StinkBug

Finally got around to activating the XM Weather on my Garmin 496 today. Well actually I tried to do it 2 days ago, I'll spare you the details, but after 2 hours (not exagerating I checked the phone logs) on the phone over 2 days they finally figured out why the weather wasn't working. The guy put me on a plan that isn't even available for the 496, and would be useless for me if it were. After another 45min I finally got something hooked up. Here's the tip for the guys in the CB club like me. I had heard from various people that the marine weather still provided aviation services, so I signed up for the cheapest Marine weather package, which is $9.95 a month, I figured if it didn't have what I needed I could always change/upgrade. Well once it finally linked up I found that it does in fact show you nexrad radar and METARs for every airport. I haven't had time to go through everything and figure out what else is there, but for less than a third the price of the cheapest aviation package I'm happy so far. Even after adding a music package so I can rock out on the long XC flights I'm still paying $12/month less than the basic aviator plan. Oh, and the activation fee for Marine was only $15 instead of the $75 they charge for Aviation.

I'm looking forward to what mine will be next year. I bought my C in January with ~120hrs total time and only 20 retract, none Mooney. Paid around $1600 for the year. As of today I'm about 300 hours, Instrument rated and should have my CPL by the end of the month. By next January the numbers should be looking pretty good.

Hold on while we just park this crane here for a couple months....

Not /G I take it, or is it the radar that's OOS?

Keeping an eye on the weather lately it seems that the marine layer is burning off quite late in the day, if it does at all. The forecast for saturday is calling for clouds in the morning giving way to sunshine and clear skies in the afternoon, but it's been saying that a lot lately. I'm thinking that it would probably be a safer bet for us to plan on meeting a little later, say 2pm, to give the sun a little more time to clear the skies for us. Anyone disagree?

If someone is available and accepts the ride you know instantly. If not you also know right away. Not only that, if they accept your ride request you can see on a moving map exactly where they are in relation to you. That's more reliable than any cab I've ever called for. Your post comes off as kind of dig at a service you obviously don't understand. Maybe you should educate yourself before commenting more, you might actually enjoy the service.

Way too high. I paid less than that for my C with a mid time engine, fresh cylinders and a very nice panel. My paint is aging, but it's WAY better than that one.

The chairman of your board doesn't understand how the system works then. You don't get to just tell them when to come pick you up hours ahead of time, they aren't dispatched from a central office like a taxi service and they don't take reservations. When you're ready to go somewhere you go to the app on your phone and put in a request. If there is a driver in your area who is willing to take the trip they will click on their own phone and head to pick you up. Sounds like he decided to leave when nobody was available and expected the service to work differently from how it does. It's not Ubers fault he was asking for something they don't offer. What your chairman needed was a car service, which Uber is not.

It has been my experience that "if you post it, they will come" I think everyone enjoys flying somewhere and having some like minded folks to talk to when they get there. Just takes a little nudge to get everyone flying in the same direction.

I finally started doing some Pilots N Paws flights recently and yesterday was one that just made you smile. On Friday I saw an urgent posting about a Boxer in one of the LA shelters that was on the kill list because of the expected overcrowding due to the 4th of July. He's an older boy and had some veterinary needs, but the people at the shelter loved him and wanted to get him out before he got put down. I already had plans to do a pleasure flight with one of my friends and her boyfriend and since I knew she loved dogs and we didn't have a destination nailed down yet I went ahead and committed to helping to save this guy. It ended up being a very overcast morning so I got to do my first true IFR departure without an instructor on board. The usual heavy socal marine layer, we were up and on top in just a couple minutes. We then flew up to KWHP and did an approach in to meet the woman who got him out of the shelter. He turned out to just be the sweetest dog, and so well behaved it's obvious someone trained him. It kills me to think that someone would spend the time to train a dog so well, then abandon him. He's not the prettiest thing at the moment but the folks at NorCal Boxer rescue are gonna get him some proper vet care and clean him up right. The flight up to Oakland was as smooth as glass and our boy Sam snuggled right up in the back seat with my friend, and they both promptly passed out. When we got there the folks at Kaiser Air were all ready for us and had brought the rescue folks out to the ramp with their car. They treated us great and had a crew car for us to get lunch with as well, and were kind enough to waive all the fees. Guess they love dogs too The trip home took a bit longer with a bit of a headwind, and we ended up having to shoot the ILS back into Palomar right at sunset which was beautiful as they descended us right to the top of the layer before catching the glide slope. Best part of the day was getting home to check my email and finding this link from the woman who dropped Sam off with us. Burned a lot of time and AVGas today, but this made it worth it. https://youtu.be/sWmFviZgp5Q I couldn't resist snapping some pics of the flight either. Dallas

I used Uber for the first time a couple weeks ago and it was fantastic. Being able to see where the driver was, and being able to gauge how long it'd take for them to get there is a total winner. I don't use cabs often, but the last time I called for one we sat around at a hotel (in vegas mind you) for over half an hour before calling back. The dispatcher acted like we were asking far too much of them to actually show up, and basically said "well it's busy, we'll get to you when we get to you". With Uber it was just a quick click and I could see exactly where the car was. No guessing, no wondering if I actually had a ride, and no missing the event I was trying to get to. The only reason the cab companies are pissed about Uber is because they know Uber does their job better and for less money.

Looking forward to this, sounds like Mooneys will rule the day, though there are a few others that will be joining as well.

For this reason the FBO where I keep my plane also keeps a spare set of keys. Also makes it handy if I need to have the maintenance guys pick up the plane, I can just call and give permission to give them the keys instead of making a 1hr round trip.

Awesome! I look forward to seeing you guys there! I didn't specify a time, but I'm thinking lunch is probably the name of the day, so roughly noon?

That's exactly it! We're gonna go make sure everything is in place for when you get here, including the potholes in the runway :-p

Ok I've talked to a few people and it sounds like weekend after next is preferable. Lets pin this one down. Catalina on July 11th!

That just reaffirmed the math I've done in the past. I have an airport 28nm from my home base where the fuel is currently $1.20 cheaper than I'm paying. Problem is for the .6hrs of hobbs time to get there and back I have to buy at least 25 gallons just to break even. Worth it if I'm headed that direction on a long XC and have time to spare though.

And here's the link to the thread I started about doing another meetup. http://mooneyspace.com/topic/15748-socal-summer-get-together/

Isn't Embry Riddle based there though? I'd think they would be pretty familiar with the airport layout.

Just don't show up in the second half of August, cause I wont be around

Formation flight?

It appears he decided to take his ball and go home. His name didn't used to say Guest and it used to have some member info below the avatar pic.

I posted this on another board I frequent, so it's not Mooney specific, but last time I did this it ended up being nearly all Mooneys that came out! Last time in Santa Monica was a lot of fun and I'm thinking it's about time we did it again. I'm thinking Catalina could be a great destination in the summertime, but I'm open to suggestion. Another that I'd love to check out is Oceano, been thinking about doing an overnight campout there this summer as well. So who's interested? When should we do it, and where? EDIT: Looks like July 11th at Catalina.

Sounds like he did a good job at flying the airplane. Curious about the oil though. Really only one of two things there, either something allowed it to escape in flight, or the pilot didn't do as good of a preflight as he did during flight.

Umm I think it was that whole part where you started calling people idiots after touting Nitrogen as being so great for saving wheels from corrosion. Then continuing to act like a complete asshat when people pointed out that the air (or nitrogen) in our tires never touches the wheels since we use inner tubes. Sorry man, but your superior arrogant attitude came shining through like a spotlight, and it's not doing you any favors.