Mooneymite

>>>Every time a GA pilot breaks the rules....<<< George, I just did a quick word search on my '74 M-20C POH and could find no reference to maximum number of passengers. Perhaps I missed it and a more careful reading will reveal it, but I don't think Mooney stipulated a "number" of passengers...only the proscribed weight and balance numbers. Correct me if I'm wrong. Perhaps a case could be made that putting three small children in the back seat "demonstrates poor judgement", but I can't see that a rule was broken.

No. Not in my Mooney. Most of the VOR and VOR/DME approaches near me have gone NA, or completely dropped out of the system, replaced by GPS/RNAV approaches. I do keep my VOR checks current/logged.....just in case.

I wonder if the insurer cares?

"Back-in-the-day", all those wonderful flight experiences were primarily enjoyed by the very wealthy. Average folk could only imagine. Well, guess what? The very wealthy still enjoy luxury beyond words when they fly, but you won't see it because they are on their Gulfstreams, Falcons, or BBJ's. I watched three people (the only passengers) get off a 737 BBJ arriving from Germany, complaining/bitching they had been forced to take the BBJ instead of their faster G-5. After they left, I went aboard to take a peek. Yes. Glamorous, indulgent, opulent air travel is alive and well....just not at the airlines. Only the little people ride the airlines. The super wealthy, of course, fly Mooneys.

When I fly the company jet, not only do I have to comply with the FAR's, and the controller's instructions, I have to comply with company SOP's. In the case of "cleared to land", I can't just head for the numbers and swoop in levelling the wings at touch-down...I have to comply with the company's stabilized visual approach rules. Without anything more specific than "Cleared to land runway 36", we land as expeditiously as possible complying with appropriate guidance. There is nothing more efficient than a jet at its destination with the engines shut down.

Wow! Impressive. We hate to hear about all the European regulation because we could follow suit in the US if we aren't proactive in keeping the bureaucrats at bay. Enjoy your certified panel!

Try fltplan.com. The wind matrix is given for every 50 miles on a direct flt for multiple altitudes. It makes wind optimization easy. Generally the wind info is right-on accurate if you update within an hour, or two of departure. (Click on "Winds aloft Matrix" at the bottom of the flight log page, otherwise the info is limited.)

I've been real happy with my EI FP-5. http://mooneyspace.com/gallery/image/33954-fuel-flow-panel-installation-m-20c/ They go on sale from time to time. Sun n Fun is coming up. It took me about 8 hours, spread over three days, to install it, but I suspect someone who's done it before can install it a lot faster. Last time I fueled up, the FP-5 said I'd burned 31.1 gallons, but it took 31.2 gallons to fill the tank. It will interface with a Garmin GPS and give you all sorts of fuel burn information. When you buy it, you have to option of buying an "aux" function.....might be some other parameter you want to display.

What? And spoil all the fun of pontificating each and every time? Heresy! Besides, why would anyone read FAQ's when they can post an ever-popular question?

If you buy a $15,500 '62 Mooney and pour a ton of money into it, you will still have a '62 Mooney. There's only so much "book value" you can add to an elderly airplane. I am a big proponent of "buy the airplane you want to end up with". Every used airplane on Barnstormers and Trade a Plane is being sold at a huge discount compared to before the great recession. However, Aircraft Spruce, Mooney AirCraft, Garmin, King, and all the other parts sources still get full retail for the stuff you need to repair/replace/"up-grade". If you just want to do stuff yourself, have a blast, but understand that it's going to cost you more in the long run. Buy a plane that someone else has already poured money into and save yourself a headache and some cash.

Run, Forest, run!

I was going to do that, but the extra 60 kts hardly seemed worth the work.

When I removed my long-wire ADF antenna, I gained over 200 kts. Removing the tie-down rings added another 50 kts. I'm thinking of removing the engine and prop because I think they induce a fair amount of drag. Has anyone else tried this?

Ha! The hardest part about flying is affording it.....which is why he stole planes. Our tax assessor keeps telling me that because I own an airplane I am rich and should pay more than my share of taxes. I keep telling her that because I own an airplane, I'm poor. She continually declines to purchase my plane for what she assesses it at.

Congratulations and welcome aboard! Once you get the plane home to Smithfield, do you have a nice "first cross-country" planned to introduce the plane to family?

Actually, I've been looking for a '74C POH. This site doesn't have it (that I could find). Can you tell me where you found it? I can buy a paper replacement, but not for my serial number.

Yeah, but think how much spare money you'll have now!

Yeah! I hate to speculate on crashes where the black boxes have been recovered...way too much factual information. I far prefer mis-haps like MH370 where my guess is about as good as anyone elses!

On a friend's plane, the vents had been shut off by mud dobbers. No external visible evidence, but a wire passed up though the vents confirmed impacted mud.

I haven't used a TAS computer in years. For my operations I just double my altitude/10000 and add that number to my KIAS. There is actually a more accurate formula/rule of thumb, but for my operations, this is close enough and simple enough even I can do it! :-)

What is not said in this ad is probably more significant than what is described! Three gear up incidents! 91, 92 &95......Gee! I suspect those were the reason for the bottom overhauls. The top overhaul was just due to time on the cylinders. I would consider the engine at core value. The basic airframe looks pretty decent with lots of Laser mods...assuming the belly was properly repaired. The radios are all old, so plan on spending a lot on upgrades. This aircraft would warrant an extensive PPI including a very careful review of the logs.

Use Fltplan.com and file ICAO for either domestic, or international. It takes the guess work out. Very simple. This is not to say there aren't other options, but why bother?

Modify that to read, "Some American kids...." and I'll agree with you. Certainly not all. We still have parents who teach good values/morals to their kids and take their parenting very seriously. God bless them!

Advice here on Mooneyspace is great, but take the time to read/study the POH. Pretty much everything you absolutely must know/do is in there.

I discovered MS long after I bought my plane. In truth, had I been a follower of some of the advice here on MS, I might not have bought this particular plane. There were several things about it that a lot of Mooneyspacers would have condemned: Missing log book. (74-80) Damage history (a gear-up). It's a "dirty wing" model. Electric gear. Now I've had this plane for 17 years and none of these items has been an issue for me. In fact, I love my electric gear and the dirty wing performs about as close to the POH as any Mooney of that era. As a newbie, I probably would have been intimidated by popular opinion on some of these issues and missed what has turned out to be a wonderful, reliable plane. On the other hand, most of the advice on MS is excellent.....just not all of it.