FloridaMan

I just made a post in another thread about this. DO NOT TRUST THE DEPICTION OF YOUR ALTITUDE OR LOCATION ON YOUR PHONE OR TABLET'S CHARTS. While it always seems correct when you look at it, I have seen plenty examples of location data being extremely inaccurate on the iPhone.

I have an iPhone 4S and have collected some data samples while flying with it. I have seen it report that it has good accuracy and, at the same time, be continuously more than 1000 ft off in altitude. Its altitude almost always lags when coming in to land, and when it would be most critical, such as it often reports altitudes 1000 feet higher than actual when you arrive in the pattern after flying at higher altitude. It appears accurate in flight, but during the phases where altitude accuracy would be most critical, you're usually more focused on flying the airplane than you are verifying the altitude's accuracy of your device and might not have noticed it. As for the app-based backup indicators, they may appear to work fine while dicking around with them on the ground. Go do some steep turns and then fly straight and level and then see where the phone shows your attitude.

I wouldn't trust anything, even as a backup, that used the iPhone's sensors, GPS or as a display (not that the sensors are bad, but as an iOS developer, I have seen it report data very inaccurately at times, which may be software related). I have a Dynon D1 as a backup and it occasionally reports mildly incorrect attitude information. I'm working with Dynon at the moment attempting to diagnose the issue.

From what I've been seeing of these sorts of things, I would not trust any of them. I'm having misgivings about the Dynon D1 as well. I've been in contact with their support about an issue that I've been having.

I know this may be bringing up a sore spot, but just before I joined here, I believe that mooneyspace lost a member in an incident in the northeast in an M20J. There's a possibility that he was pushing things a little with the W&B and short field performance.

Is that gun legal under NY law?

Sounds like he got a serious case of the leans there at the end and let himself get overloaded. It's only happened to me once so far, but that feeling of being in a steep spiral to the left when all your instruments show straight and level requires a willful defiance of one's senses to ignore. Also sounds like he may have never shot an instrument approach in spite of his claimed training. I kept asking myself why the controllers didn't take over and give him a vectored approach and take the decision making out of his hands when he expressed interest in landing at the airport with higher ceilings.

I have a '67 with the LoPresti cowling in Florida and I have yet to see any temperatures be anything but spot-on, regardless of the cowl flaps being open or closed.

My understanding was it had to do with high time Mooneys operated by a flight school where they were teaching the students to bang the controls to max deflection during preflight.

Holy crap. It's a good thing it was an 8 year old kid and not a 28 year old kid.

I don't have a picture, but a bungee cord between the seat slide lever across the corners of the yoke and back to the other seat is what I use. The surfaces need some travel in them.

Press the volume button for squelch. Remember what I said about chapters and pages? Turn the big knob on the right to the third chapter (I think 3rd, maybe 4th), with the menu items. Then turn the little knob to the one with the "LCD Brightness" menu option. Press "ENT." Use the big knob to select the brightness option. Then, use the little knob to select "Manual," press ENT (or is it turn the big knob, I can't remember) and adjust the brightness. I always turn my 530 all the way down at night. For lining up with the runway, press the OBS button, then turn your HSI or coupled localizer needle to match the runway number. Also: http://www8.garmin.com/support/download_details.jsp?id=3527

I'm sure this is the case enroute and is what I've observed as well. I've taken hundreds of thousands of data samples with multiple iOS devices and the discernable discrepancy is during descent and especially in the pattern. I have a feeling that the iOS devices use some sort of averaging algorithm that is not cut out for significant changes in altitude. In the iOS software frameworks, the location stuff reports speed and altitude in meters as well as a value for vertical precision and horizontal precision. The precision reported by the device vs. what I've observed and recorded has been off by as much as 2000-3000 ft at times. I've noticed it primarily in the vicinity of airports because I know their field elevation and the altitudes that I would be at in my airplane.

Purchasing the "Mr. T" voice for the tomtom GPS in my car was worth every penny. "In two hunded yards, turn LEFF. DENNNN, Take the motorway. MR. T DON't GET NO TICKETS!" "TURN 'ROUND WHEN POSSIBLE. DON'T DISOBEY ME. DON'T MAKE ME GET OUT DIS MACHINE CAUSE I WILL!"

I have done a lot of testing with the iPhone 4S GPS. Altitude readings are often off by thousands of feet, especially in climb and descent.

This one looks like someone was standing on the rudder pedals. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Scd4TWNGLhU

I was in the flare coming in to ABQ at night after flying all day from Tampa. I had crossed the mountains at 11,000ft and was not prepared for such a rapid descent. I was given a different runway than I had planned for and did a 270 degree turn to enter final. I had a quartering tailwind and high ground speed due to the higher DA. I remember crossing the numbers fast and trying to get the power pulled back. Throttle was already back to idle, but because of my higher ground speed than I was used to, I was continuing to dick around with the throttle. As I was in the flare, I thought, "oh shit, my gear." Usually I cross final with my fingernail in the gear handle gap and then put my hand back on the throttle. Fortunately the first thing I did before my rapid descent was drop my gear, but I missed it on the checklist. It was a sobering experience. The item that I had forgotten was I had left my ram air open.

Is there a story to go along with this?

I won't even fly across lake Okeechobee in Florida or go more than about 20 miles off-shore. The only risk I'll take is Key West. There's a small window when you're outside of gliding distance on that trip, but the unfortunate pilots who have gone down in that trip with some preparations usually make it.

Get yourself a set of Milbar safety wire pliers. They're not terribly expensive, and, as my A&P friend says, "everything else sucks." Shopping list for oil/filter change: Milbar safety wire pliers Diagonal cutters -- good enough ones to cut stainless steel safety wire 0.032 safety wire 1" wrench (for your oil filter) Sharpie so you can write the date and tach time on your filter. A bunch of rags -- 2-3 to stuff under the filter when you remove it 3 feet of 1/2" tubing (to connect to your quick drain -- I think it's 1/2" and not 5/8") Philips head screwdriver with Apex bits for your cowling. Blanket to set your cowling on once you've removed it. If you're going to pull your plugs (you need to keep these tools in your plane): 7/8" deep 6-point socket. It does not have to be designated as a spark plug socket, just needs to be 7/8" and deep. 3/4" open end wrench for the ignition cables. I used a torque beam to torque mine so I could feel how it felt on the wrench. Set your box of new oil on your wing in front of your door. I recently talked to a young Mooney owner at an airport who relayed a story that he walked up and caught the shop he had changing the oil running the plane with no oil in it -- they forgot to put it in. He got a set of new cylinders and bearings out of it, but I'd still worry about the oil pump and anything else that needs lubrication. I don't see how you could possibly make a mistake like running a plane without oil. I obsessively check the oil, fuel quantity and quality every time I get in the airplane. Where are you located?

I'll stay here and keep my identity relatively private. Thanks though.

5 seconds? Mine like to hang out for around 30 seconds when on the ground. For that reason, I like to pump my take-off flaps out at run-up and then check them as I pull onto the runway to take off. When I retract them with the wing loaded in flight, they'll come right up.

I've got to update mine too. I have a '67F with manual gear. I still need to update my checklists with all the emergency procedures and speeds. I found a '77 J POH that I use to supplement what isn't included in my 67F's POH, which is nothing more than a pamphlet with a couple charts that looks like it was designed for an experienced WW2 pilot who was transitioning. The J POH covers emergency procedures and I've been meaning to add a page that includes those. Lycoming released a bulletin on change to runup procedures: http://www.lycoming.com/support/publications/service-instructions/pdfs/SI1132B.pdf I wrote mine in outline form with bold keywords in each item. I find myself having difficulty tracking and going back and forth between the checklist and aircraft if the checklist has too little white space or is overly wordy. The one useful checklist device I use is for when I pull onto the runway. It helps for if you find yourself being rushed. I call it the three 3s and they cover for the things that I managed to nearly miss when I first got my plane. I set the flaps when doing my runup, just in case something happened to the hydraulics I would see that they didn't come up on their own. First set: Trim:Flaps:Fuel Selector Second set: Fuel Pump:Lights:Transponder Third set: Prop, Mixture, throttle.

Aerobat95, Is this you? And 201er, does the ER stand for extended range?

I've done Asheville to Tampa in 2:45 each way. I remember coming back from Raleigh after thanksgiving and being a little irritated at my headwind slowing me down to where it took almost four hours. Then I heard about people taking 17 hours in traffic on the road. I drive a Jeep Wrangler. The Mooney costs me less per mile.