Utah_Pilot

Thanks everybody for the well-wishes and comments. I'm about 75% through the enrollment process with ATP and, if all goes to plan, I will know my class start date by next week. I'll spend 6 months in an accelerated program getting my instrument, commercial, CFI, CFII, and MEI ratings. As all of you know, that is a blistering pace but because this will be my full-time job, I'm expecting to spend 16 hours a day either studying, practicing, or flying. Following this, I will spend the next year as a CFI, helping new pilots while working towards my ATP rating. While some career minded folks consider instructing a means towards a regional, I'm very excited about my time as an instructor. Hanging out with other aviation-driven folks and developing safe/knowledgeable pilots...what an awesome opportunity! There are some inspirational CFI's on this board that I hope to learn from @kortopates If any others are thinking of making the leap or already have and are interested in being my mentor, please send me a PM. Thanks again everybody, Trey

Long story and I will do my best to keep this short. I was a "Top Gun" era kid and the movie was essentially my baby sitter growing up. I remember my first airline flight at the young age of 4 on an L-1011 and from that moment on, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with my life. In high school, I enrolled in Junior ROTC, got an Air Force scholarship to FSU (Go Noles!!), became an Air Force cadet in Senior ROTC, and in my Junior Year of College picked up one of 500 pilot slots handed out across the United States in 2006. I had a goal, a plan, tons of motivation, and I got what I worked for. One year later on January 9th 2007, sitting in a chair at Brooks Base San Antonio, I was advised by an ophthalmologists that I had a pretiy common eye condition known as an esophoria but that, unfortunately, I was "hard DQ'd" from Air Force flying. To this guy, I was just a number. I was literally 4 months from graduated college and starting Air Force Pilot training. Devastation does not describe how I felt and making matters worse, the Air Force was kind enough to send the information to the FAA (which is required and understandable) and I was forced to fight to keep my 3rd Class. At the time, I was already a private pilot with more than 150 hours so the fact that I was now facing a threat to my civilian flying, I was forced to spend thousands on lawyers and medical appointments. In the last 11 years, I have spent a ton of time fighting the FAA trying to prove that what they thought I had, was much less significant than what the Air Force told them. I was on a special issuance 3rd Class for 10 of those 11 years. I was able to continue recreational flying but was unable to fly commercially without a 2nd or 1st Class. Meanwhile, I spent 8 years in the Air Force as a Police Officer, got out, and became a project manager at a large public transportation agency in SLC making decent money. When Basic Med came out, I decided to give up hope and move on from the dream. Shortly after dropping my 3rd Class for Basic Med, however, I decided to request a Statement of Demonstrated Ability (SODA) one last time from the FAA. They approved my request and shortly after I got a 3rd Class free and clear. This was a big step considering I had been on a special issuance 3rd class for over 10 years...forcing me to submit paperwork every 2 years to the FAA proving that I was still healthy to fly. This process was especially aggravating because I had spent a lot of money on the best MD's in the US to prove that I was well within FAA tolerances for not only a 3rd Class--but for a 1st Class as well. The FAA chose to focus on what the one Air Force Flight Surgeon from 2007 had written on a piece of paper. Okay I'm winding this down. I got greedy this month and decided to press my luck for a 1st Class. I went to a new AME who was ironically, of all things, a retired Air Force Flight Surgeon. He called some friends in Oklahoma to ask what the deal was and promised to try to help me out. I received a call on Wednesday of this week from the AME, asking me to come sign my 1st Class Medical Certificate. As if my first born had just arrived, I cried when I got that stupid piece of paper. I was unceremoniously handed the paper by the office receptionist haha...she had zero idea what that piece of paper meant to me. So I'm quitting my great job that I have zero passion for this Summer and enrolling in ATP. I'm chasing the dream knowing that my fight with the FAA may and likely will come up again and again...every 12 months until I'm 40 and every 6 months thereafter. I don't care. I'm 33 years old and figure this is probably my only shot...I will regret not trying and even if this doesn't work out, then I will become a CFI and still realize the dream of flying for a living. What an office. Anybody have experience with ATP or even getting on with the regionals, working their way up to a major? Any current commercial pilots with information on current job prospects? General advice and recommendations are welcome from all.

Safe return Brother. Too bad Pete's in Manas Isn't around anymore.

Not a Mooney Driver (yet) but I'd recommend sitting down and consuming some of Mike Busch's articles posted on the "Savvy Aviator" website. There is a ton of information regarding the relationship between FF, Timing, EGT, CHT, ICP, and TIT, among other things. His many articles may help point you in the right direction for some of your questions and diagnosing problems. Sounds like you may benefit by ensuring your FF's are even across all cylinders. Very possible that #2 is running lean while #3 is rich. Then again, you may also have an issue with your timing (retarded vs advanced). There is also some great reading on the Red Fin/Red Box....and why leaning beyond 65% power should be done with ICP in mind.

I'm definitely looking at the 231 after much advice from members of this board as well as from Kerry McIntyre of KNR in Evanston, WY (writes for the MAPA Log). The 252 is a beautiful bird but a nice one is out of my price range and needs. The 231 will meet my typical mission very well...mostly VFR flying with very occasional IFR (a benefit of living in the Midwest), flights mostly limited to FL180 (wife doesn't prefer the mask), and leg's of 500 miles or less...with the occasional trip back home to GA (1400NM). For this type of flying, a well maintained 231 with a Merlyn WG and Intercooler will be great.

Nice. I once saw a GS of 130 Kts in my Citabria and I thought that was pretty impressive. **Looking forward to going turbo Mooney** - Trey

Ahh yes...it would help if I were looking up the correct registration number. I was looking up N252PR. good catch, Trey

If you are willing to take a gamble... https://www.fsboauctions.net/product/1986-mooney-m20k-252-tse/ Last registration expired in 2014 and it's been out of annual for years. I can't find any information on the last registered owner so my bet is it's bank owned. Looks nice though...

Lee, Sorry I didn't sign up sooner! Enjoy your new addition; I've really enjoyed flying the Citabria...it's the type of airplane you "wear."

Ha..those pictures were taken just after I moved into the new hangar (I was previously at KSLC and needed to get away from the class B). The hangar is just as clean today but has all the standard man-cave additions you'd find in a well-used hangar: an area for flight planning, a couch and recliner, a refrigerator stocked with water and beer, and a cabinet with tools and cleaning supplies. While there aren't any McDonald's wrappers, you may come across a Frosty cup from Wendy's...

I definitely love the idea of finding a great 252 and certainly wouldn't pass on a 262 if one came available on the market. I consider the 252 my "forever" plane...although nobody ever really knows what actually will be their last aiplane. If it were up to the wife, she'd probably prefer a Saratoga TC so that her and the dog's would have a place to run around in the back of the plane ha. I appreciate the warm welcome and look forward to learning from the members of this board, Cheers,

Great recommendation. I actually read Kerry's article in the January issue but didn't even pick up on the fact that he has a 307 area code. I just surfed his website for about an hour reading archived MAPA articles. I think I know where I will be going for a pre-buy when the time comes... Trey

Let's see if these photos attach okay...

Hello Mooney pilots. I've been lurking the MooneySpace Forum for a few months now so I figured it was probably time to introduce myself. I earned my pilot's license in 2004 at a small airport just north of Atlanta (VPC). In 2007, I bought a 1973 Bellanca Citabria 7KCAB and brought it with my while traveling around the US in the Air Force. Me and the Citabria have spent time in Wyoming, Colorado, and most recently, Utah. I separated from the Air Force in 2015 and now call Utah home and the Citabria is hangared at U42. While the Citabria has been a fun plane and served me well as a bachelor, it's time to step up. The wife isn't really a fan of sitting for a few hours to go a couple hundred miles and the tandem seating means she is staring at the back of my balding head the entire time. In the summer, forget about leaving the Salt Lake Valley together unless we are okay to climb at 200FPM to clear the Wasatch Mountains. We have family in Wyoming so the mountains add significant challenges with getting the small bird eastbound. We would love to regularly travel towards Oregon, California, Wyoming, and occasionally back to my home state of Georgia. The Citabria is meant to fly aerobatics...not flying hundreds of miles in a straight line. I've looked at Turbo Piper Arrows, Cessna 180's, Cessna 182s, and obviously Mooney's. The Mooney is attractive because of the speed and efficiency. We do not have kids and don't really have any plans to either so the useful load shortfalls of the Mooney isn't really an issue for our type of flying. The Mooney is a stable plane but isn't something I would likely outgrow anytime soon. I plan to list the Citabria within the next 12 months and, after selling her, begin my search for the right bird, at the right price, with the right features (PS...if anybody is hunting for a second, slower airplane please let me know ;-). I've narrowed my search to the 201, 231, and 252...and I literally go back and forth daily on which one would best meet my mission profile based on price, performance, market availability, safety, etc. I'm sure everyone on this board has experienced the struggle of indecisiveness. I lean towards the M20K because of the high summer DA's we experience in SLC...with the 252 being the ultimate option; I'm not sure the 252 would fit my budget, however. A modified 231 may be my best bet. Anywho, if there are any local Mooney pilots who would like to swap time in my low/slow tail-dragger, send me a PM. I'm also interested to hear where Utah Mooney pilots service their airplanes and get training. It doesn't look like there are any Mooney Service Stations within 500 Miles...the closest being south of Phoenix, Arizona. Cheers, Trey