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I don't think so. In the Mooney you must get your speed right, which is not true in the 172. To keep your speed within 5 knots of your target, while hitting your target altitudes, requires throttle movement, at least for me. Mine varies between 17 and 13 " on most landings, adjusted slowly one way or the other. As far as I can tell this is true of all the Mooneys. Staying ahead of the plane requires constant small adjustments of both throttle and pitch.

So I made it, and got parked about two rows down. When does the bbq start?

I just had the main tanks filled for my flight to OSH tomorrow morning. I would like to know as well. I presume they will be swamped with planes and just filling up the spaces first-come-first-serve, but I've never been before.

I have several hundred hours flying a 262 conversion. The engine is really great. Set the power you want, at any altitude. Adjust the cowl flaps for the temperature you want, and it just flies. Just overhauled the wastegate and pressure relief valve, otherwise it's been trouble-free. Can't overboost it and it's easy to keep it cool. Dual alternators, standby vacuum system. About as redundant as you can get without adding another engine. $80k is a big chunk of change. It makes no financial sense. You're going to have a plane that's worth $125k tops, as far as I can tell in today's market, when you're done. Maybe less if your plane does not have speed brakes, hot prop (maybe the quote is for a hot prop, thus the expense?), split folding rear seats, long range tanks, and all the other goodies people are looking for in the 252 market. But then again, owning and flying a Mooney makes no financial sense anyways. It looks like maybe you're really paying the same price as an LB engine conversion, plus $10k for dual alternators, a better turbo and wastegate system, and the improved cowl flaps. That would be worth it, to me.

My C model would barely climb at 10,000 with full fuel and 2 adults on board. I took it to 12,000 a few times, but climb rates would be about 200 FPM at Vy above 10k. Any faster or slower and virtually no climb at all. The carb'd 180-HP O-360 is not a high altitude performer. It would be very easy, taking off at 10k DA, to pull back a little too hard and lose your climb. A little harder, staring at trees getting big in the windshield, and a stall could occur. No idea if that happened to this pilot, but be careful out there. Fly early and fly light if you're flying high.

When my gauge did it on the M20K, it was a faulty gauge. Rebuilt for a couple hundred bucks, works great.

So, I can probably go to Oshkosh the first weekend, and no other time during the event. Looking at the schedule, it appears the only thing on the first Saturday / Sunday are the B2OSH, Cessna, and Mooney caravans. I do not have the flexibility or training to join the caravan (wish I did). Is it worth it to show up Saturday? There appears to not be any activities really until Monday. Will somebody have a grill? I can bring beer. Trying to decide if it will be worth the trip.

I wish. From the ad: "Built in 1986, converted to the latest FA2 standard in 1997 and last flown in 2001, this aircraft will require several parts before it can be flown again and is being sold as not airworthy – for display purposes only." Pretty cool though. I saw one last fall on the deck of the USS Intrepid in New York City. It looked airworthy, but I remember thinking, it's a miracle if that thing can actually do VTOL. It looks like it would just tip over when you turned on the thrusters. Very impressive feat of engineering.

There may someday be a personal vehicle that can take off vertically like this and fly. It will look nothing like the TF-X. This is just somebody's pipe dream. It's like a miniature Osprey on wheels, with magic 600-HP electric engines that run on pixie dust. Not even all that imaginative, in my opinion. By the way, on my bucket list: Fly an Osprey. I need to figure out how to make that happen...

In my opinion, the best reading is various threads on Mooneyspace. It's all been discussed here, at length, by people with hundreds or thousands of hours of Mooney time and a serious love for Mooney aircraft. I've looked for Mooney books in publication and really found almost none. Those that have been written are out of print and hard to find. Some good examples of threads to browse: http://mooneyspace.com/topic/8971-4-bounced-landings-in-a-row/ http://mooneyspace.com/topic/8291-landings/ http://mooneyspace.com/topic/8340-crosswind/ http://mooneyspace.com/topic/8316-typical-m20c-speeds-tas/ http://mooneyspace.com/topic/5934-mooney-most-bang-for-your-buck/ Think of what you want to know, put it in the "search" box, and I guarantee you'll find your answers. Welcome to the Mooney family.

I for one suggest everybody post under their real name, first and last. If you are flaming somebody for their political views, LOP habits, hyphenated last name, or parachute desires, at least have the courage to put your name behind it.

I have also wondered why more small planes are not pressurized. I mean, it seems like with some industrial caulk and some elbow grease, plus a pressurization pump and a release valve, it would be possible. Easy, maybe not, but we see people spending 20k+ all the time on glass panels, and spending 800k on new airplanes that are not pressurized... I have no engineering qualifications. Can somebody who knows more than me explain this? I bet there is a good reason.

Awesome. Thanks.

Is it possible to cause topics to load at the first unread post by default? The option only appears for me when there are multiple pages, and I am not on the last page. The result is that on single page topics, I have to scroll down and try to remember what parts I have already read. Tapatalk fixes the problem and jumps to first unread, but does not show signatures, some pictures, videos, etc. It would be nice if the website could do it too. Many forums have picked up this feature lately.

Count me in. The internet could use some more civil discourse. The worst posts always come anonymously.

I will check and see how my pro bono portfolio looks for the year. I do not recommend pre-paid legal plans generally, although candidly I have not looked at AOPA's. They lock you in to using their lawyers, who are paid a reduced rate for guaranteed volume of business. That may be fine, or it may be the case that you want to hire a lawyer of your choice that you like and trust. You may want a really good lawyer for your case that refuses to take a reduced rate, because she is very talented and skilled. Also, in my experience, those plans usually come with limits on how much they will pay and what they cover. When you read the fine print they are not nearly what they are cracked up to be.

Jamie: Have you done your estate plan? Will, health care directive, etc? If not, find a local general practitioner. He will advertise for estate planning, criminal defense, personal injury, etc. He will have at least one attorney in the office that does free consultations. Go get a free consultation for your estate plan, which you probably need anyways. Repeat the process till you find one you like, then pay him to set you up. Now you've got a relationship with a good local attorney. 201er: They get away with it because the only remedy, meaning the only consequence, is that the pilot can sue them for violating their rights. If they get consent, then forget about it, no consequence. And they are good at getting consent. Also, generally, whatever money you get is paid by the insurance company, not the officers out of pocket. Assuming the pilot is smart and does not consent, you are looking at suing the federal government. You have to find a lawyer who will take the case, probably on a contingency fee. I do, but we are a small group. They are tough cases, for various reasons. You also are about to file a "tort" and are headed for the dreaded "jury trial" we've all been conditioned to hate. Many people these days are just morally opposed to it and won't do it. I know from prior threads about products liability, some are on this board

I am a lawyer. I do both some criminal defense and some prosecuting of criminals, although honestly I'm mostly a civil lawyer. I do some aviation law. No government agency can search your aircraft without a warrant, generally speaking. There are exceptions to this rule. For example, they may search it if you give consent. They may search it if they have probable cause to believe it contains evidence of a crime, and there are exigent circumstances that would prevent them from being able to delay and get a warrant. They can search if there is contraband (e.g. drugs) in plain view from the exterior of the plane. Law enforcement always prefers to search by consent. When you consent, you waive your 4th amendment rights and any claims you may have. Anything they find can and will be used against you. Any civil claims you may have for violation of your rights are gone. They are actually trained to use intimidation and clever wording to get people to consent to search. Assuming you do not consent, if they detain you and search your aircraft anyways, there are two different areas of the law that come into play. First, if they find any evidence of criminal activity (i.e. drugs), they have to prove that the evidence was legally obtained, without violating your 4th amendment rights. If they can't do that, then under what's called the "exclusionary rule," the evidence they found cannot be used against you in court. Generally that means you walk, after you hire a good attorney and he or she does a good job. Second, if you were not breaking any laws, and nonetheless they detain and search you, you may file a civil suit against the agency and/or officers that did it for money damages. This is the "penalty" they have for violating your rights. There are no other consequences for them. Your plane is not generally under the "jurisdiction" of the FAA and it cannot be searched at will. That might be true for charter operations or commercial flights, but for your 4-seat Mooney on a personal Part 91 flight, you have a reasonable expectation of privacy in your plane. That's why the FAA can't search the interior during a ramp check. The FAA can ramp check you, but you are only required to produce the required documents (AROW, anyone?) along with your pilot's certificate, medical, and photo identification. It's an administrative inspection designed not to implicate your 4th amendment rights. Some lawyers, like myself, have questioned whether the CFRs that permit Part 91 ramp checks are constitutional, but I'm not aware of a court decision on point, so for now it stands. The Pilot's Bill of Rights gives you some additional rights in the event of an administrative action to restrict or terminate your pilot's license. It does not effect what happens out on the ramp. Everybody wants to know "Should I consent?" and "What do I do if...?". These are natural questions. Unfortunately, no lawyer or qualified person should give broad, sweeping, generalized advice like that. Some attorneys do. I think it is unwise. Malpractice insurance carriers hate it. There are so many exceptions and caveats to all these rules, it would literally take a book and three or more years of law school to explain them all. If you are ever stopped, by any government agency, you do have the right to an attorney, and I suggest you use it. Do not answer any questions, or consent to anything, until you have an attorney on the phone. If they won't let you call one, sit down, tell them you are exercising your right to remain silent, and then do it. I've made this offer before, but if anybody would like my personal cell phone number, send me a PM. I'll take your call, free of charge, and help you assert your constitutional rights in a respectful and accurate manner.

I prefer the LPV. The needles never bounce. No need to tune and identify, or risk having the wrong frequency . No need to remember to switch the radio. Just fly the needle and cross check the moving map. Watch for a RAIM warning is all. If you accidentally select the wrong LPV approach the worst thing that can happen is you land on the wrong runway. Select the wrong ILS frequency and you can fly into the side of a mountain.

Nice looking plane, and I think you've got it priced right. I'm not shopping, so that doesn't help you much, but for what it's worth... Some more pics in your ad might help it move, more so than new radios. Good luck with the sale.

It is a lot heavier. Compare the gross weights. Getting stopped takes longer, no way around it. You will use more runway. The other thing I noticed going from a C to a K is the higher approach speeds for IFR. The heavier planes do better at higher speeds - usually 120 or 140 KIAS until the FAF. The short bodies don't go that fast and are happier at 100 KIAS or so.

We are very happy to have passed 11N on to you, Joe. I don't think anybody ever starts out looking for a C model, but they're a great value, and a lot of bang for your buck in GA. If you ever decide to sell, look me up, I might want it back someday .

You have six months until the end of the year. At the dollar numbers you are talking about spending, you can afford to buy a plane ticket back to the U.S. to personally inspect your purchase. Most purchases involve a plane ticket to look at it anyways; yours will just be from farther away. Choose the basic features your plane will or will not have: Short / mid / long body, turbo, IFR GPS, 2-axis autopilot, quality of paint and interior, etc. At a budget of 70-80k you will be looking at a very nice F, a cheaper J, or a nice K model 231. Find the best deal on the market for the model of your choice. Call and negotiate a price. Have the seller email you the logs in PDF form. Sign a contract contingent upon inspection. Have the plane flown to your A&P for inspection. Buy a ticket to come look at the plane, after the inspection has passed. If you like it, buy it, and fly it to your new hangar, or have somebody else do it for you. One caution - you seem to be justifying this financially because of the tax implications. That is not wise. Your accountant must not be familiar with the costs of airplane ownership. You will spend a large chunk of your tax "savings" just on the pre-buy, first annual, and the cost of the plane ticket involved with the purchase. This plane will cost you a lot of money, more than it saves you. There are much better ways to reduce your taxable income (IRAs, employee health insurance, moving from W-2 income to 1099 income if you own the business, purchase your facility and lease it back to your business, etc). A consult with a business / tax attorney or CPA can fill you in on the rest. I don't mean to discourage you from buying a plane, but just want to make sure you understand the financial consequences. You buy planes because flying is the most amazing thing you can do on any given day, and for the lifestyle change they bring. Any other rationale is just a fiction that helps you sleep at night.

My 262 gets 165 kts at 11.5 GPH all day long, or better at higher altitudes. With 105 gallon capacity, that is 9.2 hours of endurance, which produces about 1518 NM, no wind, no reserve. With a 1 hour reserve (which is my personal minimum) it's a range of 1353 NM, plus or minus the wind. I seriously hope I never spend 8.2 hours in the plane non-stop. I've done some 5.5 hour flights and found them miserable, even with a relief bottle. But, if I want to, I can do it I will say, when you're taking off against a headwind, with questionable weather (low IFR) beneath you, and you're solo, it's a comforting feeling to have 9.2 hours of fuel on board. If you don't like the weather below you, or have to deviate, or hit an extra 30 kts of unforecasted headwinds, you can just suck it up and keep flying until things look better. That's the best use I've found for the long range tanks.

Comparing planes for sale can be difficult. There is always a reason a given plane is so cheap. Engine time, missing logs, damage history, non-waas. You have to really know what you are looking at, which is difficult for a student pilot, no offense intended. If you post and identify individual planes for sale the experts here are always happy to help spend your money, or warn you not to. Sometimes the cheapest list price for a model is the most expensive one, if you include the hidden costs.