R previously-quoted by my shop runs approximately $42k. The STEC3100 and the GFC500 are apples and oranges by comparison. Each has had its issues. You don't have to be an advocate or an opponent of Garmin's to realize this is merely a minor "speedbump" in the road for them. "This, too, shall pass".

Have your shop fully update the firmware/code on your 750, then after a restart, have them re-apply the JeppView unlock SD card and it should restore the Jepp chart functionality.

@mooniac58 FYI.

That sounds about right for someone in your position. Reasons you're seeing that premium number... 1. Hull value 2. Low total time 3. "0" make/model time. Unfortunately, the carrier doesn't care whether you've owned it for a year. 4. No Instrument Rating You can't (nor should you) reduce the hull value, but you CAN control the other three. Once you have a fair amount of time in type (around 100 hours), and pass your IFR Practical Exam, your next year's renewal is likely to be significantly less. Welcome to General Aviation. :-)

First off, I’d suggest getting those headsets off your glareshield and eliminate the risk of scratching your windscreen. :-) Second, welcome to the group. Third - your upgrade options are really based on your mission, future upgradability consideration, your ego, and the size of your wallet. Personally, I have my Ovation equipped as equal as possible to an airline cockpit, given my flows are similar. The G500TXi, GI275, and GFC500 (with YD option) are your best options to accomplish your long and short-term goals. I’d personally speak to your shop of choice, put your final design plans on paper, arrange to have a new panel cut (small dollars in the grand scheme), and your result will be nothing short of extraordinary. You’ll likely not need to spend any more money on upgrading for a very long time. The EDM900 and GTX345 should remain, given they’re excellent units, but you probably already know this. FYI - that unit in the panel is a “straight” GTN750, not a 750Xi. Garmin does have an upgrade path to trade up a 750 to a 750Xi unit…your shop can help you with this. Best of luck…let us know your thoughts and timeline as you go through the process. Steve

What you use on your tug battery probably isn’t a big deal, but if you’re considering a charger for your Ovation, get the proper charger for that SPECIFIC battery make and model. If you fly the aircraft more than about 100 hours per year, the battery likely wont need any charging in-between non-flying intervals. Steve

Personally, I would jump in the golf cart, run these things over to Brian Kendrick in McKee’s hangar and see if he has any interest. He’s around every day of the week except Saturday. I do know he was looking for some rocker switches to complete a couple of projects, but not sure if he found what he needed. He’s also working on a couple of breaker panels, so there might be some interest there. Just a thought. Steve

FlightAware only captures “recently-cleared” and issued IFR routes for various AC types, but my understanding is that they have no way of guaranteeing or knowing what specific route or routes an ATC facility will issue to any aircraft type on any given day. Furthermore, ATC often makes changes to initially-issued routes frequently. Unless I’m missing something, it’s kinda’ like the Forest Gump principle: Ya’ never know what you’re gonna’ git”.

Good point…sorry, I should’ve clarified. Certainly not a “pro” term. :-) Generally, it’s a point just outside the FAF (and at least 5nm from the runway) that tower controllers use internally to route traffic. They understand if you use the term that you’re able to stabilize your approach in time to make the runway and perform a normal, on-speed touchdown. Thrust reversers optional. Kidding. :-)

Interesting. On both my Ovation and work airplanes, that isn’t the case. Each crew member can transmit from their respective sides, and both pilots can essentially speak and be heard, however, if @TuomoMooneyFlying’s situation is as you describe, I can see where that would pose a challenge inflight.

Yeah, that's a good way to handle it. You're setting proper expectations by keeping them advised as to your intentions. If I choose to accept a request to keep speed up on final (in the Ovation anyway), I generally tell ATC "I can give you 150kts to the gate, and then I need to slow it up...will that work?". This lets them know you have control of the situation, are setting expectations, are able to safely keep the approach stabilized, and touch down at the acceptable speed to make a "normal" turnoff.

I've experienced this a few times in other airplanes. It sounded like your transmissions were broken, yet somewhat readable. To rule out a failure of the Capt. side PTT...start with these: Reach over to the F/O side PTT and see if that works. Switch radios (assuming you have more than one). Use your handheld microphone (assuming you have one). Try using a handheld comm radio, like a Yaesu, Icom, etc. (albeit, this has limited range if not connected to an aircraft antenna). Squawk 7600 so ATC knows you have a comm failure and can manage you accordingly. If I may, a couple of unsolicited pieces of advice based on your video... When clearing a runway, announce "clear of Runway XXX" rather than "clear of the active". Too many people use "the active", and it's really annoying, not to mention procedurally incorrect. Regardless of how many runways are in use at any airport, everyone needs to know where you are. They cannot assume - nor should you expect them to know - what "the active" is if they haven't landed or taken off yet, as a runway can change any time. When you were asked to keep your speed up on final, you acknowledged it, and made a comment about "landing long". There is no such thing. The proper term is "a long rollout", and it's something you should ask ATC for permission to do, as they expect you to turn off at the first-available and suitable runway exit. Without asking them and getting it approved, you may be forcing other traffic on short final behind you to go around unnecessarily. Lastly, if you're not comfortable with accepting an ATC instruction to keep your speed up on final, go around. Forcing the airplane to slow down quickly only helps de-stabilize the approach, which can lead to bad things. Hope this all helps. Good luck with the PTT issue, and let us know how it turns out. Steve