Flash

Relocated my M20J from SQL to SMO a month ago. I'm very happy with the mechanic I used at SQL but am sure to have issues where a trip back to the Bay Area isn't really an option. I see that Bill's moved from SMO. I'd be interested in A&P recommendations from other Mooney owners at SMO and nearby. Please feel free to post here or send me a private message. Thanks in advance.

The opinion in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo is unlikely to have much application to the FAA regulations that apply to us in flying and maintaining our Mooneys. The holding in Loper Bright is that judges should be the arbiters of what a statute means and that a judge need not defer to regulations that purport to interpret a statute even if the statute appears to be ambiguous (although if the statute gives a specific grant of regulatory authority and that grant is constitutional, Loper Bright says that the proper interpretation of that statute is to enforce the resulting regulation). I'm a tax lawyer, not an aviation lawyer, and I can name a lot of regulations promulgated under the Internal Revenue Code that may be subject to challenge under Loper Bright. One reason for that is that there are a lot of statutes in the Internal Revenue Code, so there is a lot of statutory language for judges to interpret. Contrast that with Part 91. The authority the FAA cites for promulgating Part 91 is far more general than the Internal Revenue Code. It's just a handful of statutes: 49 U.S.C. 106(f), 40101, 40103, 40105, 40113, 40120, 44101, 44111, 44701, 44704, 44709, 44711, 44712, 44715, 44716, 44717, 44722, 46306, 46315, 46316, 46504, 46506-46507, 47122, 47508, 47528-47531, 47534; Pub. L. 114-190, 130 Stat. 615 (49 U.S.C. 44703 note); Sec. 828 of Pub. L. 118-63, 138 Stat. 1330 (49 U.S.C. 44703 note); articles 12 and 29 of the Convention on International Civil Aviation (61 Stat. 1180), (126 Stat. 11). The statutes tend to contain broad regulatory grants of authority. For example, section 40103(b)(2) provides: "The Administrator shall prescribe air traffic regulations on the flight of aircraft (including regulations on safe altitudes) for— (A) navigating, protecting, and identifying aircraft; (B) protecting individuals and property on the ground; (C) using the navigable airspace efficiently; and (D) collision between aircraft, between aircraft and land or water vehicles, and between aircraft and airborne objects." If you run afoul of the regulations that apply to buzzing your neighbor's house, you're not likely to have much success pointing to Loper Bright and saying that the regulations are not "law" because they are not the best interpretation of this statutory language. I'm not saying that there can be no challenges to FAA regulations under Loper Bright. Congress did set out specific statutory rules regarding ELTs, and enforcement via civil and criminal penalties, and a short list of other topics. But I would be very surprised if Loper Bright could be wielded to challenge most of the regs that apply to us.

If your money was on the master relay, you are a winner. It has been replaced.

No. 2 GI-275 has an internal battery that provides at least an hour of attitude indicator if the No. 1 fails. Thus, having it come on as an AI shows that it is working as it should but does not suggest that any power is flowing from the main battery.

Symptoms: Last few times I tried to start my M20J, I turned on the master switch and either (1) my No. 2 GI-275 came on as an attitude indicator, with no power to the No. 1 GI-275 or the engine monitor, meaning I wasn't getting electrical power from the battery to the panel (the No. 2 GI-275 has a backup battery that, apparently, is working as designed!), or (2) everything worked normally. When it worked, the plane started and ran fine. Is this probably the master switch itself (try a little contact cleaner and hope this solves things) or the master relay? Any easy way to diagnose?

Don, using FlyQ+ on my iPhone, I can click on the map near the airport, which calls up a screen showing the airspace, the airport, and a nearby LOM. I then click on my airport's name (not on the Direct, +FP, charts, or map icons underneath it), and that takes me to a screen for the airport. That screen allows me to choose Gen, Wx, Proc, A/FD, Notm, Svc, or Near. If I choose A/FD, it shows me an image of the appropriate pages in the A/FD for the airport. If you're trying to get to another section of the A/FD, though, I haven't figured that one out yet.

I resisted any avionics upgrade (other than an ADSB-compliant transponder) for my first 22 1/2 years of ownership and was perfectly happy. But I realized I'd get added performance from a WAAS GPS and decided if I was going to do that I should do some other things at the same time. I really love my IFD 540 and my dual GI-275s. I flew a DME arc on a recent IPC and felt like I was cheating it was so easy, even after I disengaged the autopilot with GPSS. The ability to fly LPV approaches was a real benefit to my upgrade, but it's not so much that I'm able to do more with my plane than I was before, and more about being able to do the same things more easily. Considering my missions can involve long days of flying, I'm probably getting a safety benefit because the flying is less demanding than it used to be. Like you, I thought about buying a faster plane instead of doing an avionics upgrade. I decided I don't need that; my plane gets me where I'm going plenty fast enough. YMMV. Choose additional speed/altitude/engines if that's what floats your boat. If you don't make that choice, an avionics upgrade will definitely make a difference in your flying experience.

En route MMQT-MMOX, I got a couple of shots of Mount Popocatepetl, which is southeast of Mexico City. There was a sigmet for volcanic ash downwind of this; I flew on the upwind side.

The pilot posted a full description on Facebook. He's 19, had a passenger. He has 370 hours, 300 in Mooneys, and used to be a student of Brian "Pinky" Lloyd. He seems to have done almost everything right. Facebook post.

After a presumably weather-related routing change north through Kangerlussuaq and Iqaluit, it looks like Pieter is headed to Montreal before flying home to New Jersey, where he started his round-the-world trip heading westbound on July 22.

Pieter, congratulations on your flight so far! Incredible trip.

Pieter is now in Crete. It looks like he had some weather to cope with between India and UAE. I'm eager to read about his travels once he has the time to update his site (which for now doesn't describe anything post-Japan).

@Beestforwardspeed I was able to get insurance as a first-timer, but that was 21 years ago, so I don't have any useful advice on your main point. However, I do have a routing recommendation. Either (1) land at BGBW and then go to BGJN, or (2) go straight from CYFB to BGJN, which is listed as an international airport. I did (1) because I had no idea about BGJN until I met a Greenland Air pilot at BGBW who told me about it and said I'd be making a huge mistake if I stayed in Kangerlussuaq instead of going to Ilulissat (and now I'm paying it forward). I also spent a night on the east coast of Greenland at BGKK; Kulusuk is a pretty fishing village but not a must-see like the ice fjord at BGJN. The midnight cruise through the ice fjord near BGJN is likely to be the best non-flying part of your trip.

"Clear of the active" presupposes that the listener knows what runway is active (if there is more than one). It also can be replaced by "clear of the runway" if there is only one runway and you have forgotten the number of the runway you just cleared.

Welcome! I hope you've been enjoying your plane, Paul. I wish you many great adventures.

In my case, the 275 gets the GPS signal from an IFD 540. But I would imagine that the KFC150 is oblivious to what GPS is upstream of the 275, and the 275 can take GPS input from (most?) GPS receivers.

Dual GI275s work great with a KFC150. It's like they were made for each other. It's not difficult to operate. You get GPSS by toggling GPSS on and hitting HDG on the KFC150. The KFC150 flies LPV approaches as if they were ILS approaches; it's none the wiser that the glideslope it captures is from a WAAS GPS. That setup doesn't cost anywhere near 70+ AMU.

I have owned my plane for 24 years. I have never had it hangared. It has lived in Mississippi, Georgia, suburban DC, Connecticut, and California, with a cover on it when it's not flying. In 24 years, there are perhaps 15 days where a hangar would have saved me considerable time preheating the engine or defrosting the plane. It also maybe would have prevented birds from making a next in the rear fuselage, which they did once, and deer from chewing off a couple of static wicks. The difference between hangar rental fees and tiedown rental fees is significant ($350/month) at my airport. I'd rather fill my gas tanks to the brim once a month with the money I'm saving. One of the magazines ran an analysis many years ago about the value of a hangar vs. the value of the difference in annual rental fees. Tiedowns won. Back in the days when I owned a car (15 years ago), I parked it outside, too, not in a garage. The car, like the plane, did not rust into oblivion. Don't get me wrong. If you've got a hangar, good for you. Some of my best friends have hangars. But don't be scared to park your plane outside.

Sounds like a great trip, and welcome to California. Oceano is a nice place to fly. Runway isn't long, but it's very doable. Half Moon Bay is fun, with a restaurant on the field but also restaurants (Barbara's Fish Trap is where I go) a short walk through the fence from the south ramp. There are some good aviation museums of varying sizes (Santa Rosa, Chino, San Carlos, Santa Monica, to name a few). The Columbia State Historic Park is a short walk from the Columbia airport. Fun fact: Cinco de Mayo celebrations appear to have begun in Columbia, California. Flying in the Sierras can be fun/scenic, but they're worthy of a pilot's respect. The northern coast has some fun places to fly, including Shelter Cove, which has a lighthouse and a scenic coast, with sea lions on the beach and the occasional whale offshore. Catalina is unique, and its runway is now in good shape.

I have dual GI-275s with an IFD 540, and they play together very well.

Congratulations. You will enjoy the dual 275s.

Those are words to live by. @McMooney you should definitely take the leap and fly internationally this year. Bring some patience and an openminded attitude, and you will open an exciting new chapter in your flying career.

Happy New Year. I have dual GI-275s. I can get into configuration mode on my top GI-275; just hold in the inner knob at start-up, and there I am. For some reason, though, the lower GI-275 (the HSI and backup AI) won't enter configuration mode when I do the exact same thing. That's the one for which I need to launch configuration mode, because that's the one that has a backup battery that needs a capacity test. Any ideas on why the No. 2 GI-275 could be balking on entering configuration mode?

Congratulations on your work so far. Here are some answers, with the caveat that I have bought a plane only once, and it was in 1999. 1. You have to request copies of the logbooks, and then you have to read through them carefully, looking for things like how many hours was the plane flown each year, and how many hours between oil changes (since the last engine overhaul), and what kind of entries do you find that are not typical, and what do they imply happened to the plane? If you like what you see, you should also then check for compliance with airworthiness directives. You can do this yourself or ask an A&P for help. I can't remember if I negotiated price before or after traveling to see the plane. I brought a mechanic I knew to do a prebuy; most people arrange for a shop near where the plane is to do the prebuy. 2. If you're in the DC area, I recommend considering basing at College Park (KCGS), which is where I used to be based. It's a block from the Green Line metro, and it's much less busy than KGAI or KHEF. It is within the FRZ, and that's a bit of a hassle, but only a bit of one. No hangars, but you don't really need one. My plane was tied down there for almost five years (2009-2010, 2012-2016). Runway is short, but it's long enough for an M20J and will prevent you from developing bad habits. 3. There's no time pressure in picking up the plane. You want to use the flight from wherever the plane is to wherever you will be based as a training flight. Having somebody ferry the flight is a waste unless you can't manage to schedule the time yourself. You won't have trouble finding an instructor willing to fly a Mooney; find one who has flown a Mooney before. 4. I wouldn't think that logistics in retrieving the plane are a worry at all (unless it's in another country or, perhaps, if it's in California and retrieving it would be a multi-day flight). 5. I used a Bruce's custom cover. Other brands of cover will do. Fly the plane regularly. You'll want to do that, anyway, or you wouldn't be buying a plane. The plane you've identified has not flown all that much since its overhaul in 2020. 125 hours in (at least) three years is not great. I'd be curious what the logs show about how those hours were distributed between annuals. The plane you've identified has not flown all that much since it was built. 1800 hours in almost 40 years. Again, I'd be interested in what the logs show. (Not a huge concern, perhaps, for years before the latest engine and prop overhauls. DC is a great place to fly. Keep posting as you progress in your search and after you buy. You'll find plenty of suggestions here about how to use your Mooney once you have it. (Hints: Tangier Island, the Hudson River, Toronto Downtown Island Airport . . .)

This is what I did in 2014. I think it was $4000 cheaper to get an A3B6 than an A3B6D in exchange for my A3B6D core. One of the differences is the oil filter; my A3B6 uses an oil filter with a male attachment; the A3B6D used a female.