Ned Gravel

The old way never worked. We have obviously learned the same lessons. I wish people would lose the idea that wagging fingers at someone somehow fixes things. It never did. Find the hole in the system: the missing QC check, the missing procedure, the missing skllset, the missing knowledge, the missing environmental condition, the culture of “at any cost”. Whatever it takes to support the work of the most important success element in the evolution - the one doing the work. Root cause analysis anyone? Find that hole and fix it.

Our annual Caravan video. Great Caravan this year. I echo all the comments that the right decisions were made at the right time. My wingmen made me look good and I look forward to: helping to put together a Canadian clinic next June and/or attend one in NY/PA, and doing the 2020 Caravan. Enjoy.

I have one too, but mine has not given me any issues in the 14 years of ownership. The only advantage to an upgrade would be coupling the vertical portion of approaches. Otherwise, elegant sufficiency.

Sorry Becca: I am one of the Never Again folks. During our one and only FISK arrival in 2011, we ended up in a gaggle of aircraft and I was instructed to go around twice because of shenanigans on the runway. I like my Caravan because of the time taken beforehand for "all the pre-osh mustering required." That work builds trust between us so that we all know what to do, and what to do "in case." Competent leaders lead Caravan elements, sections/wings and the entire formation. I saw very little of that competence from a whole bunch of aircraft during the year we did the FISK. The FISK arrival does not scare me. It is the whole pile of aircraft being flown by folks with significantly less situational awareness than my Caravan compatriots. If there were significantly fewer aircraft flying the FISK arrival or if all the pilots flying it had to go through the demonstration of a skillset to fly it properly, I would be less concerned about it. But EAA and FAA will never restrict their freedom to fly to KOSH and no one will insist on their doing any of the "pre-osh mustering" and that is probably as it should be. But not for me. That set of conditions is in the red column of my own personal safety matrix for an evolution that has my best friend in the seat next to mine. It is not good enough for me. Not from fear - but from risk management and choice. But that is just me....

Hmm. Did not know that. Got the recommendation from some folks on Mooneyspace.

Yeah. I just like to line them up so they look pretty. There are actually 12 or 15 stickers (decals) in that row. Two or three deep.

So Yves always gives me a hard time because I do not normally spruce up "Baby" (Ute's name for our Mooney) prior to our annual Oshkosh - Mooney Caravan sojourn. This year is different. Ute convinced me to "get-her-done" so we did. Simple Green, water, VIM, a brush, a pail, some more water and start scrubbin'. Looks cleaner than normal. Not as nice as Yves' with his much newer paint job - but shows the effort nonetheless. The cute one in the picture is part of the reason I fly.

Glorywing1 We fly on an FAA Letter of Authorization (LoA), a copy of which we are all required to have in our cockpits. Getting that letter is almost as hard as flying the FISK arrival and if we break the rules, we lose the authorization. Important rule - we are required to train and get qualified. Many of us are more than willing to sit in your right seat till you get comfortable with the basics of formation flying. Even those who are not flight instructors. See us in Madison on Friday. Fly a sortie with one of our pilots in their Mooney during a practice flight. Probably too late for this year, but it will whet your appetite for the next available formation clinic in your region.

Ute and I are prepared further ahead of the Caravan this year than in previous years. Part of the reason is that I have warned everyone related to my business that I may respond to e-mails in a slower manner than they are used to. I also have a staff member who can act as First Responder if something catches fire in the business. So, with everything ready, but the packing and filing the eAPIS, I have started obsessing about the weather. Tropical Storm Barry??? Really?? With a cold front predicted next Wednesday (our planned date of departure) to stretch from South Dakota to overtop of Madison (KMSN) to overtop of Ottawa (where we are) to overtop of Sept Iles (see Mike's video of travelling to Northern Canada). Sheesh!!!! OK. I am going to stop obsessing about the weather now - and just know I can make good weather decisions. Strategic - not tactical for me. But sheeesh!!

I know what it feels like to work with a mechanic that good during a pre-buy. Mine saved me $17,000 in repairs - and you already know who he is.

Depends what time of year. This time of year should not be too bad. March has a whole pile of mechanical turbulence over the Grand Canyon routes that kept Ute and I out of them in 2015. Locals told us they would not fly on those days.

He called me yesterday and indicated some radio conversations had taken place with you, but nothing was said about, well, you know.... the act. I am shocked.....truly shocked. As “Joker” once told me after watching me emulate our “Snoopy’s” own Happy Dance: Some things can never be “unseen.”

And now from Paul Bertorelli: https://www.avweb.com/insider/how-not-to-be-a-hero/

Mount to yolk using Ram mounts. direct eyeball vent next to left knee up to the back of the iPad. Problem solved for me.

Cocktail and movie beats flying????? In the Mooney Caravan???? Am I missing something???

I recognise this airport (Sikorsky Airport in Bridgeport, CT). Kept my Mooney there for two nights while the airport I was using (Oxford, CT) had closed their operations for taxiway resurfacing. No comment on the "intercept and save," although I have heard that level of concern (from the Arrow pilot) in voices over radios before - another life and another profession. It is clear to me, however, that the instructor: thought he needed to help, and is self aggrandizing the result. Just my 0.02.

It's not really all that easy to access some of the avionics. I have scraped more than one section of skin off my hand trying to get stuff done in there. Fred also uses a different sealer than I do. His is clean and nice. Mine is the recommended one. It is ucky and black and sticks to everything but has not allowed any leaking into the avionics bay since I bought my airplane in 2004.

Slim!!! Zat you? Welcome to Mooneyspace........

Yup, we got there on Sunday, visited my friend's little cabin in the Talladega National Forest on Monday and then walked the ground at Chickamauga on Tuesday. We started Monday Morning by taking their youngest (now a PhD candidate) for a ride over the Coosa River down to the dam and back. We left there yesterday. You have a nice little airport there.

We just flew out of Pell City yesterday on our way home (love flying Alabama!!) to Ottawa. Dodged three big cells before we put down in Owensboro, KY - where we stayed put and will probably only launch tomorrow morning (early) to clear customs in Windsor, ON before continuing on home. I am sorry we will not be around for the get-together being organised here.

I am with Jim on this advice. CO detector is to save you and your bride's life. Engine monitor is to save your engine's life. GPS is to save your approaches. I had an old Trimble TNL 1000 (then 2000, then 2000A) in my E model long after I had purchased the JPI 700 and the CO detector (although we never learned about the CO detector until years after I had the JPI). The WAAS GPS was purchased only last year. Going from IFR capability to conduct 25% of all published approaches in North America to being able to conduct over 90% of all published approaches in North America was exhilarating. The CO detector and engine monitor are must-have-right-now (in my opinion) instruments. The WAAS GPS is a really-would-like-to-have-right-now instrument (again, in my opinion). BTW: Great story. Good luck.

I am also going to be there with Ute "Tribble." And we will both volunteer to help set it up.

Great clinic. First one and I have flown six Caravans already. They let me help qualify two pilots - one first timer and one coming back after a hiatus. Made my day!!! I had forgotten how getting close to another aircraft in flight (something the veteran Caravaners do all the time) would make a non-Caravan-trained pilot feel so uncomfortable. Total time for a pilot is not the issue. Mooney time is not the issue. It is breaking the paradigm to accept that we can actually do such a thing safely, consistently, and repeatedly. We scare those who have not done this before. But......watching non-trained pilots get the training, practice the skill, gain the confidence, and look forward to the execution - that is priceless. Bob "Breakdown" Belville @Bob_Belville did a great job organising it. Cue Queen - "And another one Bites the Dust..." Queen-Another-One-Bites-The-Dust.mp3

Us too! Our days of packing 35 pounds apiece and the canoe into Algonquin park are over. Schlepping across the grass on the North 40 to the port-a-potty twice per night has lost all the lustre that activity may ever have had. AmericInn for us.

Got here yesterday (OK - to do some business too). See https://flightaware.com/live/flight/CFSWR/history/20190611/1330Z/CYRO/KROC to get through CBP. Then https://flightaware.com/live/flight/CFSWR/history/20190611/1545Z/KROC/KEKN for the obligatory rest stop (required by age). Then hhttps://flightaware.com/live/flight/CFSWR/history/20190611/1845Z/KEKN/KHKY for the long descent into Hickory.