Mooney not attending SUN N FUN?

[Hector]

Just saw the list of exhibitors for SUN N FUN. Looks like Mooney is skipping it? I know the reunion at Kerrville is right after but not showing up at SUN N FUN is poor planning at best, and sends a terrible message and a lost opportunity to show ALL aviators they are back in the game. Am I missing something here? Has anyone heard from Mooney directly about their decision to attend (or not) SUN N FUN. I hope I'm wrong about this. Was really looking forward to seeing Mooney there this year!

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[Jeff_S]

I think you're being a little harsh.  Commitments to attend a show like Sun n' Fun typically have to be made well in advance, probably right around the time the company was in final negotiations on the latest funding. If that is the case, then I suspect they had other fish to fry at the time.  Also, if I were a Mooney executive I'd put more emphasis and resources into restarting my production line and getting some product out the door rather than attending Sun n' Fun. Those events take a lot of time and energy.

 

I don't see this as a bad sign. Mooney has been getting a lot of exposure lately just with the restart, so anybody who knows the aviation space knows the company is coming back.  And they have claimed there are some good product enhancements that they are releasing, so it's better to wait until all those are in place and they can make a big splash with some real news. Look for them at OSH, would be my guess.

[Bob_Belville]

I guess Mooney plans to be @ Oshkosh?

[rbridges]

I tend to agree with Jeff, but I'm speaking without any knowledge.  IMO, it probably takes a lot of planning to get a spot at SNF and OSH.

[Piloto]

I tend to agree with Jeff, but I'm speaking without any knowledge.  IMO, it probably takes a lot of planning to get a spot at SNF and OSH.

It is also expensive. Advertising is not cheap. Most cost effective way these days is via the internet. This is why you don't see as many ads as before on the paper magazines. And you will notice that they are thinner too. I don't read newspaper anymore because I get the latest news from the internet or TV for free. Try advertising your Mooney for sale on the local paper vs. controller.com.

 

José 

[fantom]

The Mooney factory had 8 experienced people working, and are now hiring and training lots of new folks, management is launching new plans, and aircraft production is just re-starting. Everyone has their hands full. There is no compelling reason, IMHO, to halt progress for at least two weeks, and spend a bundle, just to visit Lakeland.

 

Pulling most of your knowledgeable people off the line or from the training classes to set-up, staff, and tear down a display at SNF, before you even have new planes to market, IF indeed that's your immediate plan, seems fool hearty to me. Anyway, I'm not sure the CB bargain hunters at SNF are the right target audience to begin with.

 

Let's give Mooney some time to get their stuff together and their new identity sorted out.

[Piloto]

 

The Mooney factory had 8 experienced people working, and are now hiring and training lots of new folks, management is launching new plans, and aircraft production is just re-starting. Everyone has their hands full. There is no compelling reason, IMHO, to halt progress for at least two weeks, and spend a bundle, just to visit Lakeland.

 

Pulling most of your knowledgeable people off the line or from the training classes to set-up, staff, and tear down a display at SNF, before you even have new planes to market, IF indeed that's your immediate plan, seems fool hearty to me. Anyway, I'm not sure the CB bargain hunters at SNF are the right target audience to begin with.

 

Let's give Mooney some time to get their stuff together and their new identity sorted out.

 

+1 on the above. Very true.

[KSMooniac]

The EAA is rapidly pricing themselves out of the business too... I love going to Oshkosh, but I noticed a very different "vibe" for lack of a better descriptor when I returned in 2010 vs. '93 and '94 when I first went.  It is no longer a grass-roots get-together but a highly controlled experience that squeezes as many nickels out of vendor and attendee pockets.  In the 90s if you didn't arrive a day or two before the show opened then you couldn't get a spot!  Last year it seems you could arrive at any time outside of the airshow windows and get a parking spot.  

 

I'd rather see Mooney get the factory humming and sell a few planes before spending the massive amounts of money to attend either of these shows.

 

I also agree with the sentiment that SnF spaces were probably claimed long before the money deal was finalized.

[Hector]

Perhaps I'm being too critical, but SNF gets a lot of visitors, and lots of folks from South America with money to burn. The big 3 always have sales and I though this would be a good opportunity for Mooney to ink a few. Maybe it is too soon and they could not make it work logistically

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[Hector]

The EAA is rapidly pricing themselves out of the business too... I love going to Oshkosh, but I noticed a very different "vibe" for lack of a better descriptor when I returned in 2010 vs. '93 and '94 when I first went. It is no longer a grass-roots get-together but a highly controlled experience that squeezes as many nickels out of vendor and attendee pockets. In the 90s if you didn't arrive a day or two before the show opened then you couldn't get a spot! Last year it seems you could arrive at any time outside of the airshow windows and get a parking spot.

I'd rather see Mooney get the factory humming and sell a few planes before spending the massive amounts of money to attend either of these shows.

I also agree with the sentiment that SnF spaces were probably claimed long before the money deal was finalized.

What I have noticed lately is smaller crowds. I've been going to SNF for 25 years and it looked to me like last year the attendance was not great. I think when I saw the official numbers they looked well enough but it sure didn't seem like it. For many years you could barely move through the four hangars with the vendors. Last year it was a non-issue. Plenty of room.

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[Parker_Woodruff]

I've attended Sun 'n Fun the past three years (for work). Attendance has been notably poor. As Scott said, it's very expensive to attend any trade show. The cost is one reason, but it's also a function of the GA industry shrinking.

If a company is going to spend the time and resources on one show, Oshkosh is the one.

[Parker_Woodruff]

Even Oshkosh has been shrinking for years, but that is definitely where I would put my marbles were I in the game.

Very true as well.

[Piloto]

If you think that Oskosh or Sun n' Fun is expensive try Disney World in Orlando. One day, one park is now $99 per person. For a family of four including fast food lunch and snack is over $500/day. And all you get is waiting in line up to an hour for a 5 minute ride. You are better off flying your relatives in your Mooney by the beach or the mountains for less money and no line. And they get the real thing not those silly projection screens that try to make you believe that you are flying. How can they get away with $99 tickets? They are killing their own business. In these days of economic limitations how can you justify $99 tickets when there are other priorities.

 

José  

[Hector]

I remember when SNF was $10. Now it's $37 for regular folks and $32 for pilots. They know we (pilots) will pretty much pay whatever because we enjoy the heck out of being there, but they are definitely crowding out the casual aviation enthusiast who is not wiling to blow over $100 per day to go see this with his family.

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[Guest]

Both Oshkosh and Sun and Fun are very similar. It seems to me that being charged to go to the shopping mall is an out right rip off. This year I will be looking at taking my family and money to other smaller regional events.

Clarence

[Dave Marten]

While Mooney may not be attending Sun and Fun they are the "Presenting Sponsor" for the Planes of Fame Airshow in Chino, CA

 

http://planesoffame.org/index.php?page=general-info