Diesel 10

Pilots love some doughnuts ....

Skip - Very good experiences. They were helpful keeping my KFC150 alive prior to getting my GFC500. I recall I made 2 visits in person with the plane and they quickly got the issues resolved. My experience with a local and one other long distance shop was poor but Executive was great. Taking the plane there was a hassle but net-net it was worthwhile. Trevor

I got the GFC500 + 750 + 2 x G5s installed earlier this year. Similar to others, I couldn't be happier. I've had a chance to fly the setup quite a bit including a good amount of "actual" approaches etc. I really love it. Previously I was using a 430 and a KFC150. Not bad but the KFC150 was at End of Life. The GFC500 setup is an order of magnitude more sophisticated. I have had a couple of experiences of some mild altitude oscillations/hunting during Altitude Hold. I haven't had an opportunity to do any diagnosis on this. Trevor

Thanks, Skip. Sounds like a good project to add to the upcoming annual.

Thanks folks. I definitely manually and visually check the gear extension latch as part of my pre-flight. This said I had two people in the back (Angel Flight mission) so it is possible one of them unlatched it accidentally. I remember checking the latch after we landed and didn't see anything odd. Regardless I will add it to my pre-departure check list if there is anyone in the back! Also good call about the manual extension clutch. I have an annual coming up and will verify.

Hi all - I had an unusual gear experience in my '92 M20J MSE that my shop hasn't been able to give any suggestions on. I was departing the other day and was not able to retract the gear. Each time I attempted, the Gear Act Cct Breaker popped and all indications (including airspeed and climb) were that the gear was still down. I had a couple of passengers on board so rather than do any further diagnosis, I decided to return to the field (KBFI). I did a low pass so the tower could take a look just to do a visual on the gear and then I landed without event (except for several emergency vehicles waiting to greet me)! My shop at the field was able to take a look the same day and was not able to recreate the problem. They put the plane on jack and cycled the gear 5 times. They removed the belly panel and inspected with further cycles and no problem. I've since flown the plane a couple of times without problem. Gear retracts perfectly! Any thoughts, wisdom or similar experiences? I'm glad its working but I'm wondering when/if its going to happen again. Thanks, Trevor

Brandon - Welcome to Seattle and congrats on the J. I can also vouch for Galvin at BFI. They have had Mooneys on the rental line up for many years and several of the instructors are Mooney fans (and a couple are Mooney owners!). Trevor

Yikes. I've flown some fast-ish RC pylon racers in the past but watching this video made me sweat. The pilot is incredibly talented. Flying a real missile like that from the ground is hard.

I echo all the congrats to @RedSkyFlyer and his wife for handling this emergency so well. I posted the following in the FB Mooney Pilots Group but I thought it might be useful to add it to this discussion. I'm glad to see this important topic discussed in detail here. A few years ago, I had the baggage door on my M20J pop open on departure (I recall ~300-500ft AGL). I agree that the plane keeps flying but it gets your attention. There was a loud bang and we had papers flying around the cabin etc. It took me a few seconds to get comfortable we could still climb (My PPL instructor's words "Fly the plane" kept repeating in my head ). If I'd been in the situation described here and the door was lodged on the horizontal stab, I would certainly treat it as an emergency. We flew the pattern and landed without event. The aircraft performance seemed unaffected (at least as far as pattern flying goes) but there was body work damage to both the fuselage and the door (the restraining arm separated). Afterwards I did an NTSB search out of curiosity whether Mooney baggage doors opening caused accidents. To my surprise there were 7 accidents that made it into NTSB database between 1980 and 2014. 3 of them had fatalities. A Mooney baggage door opening in flight should be manageable but its a serious event. Obviously @RedSkyFlyer incident was much more serious. How did my event happen? I'm not 100% sure why it happened but I have done some things differently since then (~5 yrs ago) and it has never happened again. At that point I did not ever lock the baggage door. I mistakenly believed that I would not be able to use it as an emergency exit if it was locked. I would also note that the POH was ambiguous on whether it should be locked or not. I was flying with my instructor the day the door popped open. He put something in the baggage compartment and closed the door after I had already gotten in the left seat. So I know it wasn't locked but I don't know for sure if it was closed properly. We both agreed afterwards that we would always 1. lock the door and 2. make positive confirmation that the door is closed and locked before getting in the plane. Fortunately I haven't had any issues since then. I also got the Medco locks installed a year ago when I had the plane painted. They have also been fine and certainly feel more secure than the original locks.

Pacific Coast Avionics down in Aurora, OR

Here are some photos of my 500 install that is happening as we speak. I also believe my install is all internal.

Airways - Sorry I don't have the very latest firmware update (I have 5.70 and I see it is up to 6.20) so I'm not familiar with the extended HSI. I'd be interested if anyone else has a PIREP! I am finally getting my GFC500 installed next month along with a second G5 so I guess I'll get to see the latest version then.

My main reason for upgrading to the GFC 500 is reliability issues with my KFC 150. A couple of years ago I had some major frustrations (and lots of $ spent) unsuccessfully trying to diagnose some intermittent performance. Ironically its been flawless for the last year or so but I decided I had to part ways with the KFC 150 as soon as there was a good option. Although there are few features I'm looking forward to on the GFC500, as you know the KFC 150 is a great autopilot so if yours is reliable I agree that is harder sell to spend the money. Rags make a good point that you'll still need your current AI with the KFC150. I'm scheduled to get the GFC installed next month so I've been flying with the single G5 HSI and the KFC150 for several months. The single G5 alone is an awesome upgrade for the money.

At least at one time, the RG Cessna's were excluded even though BRS didn't make it clear in the marketing materials. I asked a BRS person about this. They explained that since they could not ensure that the gear was down prior to impact (under the chute), they could not meet the G limits. If you have ever seen one of the videos of an aircraft hitting the ground when descending under a chute, it is eye opening. I've heard people say that it is not something you are going to want to repeat. At least up until recently I think, fixed gear was a required part of the force absorption at impact. The Cirrus Vision Jet has retractable gear and a parachute. I assume (but am just guessing) that the systems can ensure that the gear is extended when the parachute is deployed. I guess Mooney could do the same thing with a new design including the chute?

That's great news! I am on the schedule with Pacific Coast Avionics for an install starting in October. Will be interested to hear any Pireps from folks who get installs done earlier in their J.