exM20K

I’m sorry you chose to infer that my comment was that the DA40 is better than a 180HP Mooney. That is not what I wrote. Forgive me for violating the Shibboleth of Mooney that Mooney’s are the best in any comparison. What I thought I was clearly communicating is that there are speed, space, and weight penalties associated with retractable gear. My bad if I was unclear.

They never updated the AFM after 2005, so all the aerodynamic and prop improvements are not accounted for. I have flown dozens of new DA40's, and they will do 150 +/- a few. Also, 14,000 is optimal for the NG, not the IO360. -dan

In addition to adding weight, retractable gear requires a place to go when it's retracted. For the nose gear, that usually impinges on the front seat footwell area. For the main gear, it requires a taller wing, which in turn, increases drag. And the extra weight of retractable gear requires more lift and consequently more drag. Consider that a 180 HP DA40 XLS or XLT can do ~150 KTAS. That's getting close to M20 speeds on 200HP. It's also a whole lot easier to get into. -dan

Thanks for posting that excellent essay. I pulled up the FIP charts shortly after your first post and did see quite a bit of SLD marks in that area. Presumably the various icing models are built on the same measurements, and it’s very cool to see what goes into the sauce. Do you have any plans to resume your in-person classes? -dan

agree. that is a second opportunity to break a link in the chain of stupid. -dan

Yup.

No, no... not a gear up, but rather something potentially much more dangerous. Our little airport got a foot of snow over the weekend, and there’s only so many places to put it. 30’ wide runway compounds the problem. So here I was, trying to successfully navigate to the runway without shaving off big snow berms with an aileron or flap trailing edge, and I was distracted. Rudder trim and flaps set, but I didn’t do the pre takeoff checklist out loud: Trim, Trim, Flaps, Mixture, Masters Mags. The takeoff was sprightly and the nose kept coming up. Huh? Forgot to set takeoff trim and departed with full nose up trim. It took a medium to hard push to keep the nose down while manually trimming down, but it is not that bad... it just took longer than I’d have liked. Plane was light and just me on board. I can imagine worse outcomes heavy and aft CG, or IMC. Checklists matter, especially for a six minute repositioning flight. be safe. -Dan

My plane is at Chicago aviation service at DPA right now. JA Aircenter at ARR has done work for me before. Gene at Northwest Flyers at Schaumburg is a Mooney Service Center. I haven’t had him work on my plane, but that’s not for any particular reason. Your biggest challenge will be getting anybody to review the plane. Shops are booked weeks in advance because Wuhan Flu shutdowns and demand. MAPA should have some rebuy checklist samples, and there is always the MX Manual from which any competent mechanic could crib pre buy items. don’t really know anyone up in Waukegan or Kenosha. Sorry. -dan

Landing F47 a couple weeks ago. Back in Illinois before a solid 10 inches of snow overnight last night. Great neighbors took pity on me as my snow thrower attachment for the tractor is buried in a trailer at the shop. The L39 is filming the undeveloped Florida coast for discovery channel’s Blue Planet https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N139UK/history/20201219/1255Z/KAAF/KAAF looks like fun flying

And in those places, often the economics and airspace for pro-pilot training favor shipping the trainees to the USA.

It didn’t go very well for Cessna less than a decade ago. Maybe they’ve improved the engine. https://www.aopa.org/news-and-media/all-news/2015/may/14/cessna-not-accepting-182-jt-a-orders There are many weight and balance and airframe/systems complexities to retrofitting a 100LL plane with a diesel. Diamond was able to do it in the DA40 because the fuel tanks are welded aluminum and feed stainless lines. Maybe not so easy in the Mooney wing and fuel system. I don’t know. regardless, IMO, the DA40 Austro diesel ruins a delightful-to-fly plane with a nose heavy solution. I’ve flown both quite a bit. M20TN is already nose heavy, though I don’t remember what w&b looked like on my 231. -Dan

@0TreeLemur first off... thanks for using “data” as a plural noun. at least four of the 18 were at night. I have approximately 10% of my total logged time as night, and recently, it has been a lot less than that. Setting aside the stupid pilot tricks (over gross, meth, etc) one take-away here is that night flying raises the stakes significantly if my logbook is typical. -dan

Survived another one today. I must be lucky. Beautiful MVFR flight flown IFR to exercise the TKS and live up to my commitment to fly at least every 10 days (WX permitting) in 2021. The views down through the thin 2500 broken ceiling of snow-covered northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin were something else. And Bessie’s Diner was, as always, there to keep my caloric intake in the green. https://www.bessiesdiner.com

My friend Richard Simile may have something for you https://www.controller.com/listings/for-sale/thunderbird-aircraft-sales/aircraft?AccountCRMID=17915700 Dan

We enjoyed our visit, and you and your wife (and friends) are excellent hosts. The Creek is an amazing place, but we wanted something more rural / waterfront. Florida is, like many of the big states, very diverse geographically - there's something "here" for everyone - unless you want snow and ice. -dan

likewise. be well. -dan

We have had a very good experience at Naper Aero Club (LL10) in the west suburbs of Chicago for the last 17 years (yikes: time flies). As compared to conventional neighborhoods, the common interest in aviation, while not universal among residents, provides an opening to get to know your neighbors. Taxiways that run behind and between homes offer an excellent and safe place for youngsters to learn to ride a bike, skate, etc. 2500x30 paved. 100LL,no service, but I've never had a problem with that; either a mechanic comes to my hangar or I fly to a nearby airport. The convenience is wonderful, and when you land, you're home. Having a hangar to fill with toys is a big plus. Homes are not hard to sell: big airline pilot population in Chicago burbs, and ours is one of the few neighborhoods in Naperville that permits out buildings, so the non-pilot owners include car collectors, wood workers etc. Our Florida place (F47) is < 1 mile from the strip, so probably doesn't qualify, but it's close to fly-in. Again: no services, and in this case, no fuel, but no biggy. We have a car at the airstrip, and when we land, we're nearly home. We have been blessed with great neighbors at LL10, and that will be probably the most significant - and dynamic- aspects of fly-in living. -dan

In a world of slower SR22’s that are selling near a number with two commas in it, I agree... it’s a lot of new plane for relatively not a lot of money. FWIW, new DA40’s are mid 500’s plus. pity they couldn’t market this to be in service before 12/31, but the savvy new aircraft buyer may foresee higher tax rates in 2021.... if only the current tax treatment can stick around -dan

Had the same issue with 310 HP takeoff high and hot. Checked the pressure to open alt air, and it was in spec. cleaned the magnet and its landing. An exaggeratedly gradual application of power in high/hot conditions seems to help. -dan

For mine, no. I have the Bose plugged into its jack and the mask mic plugged into the standard jack next to it. -dan

I have Bose connectors and just plug the mask mic into the available jack. Works fine. I chose the O2D2 over the precise flight unit because the latter are single user and thus more expensive than an O2D2. also it was unclear how well they work with the Mooney system. The acclaim oxygen ports are overhead behind my shoulder, which isn’t great for the O2D2 box. Three years later, I still haven’t found a good place to mount it, and it mostly sits in the right front seat. The precise flight would be cleaner in that respect dan

O2D2 does not revert to full flow. It will stop working. I have never run it all the way down, but I expect the low battery alarm is obvious. I carry extra batteries and the MH standby bottle, which, sadly, seems to be discontinued. It is similar to this: https://www.mhoxygen.com/product/boost-oxygen-5-liter/ -dan

My guess is it's a materials issue. If you look at how Diamond did it in the DA42, non-fiki planes have a fake TKS panel that is replaced with the real thing when that option is specified. It's not obvious how one could do that with a metal-skinned wing. -dan

I think someone has the alt static open lol. You sure that's LOP? book at 10,000 is 205 ROP:

Maybe don't limit yourself.... maybe you can do better than factory/clean wing TN. I'll ask the owner of a clean wing plane I know to do the same exercise I did, but really: See what you can do to a TKS plane. I get it that the economics have to work, but if the cost to prove this out isn't extraordinary, I'm sure you could find someone to help finance the test. Standing by, -dan