skydvrboy

Twice I've had to abort a takeoff because of a seatbelt flapping in the wind. Both times I asked the passenger if their seatbelt was fastened and both times they verbally confirmed it was. One of the two I will never let fly in my plane again, unfortunately, the other was my dad who owns half the plane. At least he's never made that mistake again!

I'm surprised no one else uses their old oil bottles for funnels. Just keep your empty bottle and a sharp knife in the back of the plane. When you need to add oil, cut the old bottle in half, screw the top into the oil fill port, and you have a rather nice funnel. When your done, a little squeeze and the bottom half makes a nice lid for your "funnel" and won't leak if kept upright in the event a trashcan isn't available. Throw your empty oil bottle back in the plane to become your next funnel. Simple, clean, and best of all for a Mooney CB... FREE!!!

I do the monkey bar swing. I step in with my right foot, stoop down and grab the center bar with my right hand, and then swing my butt across to the pilot seat in one motion. My left foot goes across to the pilot footwell at the same time, leaving only my right foot to slip past the center console.

Being born in November, I think my birthday (day then year) would be cool. Last I checked it was available but no plans to repaint yet.

All I really want for Christmas is my airplane back. It went in for annual June 30th. Upgrades during annual were a prop overhaul and a JPI 900 install.

If you fly with backseaters, the inertia reel on the passenger side gets in the way. As for the pilot side, the inertia reel lets you switch tanks without loosening the harness. Thanks really about it, other than that, it’s just personal preference.

I’m from over in Kansas and the closest I’m aware of are Wilmar, MN or Longview, TX. If you find a good one closer, it’s like to know too!

I find I get most restless when I’m going somewhere exciting. A challenging flight to a funeral, I’ll sleep fine. An easy flight to explore someplace I’ve never been, up all night. It has more to do with the destination than the flight.

When my first renewal came up, I opted to keep my 3rd class medical. The second time was during Covid and the AME was booked out 4 weeks. A few days before my appointment I got sick, not Covid, but I lost my spot and had to reschedule another 4 weeks out. Then just before my next appointment the doctor’s office called and told me the doctor had a family emergency and would need to reschedule. I told them not to bother and went basic med. I’m the end, it just wasn’t worth all the hassle and extra expense.

I had a young eagle like that once. He asked if he could fly and I let him. He was about seven years old and held altitude +\-50 feet and heading +/-5* for about ten minutes and through two 90* turns. When back on the ground I told him how impressed I was and he just shrugged and said he plays a lot of flying video games. Is it possible the passenger was a flight sim junkie?

When I saw this I wondered if any of my regular passengers could do the same. I think my son could, but I doubt anyone else I regularly fly with could. He’s just very observant and curious when we fly together so he knows what all the instruments are and how to read them. I often turn the controls over to him when I need to divert my attention and he can maintain heading, altitude, and turns and altitude changes are appear mastered. I also let him change frequencies when he was younger, but he got bored with that and won’t do it now unless I really need the help. Obviously the passenger in question is very familiar with the plane. He refers to the pilot as “my pilot” so perhaps he even owns the plane. I think this guy is most likely similar to my son. Flies often, knows the plane and most procedures, but is not a pilot and has never had a true lesson by an actual flight instructor. Maybe one day we’ll know, maybe not.

Interesting take on the case. However, the FAA can not enforce county law and the county has no authority over the airspace. Only the property owner could violate the county zoning ordinance, not the pilot. While the county zoning laws may shed some light on WHY the ALJ wishes to take enforcement action, the ALJ is still bound by the FAR's. It seems clear he was intent on landing there and the burden is on the FAA to prove he didn't intend on landing. As long as he intended to land, FAR 91.119 doesn't apply, regardless of any zoning law violations that the property owner may have committed.

I don't know about the rest of you, but my POH clearly states in two places that best angle of climb is gear up, flaps up. Basically short field takeoffs are an exercise in drag reduction. You want to minimize rolling resistance drag, wingtip vortex drag, gear drag, and flap drag. So, get off the runway as soon as possible, accelerate in ground effect, and get your gear and flaps up as soon as it's safe. How short the runway is determines how closely you have to follow the best performance procedure. When you are at full gross and the runway is under 2000' you need every advantage you can get. According to my POH ('67F model), at 5000' elevation, 80 degrees, and gross weight, takeoff roll is only 1560' and distance to clear a 50' obstacle is 2395'. My guess is you have to take advantage of all of the above to duplicate those numbers.

As another option, I’ve had luck with white industries outside Kansas City when I called them.

I think this is exactly what’s going to happen and then I’ll have to sell the Mooney. But with the proceeds I’ll buy a powered parachute or ultralight, launch from my front yard and have enough money left over for a lifetime of fuel and maintenance. They won’t stop me from flying!

I do a rolling start from the taxiway or the 90 degree point if there is no taxiway, which definitely reduces takeoff distance. Additionally, it’s important to get your gear up as soon as you know you’re not going to settle back to the runway and accelerate in ground effect to Vx. Most will tell you to clear the trees before raising flaps which is a good idea but Max performance is attained by raising flaps while still in ground effect. The risk is settling when you raise flaps and I don’t think the minimal performance gain is worth the prop strike risk.

If you want to save some money on your shoulder belts, you can order them from Hooker Harness. Their website sucks, so you'll have to call them, but they put out a very good product at a fraction of the cost. I'd recommend the retractable reel on the pilot side and the fixed belts on the passenger side if you plan on having rear seat passengers often. Otherwise, go with both retractable.

Got one, thanks My tachometer died and I need a quick temporary replacement for a’67 F. I’m getting a JPI 900 at annual, but would really like to have a replacement in time for this weekends formation clinic. Please call me if you have one at 785-577-1444.

Does this count?

I got a cordless air compressor similar to this: https://www.amazon.com/AKASO-Compressor-Rechargeable-Automatic-Inflatables/dp/B098JHMLFM/ref=mp_s_a_1_19?crid=2HW63QJB35XHF&keywords=cordless+air+compressor&qid=1645625610&sprefix=cordless+air+compressor%2Caps%2C156&sr=8-19 Absolutely love it. Every month or so, I set the desired pressure, connect, and pull the trigger. It couldn’t be easier. Plus it goes with me in the plane on all trips just in case.

It seems it's either that or you have kids like mine. They prefer taking the minivan because it has a DVD player with dual screens.

I’m not disagreeing with you, but there is no requirement to enter actual IMC during training. Thus the pitot heat wouldn’t be needed, though I’d argue doing some actual during training is a wise and valuable experience.

With the patched up wing and tail, the wife named her Raggedy Anne.

I'm not sure why, but I just couldn't stop laughing when I read this. Firm believer in this. I think we should all be pushing our limits until we find what they are, but the real challenge is doing it safely, as you mentioned. I've done some low level flying, but I only do it one of two areas over open water or along the route I drive to/from work every day. Scope it out from the ground first and know if there are obstacles and exactly where they're located. Another example is practicing short field landings and takeoffs on longer runways until you can nail your landing every time in a known distance. Then go use those skills!

I've been contemplating this as I study for my instrument rating. Will it make me a better pilot? For sure! Will it make me a safer pilot? I don't know. It sure opens up a whole lot of dangerous situations where I'd currently just stay on the ground. I reconcile that by knowing that it will lower my insurance rates. If the actuary tables show I'm less of a risk, that's good enough for me. On a side note, like Erik, if I wasn't flying I'd be doing something else. In my case I'd probably go back to skydiving. I just love being in the air.