201er

What's the biggest wind that you have taken off or landed in? Was it intentional or winds picked up and your only landing option? What's the biggest direct crosswind you've handled in a Mooney? That said, what are your max overall and crosswinds that you will choose to set out in?

That sounds like something that could only happen in a cartoon!

Because your excessive confidence and comfort has been leading you to do extremely stupid things! Maybe that's the part you should be re-evaluating?

You don't need more training, you need to get your head out of your ass! You're playing with fire. The last few stories I read about someone going VFR into IMC, the outcome listed fatalities! You don't need more training. If you got a private pilot certificate just recently, you have received all the training you need to safely fly VFR. Attitude is a whole other story. No amount of instruction and training will solve that. You don't need someone to teach you how to fly in the clouds. You need to stop being an idiot and not putting yourself there in the first place. And you shouldn't be taking anyone up flying with you until you can get 50-100 hours of trouble free flight and be confident with yourself to be able to take them with 100% safety. To drag others through your situation is completely unacceptable. As a next to zero time pilot, you have to set some BIG safety margins for yourself. Minimums aren't meant for you. They are meant for guys with lots of experience who are certain they can operate at those minimums. You have to set your own minimums and better on the conservative side until you learn what your lower limits can safely be. Most sane VFR pilots with a healthy fear of IMC turn around when they begin to encounter it. You decided to break the rules, press on, and put everyone at risk of DEATH. Either quit flying while you're still ahead or fix your attitude and give it the seriousness that it so strongly requires. *All that said with your safety and the preservation of GA in mind.

I think we're way past that point. Time to bring in the politics.

You got me

So if your autopilot went inop, you would be an unsafe pilot????? :blink: I just don't buy that. I have done a bunch of IFR cross countries where I've forgotten to even use the single axis century IIb. I consider it a convenience item and sometimes it is nice to use to hold a heading while I prepare other things. But I can just as well fly single pilot IFR in turbulence and manage the plane without the device.

Great point. This is why it's not a good idea to invest in an airplane until you are well-established enough in the hobby to be certain it is the right thing for you. Also why it's good to gradually build experience a little at a time rather than get your plane, ticket, and then hop on a long cross country flight with precious cargo on board. Most pilot-error related accidents started with a bad attitude.

Cash out while it's still worth something.

Although I 100% agree with you that VFR pilots should be cautious, I can't think of any situation in which haze would constitute IMC.

Sometimes a humbling experience is worth its weight in gold...

You have to stay equally instrument current whether you're gonna fly IFR on clear days, just some high clouds, or down to minimums. Proficiency is a separate thing all together. But sometimes instrument currency is required for certain operations or you just want the convenience of filing IFR in VMC for airspace.

"61.57© Instrument experience. Except as provided in paragraph (e) of this section, a person may act as pilot in command under IFR or weather conditions less than the minimums prescribed for VFR only if: (1) Use of an airplane, powered-lift, helicopter, or airship for maintaining instrument experience. Within the 6 calendar months preceding the month of the flight, that person performed and logged at least the following tasks and iterations in an airplane..." "Within the 6 calendar months preceding the month of the flight," what the heck does that mean? Someone who fully understands the wording and rule, can you help me with some examples for being able to count out the months to test for currency? For example, if 6 approaches (and everything else required) are completed on January 1st of 2013, what is the last day on which you can fly IFR? Can you confirm that if those approaches were logged on January 31st, the last day to fly IFR would be the same? I can imagine the last day of currency being June 31st or July 31st depending on how you count (Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, June) or (Feb, Mar, Apr, May, June, July). But also there is that gotcha phrase "6 calendar months preceding the month of the flight," that sounds like you in effect get a 7th month??? Please, someone who knows their stuff?

That's awful. Sounds like you had a real gem of a C model there! Won't be easy to replace. Hope you insured it for what it is worth to you.

I guess with the spending cuts they're gonna have to throw all the niceness out the window

Does it even matter? That's the US Federal Govt for you!

Don't bother trying to talk to someone about it. Take the FAA Safety course online and refer to the AOPA page about it. They won't lead you astray with nonsense like the locals. Take it from one https://www.faasafety.gov/gslac/ALC/course_content.aspx?cID=79 http://www.aopa.org/advocacy/articles/2009/091117hudsonsfra.html https://www.faasafety.gov/files/gslac/courses/content/79/776/kneeboard.pdf

I have the Clarity SV, and it works great. I don't have the ADSB out but I get all the targets in the NY Class B airspace out of which I operate. In this busy airspace someone is bound to have out and this is where I need the traffic info the most. I intentionally chose a dual band receiver to double the chances of picking up someone else's traffic response.

Are you kidding me? I went during a non-busy time to shoot the parrot video but I've flown the Hudson corridor with a dozen other aircraft (mainly helicopters) in the same 5 mile stretch. I've had times when you could barely see the moving map on WingX cause the ADSB traffic was burying it. And the departure delays at Farmingdale and Tetereboro on a Friday night are insane. Friend said he was #30 for departure.

My theory why car like tubeless tires are not used on airplanes is: -Rims are not perfect and they are smaller -Pressure from hard landing could deform tire enough to push it away from rim and let out air? -We fly at different altitudes so again, air pressure on tire could be changing frequently Maybe it has nothing to do with those but that's where I'd start to look for answers because that's how airplanes are different from cars.

Ok, see ya in Linden, NJ.

The cheapie ones are the best. They are fairly thin and fold up like an accordion. They are bendy so you can just open them up only 1/2 or 3/4 as needed and stuff them around the roll bar in place. Was like 10 bucks and works like a charm.

Alan, so you've finally come to terms with Bonanza's disability? Wonder what kind of flack your fielding on beechtalk! Or are you playing it both ways again?

Great questions. I don't know well enough but just my opinion: 1. Land on grass, asphalt, concrete, or "other"? If it's grass like a grass runway that I know is meant to be landed on. Otherwise runway. No "surprise" grass. 2. Flaps up to minimize damage to the flaps, flaps down to touch down slower, or use partial flaps? If airport is very long (which I'd try for), I'd land no flaps to minimize damage. If airport is short and that's where I gotta be, then heck yeah flaps. 3. Engine running, or shut down on short final? Depends on how many hours on the engine? jk I'm a glider pilot, I'd shut it once I had it made. Who can tell me at what airspeed the prop will stop? My hope would be sooner than touch down speed. 4. Prop pulled back, or not? Full forward, more resistance so better chance of stopage? 5. Land where there are Mooney repair facilities, land where there's a fire/rescue crew assuming both can't be had at the same airport? Home airport regardless? Not home field. Most likely would prefer Mooney repair facility but length of runway and preferability for landing would come first. So around me, although I'd prefer airmods at trenton-robinsville to do the work, I'd fly over to Lancaster because they have a tower and a much longer runway also with a reputable Mooney Service Center. 6. If the gear will come down partially, but not lock down, will you land with the gear fully retracted, or partially down? Never really thought of it that way. Is that even possible in a Mooney? Maybe anything's possible but I think it's terribly unlikely? Either it's all down and locked or it's all down but not over center and not locked. I guess if you knew for sure it wasn't locked, better with it up. But given that you probably don't know, it's better to take the gamble that it is locked enough not to collapse. Short of things getting insanely broken, I don't think you could come in with a Mooney with one wheel up but not the others. 7. Other considerations? It's the insurance's problem at that point, so safety first. I've heard about (and would do this) switching to the right seat and cracking the door open with your elbow in case the fuselage buckles and you're caught inside with a fire. Thus my ideal plan would be to go to a big airport with a Mooney Service Center. Burn off all but the last 10 gallons (if possible) but definitely land in daytime (if burning off fuel would take me into night). Switch to right seat. Crack door open on final. On quarter mile final shut the engine using mixture. If I don't like where that's going, I can put it back in to fire. If I'm happy with the glide, fuel cutoff (does that help if mixture is already idle??). No flaps. Land as smooth as possible bearing in mind it has to be lower than usual. As soon as it stops, get the heck out and away in case of fire.

Quick, I better make a bunch of pointless posts like this one so I could get it! Oh wait, I have WAAS.