GeorgePerry

http://mooneyspace.com/topic/334-3-point-seatbelts/?hl=%2Balpha+%2Baviation This link has some pics. It's not hard but does require some patience.

Looking forward to it.

I think paul is has an excellent business model. Mooney factory produced a product that doesn't last very long (in airplane terms) so over time paul and his crew get to fix a fleet of airplanes.

I've always like Mooney's factory designs. they used to have a paint scheme design app on their website. These pictures are from that.

You might find this thread useful. http://mooneyspace.com/topic/8-prospective-vintage-mooney-buyers/?hl=%2Bperspective+%2Bvintage

I am letting the shop decide. There's no real interface with the 210 so under the dash seems like a good place.

No problem. this was a really embarrassing oversight last year and it hasn't been forgotten as people continually remind us of it. Glad we could partially redeem ourselves.

Well it has begun. I've got my Eagle in the shop for some much needed upgrades. The deconstruction is nearly complete and the goodies will be going in. It's kind of scary seeing the panel in such a mess. The avionics shop assures me that it'll be perfect when they're done. I've seen them do many other upgrades so I'm sure this is the case. Soon the plane will be fully ADS-B compliant, have Bluetooth compatibility with my iPad and have a modern engine monitor. Parts that are being installed are Garmin GDL-88, Garmin Flight Stream 210 and Electronics International CGR-30P to replace a very old and not very useful UGB-16. The thought process around these components and timing was first, to get ahead of the 2020 mandate, get the benefits from ADS-B out AND in and not have to wait in a long queue as the deadline gets near. Living near DC and flying through the SFRA regularly, the airspace environment really dictated that I needed be ADS-B compliant. Will there be a lower cost option if I waited...If I were a betting man the answer would be yes. However for me, the timing and easy of integration with my 430W, it made sense to just bite the bullet and pay the light bill at Garmin. I'll post more pics as the process moves forward. I'm looking forward to having the full traffic picture, subscription free weather displayed on the 430W and my iPad. Along with the ability to plan and download info from the iPad directly into the 430W. Not to mention an engine monitor that serves as a primary replacement for all the old Mortiz gauges. They'll still be connected and functioning, but not required. More to follow... 11 Jan update…CGR-30P, Flight Stream and GDL 88 not quite Installed, but roughed in.

Fly into FDK. It's a bit of drive into DC but you don't have to do anything special if your on an IFR flight plan. VFR you'll need to do the SFRA training course

Good to know. I've found that keeping the left tank about 3 gallons from being topped off has completely stopped the staining. So that's were it stands now. I have been talking with paul trying to work out schedules to get it in. I need to circle back with him and firm up a date.

Click on the link to see the locations and dates for the 2015 AOPA Fly-In's. Hope to see lots of Mooney's on the ramp!

No, You're not an accident waiting to happen… The turn to final with a gross overshoot is an issue but with proper training and technique can be completely mitigated as a threat. When talking about low altitude pattern maneuvering and energy management, the best method to avoid loss of control is prevention and recognition. Prevention begins with flying a disciplined pattern. Do your best to fly the Same airspeeds, make configuration changes at the same place in the pattern, and use the same sight picture every time to build routine and habit patterns. The more things look the same and are repeatable the easier deviations from the "norm" are to detect and remedy. Recognition begins with understanding energy management. If you're flying disciplined target airspeeds and not "wrapping" up a turn, the plane will fly just fine. Start seeing lower than normal airspeed and higher than normal angle of bank, and alarm bells should be sounding. The next component of recognition is understand what the plane "feels" like at the onset of a stall. Make a point to climb to a safe altitude and practice approach configured stalls at least 2 times every year. If you know what it feels like, you won't be surprised when it matters. Lastly there's an old CFI wise tale that I disagree with. Lots of instructors will say that you should always fly close enough to the runway to "glide" if the engine quits. This is a strategy for a low probability occurrence and "in-balance" is bad advice because it creates another situation with much more risk; Being too tight and trying to "save" it by wrapping up a turn to avoid an overshoot. It's better to be a bit wide than a bit close. Proper abeam distance and maneuvering distance should account for the arc of the turn with a margin of safety. My personal rule of thumb is no more than 25-30 Deg angle of bank in the pattern. If I need to bank steeper than that to align with the runway, then I'm done. Wings level and go around.

Good feedback on both points. I agree that a lot of the questions are Too Hard. I don't think most FAA DPE's could answer them all correctly. I've talked with my curriculum development folks and let them know this. Unfortunately the courses that are complete, are complete. It would be prohibitively expensive to redesign what's been out for some time now. Also I agree the courses are too long. They are designed to mirror a collegiate type course and thus the length. eLearning trends are changing and information needs to be short, to the point, and portable. The new stuff we are working on will do all of those things.

All good feedback! Thanks. You do have to have an AOPA account (note, not a membership b/c all of this is free). The account pairs the learner with a transcript so they can keep track of the courses, accident case studies etc that they've completed. Also in order for AOPA to award the prize, we also need basic information, so the log in issue is unfortunately a requirement. Yep Adobe Flash doesn't work on iPad. Don't blame us - please blame apple. Many of our "older" courses are written with flash and to convert them to iPad friendly HTML 5 is VERY EXPENSIVE. Portable learning is best for sure, no argument there. But we have to work with what we've got so doing this on a desktop/Flash compatible device is the best option. It is worth noting that all of our newer courses are fully iPad compatible, and we have updated some of our older courses as well. But with over 300 "products" its a long list and is cost prohibitive to do all at once.

Our IT guys worked with my team to create an algorithm that assigns ranking based on answer results. It's not perfect as it has to be a system that'll work for every pilot and cover a variety of backgrounds. The more important purpose was to give folks a place to start. Once they see how much good stuff the Air Safety Institute has the idea was they'll pick what appeals to their personal interests as they take follow on courses etc.

I should have titled this thread (Free Stuff or Tommy's political discussion). That way I would have gotten much more feedback. I'm still interested in hearing how this is working and what you think. The IT guys tell me it's good to go. I fall in the Reagan camp on this one. Trust but verify. I'm hoping you guys and gals can let me know if you find any issues and what I can do to make this more fun and beneficial. I'm keen to make improvements.

Thanks for the kind words…AOPA is a great organization and has undergone some significant changes/improvements over the past year since Mark Baker took the helm. We are laser focused on serving our members, being accessible, and supporting efforts that improve safety and set regulatory conditions for success. To be open and honest, I wasn't sure about going to AOPA until I met and talked with Mark and the other members of the leadership team. Prior to the most recent change of CEO's, I was just as P/O'ed as everyone else about the direction the organization had taken. I'm glad that things have changed for the better and the organization is more in touch with the members that we are proud to serve and represent.

AOPA is actually making some progress there. I'm hopeful that before Santa brings my kids Christmas presents again, this'll be done. See this link. http://www.aopa.org/News-and-Video/All-News/2014/November/25/AOPA-promises-to-keep-working-toward-overdue-reform

First thing to keep in mind is the common sense and business friendly practices are not common traits within the FAA. I can tell you the AOPA Government Affairs team is working hard to help shape the 23 rewrite so it actually delivers on the promise of 1/2 the time to certify, 1/2 the costs to the consumer, and all the benefits of safety. I wish the average AOPA member could see the level of effort that's required and the long hours the Gov Affairs team puts in to make positive progress with the FAA. It's Herculean! That said the FAA announced last summer they are going to miss the Part 23 deadline by over two years. So if your holding your breath, I hope you can last until 2017 at the earliest. Its so disappointing you don't even know. Our own government at its finest. These bureaucrats are so risk averse its easy for them to say 'no' because its safer for them to do nothing. The results are killing our industry and the FAA has no incentive to make positive change happen. Even when the FAA does do something good, rule changes literally take years because it doesn't just stop there. Then it has to go through DOT and OMB. Each step is another huge time consuming hurdle. The really sad part is our elected officials know how bad the FAA and the other agencies are, and they seemly powerless to intervene. I've seen congressional testimony where Congressman grill the suits from FAA about their history of ineffective leadership and consistently bad track record. They just shrug and blame sequestration and funding shortfalls. "Give us more money" is always the FAA's answer. I don't know what the real answer is. But I can tell you that I've met several Congressmen and Senators that are members of AOPA's GA caucus and they really do care about "average" pilots. Most of them use GA to get around their state or district when it's time to get out and meet the voters - So they get it. Short of firing everyone in the FAA's certification office, the next best thing we as a community can do is continue to write to our elected officials to keep the pressure on. They do actually look at letters and in many cases reference constituent remarks when they hold hearings. I know this isn't the rosy, optimistic response you're hoping for, but it's the reality of the system that's currently in place. AOPA is working hard to make things better, but even when there is broad support, we can only move as fast as Washington will allow.

A special category for aircraft under 6000 lbs that allows for advanced avionics, autopilots and engine management/electronic ignition systems to be installed (think Dynon, G3X, Grand Rapids etc) without the "experimental" stigma that goes along with that.

Welcome Sherman. As you can see from my thumb we share a similar background. If you have questions shoot me a PM anytime.

I'd disagree. The reg differentiates between IFR and VFR but not short or long (however that might be defined)

As I suspected…everyone has their own preferred method. No right or wrong answers just individual preference

I know what your saying but 91.103 doesn't differentiate between long and short flights.

Updated with a Phone call option for all of the above. Thanks!