irishpilot

PIREP: The Bravo is out of a longer than expected annual and I've flown at 15k, 17k, FL180 and FL190. After replacing two cylinders and a bunch of other work, my #6 is the hottest and it is easier to keep under 400. At high alt I have to keep cowls open, but I'm seeing 180-190 KTAS, so the alt helps with speed. I still think my baffles need work and I'm leaning towards heading down the Gami road as I fly it enough to warrant the up front costs. However, the Bravo earns it's XC reputation. It's great up high, climbs all the way to alt without issue or loss of performance. All I've noticed is the heater doesn't keep up much past 15k...it's cold up there! Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

Here you go! Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

I'm also in SA. Was at Kelly now moving to Stinson. Hangar space is hard to find around here! I'm also up for a local MS flying. Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

Two logical causes are either the engine is making less hp or there is increased drag. Some questions that come to mind: Confirm the flaps are fully retracting? Was any engine work done other than just checking compression? Is the engine rough or sound different? Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

The OP asked for advice. My advice is just as relevant as yours. He should make an informed decision and there is a lot of knowledge on this forum, which is why it is so awesome. Please don't try to discredit others' advice on this forum. We are a Mooney family and should treat each other as such. Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

Run away, don't walk! On my first Mooney I dumped $15k my first year fixing issues of a "low time" plane that hardly flew. If the pilot can't keep it insured, registered and flying, I guarantee there are all kinds of deferred mx that YOU will be on the hook to fix. There are plenty of Mooney's on the market. Unless you are getting a plane $25-50k under value and you are willing to have it in the shop a lot over the next year, you aren't getting a deal. Just my advice from lessons hard-learned. Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

30 min for me. Community hangar. I'd prefer a T-Hangar, they just are hard to come by. Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

@gxsrpilot, thanks for reposting. We will hopefully get the cause of the engine failure with the initial report. This highlights that takeoff and landing are critical phases of flight because of the reduced decision-making time a pilot has. The next time y'all go fly, ask yourself where would you put your plane when you are on climbout, somewhere in cruise, and when you are on approach. Some airfields give you more options than others. Also, if it has been a while, grab a CFI and go fly in your local Class E/G airspace and pick some fields or a runway to practice aimpoint control at idle power. Energy management is critical in engine out scenarios. Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

When traveling cross country from point A to point B, I'm either on an IFR clearance or flight following. I also have ADS-B in the cockpit as an additional tools. The higher you go, as in the teens, the less dense the traffic is. If you've ever had a problem or IFE, you've got someone at 1g able to help you. Also, I run my 12:1 range ring on Foreflight which gives me an easy visual depiction of what my engine-out airfield options are. As an extra proxaution at night or in IMC, I run my Nav 2 (430W) on the nearest page for quick navigation. These are just some techniques I use to give me some options should I need them. Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

Thread moved as it has moved away from safety focus. Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

Hard to definitively say cause until NTSB does their initial report. Tough to tell from the photo to see if the prop is bent. If not, prop wasn't spinning. Fuel or engine out are two possible causes. I am glad to hear no fatalities. Hope for a speedy recovery to those involved in that crash. Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

I'd be upset that someone moved my plane without authorization. Confirm with the FBO that they have authority over parking before confronting the flight school. I'd approach it from the fact that the flight school is used to moving Cessnas and may not know how easy it is to bend the front strut of a Mooney (plus they can't move private planes that aren't part of the school). Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

@mlm20c, I have no idea. It was set up by the avionics shop during the pre-buy CHT update w/20 hrs: flying high or low, as long as I run 100 ROP with cowls cracked, temps stay under 400. It is in annual now, so I'll see how baffles and injectors are doing. Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

That must have been a long time ago. The modern Thunderbirds don't swap paint as part of the show. The team starts at 3' and works their way to 18" towards the end of the show season (after about 150+ flights). However, still is a dangerous business. We recently lost Cajun. https://www.airforcetimes.com/news/your-air-force/2018/10/16/report-thunderbirds-pilot-killed-in-crash-lost-consciousness-in-high-g-maneuver/ Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

Wow! I'm glad it went the way it did and that you handled that EP well. This is a perfect illustration that when we fly at night or IMC, we need to know our options and abilities to handle an engine failure. Dead-sticking is hard enough VMC let alone with wx. If I may ask, after your incident, did it change your risk calculus and/or choice of plane? Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

This is where Cirrus and COPA, their pilot community got together and turned the safety rate around. As a community they analyazed that most Cirrus fatalities were related to the pilot not pulling the Chute. They've since had many fly-ins, clinics, and confererences to educate. This is a GA success story. My hat is off to both Cirrus and COPA. We can do the same for our community. Instead of focusing on CAPS, we need to focus on recurrent training, emergency procedures (especially engine out), and avionics differences. Remember, the top 3 GA killers are loss of control, CFIT, and engine failure. These apply apply to both Cirrus and Mooney. Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

I've been asked to weigh in previously in this thread. I do so with caution as I want to build a strong safety culture within our Mooney community. That being said, this thread is more of a general discussion/opinion vs safety focused. It is also in the General section which is appropriate when not focused solely on objective safety discussion. Here's my take on what we should focus on as a community. First, in order to make a course correction on safety, we have to remove name calling, aircraft choice degrading, etc. in order for open and objective discussion. General Aviation is all about compromise...useful load, one vs two engines, mx costs, turbine vs piston, px vs non, etc. Every plane has its strengths and weaknesses. Mooney is no different. Strengths are routinely discussed. Here are my observations on our airplane's weaknesses: 1. single engine (limits IMC engine out choices) 2. piston (turbines statistically have less catostrophic failure rate) Not just training but emergency proceedures. 3. Range of avionics and autopilot capability (some have VFR panels with no autopilot) Proper use of avionics and autopilot reduce pilot taskload and reduce chance of loss of control 4. Capability that can easily exceed pilot proficiency (what we love about Mooney's being efficient and capable also put non-current and occasional pilots at risk) That being said, the best investment we can make is in ourselves and not the newest widget or avionics upgrade. The second is to know when to not take off (wx, physiological, proficiency, etc.) also known as judgement. The third is to invest in is meticulous maintenance. Remember that statistically humans are causal to a high percentage of GA fatal accidents. Now, to the topic at hand, I think this midair highlights the need for patience as the NTSB does it's investigation. As an offer, I'm willing to give my perspective on formation flying and it's perils in the safety forum. I have over 1,500 hours of formation flying experience from J-3 Cubs to F-16s. I will do so if y'all find it helpful to the community. -Your Friendly Safety Mod Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

I'm also running 29"/2400, 1600 TIT in Texas and I have to trail the cowl flaps to keep mid 390s on #2 & #3. I think I have a baffles issue and will get it looked at during the annual in a few weeks. I also confirm the TAS others are getting. Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

I am a new 2000 Bravo owner. I'm sure a few who are smarter on the engine will give you their take on the specifics. My take thus far is it is a great engine that you need to study to ensure you are running it properly as the POH settings are designed for Max performance, not longevity. I run 29" No & 2400 rpm, leaned 50 ROP. That gives me 17.5-18 gph. if you run 30/2400, expect 18.5-19 gph. Are you new to turbo engines? If so, you will need to plan your descent profiles a little more. I've heard mostly good things about folk making it to TBO with the wet head design and flying as listed above. Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

Didn't make it to FL180. Had a new O2 bottle installed as part of the purchase. Leak in the system. However, setting 75 ROP and cowls cracked open keeps the CHTs under 400. Whem the airspeed increases in the descent, CHTs go down to 375 with no power change. Things are pointing to baffles. Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

I'm planning on going to FL180 today. After lots of reading, I'm going to try and lean for 1600 TIT using 29/2400. We will see what that gives me for CHTs. Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

descending through 11,000. Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

if I ran it at 59 ROP, then 402-405 CHT. If I ran 75-100 ROP and trailing cowl flaps a crack, they stayed at 392-395. When I descended, I set 28/2400 and saw 370 CHT with lower oil temps as well. Here's a screenshot. I'm surprised one inch of Mp is making that much of a difference. Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

So I went to FL150 and didn't see much change. I can't run 50 ROP as my #2 CHTs hover just above 400. I've got to run between 75-100 ROP, which puts TIT around 1520-1550 and the CHTs just under 400. FF is around 18.5-18.9 gph. This is with both 29/2400 and 30/2400 power settings. Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod

what power setting are you running? Fly Safe, Safety Forum Mod