Hank

ATC has only commented on my speed twice: 1) Asking me to slow down for sequencing on an IFR training flight, still outside the IAP 2) Asking a Lear inbound on the ILS behind me to "reduce speed 50 knots, you're behind a Mooney indicating 80" on my IR checkride [i checked AI, 105 mph; GPS readout was 80 knots]. I asked the DE if I should speed up, his answer was "sure, let's see what you can do." So I raised gear & flaps, gave her some throttle and accelerated down the glideslope, slowing down again when I was 2 miles out for a touch-n-go. The only other speed-related comment was inbound to pick up the DE for my checkride, with a howling tailwind they addressed me as a Baron and asked my intentions. I corrected them with "Mooney" and said "full stop." I'd been practicing there rather often leading up to checkride day. Did I mention that we have no approaches at my home field?

Thanks, Ken. I just remember 2% per 1000' falloff on the airspeed indicator, and if I need "KNOTS" then I use the groundspeed readout on the 430. That's the only place it matters, since it shows distance in nautical miles. Indicated Airspeed in knots is useless when my instruments and books are all in mph.

Wow, I'd love to read the article. But after five minutes of "please wait for our tweets to load" without any of the text itself appearing, I gave up. Tried again later, same results. Tried the "FAQ" option on the left--nothing while I wait for their tweets to load. On a T1 here at work . . . Nothing comes up on their site for me, not even "Search" until after the tweets load, and they won't. So most unfortunately, not only can I not do anything on aero-net's website, I can't even communicate my problem to them . . . Any chance someone could paste the article here?

Whatever happened to "any landing you can walk away from" and all that? While it appears that he may have been behind the airplane, he apparently made a conscious choice to hit the ditch and sacrifice an awesome machine to spare people. That is situational awareness and aeronautical decision making, both of a variety that I hope I never need to demonstrate.

Quote: FuriousPhoen1x Nobody is concerned with their hearing?

George-- 23"/2300 is where I make short trips, usually 3000 or 3500 msl. If I'm going more than ~50 nm, I climb higher and adjust per the book to less than 75%. The numbers above are typical values, but I have to watch temps in the winter and remember that my power is likely 1-2% higher than the table. I'm trying to learn to lean more at higher altitudes when WOT produces less power--at 60-65% power, is it necessary to run 50º rich, or would peak EGT be acceptable? Some carbs run LOP, but not mine. If I'm crossing the Appalachians, I like at least 7500' VFR or 9000' IFR; both are good for WOT/2500. I've seen steady-state groundspeeds from 104 kts to 183 kts running WOT/2500 over the mountains, but indicated airspeed is usually in the mid-130 mph range. Fly safe, and look for tailwinds!

One day, I really need to do the three-course speed check. The 134 mph was Indicated; quick finger-counting tells me that at 10K, add 20% to indicated, or 134 + 13.4 + 13.4 = 134 + 27 = 161 mph, which is in line with what I remember from the POH, even allowing for my 3-bladed speed brake. The memory stick with the photo and POH is downstairs, a couple hundred yards away, and I don't remember the groundspeed on the GPS; when I saw the photo I was looking for indicated airspeed numbers and was happy that the shot had the complete 6-pack and the 430 in it.

Larry-- I have a 70-model C, and my long-term average fuel burn is very glose to 9.0 gph. My "standard practice" varies according to the charts in my POH [OK, already--it actually says "Owner's Manual" on the yellowing cover]. Low altitude: 23"/2300 Medium alt: 23-24"/2400 [keep it below 75% so I can lean it back] Optimum alt: WOT/2500 I recently saw a picture at 10,000 msl, WOT, leaned to 50º rich [should have been leaner], with indicated airspeed of 134 mph. Don't recall the outside temp, but it was last fall coming home from the Carolinas. Don't forget the temperature correction factor on the performance chart, either. +10ºF, -1% power; -10ºF, +1% power. Don't go leaning above 75% total power. I very STRONGLY recommend taking the MAPA PPP to learn the ins and outs of flying your Mooney. If memory serves correctly, there's a formula they publish for our engine [O-360-A1D] something like this: MP + RPM = 47 for 75% power, MP + RPM = 46 for 65% power, MP + RPM = 45 for 55% power. The first one is correct, but I'll need to look up the other two to verify that they aren't 70% and 65%. Your fuel burn appears much too high, even if you were loaded to max.

It could be anywhere. My 70-model has the OAT sensor mounted in the copilot's air vent at the rear of the cowling. Either scoop would be easy to access from the panel. Some people mount them on an inspection panel under the wing. The stock OAT pokes out through the windshield . . . if yours isn't there, just crawl around and look for the probe. Mine's ~1½" long, a little fatter than a pencil, and looks like a steel pin. Happy hunting!

Jesse, Do you have any data from the cabin air scoop ON the exhaust side? That's where my probe is located . . . Not that I expect the exhaust to contribute significant additional heat, except maybe when I'm using cabin heat since that hose is much, much closer.

Sure is. SC to 'Bama is the short way. TN to Fla. is about twice as long. Or it was when I was living in Dalton . . .

Hmmm . . . I remember seeing last weekend that "IFR" means "I Follow Rivers," but that may have been on Saturday evening's Alaska Wing Men on the National Geographic Channel. All of a sudden, there is a huge amount of flying in Alaska on TV.

Why stick something the size of your finger out the windshield? Since replacing the windshield requires an A&P, and replacing side windows does not, I can suppose that modifying the windshield would require an A&P also, to say nothing of running wiring and hooking up to the electrical system. My C-model has an in-panel digital readout, with the probe in the right-sdie air scoop, nice and easy to run the wires to. Other people put them way out on the bottom of one wing or the other. Personally, I think the air scoop is a quick, simple location, and it picks up very little engine heat.

I haven't heard of one, but I hope to be there this year. I'm coming down from the north, the long way through Georgia.

While I enjoy the show overall, the producers try too hard to add drama where there is none. I never realized until this weekend just how much danger I put myself in everytime I enter IMC while on an IFR flight plan or pop-up clearance . . . Until next Friday

While I enjoy the show overall, the producers try too hard to add drama where there is none. I never realized until this weekend just how much danger I put myself in everytime I enter IMC while on an IFR flight plan or pop-up clearance . . . Until next

While I enjoy the show overall, the producers try too hard to add drama where there is none. I never realized until this weekend just how much danger I put myself in everytime I enter IMC while on an IFR flight plan or pop-up clearance . . . Until n

Quote: Mitch I had this issue sometime back on my F model [electric gear]. This is just a suggestion for your mechanic. Place the aircraft on jacks and remove the belly panels close to the micro switches and gear motor. Attempt to recreate the problem. If it does occur, tap around on the micro switches, motor and all connections in order to get the gear to retract. This may lead you to the answer. As always, please let us know the outcome. Happy Mooney flying!

I have sporadic winter problems with the gear, too. The right one will stay down about an inch [as reported by friends in other planes] when cold, but will eventually raise the rest of the way. Until the recent sighting, I thought it was just the microswitch in the belly. The motor hums, the gear move, but the gear up light won't come on, the floor indicator shows transit, and the durn squeal in the headset won't stop . . .

Quote: highplains I'll throw in this bit about the 182 photos that have drawn critics from far and wide. 280 HP turning a three blade prop burning an appalling 14-15gph for a mind bending 140KTAS. Fuel burn is actually worse than that, 14-15 gph is just the cruise burn. You don't want to look at the flow on the take-off roll. The 182 has served its purpose in my flying education, now I want to move on.

Hey, Scott, I finally made it to the airport yesterday for pictures. Just haven't had much flying weather recently, and it was bad enough last week that the Pilot's Assn meeting was cancelled. If I can't drive safely, I'm not about to try to fly. Pictures show L & R side eyeball airvents, plus an outside picture of the pilot's-side scoop going to the eyeball vent. PO said it was "from one of those guys in Texas," so it could well be SWTA. To be sure, I'd have to dig back through the logs. Good luck with your install! The only problems I've had is that they can be difficult to close in-flight in early winter, as the whole ball will rotate from not being moved all summer long. Even here, the more air I can get inside in the summer, the happier we are, but I can't make myself add a Cool Scoop to the window. Re-reading your post, yes, I have identical scoops in the fuselage on both sides. The plane was painted 2 owners back, with 2-part epoxy paint, and the vent was already in before the paint went on. It may be factory, it may not; I've seen planes with one vent and some with two, so I consider myself lucky.

Welcome to the club! I have a '70 model C. The previous owner has flown it to the beach in 2½ hours, a full 25% faster than a friend's 172 [they travelled "together"--the Cessna took off first and landed last], and used 10% less fuel. It just doesn't get any better than that! If your plane is in good shape, keeping it there should not be expensive. Upgrades, on the other hand, have no limit . . . All I've done to mine is fly it a lot, and replace a few wheel bearings. But she's in the shop right now, too . . . And I'm rapidly approaching a tank reseal . . . Happy flying!

Jim-- Once we get a little closer, I'll let you know. I've been on the planning committee for the last couple, but the weather this week cancelled the Jan. Pilot's Assn. meeting. It's getting close enough that we need to at least pick a date pretty soon.

I keep sectionals and enroutes, but only get out the en routes when flying on an IFR flight plan. Since getting my rating last spring, I've made several trips, all with significant amounts of either VMC or above the layer. It's nice to know what's around below the clouds. The approach plate book lives on the floor below the throttle, turned sideways. It's a nice fit there. For training flights, since I live at the intersection of three books, I would stack them in order of use, or put the first one there and put the others between the seats. I'm based in Ohio [OH/PA], literally 4 miles from Huntington, WV [WV/VA] and 12 miles from Ashland, KY [KY/TN], so a round-robin flight can easily hit three or four airports in three states, in three books, in 1½ hours. Fun, fun, fun!! Plates can be downloaded from www.nacomatic.com, which I believe is back up and running after the genius at Flight Prep shut him down alleging infringement on their patent of the idea of doing flight planning over the internet. If you configure your printer correctly, you can print two plates on a sheet of paper, fold it in half, and clip it to your yoke. This works well for your destination, but not for diversions and other instructor-conceived madness. For those, you'll need post-its to mark your airport in the book, and a fat binder clip to keep it open in your lap. Good luck with your training! Passing that checkride makes flying much more interesting, and your airplane much more useful!

Jim-- I'm about 45 minutes due south of CMH, right on the WV line. If anything is going on in the area, let me know! KHTW is pretty small but we manage to have a Community Day every year. I haven't heard the dates this year, but expect it to be in June. Over the years, it has morphed from a Fly-In to more of a "Take People to Ride" day, but visitors are always welcome by car and by plane. We sometimes make it up to Bolton Field for barbecue at JP's, but that would hardly justify cranking your J. Add me to your "interested" file, and let's stay in touch.