SCPDaddy

What a beautiful airplane! What ceramic products do you use on it?

Thanks for all the great responses! I am now training with FlightGest out of RDU (10-15 minutes from our house) on a Piper Archer with G1000. First flight last week went well with a great CFI and I felt pretty comfortable flying it, learning the sight picture, using the G1000, etc., but also realized there is so much more to learn and be prepared for emergency-wise. Another lesson on the Archer later today but unfortunately they are already booked heavy the next 4 weeks despite their 8 CFIs. Plan to get my PPL on that airplane and other trainers/renters here in the RDU area. I also noticed some Mooney trainer/rental airplanes in one of the local clubs that I will look into. Once I and my instructors feel I am ready, I will then transition to N300ME, which I just closed on the purchase of today as I needed to get it before year-end for tax purposes. She's a 2007 Ovation 3 GX with G1000, GFC700, L3 Stormscope, TKS FIKI, ADSB-out, oxygen, etc. See attached pics. I got reasonably priced insurance with another very experienced Mooney pilot friend listed as the only pilot until I'm hopefully ready for her sometime in 2022. I am looking for an experienced Mooney CFI in the Raleigh area for once I am ready to transition. Tonight I reached out to Mark Kolber who appears to fit that bill, and if any of you know of others please advise. I also sent a message to the Currituck Airport folks trying to get in touch with Gary Ambrose who reportedly also fits that bill since I spend a lot of my business and personal time in the Outer Banks. I have plenty of time to try to do this right and appreciate your input and resources. I've also found and watched/read quite a few Mooney landing technique videos, articles, etc., and from what I gather it seems that like other airplanes, good things happen when you have a stabilized approach, configured and on speed, and follow the manufacturer-recommended flare, touchdown, and de-rotation procedures. Otherwise do a go-around and try it again. I've done plenty of FDR-readouts and data/pilot procedure analyses on 757, 767, DC-10, MD-11 and other airplane tail-drags and bounced landings and I can't recall any that were not ultimately blamed on unstable, off-speed approaches and/or improper flare and other procedures. If they can do it with their high level of training, experience, CRM, autothrottle, oleo strut gear, etc., it's no wonder I hear about so many Mooney landing issues including bounces, prop strikes, etc. From a geometry standpoint I don't think the short Mooney gear is helping provide a lot of pitch attitude margin for prop strike or tail drag, so I'm a little concerned about learning how to control that margin precisely and am hoping that training, experience, and the relatively large attitude display on the G1000 for the occasional peek/cross-check will allow me to forever avoid those issues. Charley left_front.jfif left_landing.jfif

I'm 56 yrs old and in the process of getting my FAA medical and then hopefully my ppl. I want to learn to fly then buy an airplane to help me reduce my business drive times from my current 3 to 8 hours each way. I am not opposed to buying before I get my ppl and use that airplane to learn in and that would be helpful for 2021 tax reasons if done by 12/31/21. I graduated from ERAU in 1989 with my BS Aeronautical Engineering after 3 years of Gulfstream GIV flight test data boy intern time in the back of the airplane monitoring the data recording systems and making call-outs for the pilots during the FAA GIV cert program. At lunchtime I would occasionally fly with a GAC flight test engineer in his Seminole. I also spent one intern trimester in the Stability and Control Division at GAC working on the P3 replacement project and the GIV around the world record flight planning. I learned a tremendous amount at ERAU and GAC. I then worked for the NTSB in DC HQ Vehicle Recorders and Vehicle Performance Divisions from 1990 to 2005 doing mostly aviation but some surface mode data recorder readouts and analyses, on-scene crash site surveys and investigation, performance analyses, path reconstructions and animations, etc. I did over 300 Part 121 jumpseat rides during my NTSB years on everything from a Shorts 360 to Boeing 777 and 747s and learned a lot about aviation and other modes. I never got my ppl primarily because management didn't want to pay for it and I was focusing on paying off student loans, buying a home, starting my own businesses, etc. Since 1999 I have started, bought, and run 7 businesses that now require me to drive a lot every week to and from work locations, as well as take Part 121 flights to work locations. Numerous peers have their own airplanes that they fly to the same work locations. Most of these locations are 3 to 8 hours drive times and occasionally longer, and the total time to take a 121 flight including driving to and from the airport, parking, terminal time, plane changes, etc., isn't much less. I now have 5 and 8 yr old daughters that I want to maximize my time with and I think having the option of flying my own plane will allow me to continue my active business travel while reducing my time away from home and my girls. We live in North Raleigh, NC about 10 minutes drive from RDU. I will be able to write off an airplane purchase as well as ownership and operational costs on my biz tax returns and having the additional pilot education and experience will be helpful with my accident investigation CV so long as I don't develop my own accident experience. Given my 31+ years of NTSB and private accident investigation experience as well as my family focus, I have a lot of concerns with safety and minimizing risk in this ppl and airplane ownership/operation plan. I've seen a lot of business people kill themselves and family/business members in their own airplanes and I don't want to end up in that tragic circumstance. So making sure I have the best equipment and training, and make the safest operational decisions will be a priority of mine in airplane ownership and operation. I have been looking at single piston airplanes for years. I like the looks and speed of the Mooney and want one with the full Garmin G1000 WAAS A/P TAWS package but others including my godfather (retired Delta 777 Captain) want me to learn on and own a Cessna high wing fixed gear or one of his personal Cubs. Reading various threads on here it looks like most of you support buying and learning on a Mooney if that's what I really want. I have used Garmin electronics on my 57 foot charter fishing boat and other boats for many years in day and night visual and "instrument" conditions (running 30 knots at night with plotter, radar and FLIR up to 150 nm offshore) so I am used to Garmin electronics and am hoping their aviation interfaces are similar to their marine units. Thanks for your help and friendship in guiding me through this process. Charley