toto

For what it's worth, the certified G5 will display course on the HSI and up to two separate bearing pointers with their own specified nav sources. So you can't switch between two different GPS sources for the HSI, but you *can* have your GPS course and, say, a bearing pointer to a VOR on the screen at the same time.

Yep, that would be hard to miss.

No doubt an annunciator in your scan is a great way to pick up a vacuum problem. I didn't have one back in the day, and my vacuum gauge was way outside any normal panel flow. So I'd have to look all the way to the pax window to see if an analog gauge was showing an unusual indication, and that was hard when bouncing around in IMC. My feeling today is that if you can possibly afford to get rid of vacuum-dependent primary instruments, get rid of them. We have far better options now. If ripping out the vacuum system simply isn't a financial possibility, we would all do well to buy a Dynon D3 (or similar) and mount it somewhere visible. It costs less than a fancy headset.

It amazes me today how I thought I was very well equipped for bouncing around in IMC because I had two KX-170B radios, a vacuum AI and an electric TC. I lost any number of vacuum pumps over the years (as well as attitude indicators), and it's probably just blind luck that those failures didn't happen at worse times. The only good thing I can say about having a single vacuum AI is that you're very attentive to it - and a sluggish display is cause for immediate action. Redundancy can inspire complacency, and we all need to treat a primary AI failure as an emergency, even if we have a solid backup to get us down.

Saw this a year or two ago. If you've got a couple grand lying around, I think it's available now https://epicoptix.com/epic-eagle/

I think a brand new D3 is under 800 bucks. Edit: $879 https://m.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/avpages/efis10-06727.php

Yep. The AP head is in a crummy place in the Piper - right by the pilot's left knee. So it's very inconvenient for a passenger to reach, especially with an incapacitated pilot in the way. But still.

Agreed. I have a grand total of about five hours now with the GFC500, and still getting to know it. But the envelope protection seems worth the price of admission - particularly in an "incapacitated pilot" scenario where it will help to buy valuable time. Still, in the context of this thread, we *are* talking about ceding some responsibilities to automation, and we'll have to get comfortable with that. The scary automation narrative is the one that may end up being at issue with the max-8: The aircraft is doing something you don't expect, and don't want to continue, but you're not sure how to shut it off. (I'll grant that there are plenty of situations where the automation is actually doing the right thing, and the pilot is mistaken - but knowing the aircraft systems allows a more informed decision in any case.)

Possibly worth noting that the new digital autopilots available for our birds inject automation where it didn't previously exist. The envelope protection stuff (available both on the Garmin and TruTrak APs) is a bit unnerving at first. On the GFC500, with the AP off, if the aircraft exceeds its safe envelope (predetermined thresholds for pitch, bank, and speed), the AP servos engage to push the AC back into compliance. If you want to do flight training (think slow flight or unusual attitudes), you have to disable the envelope protection or you'll be fighting it. (Again, note this is with the AP switched off.)

"Soon" is relative There are a lot of folks on this board who would love to see it happen soonish. You could always buy a hangar find and convert to an experimental registration, then install a G3X or a Skyview yourself

I was assuming it's screwed in on one end but flips up freely with one hand, dunno.

I'd love to see a photo of this. Mine doesn't have a cover (aside from the metal flap), and if one exists it might be nice to have. I'm always cautioning passengers about getting things caught in the emergency handle.

I really really wish WingX would support Garmin ADS-B. They have said for years that Garmin won't open their platform, and won't play nice with third party app developers. But meanwhile both FF and FltPlanGo got Garmin ADS-B support. (Of course, it's possible that the FltPlan acquisition was in the works when support was added.) Anyway, I'd love to see a legit alternative to FF and GP, and I keep hoping that WingX can be that alternative. But I want an option that talks to a GTX, so FltPlanGo has been my go-to CB option.

I think that the arrival of digital plates doomed Jepp's paper business for non-professional pilots. I subscribed to Reader Plates way back in the days when NOS charts were first available for free download. For 9 bucks a month, I saved untold hours of time filing those absurd Jepp updates, not to mention lugging leather binders around on every trip. I strongly preferred the Jepp chart format, but at a fraction of the cost and a vanishing fraction of the time, I switched to government plates on an ebook and never looked back.

I've flown several LPV approaches and haven't seen this behavior. But the manual suggests that the approach may have lost VNAV after the FAF (see below). 2.3.1.2 VERTICAL DEVIATION (GLIDEPATH) INDICATOR - GPS SOURCE The Vertical Deviation (Glidepath) Indicator (VDI) also appears to the left of the altimeter (PFD page) and to the right of the compass rose (HSI page) during a GPS approach. The glidepath is analogous to the glideslope for GPS approaches supporting WAAS vertical guidance (LNAV+V, L/VNAV, LPV). The Glidepath Indicator appears on the G5 as a magenta diamond. If the approach type downgrades past the final approach fix (FAF), “NO GP” is annunciated.

I once read a comment about turbine ownership that went something like "Go to the bank, take out $10,000 in cash, and light it on fire. If that bothers you, you can't afford a jet." I think the same is true for piston ownership, but it's more like $1000. If you aren't comfortable just torching a grand for no reason and with no notice, then you probably shouldn't own an airplane.

Unfortunately, you've asked the one question that we've all sworn never to answer.

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So..... Since we all have a vested interest in the future of Mooney, what can/should we do as a community to help ensure the best possible outcome for the company?

A C-150 is also certified for limited aerobatics, which might allow testing some unusual attitudes that you couldn't test in a Mooney.

Yeah, this is all super-subjective. I loved the Acclaim paint scheme, which I thought was very modern and helped make the M20 look more like a "serious" new plane than the white composite alternatives. (The white plastic looks kind of cheap to me - if I knew nothing about aircraft, I might assume a Cirrus was a trainer.) But I don't love the current retro Ovation/Ultra look, which seems like a hat-tip to a 1960's heyday. TBH, the whole 242KT Acclaim campaign was what I wanted to see from Mooney. A "catch us if you can" approach that put performance first, backed up by real data. That's where Mooney has always been the badass alternative. If you want the fancy seats and a pilot-side door, that's cool - we'll go ahead and start the appetizers while we wait for you to arrive.

At the same time, Mooney does not seem to be lacking confidence. It seems every GA magazine out there has at least one full-page ad from Mooney touting their new Ovation/Ultra models (often in the most high-profile locations, like the back cover). I don't know whether the advertising blitz is converting a lot of customers, but there's clearly some commitment to making a real run at this.

Love these old Mooney ads. They really do make a compelling value proposition, in the context of a healthy SEP market.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying you can't put stuff in a Mooney cabin. I'm just saying it's a PitA. The Piper baggage door is way better.

Yeah, hard but not impossible. I can get two mountain bikes into the back of the Piper if I take the wheels off. To get them into the Mooney requires taking the wheels off and then running them through a blender.