Sue Bon

Happy Holidays to everyone. "Meeting" you all has been a highlight of 2022 for me.

Well I, for one, bought my house because of its proximity to the airport. I love living so close that I can look out the window and decide to go flying. No one here is trying to close the airport. Some people just love to complain. FWIW, I left my previous home in Interlaken due to the noise overhead. My top floor apartment is in the middle of town, over which there are over 65'000 tandem paragliding flights every year, with tourists that don't have an athletic bone in their bodies. They scream. They scream in fear for their lives at the top of their lungs from sun up until sunset 65'000 times per year. That drove me mad. I started crying every day around 3pm and had nightmares at night. At the time I was studying for my IFR/CPL exams and was unable to concentrate. It was awful. Of course, the brain is wired to react negatively to screaming. Motors are different.

Unless you live close to an airfield, especially one that has active flight schools doing circuits all day long. As a pilot, this doesn't bother me, but it does bother some of my neighbours. I know that my small village (pop. 1500) is responsible for enough noise complaints that we get mail from the airport to alert us of special events or changes in operating hours that would result in increased traffic.

*tips hat* You sir, are braver than I.

And, let the record show, if I could save 50k, I would do it in a heartbeat!

Swapping out instruments is one thing. Updating the autopilot and integrating all the new instruments and antennas, etc. is another. I would never trust myself with this....

Why does this never work? It's such a pet peeve of mine.

I had this issue after an annual. It was the airspeed switch that somehow got "bumped" and pushed it up. If you have an airspeed switch and not a squat switch, have that checked. As on my profile, I have a '77 M20J. Edit: The airspeed switch should be something like 60kn +/- 5 Edit 2: Welcome to MooneySpace

I assume for accuracy, but how should I know? The whole post went way over my head (pun intended).

The thing I love most about this post is that it was edited

If you didn't post today, I was going to ask. Good news!

Not being able to open the door must have been absolutely terrifying. I can't even imagine it. I'm so, so glad that there were people there willing and able to help you out. Thank you for your updates. All the best to both of you for a full recovery.

Ours is CHF 11.53 ($12.43), down from CHF 13.80 ($14.90). CHF/USD conversions at today's rate, but they haven't varied too much over the past few years.

Dude. Seriously. All the work on my new panel, which is nowhere near the one in the photo, will end up costing me 80% of the purchase price of my plane.

Alright. I'll rethink my rethink

This time last year I agonised over the decision to upgrade my Mooney or my panel. I landed on upgrading my panel because it would be about half the cost and I know that I can afford my J ... even though it prevents me from upgrading my bathrooms and my kitchen. Regarding watching your retirement plan evaporate before your eyes, I've invested in the stock market twice. Once in 2008 about 10 minutes before the crash and then again this past January. The next time I plan to invest, I'll post it here so you all will know to sell!

Whatever route you choose to take, my advice is to plan, plan, plan. Make a clear budget for yourself. Maybe even a backup budget in case something unexpected comes up. Airplane ownership is amazing, but it can turn around and bite you. I am planning to spend my last Franc on my last day, but I'm budgeting for a long life.

I don't know if this was rhetorical or not, but just in case, the answer is a hard no. Obviously, I have no idea what it's like to fly in the US, but you definitely have a lot more space than we do! Thanks for your explanation. Watching your video has made me rethink my ambition of flying in the US.

Wow. We do not have that over here, thank goodness. I've only been given one waypoint not on my flight plan (although it happens somewhat regularly) and that happens in the Zurich airspace where I know almost all the waypoints by heart. After that one new waypoint, I get a direct to a waypoint on my flight plan. I think there was a thread about this happening during climb. That would be next to impossible for me in single pilot operation, especially in IMC. Maybe with the new GFC 500 that's currently being installed I could do it, but still... Plus it blocks the frequency for so long that it's hard to imagine how it's ultimately beneficial for everyone.

The pilot was in an extremely high stress situation and most probably had get-there-itis. He had a lot of wind from the southeast at altitude, less on the ground, including wind shears. He was in hard IMC (not sure about icing) and doesn't seem to have had the right approach loaded. It seems he descended below the OVC 002 ceiling and started looking for the airport. As @Ibra mentioned, the shopping mall lights were probably very attractive. He had been pushing the frequency button to light the runway (not sure if it worked). The pilot has over 30 years experience. I wonder if that was a factor in boosting his confidence. I share the sentiment of @ilovecornfields in that I'm more prone to cancel than to go if there is ever a question of safety. I've stayed on the ground more often than I'd like to admit on flyable days because the weather seemed a bit iffy and I wasn't sure. I know a few pilots with over 30 years experience that look at the same situation and say, "It should be ok." Should isn't enough for me, but I've only been in the IFR game for three years.

Well.... Moody does accurately describe how I feel when I don't get to fly....

I love Peanut. I love Snoop Dog. I need a dog....

My trim CB is here, next to the yoke. No searching necessary in case of a runaway...

Hearing that first "okay" from Maggie brought tears to my eyes.