Amelia

Lovely. I infer that is a certain 1980 231, repaired, renumbered and repainted? I still truly miss Marvin. This 20S one is grand, but not my comfortable old friend.

Aw, Mike, I'm actually 5'4", or was once,, barefoot, like any good Southern girl, (now in both directions, alas) and with the seat cranked all the way up, I can see over well enough.. MIght try to get my old rudder pedal extensions back, though.

Abe is right. Bay Minette is a good stop. The lunch is amazing, the fuel prices fair, the welcome warm, even for a chubby grandmama. And a chance to meet Abe, if his schedule permits, is icing on that cake. JKA is good, a fairly brisk stroll from canal-front Lulu’s, with very good seafood. If you intended to spend the night in pretty Pensacola for some reason, FBO Innisfree is excellent. Crew cars a fleet of vintage classics.

The first time I crossed the Rockies and the Sierras, Ohio to SanFran, in a C-172 loaded to the scuppers some 35 years ago, We stopped in COS and while family visited family, I got a 4-hour mountain checkout in my plane. Just about the best morning of flying I have ever spent. I highly recommend you do likewise. Very good confidence builder. This flatlander knew nothing of leaning on takeoff, no idea about one-way airports, landing upslope, departing downhill, full-flaps steep u-turns out of canyons, picking good passes and being mindful of Interstate highways disappearing into long tunnels, and more. Fabulous instructor, glorious scenery. Many flight schools in the high country offer them. Back then, there was a serious issue of no radio reception for miles and miles, but now, with GPS, it isn't likely you'll be busting hot restricted areas. This is an opportunity not to be missed. Dittos to early morning flights, ever so much smoother. Dittos to picking places to land and gawk. Even the little airports in the middle of nowhere have very good people, memorable crew cars and diners. You'll love it!

Thanks for the lovely reminder, @ragedracer1977. Yesterday, inspired by you, I remembered that I owed my friend a long-ago promised ride. My delighted copilot was an 85-year-old former Cherokee180 owner, who hadn't flown in decades. He had the controls for an hour, kept admiring the Mooney handling. (I firewalled the throttle, muttered "giddyap" to 310 horses, and my friend crowed, "yeah! Oh, yeah!" ) Hadn't forgotten a thing. A gorgeous, if a bit gusty day, it was a fine excuse to warm the oil and see if having the windsock pointing straight across the runway was a problem. Your recounted kindness spread ripples of happiness. I bet my friend is still grinning. So, all of you looking for an excuse to brighten a life, two lives, in fact, on the next beautiful day, find some dear old soul and offer a ride.

Giving rides to very old folk is as much fun as providing rides for very young ones. Often they’ll talk about that little thrill for the rest of their lives. Several friends have approached me about taking Grammy or dear old Dad for a ride . It’s always a joy.

My 93-year old MIL flew with me and another friend to Puerto Rico a few years ago. Had the time of her life, took us snorkeling, where she knew where to find the coolest underwater critters. When she embarked on her final adventure at 95.5, (of congestive heart failure) she still had wet ink in her passport. She would go anywhere at the drop of a hat. Similar enthusiasm on my side of the family: My mother’s final request (at 93, of Alzheimer’s, mostly) was a smiling and entirely lucid wish to go climb in my little airplane and go somewhere fun. I trust they’ve both found somewhere fun to go.

For a brief, shining moment, all’s well. The Avionics shop addressed the FAA’s hyperventilating registered letter about the ADS-B problem...both the FAA and the wizards claimed some settings were wrong, always had been, and are now good. Leaky brake replaced, and the other one, too, just for good measure. So now, all I need is some great weather and someplace to go in it. Life is good, for now.

Hallelujah! I don’t even mind feeling stupid... A couple of days on the trickle charger, a nice warm light under the nosewheel well, and it finally, after a good bit of coaxing, started with a satisfying rumble this afternoon. So another bit of education. Just because it thinks it’s charged, doesn’t mean it is. . Warmed up the oil, and took myself for a sunset ride around Edenton.Way too long between flights. I’m glad my dear 20-year old CFI friend was along to keep things in the proper order.

Thank you to all who have offered good suggestions. I looked through the logbooks, and at least one of the batteries is a two-year old Concord. I believe they both are, but need to look closer. No idea what brand the other things are, but will soon, maybe tomorrow, have a cowling off and an expert at my elbow, to point these items out. I hooked up a new battery-minder, and an hour later, it indicated a full charge. I might go see if that fixed the problem. Hope springs eternal. In any event, I’ll be reading these thoughts to my friend the mechanic at my earliest opportunity. Again, many thanks, all of you.

I celebrated this beautiful 65-degree sunshine by hauling the Mooney out of its hangar, noted that the lightbulb perched under the cowling had warmed the underpinnings nicely, the south-facing translucent hangar doors had the hangar in the mid70s. Battery voltages well in the green. No excuses, right? Followed starting instructions to the letter. First crank produced a hopeful bit of enthusiasm, then died. Second and third attempts merely a grunt. Same on battery number two. Guess it’s time to start replacing fancy stuff. Sigh.

Thanks! I will try those things (again) tomorrow, in the hope we aren't talking about starters and other expensive things. Should be briefly a good bit warmer, too. and I really do intend to figure out how to make an avatar again, if such nostalgia is unseemly.

My Screaming Eagle has had spells of being hard to start. Now it doesn’t start at all. Both 24v batteries check out fine. First attempt to start resulted in a few turns, a cough, and nothing. Second attempt resulted in a brief grunt, about 3 inches of prop turn. Switch battery, same grunt and no cranking. The nearest mechanic, good guy, but not a Mooney guy, is 40 truck minutes away. And I’m stuck here in the back of Beyond. Any ideas how troubleshooting might begin, once he gets some time for a road trip?

Check out this latest issue of General Aviation News for an idea of what-and who- to expect. Available free at fine FBO counters everywhere. Cover art features Mooneys wingtip to wingtip.

That would be wonderful, but not sure it’s in this year’s travel budget. We shall see.

There’s an article featuring close-up photos of Mooneys in formation In the latest issue of General Aviation News. If it’s not in your mailbox, check the counter or coffee table at your favorite FBO. You will be so impressed and excited, no doubt, that you’ll want to sign up to attend a weekend formation clinic. It is, I promise you, a real workout, but the best of all possible ways to arrive at OSH.

I’ve tried most of the EFBs, ran WingX and ForeFlight concurrently for years, but like others, I took exception to FF’s upcharges, and weary of what felt like needless complexity of WingX, requiring more heads-down time to get where I wanted to be. Many good features, though. Always looking for the best idea, I tried several others, got to FlyQ, and was charmed. It has all the bells and whistles I like best, and no more than two layers to get where I need to be, fast, intuitive, capable, and stable. And responsive. Bye, FF! The few times I’ve had a question, I have had an answer from SA within the hour. That’s customer service!. I bought the lifetime subscription, and a stratux, and all was well. Now I went and bought a Garmin-heavy airplane, and have grudgingly added Garmin Pilot to my iPad, to speak to the various Garmin boxes. Not a happy thing. Now I must plan my trip on two EFBs. Garmin is capable, but klunky. It usually gets the airplane stuff going, when it all decides to work, but FlyQ is loaded on my iPad and ready to go. I switch to it, promptly, especially when I need answers now. I MUCH prefer FlyQ, especially in busy airspace. Besides, FlyQ developers are busy, with new features every few months. That’s fun.

KEDE, Edenton, NC, is a charming historic town, smack dab in the middle of nowhere. Charming B&Bs, some decent restaurants, tours of historic house museums. Good for a couple of tranquil days or a lifetime. (I wouldn’t recommend much between those. Not for thrill seekers and the party crowd.) No ramp fee, decent fuel prices, hangar space available. Crew car and Enterprise. Garden tour in late April will be worth the trip. OBX an hour away by car. Manteo (MQI) is a fine weekend, much touristy stuff, very near Outer Banks. Cute NC aquarium short stroll from MQI ramp.

My husband's opera-buff partner had tix for four to see Pavarotti and the Met on tour in Cleveland. Alas, he ran late at the office, they had a sitter issue, and there was no way we could make an 8:00 curtain time driving. Those seats were dear, too. I offered to fly us up to KBKL, a three-block walk from the venue. We took off at 7:30 into a glorious sunset, greased the landing at Lakefront just as the lights were coming on, breathlessly settled into our seats five minutes before curtain time. It was a magnificent performance, followed by a good after-theater supper. Every star in the galaxy was twinkling as we climbed in the plane to go home, 70 miles south, severe clear and glassy smooth the whole way.. Three of us couldn't stop grinning at the wonder of it all. The fourth swore it was the most horrible experience of her life. Her eyes were shut tight most of the way. Go figger.

My grandfather taught flying in Jennies during WWI. My father learned to fly after WWII, made a career of it.. As far as I know, my grandfather never climbed in an airplane again, even with his son. My husband logged many hours of F-4 time, back-seat, but never got his own ticket. Said he had more confidence in me than his own abilities. Used to making risky decisions in medicine and not turning back, being pressed for time, being up all night and tired, being sure HE knew what he was doing always, no need to ask second opinions, made him a poor risk, he claimed. So a successful career, plenty of brains, ambition, and technical expertise, weren't enough, in his mind. Worked out well for me! He is the world's best, calmest passenger. The mildly nervous but motivated passenger can be reassured, but I haven't been successful at talking truly frightened people into enjoying the ride, no matter how smooth, fast, or beautiful, the trip, or how perfect the landing. They will readily admit it was a fine trip, and they wouldn't have gotten where they needed to go any other way, but they hated every glorious second of it. The phobics impose their own terror on others, unfortunately, and seem impervious to reason.Other than putting Prozac in the municipal reservoir, I have no useful ideas.

Thanks, Ron. And thanks also to those who pointed out that there is a significant difference between bi-annual and biennial. The (biennial) flight review is required every two years. Bi-annual is when my car insurance bill arrives. Every six months.

I got ramp-checked the first day I owned the current Mooney, a few months ago.. First time in 40 years, during transition training.. Ducks were in a row, thankfully, and there was no problem at all, though I was privately irked that my “public servant” had nothing better to do on a pretty day than hang around a gas pump in the middle of the Everglades, trolling for silly fish. I thought grumpily what a waste of tax dollars, that the skies were not one bit safer for his gotcha efforts, which, in my case, were futile. So I now have a brand new Basic Med sign-off, a couple of bulky papers to be affixed to my logbook. Which I don’t carry with me, except during Flight Reviews. How to appease the FAA in that case? Do I carry my soon-expired third-class still? Photocopy and shrink the doc’s sign-off? What’s the best practice?

I read somewhere that this guy is a recent convert to flat-eartherism. He couldn’t raise the money he needed for his rocket adventure, so he found a different target audience. Too bad the earth’s curvature isn’t all that apparent until some 40000 feet up. His expected 1800 feet, even higher than pattern altitude here in NE NC, might get him high enough to hurt himself, though. I got a dollar that says he chickens out.

How about sweatshirts with Mooney logo? Cold weather is on the way, after all.

Mea culpa. I am grievously guilty of literary sins and wickedness. And maybe a little sarcasm, too. I’d repent, but that might imply intent to reform, and that I cannot promise. I guess those who are offended will just have to forgive, roll eyes, or ignore. Or call me out here and scold me. Your choice. As a side note, I rarely give legal liability a first, much less a second thought. Hip, Bob? Yep, very, but every morning I start a new diet... And my sincerest thanks to those who answered my question!