Joe Zuffoletto

Thankfully, this one hasn't bitten me yet.

Saw a Mooney parked on the ramp at San Jose del Cabo, Mexico yesterday (MMSD) but couldn't spy the registration number as we drove by on the nearby highway. Anyone here in MooneySpace down in Cabo?

88 this year, 73 of which were in the Acclaim. The rest included 6 getting my tailwheel endorsement in a Super Decathlon, 3 getting Vans RV transition training in an RV-7, and 6 more in my RV-8 before breaking my foot in October grounded me for a couple months.

About 75% of my flights since May of 2000 (when I purchased my first turbo Mooney) have been in the flight levels. I love it up there... generally smooth air, excellent ground speeds, increased fuel efficiency (depending on the winds, of course), and almost no chance of colliding with another aircraft en route. I often fly from Denver to Albuquerque at FL180 or higher and that's not a very long trip. Sniffing O2 through a mask has never bothered me. I just keep an eye on the flow indicator and stick my finger in the pulse oximeter every time I switch fuel tanks.

Since 1990. I play only occasionally these days, in basement jams with my stepson, who plays guitar.

Bingo! I flew approaches IMC all the time when I was based in NorCal. Here in CO I almost never do. Apples and oranges!

I did it a couple times in my Encore but never in the Acclaim, nor do I want to. First time in the Encore was near the end of a long XC flight. Intentionally ran the left tank dry to see what would happen and also how accurate the fuel gauge and annunciator light were. I was in the flight levels in glide distance to my destination. As soon as the engine stuttered I switched tanks. Took about 10 seconds to start running smoothly again (I didn't use the boost pump). Otherwise a non-event. The second time was unintentional after I added a new fuel totalizer. Thought the totalizer was dialed in after 10 test flights but it wasn't. It said I had 17 gallons onboard (both tanks) but I really had 3. Fortunately I landed safely 5 minutes later. I've posted here about that episode before. Haunts me still. Now I have a bird with great big tanks and I don't ever plan to land with less than 20 gallons useable onboard!

+1, although I don't fly at night any more. I enjoy it but just don't have the need. I flew a couple approaches down to minimums in Minnesota earlier this year. Thick clouds, but smooth air with no precip or turbulence. I'll fly approaches like that all day.

Keeping them both for now!

After a nearly two-month hiatus due to a broken foot, I finally got airborne today! Took the Acclaim for a short buzz around Denver on a beautiful late autumn morning. You don't realize how much you miss flying until you can't do it for a while. Feels great to be in the air again.

He didn't own the Acclaim at that time.

Hey Phil and Jim, Great issue! Thank you very much. I'll pop you guys a donation in January. I do all my website/magazine/forum donations in January so I don't forget any of them. One suggestion: You have a lot of neat links to other content in each issue. Can you program those links to open in a new browser window? That way I can easily go back and forth between the linked info and your magazine. Thanks! Joe

Those FDM models are amazing!

I have a Bike Friday Carbon Tikit: http://www.bikefriday.com/bicycles/commuter/1537 Not a cheap bike, but I use it for a lot more than a Mooney TEM device, so it's worth it to me. It folds very small and has an internal hub and carbon "chain," so there's no greasy mess from a conventional chain and derailleurs to mess up the interior of your car or plane. Not to mention it's very low maintenance. Solid, comfortable ride, too.

Still nursing a broken foot, otherwise I'd be up for at least one local flight. Sigh.... Happy Thanksgiving, all!

Quite true. My personal minimums with the wife onboard are much higher than when I fly solo.

I think it was damn inconsiderate of the city of Naples to send you those letters printed sideways rather than right side up. Salt in the wound.

This is a subject that weighs more heavily on my mind with each passing year. I'll be 50 soon and I have (in my wife's eyes) an enormously complex airplane. Until I can get her trained I need to focus more than ever on maintaining my own health as I get older. I recently purchased a G1000 TouchTrainer, which is an FAA-certified simulator that very closely matches my Mooney. I'm going to spend some quality time with my wife on that machine to see if there's any hope of making her even minimally comfortable with the G1000 and the autopilot. If that works out, I'll try to develop a recipe for her to get us safely down... and then we'll try it in the Acclaim someday.

I just made my donation. It will show up under "SmartCompany," a business of mine that holds the PayPal account. Thanks for a great site!

Out here in Colorado I've experienced mountain waves with 3 or even 4 oscillations. One was on the east side of the Sangre de Cristo mountains at 16,500', starting about 30 miles east of the peaks. Winds aloft were 40KTS out of the west. Autopilot engaged. Hit the downdraft first, so the nose went up slightly, lost about 10 knots of airspeed. Then the updraft: nose back down, gained about 15 knots of airspeed. Then up and down again twice more, with the airspeed fluctuations getting bigger each time. The last oscillation, closest to the peaks, I dropped about 30 knots of airspeed, then gained back 40. Amazingly, no turbulence that day.

I don't know about the radio requirements for a Gulf crossing, but I've stayed at the Royal twice and you're going to love it. Congratulations!

Wild Blue: Stories of Survival from Air and Space My favorite story in this colleciton is about William Rankin, who bailed out of an F-8 Crusader at 47,000' and descended through a gigantic thunderstorm. 40 minutes of sheer terror and extreme physical abuse at the hand of nature. Incredible read. The other stories are excellent too.

Coincidentally, my wife broke one of her "ring finger" toes this past summer. A much worse injury, I might add, involving surgery, pins and lots of pain. It also involved a pair of crutches. She was out of town when I discovered my foot was broken, and I texted her from bed to ask her where the crutches were. She replied they were under the bed. So at least that part of this injury was convenient!

Ain't that the truth! I've broken my left foot in three places during the course of my life, none of which were in airplanes. This is the first injury I've suffered to my right foot. I suffered a major dislocation of my right hip in 1979 in an AUTOMOBILE accident. Had that hip replaced in 2005 and all is good. I've had a few back problems over the years, but nothing like what's been posted on this board today. I feel for you guys and I hope you all recover soon. Thank you all for your responses. I wasn't looking for sympathy... just wanted to vent my frustration. RJBrown, let's talk. Please PM me. Good night, all. Joe

No, not bailing on aviation. I changed my mind. Thank you for your offer!