Mooney in Oz

DMAX should get the award for coming up with the funniest Mooney name. When I was a participant on the Mooney email list, which DMAX was a contributor and still is I believe, there was a guessing game amongst the contributors as to what should be the name of the forthcoming new model. Don's suggestion was the Mooney Orgasmo. It was finally named the Mooney Acclaim.

I feel your pain as the Aussie dollar is about the same value and being down under, we also get reamed by freight costs. Which way you choose, go either with all Garmin or Avidyne and Aspen. This is simply due to Garmin's proprietary stance on most of their equipment, otherwise be prepared for compatibility grief. I decided to go with Aspen and Avidyne, which makes me a very happy chappy.

Thank you Bennett. I understand those with us with Aspens should not have a problem as the interface is more between the navigator and autopilot plus there is good co-operation between Aspen and Genesys.

Bennett, Are there any plans for VNAV capability for the 3100 provided it is connected to a capable navigator - in my case an IFD? I am not talking about LPV approaches, I'm referring to VNAV descents whereby it can lock onto a glide slope type indicator until an altitude is reached by a certain distance whether by entering the altitude manually, conforming with a STAR, other ATC requirement or just wanting to be at an altitude for any constraint purpose. I ask this as in the brochure it mentions GPS VNAV capability with no elaboration, but in the POH the only mention of VNAV is in reference to a LNAV/VNAV or LPV approach (GPSL & GPSV). I also notice there is no VNAV button on the control unit. Thanks for chiming in.

I have a 55X and Aspen, both with GPSS. I can use either. As you say, it depends how it is configured.

I also have all of the above - in a Line up checklist.

Hey Ziggy. That video was so crisp and clear when I viewed it on my 27" iMac I felt as though I was sitting on your horizontal stab looking forward. Was the camera mounted on top or underneath your stab?

Hi Larry. On page 2 of the above previous thread you will see a post and photos of my set up. I have an 80 J and had my mechanic remake my cowl flap mechanism by fitting a vernier system which enables me to select any cowl flap position I want for the exact same reason you mention. He had to obtain what we call an engineering order here in Australia to make it legal, this would be similar to your 337 system I believe. If you want to go this route then talk to your mechanic about the legalities. You'll be able to select any setting you like, just like the electric system of later models except it will be mechanical without having to replace an expensive, electrical motor when it eventually stops working. I had mine modified about 9 years ago and have not had this problem and I cannot feel any vibration. You won't need them open every time you fly and I only use mine to keep the CHTs under 380 degrees. In addition to the above, about a year before the modification I had to purchase a new cowl flap for the left side (opposite side from the exhaust) from Mooney and was provided one with the shape that fits around the exhaust, so that both cowl flaps look the same and this also improved cooling. Unless it has changed since, Mooney does not provide the old, flat bottom surface cowl flap that you may still have. You may also have to look at the condition of your baffles. If your hottest is the No. 1 cylinder then check if your mechanic can cut away from the top, the horizontal metal baffle by about 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch. You can easily see this across the fins as you look into the cowl air intake on the passenger side. That should keep it that cylinder about 20 to 30 degrees cooler.

I wonder if he had any passengers with him?

I see your point Scott and agree as I did what you are saying. However there are owners who are satisfied with what they have, which still is a very capable navigator and can either not afford the capital and install cost of a GTN or IFD or they simply may not want to do so at this time while Jepp are still supporting the units. My wild guess is the value of the boxes will reduce further because of this announcement by Garmin. The same will probably happen to a much larger degree when Garmin eventually pull the support plug from the 530/430 boxes as there are so many of these units out in the wild , but that is many years away.

Discontinuity was a typical name used in most FMC/S's (Flight Management Computer or Systems) in those days following insertion of an instrument approach, say a RNAV approach whereby Discontinuity is displayed after the destination, followed by the selected IAF and the remaining waypoints. The user had to select Direct to the IAF to get rid of 'Discontinuity', however this was a convoluted process that should have been simple. Despite that shortcoming, the 480's are solid and reliable that have always had a good following by those who learnt to understand the units, albeit not as popular as the 430's as those are easier to use. These days the latest navigators are much easier to use, well at least the Avidyne IFD's are and not that much different in that 'Gap in Route' is displayed following insertion of an instrument approach instead of 'Discontinuity'. All that is needed is to select either 'Activate' or direct to the IAF, which is very easy as it should be. Not sure what the GTN's do, but I suspect something similar as I believe all FMC/S's use the same protocol, including those fitted in heavy turboprops and jets. Those of you who still retain a 480 and still wish to do so into the future would be wise to follow @Ned Gravel suggestion and perhaps join the Yahoo support group as mentioned by @whiskytango in case of required component replacement. @Alan Fox is another good resource. The GNS480/CNX80 was marketed as a FMC/S and I believe the first GA 146 approved unit in the world. It was even used in UPS's big iron B767's.

A few days ago, Garmin released the following Service Advisory re the GNS480/CNX80 series navigator. https://www.garmin.com/en-US/aviationalerts/service-advisory-1874-gns-480-cnx-80-end-of-service-life/ A great unit. I had mine for 14 years with never any problem with it. Traded it on a IFD440 to compliment my IFD540 as I knew the imminent service life was soon to be. Database updates will still be available from Jepp for who knows how long.

How fortunate are us, of which there are not too many, who do not live in the USA/Canada to have access to such helpful advice from Anthony and the rest of you guys and girls on this forum to the extent that it feels like I am conversing with friends and that is despite not having had the pleasure of personally meeting any of you, except for the one and only @donkaye, who I do consider a friend. In a couple of days I will meet for the first time another legend, @mike_elliott. Anthony, from the opposite side of the world, congrats on almost reaching a milestone with never aggressive, respectful, always polite (even in disagreement) and knowledgeable posts that no doubt reflects your nature. You are more than appreciated. I know there are many others on this forum who deserve similar accolades, but this thread is yours. (I wish there was a thumbs up emoji)

That is one beautiful and impressive looking Mooney. It looks like you also have TKS - a very capable J. Please tell me it lives in a hangar.

Nice and shiny belly you have there.

You would think so Jose, however one of our company aircraft passed one at FL140.

That sounds dismissively dumb to me. The crash you refer to Cyril, sounds like the Air Florida 737 that ended up into the Potomac River in 1982. I believe it was snowing with lots of ice contamination that resulted in gross lack of performance. Pushing it up to max or even exceeding max power probably would not have saved them. Design of late series turbine engines would probably not result in disintegration in the event of over torquing the engines, however over temping to a great degree anything is possible. These days there are in built protections to help prevent this. I assume the Air Florida 737 was a 200 series, so I am not sure what limitations or protections the engines had in those days.

SOPs can vary in airlines in that not all require both pilots to have their hands on or one has his behind the thrust levers while the other pushes the levers forward during the takeoff roll. It might only be the PIC who has his hand on the levers, which I understand more airlines are adopting these days. The disadvantage of having a backup hand behind the levers is in the event of a rejected takeoff due to an emergency is serious finger injuries resulting from sudden and fast lever return to reverse thrust. The PIC can override the FMC settings and push up the power to achieve max thrust, but as you say, recognition would be too late to achieve the required performance as this needs to be adopted from commencement of the takeoff roll.

Full power is not always used for take off in modern turbo prop or jet powered aircraft for engine longevity, as the FMC calculates the power setting through crew data input. An out of spec pitch setting will also generate a Config Master Warning. There is no Master Warning trigger for incorrect (underweight) data entry into the FMC. Usually, the FO enters the data and the Captain verifies all is correct.

There would be a very loud Config Master Warning following power application if either the leading edge devices or flaps were not deployed. Most likely incorrect data entry into the Flight Management Computer (FMC) that automatically sets the required power settings for takeoff. This isn't the first time this has happened leading to similar results. An Emirates Airbus A340 did the same on takeoff out of Melbourne, Australia in 2009 as a result of incorrect data entry, except it did not hit a wall as there wasn't one to hit. It hit the approach lights. The video footage shows a pattern of two semi circular shapes on top of the brick wall that look consistent with being struck by the landing gear. If that is so, how fortunate the landing gear was not ripped off. Another testament to Boeing. The belly was probably ripped open by a vertical row of approach lights. They also would have been shaking from knowing the high probability of losing their jobs.

Active thread on this for a few days in Miscellaneous -

This subject is close to my heart as it almost happened to me exactly 2 weeks ago, not in my Mooney but in the ATR at Sydney International. Turning final while intercepting the LLZ at 1400’ and 6 miles out, the FO saw a white and red drone fly over the right wing during the turn at about 50 feet above from right to left. If it had been lower and smacked into the right engine with the potential to take out 6 carbon fibre prop blades at such a low altitude followed by a possible disaster with 68 souls on board. After landing I rang the Tower manager who told me they have previously received reports of drones up to 6000’ above Sydney harbour. These things are becoming a serious issue for all of aviation throughout the world with the potential to cause not only serious damage but a serious accident until the authorities pull their fingers out and do something more conducive about it, including high, mandatory judicial penalties and not wait until the inevitable happens. The higher the population the higher share of idiots who don’t care proliferate. Please be careful out there, particularly those of you who regularly fly over high populated areas.

I do the same Paul and it is now as my Mooney is having its annual done as I type. The prospect of that phone call followed by a big annual bill always makes me nervous, but that is all part and parcel of aircraft ownership. On another note, what a fantastic resource this forum is. @Hyett6420's (Andrew's) informative post and other MS's recent posts re the importance of fuel injection system overhaul in a recent thread prompted me to tell my mechanic I want my Bendix system overhauled in 2 years, which will be 12 years after the last overhaul. I asked when does this normally happen and he said at engine overhaul or on condition. I thought that is not good enough as on condition could be 20 plus years. I would not have known of this important issue if not for this forum.

Purchase price of a pressurised or non pressurised turbine is the cheapest part. Then comes the operating costs.....

I’m so sorry to read all of this Don. I clearly remember you showing me your beautiful Bravo at Homecoming, 9 years ago and saying what an expensive engine it has. I have no doubt you’ll ensure at the end your bird will be as good as, if not better than before. I sincerely hope it won’t be too painful for you.