Hank

Getting pretty up there! We are now finally below 90°, hoping it lasts . . . .

Technically, those are earplugs, as the speaker is on the metal band behind your head. Earbuds are the big, hard things where you push the speaker into your ear (a painful experience for me). Try the silicone tips instead of the foam ones, I really like them. No cold weather problems as described above for the foam ones, either--my coldest breakfast run was 8°F heading out and not much higher coming home. My C passed the cabin heat test that day, and man did she climb!

That's what you're supposed to do, taxi onto the runway centerline, stop and wait. We called it "position and hold" while Europe calls it "line up and wait," even though Europeans don't line up in stores, they "get in queue." So at least we can be thankful that the FAA spared us that . . . .

This happened to me during transition training, after cranking the gear down. Except that the rapidly-spinning handle caught my headset cord and almost smashed my face sideways into the yoke. At least it gave my CFI a good laugh . . . . Going from memory at home, eleven years later: slide the little red engagement lever towards the center of the handle, then fold the handle up and slide it towards the center until it catches. This should leave it somewhere around the 2:00 position when retracted, and it won't spin anymore. If the lever won't slide, hit it with a little TriFlow and wiggle it, see if you can get it loose. Otherwise you may need to remove both front seats (easy) and the long left sidewall (not easy to remove, a genuine pain to reinstall) and see what's going on back there . . . .

Es can fly LOP. Cs, not so much . . . .

I'm sure it's more of one than the other. Full scale -17s were not fast, I wouldn't expect this one to be, either. Looking at his ad, it was not like he was selling an airplane. Lots of outside photos, no full panel picture but there are separate pictures of what look like throttle & mixture controls (2 on the left side, 2 on the right side) on the cabin walls, little mention of avionics / instruments (although the four electronic tachs are mostly visible on the edge of the panel), and --zippo-- about flight performance (speed, fuel burn, useful load, baggage space . . . . ). It's not even really clear if the gear retracts. Just don't understand the throttle arrangement. It does make it harder to grab the wrong one, but it also makes it harder to push all of them forward for takeoff, much more difficult to do so in a go around while still airborne, and how do you pull all four to idle so's you kin land???

Because it's not your own personal, single place, 4-engine B-17!!! I'm shocked that it should fit into a normal-sized T hangar . . . . But I think the price includes too much builder's passion and not enough owner's reality--it's a single place toy that will amaze the breakfast crowd, but also fly to airshows, not something you can use for a weekend away or to visit distant friends and family.

Get training from someone who knows turbocharged Mooneys, and practice correct engine management from your first flight together. Join MAPA (Mooney Aircraft Pilots Assn, www.mooneypilots.com) and take a weekend PPP course shortly afterwards. You will want your Instrument rating soon, too. There is an article on MAPA's site, hopefully free to non-members, about a student pilot who bought a 231. It was written by his CFI. So it's possible, you just need to commit the time and effort to learn and fly properly.

@bluehighwayflyer, are you OK?

The cracks usually start at a poorly drilled hole. Not sure how you got one started at the edge between holes . . . LASAR sells them for $145, just trim to fit and drill the many screw holes.

Jim posted the eye crossing Tyndall's runway, and said he lived just to the west of there.

Thanks, Mike. I had forgotten about them. I forwarded this suggestion on to Operation Airdrop.

Visit www.operation-airdrop.com and look for the link. Fly whatever you can, as many or few trips as you have time / fuel / money for. Or donate. Or go to Gainesville and sort, weigh and tag boxes. Or whatever. The more of us that help out, the more people get helped!

Update from the Airdrop organizers: ****************? Good news on the facility front. We can tell you that we will begin relief flights in Florida from University Air in Gainesville at KGNV. We have a newfound appreciation for university towns after our success in Raleigh. Having such a big institution as a flagship state university close by (plus Duke in the case of NC) makes for more volunteer response on the ground, which in turn makes for more boxes for us to fly and an all around more efficient operation. As with Raleigh, there will be no ramp fees and fuel will be discounted. We did not get a final number on the fuel discount yet due to this all being nailed down late in the day today, but will confirm it with you in tomorrow's email after all involved have had a chance to review and sign off. As of now, we hope to have staging staff on the ground to begin organizing donations tomorrow, which would give us all day Friday for final prep, and first flights on Saturday morning. That schedule is not set in stone yet, we will confirm this with you tomorrow when we can ensure the travel schedules of our staff headed to Gainesville. We are also still working the idea of possibly setting up on the western half of the storm as well, although we have not confirmed any available facilities available between the Mobile and Pensacola areas. If we do add a western staging airport, that will also be confirmed in tomorrow's email.

Check out www.operation-airdrop.com to donate money, materiel and / or fly supplies around while roads are flooded and government support is still collecting and not yet distributing. It worked well last month after Florence, and Panama City is much closer. Hope to see some of you there, wherever "there" turns out to be.

It's generally 125.5 here in Lower Alabama, not sure about that far north. Sometimes going to central NC, I'll have 3 or 4 frequencies for ATL Approach.

The logbook entry must be made by the licensed airplane mechanic who installs the right side brakes, according to the aviation laws of Venezuela. I did all of my Instrument training in my M20-C, and took my Instrument checkride in it, with no right side brakes. Good luck with your project!

Fly it to an Air Force base in Texas while the winds are still <30 mph . . .

I'm just out of the danger zone and ready. But apparently my thread-naming skills need updating . . .

I think a long, narrow pan will work fine!

I thought The Chicken was a greasy spoon luncheonette near GGG and a favorite haunt of Don Maxwell and Bill Pearson? Is there one in Aggieland, too? Edit: no, my sleepy brain just informed me that I'm thinking of the Chicken Basket . . . .

Get a Victorinox Tinker pocketknife, you'll always have a full-size phillips with you (but no corkscrew).

I always have a pocket knife with me, except when in bed, in the shower or on the airlines. It's too useful for too many things!

Hurricane Michael is bearing down on the Florida Gulf Coast, and may come ashore near Panama City Beach where we just had a great Summit. Operation Airdrop is already preparing to help with relief efforts, but cannot arrange drop off locations until after the storm leaves. Please think about joining us late this week or weekend. www.operation-airdrop.com for more information, to donate or register to fly. The latest tracks look to miss me, well see how much rain comes anyway. Looks like Wednesday evening will be interesting. Hope to see some of you. Historic Tuskegee usually has great fuel prices in this area, 06A.

I do it with a piece of scrap aluminum.