Jourdan Urbach

Panel upgrade is the least of that TAP plane's problems. New partner as of a few years ago was a Kennedy fellow, posted here if I recall. Might be worth reaching out to him. As I understand from speaking with the broker, the plane has barely flown since he joined, and the original owner (I forget her name) barely flew it before that either. Quite nice P&I, likely not much corrosion due to texas hangaring, but 50k minimum in the panel and God only knows what lies firewall forward. The missiles on controller ... well, the red and white one Dave Slivka (good guy, go-to for MU2s) has been trying to get rid of since late 2019, and the blue and white one had a brutal collision with a stone mailbox before being re-built by Don Maxwell. Look at the thread on here for pictures. You'll need to decide if you're ok with that. -J

Same experience with Scott - first with barons, then with mooneys. What Royal Air in Shreveport is to Dukes, he seems to be to everything else (and also to Dukes). That's fine. Somebody's got to run the junkyard. I ignore his ads now - they go in the same pile as all the unobtanium from Gauteng and Gordola. By contrast: Jimmy (Garrison @ All American) took an hour on the phone with me today to orient me to M20Ks (some of you may recall my heartburn trying to buy a rocket or missile earlier this year) and I've never been so impressed with a broker. Strongly recommend a call. As many have said, buying cheap airplanes is never cheap for long. -J

Apologies if I muddied the water. I'm not an electrical engineer and do not understand the vicissitudes of voltage, amperage, current, and the like. It's probably something I should rectify in the interest of understanding airplane systems better. Just thought you guys would be interested to know that the IFE (in-flight entertainment) system is what's being implicated in an upcoming mandatory service bulletin related to this fire, and the SF50 owner I know referenced a short related to the USB plug. I'm not sure if he has his facts straight, but it's the closest information I have. Best, -J

For those still curious, it was a short in the entertainment system. The SF50 has quite a large fold-down screen which is attached to the midships ceiling. Preliminary reports implicate a high-voltage USB outlet in that device, which is not required to be manufactured to "aviation standards," whatever those might be.

Thanks, have a voicemail into his home number. Also have an email into finance thanks to PJ, and a call into Don Maxwell to see if he can recommend pre-buy in the northwest. Truly appreciate the caring and knowledgable folks on this board. I've been a BT'er for a bit and continue to be impressed by the vibrancy and selflessness of these forums. Alan gave me a bunch of his time on the phone today which was super valuable. Best, -J

Thanks, Dan. Do you happen to have Don's contact info? I believe this is the list you're referring to: https://themooneyflyer.com/cfi.html Anyone have experience with: "Andrew Rutherford, Kelso, WA. CFI, CFII, MEI. (360) 560-9688. Available for flight instruction in the Pacific Northwest. Mooney Bravo owner. Professional pilot. 1000+ hours instruction given." or: "Chad Grondahl (CFI, CFII, MEI & ATP), Colorado Springs (KCOS). (303) 242-4961. Email: fly9209h@gmail.com. Mooney owner (M20F) and FAA Gold Seal Flight Instructor specializing in transition and proficiency training, mountain flying, flight reviews, IPCs, turbocharged aircraft checkouts, ferry flights, and air-to-air photography of your Mooney. Experience: 4,500 hrs TT - 1,800 hrs Dual Given - 750 hrs in Mooneys (most models)." or: "Ben Kaufman, Fort Collins. (KFNL). (CFI/CFII) – (801) 319-3218 -Email: bkaufman.mba@gmail.com. Jim Rogers, Denver. 12000+ hours TT flown most of those hours were in Mooneys. I own a 231 M20K. Gold Seal, CFI, II, MEI, ATP. 900+ instructing. 303-921-6937. Email: rogejame@hotmail.com." Best, -J

Alan: Just spoke with Jim this morning, 252WT is sitting at Reid Hillview in SF, asking 149k. Maintained by Top Gun MSC at KSCK. Paul: Suspect you may be right. No - I pulled those logs off the older ad. Haven't re-contacted the owner, don't want to bombard him until I have someone to look at the bird. PJ: Had a good call with George. As I suspected, 330 to ADS-B is no biggie. His quote for GFC500+G3x/G5 was pretty compelling. Will see how this all shakes out. Danger! -J

Thanks all for the warm welcome. Erik: I could see that happening for us as well. Any recommendations on CFIs? I've heard Don Kaye's name invoked quite a bit, not sure if he's still flying. If I buy this bird, I will be very tempted to PM you and ask for a connection to the MT boys! Denver: Yessir, one of the most beautiful approaches in the lower 48. Highly recommend you come a few miles up and check it out. Currently hunting for a hangar. Spent a few weeks based out of there in the pacer this summer. Backup is KDIJ. Lots of residents fly 525s out of there, I suspect they use VNAV guidance over the reservoir to the north even though our approach hasn't been certified yet. Paul: Would love to meet up. Have commercial scheduled at KAPA for next month, so that should be convenient. RE: the pre buy, agreed. I am very concerned about the health of the most important piece of metal on the aircraft. I've got logs (attached) but I'd love to find a real expert locally to take a look for me. Any advice on where to start there? PJ: That's some great color. Can't imagine somebody buying this bird (222DK), then listing her so soon after. He says he's fallen out of love with flying. She had an annual in August 2019 btw. Trade a Plane and eBay are listing different prices but eBay was updated 3 days ago. I'd love to have a real mooney and TSIO520 expert boroscope her and see what we're dealing with. Finishing the left side of the panel makes sense to me too. And then cutting a cleaner panel for her. That AAT figure you quoted is compelling. May I drop your name when I call them? I will also price out [[TXIw/EIS] + [G5]] to see if that nets out similarly. **update: 252WT priced at 149k, representative got back to me** [seems rich - maybe because it's been hangared at Reid-Hillview for 6 months! but maintained by Top Gun which is very nice] N222DK-Logs.pdf

Thanks man. I absolutely can't afford to buy a "project," so am trying to do my diligence up front. If an autopilot is going to kick the bucket, or an engine is questionable, I'll need to avoid ahead of time rather than take my chances. -J

@carusoam Thanks for the warm welcome. Can you give a hint on how much flight experience you have already? 300 hrs, roughly split in thirds between trainers + aerobatic, PA-32 (very long XCs), and PA-20 (tailwheel, bush flying). 200 in the past year, 50 and 50 in the two prior years. IR with that? In progress. Written passed, no IFR plane currently in the hangar. Will rectify alongside initial type training. Try to decide if your flights will be benefitted by having a turbo...That will help cut a bunch of work out while trying to decide which is the best plane for you... The rocket seems to do 200 KTAS at 12k MSL vs an honest 180 KTAS for the NA 6-bangers. That delta matters for me given flight quantity and distance (see below). Being able to go up high on O2 when I'm solo without the dog flying for work is a bonus. If I'm wrong on the delta, this will need to be re-considered. I also am yet to hear confirmation that the Bravos will also do 200 KTAS at 12K MSL. Do you have a budget driving your decisions...? Yessir. 150k for the plane (less if I can get away with it), 5k for pre-buy, 5k for type-specific training, and 6-7k for yearly inspection and MX items. Do those sound reasonable? I'm not the sort of guy who gets excited about flying LOP, burning 16 vs 20 GPH if that helps. I'm buying this to go fast. How often do you expect to fly? Is this a work machine, or sunny weekend machine? All of the above. Mandatory monthly flights each to KSNA (the toddler mission) and F72, and back, from base in Jackson Hole, Alpine 46U. Then, every-other-month to KSBA and KWHP, and seeing clients in KGEG, KPIA, KDVT. Twice yearly, all the way to NYC (KHPN) and back. How far out into the future can you see...There are things around here called forever planes... they don’t have the same financial limitations of other planes... No ROIs, no kids have to go to college, no future value of anything... This is an interesting concept. Kids are a few years out for us (the toddlers aren't ours). When they come, we're going to want pressurization and an engine that only turns one direction. However, I do not want to have to switch/upgrade traveling planes before then. This plane needs to keep us happy from a speed/range/capability standpoint for 3-5 yrs. If and when we are lucky enough to have children and pressurization, there is no guarantee I'd sell this plane. Holly is very understanding of my addiction, and I am blessed with good sticks as friends who like flying my airplanes and defraying costs. If this was a soulless cirrus, it would most likely be a dispose-a-plane. But it's not, so ... is that about clear as mud? Best, -J

Hello new friends, I'm Jourdan, a low-time private pilot recently relocated from New York City to Jackson, Wyoming. That move has been great for my health, but it's clipped my wings - which have been for the past 2 yrs a PA-32 in a partnership at KHPN. N8694N and I have flown across the country and landed some bucket list airports, but she's staying put in the big apple. My other plane, a bush-ified PA-20 pacer, has been great for learning stick & rudder skills, taking mountain flying classes, and enabling some amazing off-airport experiences. N8973C isn't going anywhere, but she's hardly a traveling machine. After looking at G1 and G2 Cirri (too expensive once you WAAS and ADS-B), Bonanzas (too slow real-world), and light twins (too much MX headache & proficiency demands), I've settled on the Mooney Rocket to be our mountain West magic carpet. Our mission is 2 medium adults, 1 large dog OR 2 small children 46U-F72/SBA/WHP/SNA twice monthly, and 46U-KHPN twice yearly. I'll also be replacing regional work travel to places like KPIA and KDVT when weather allows. Due to the dog and toddlers (not oxygen friendly), I was looking for the plane that would give me maximum cruise speed at 12000'. It appears the rocket will handily do 200 KTAS there, and 220 if I'm up higher on a solo work trip with a nose hose. The Bravo is probably equivalent, minus 5-10 knots, and would also suit me fine. Would you good folks help me parse through a couple of the available options, and offer some resources for a proper pre-buy inspection (current plan is Savvy) and training in-type? I've read every thread on this site referencing the turbocharged Mooneys using the search function (as well as the conversions & NA big-bores) and all the easily searchable articles on the Google. Top Contender: N222DK https://www.ebay.com/itm/1982-Mooney-M20K-305-Rocket-Airplane-Logs-Complete-Always-Hangared/323933742607?hash=item4b6bf4a60f:g:c70AAOSw9gtdXY1m https://www.trade-a-plane.com/search?category_level1=Single+Engine+Piston&make=MOONEY&model=M20K+305+ROCKET&listing_id=2363196&s-type=aircraft# https://aircraftsales.us/listings/1982-mooney-m20k-305-rocket/ [best pictures in the aircraftsales link, despite expired. Note useful load is incorrect, owner claims broker error] Pros: $145k OBO sale price, GTN 650/750, stunning interior, nice paint, speed brakes, mid-time engine, communicative owner. Cons: Not flown terribly often in the past 2 years, Confusing tapestry of advertisements & timeline, Engine monitor is only OK (would prefer a 900), Primary flight instruments don't match quality of nav stack (would be tempted to upgrade which would probably lose money). Neutral: KFC200, Easy upgrade path to ADS-B due to GTX330 non-ES transponder, Moderately convenient to check out by flying into Seattle. OTHER OPTIONS: Mooney M20J Missile, great paint & interior, 430W, ADS-B, 129k [CLAIMS 196 KTAS at 9k MSL, shows GNS 430 picture in ad, I cannot corroborate this type of performance anywhere, highly suspicious] https://www.controller.com/listings/aircraft/for-sale/154936773/1982-mooney-m20j-201-missile Mooney M20R, 1420 SMOH, 165k [why so expensive? only modern avionic is the 900, older motor, inop O2, no ADS-B or WAAS...] https://www.controller.com/listings/aircraft/for-sale/147262289/1999-mooney-m20r-ovation Mooney M20R, low-time, GTN 650, ADS-B, 145k [looks like a nice honest plane?] https://www.controller.com/listings/aircraft/for-sale/183756333/1995-mooney-m20r-ovation Mooney Rocket, low time, 530W, G5, ADS-B, 140k [looks a bit tired? Maybe because of the TT?] https://www.trade-a-plane.com/search?category_level1=Single+Engine+Piston&make=MOONEY&model=M20K+305+ROCKET&listing_id=2373713&s-type=aircraft# Mooney Rocket, 430W, ADS-B, Price Unknown [have reached out to seller, but it's New Years] https://www.trade-a-plane.com/search?category_level1=Single+Engine+Piston&make=MOONEY&model=M20K+305+ROCKET&listing_id=2359391&s-type=aircraft Mooney Rocket, new engine (when?), ADS-B, 149k, [Bad/few pictures, weird GPS] https://www.controller.com/listings/aircraft/for-sale/165598829/1979-mooney-m20k-305-rocket All advice relating to pre-buy inspection, type-specific training, and the aircraft I've linked would be deeply appreciated. Thank you for your time and consideration in advance. Best, -J [picture is me and first officer Smoky in the PA-32]