What should a new Mooney pilot practice before starting instrument training?

[DXB]

As a new 110 hr pilot who transitioned to the C model 20 hours ago, I feel now decently comfortable getting from point A to point B and planning my descents in a way that is specific to this plane (I plan 4mi/1000 ft, 135-160mph, 500 ft/min, or a bit steeper if ending up high toward the end).  1-3 miles before entering the pattern, I do have to pull throttle way back and level off to get speed to 120 so I can drop the gear.  This feels like the most inelegant part of my descent, and I'm not sure how compatible it would be with an instrument approach, since I have no exposure to the latter.  

 

My overall question is what habits should I focus on breaking, developing, or retaining right now that might ease my eventual instrument training?  I probably won't get to start until next year sometime, but I hope to do a decent amount of flying between now and then and hope to have the right airplane handling skills (Mooney specific ones or in general) when the time comes.   I know holding accurate altitude and heading is key, but what else?   Should I practice using VORs whenever I can? 

[Bob_Belville]

Being able to hold heading and altitude is probably an under appreciated skill that you can work on every time you fly until it looks effortless to your passenger. With practice you will feel the yoke in two fingers and be able to scan the panel, tune radios and chew gum at the same time. Flying in the IFR environment will require staying on course at assigned altitude to say nothing of the precision you'll learn to fly with shooting approaches. 

[Hank]

See this thread: http://mooneyspace.com/topic/15059-ifr-question/

Don't miss the practice sheet in post#19.

There are things you can work on every flight--hold altitude, hold heading, 500 fpm descents, slowing from descent to pattern speed. Try flying at 90 knots = 105 mph until final then figure out how to land anyway (do this at a long runway with an open approach).

Mooney flying is all about precision. So is instrument flying, but with a twist. Learn to fly precisely now, figure out the instrument twist after starting training.

And have fun!

[Dan M20E '66]

I'm also a newish pilot and M20E owner with about 50 hours in the E. There's a lot of ways to plan your descent, but I was advised by a very experienced LASAR-associated pilot to "fly like you stole it" during descent as long as you watch Vne (and of course smooth air conditions). I aim for gradual descents of about 500 ft./min., then pull MP back to about 15 and go about 100 - 200 feet below pattern altitude since I pull up the nose to slow down for gear retraction and will gain that altitude back. This works pretty well, but I'm still looking to further refine my technique.

 

Right now my problem is judging throttle setting at base for proper coasting to threshold. I'll think I've done it perfect and still be too high or low and have to make late adjustments....

[stevesm20b]

I use 2300/20 in the 500fpm descent. After I level off I go to 2300/15. That will usually get me slowed down to 120mph. Then I can put the gear down. On an instrument approach I make sure I have the gear down before the FAF and that way It makes it a lot easier to maintain my 103mph (90kts) approach. I don't normally use flaps until I have the runway in sight or make a no flap landing. That way if I have to do a missed approach I have one less thing to do while setting the plane up for the missed approach.

[Hank]

 

Right now my problem is judging throttle setting at base for proper coasting to threshold. I'll think I've done it perfect and still be too high or low and have to make late adjustments....

There is no perfect throttle setting that will always work. Wind is always different, your speed varies from landing to landing, you turn arsslightly different spots using slightly different bank angles, aircraft weight is always slightly different. Find one that's close and practice making adjustments like you're doing.

[Glenn]

Learn the throttle settings that you need for gear speed and final approach in your airplane.  Depending on wind you may have to adjust 1" one way or the other but you will not have to hunt.  It makes it easier to attend to the other elements of the approach, like lateral guidance.  Also visualize the configuration that you will want the airplane to be in, in a few minutes.  For example, in my F I know that 15" in level flight will slow me to about 110 - 115 a good speed to drop the gear. So I reduce to 15" about 2 miles prior to the FAF.  Once the gear is down 13" - 15" will track the glideslope depending on the wind.  If I am drifting a little high, reduce 1", a little low increase 1".  This removes one variable at a time when your workload is high and will yield consistency.

[ryoder]

Maybe you should fly some approaches with a CFII and watch him to it first and then do some. Then go off and practice some things. I flew my first approach during my transition training and it helped me to realize that I needed to be able to hold headings while turning knobs and watching my descent. So when I fly vfr I give myself vectors. If I see something cool and I want to go look at it I'll tell myself turn left heading 230 descend and maintain 1600.

[gsxrpilot]

What Dan said. :-)  I was IFR from ElPaso to Austin yesterday and saw 201 kts over the ground in the decent. That's 500 ft/min in my C! The climb out of ELP was in the heat and sloooow... so it was nice to get the time back on the decent.  Just watch the VNE line and only if the air is smooth.

[Bob - S50]

Just a suggestion.  Although I fly a J, you can use the same techniques, just different power settings.

 

I like to plan a descent at 500 FPM, terrain permitting, for the sake of my passenger's ears.  With that in mind, when I start down I set a power setting that will let me cruise a bit under landing gear speed once I level off in the pattern.  For me, that's 2200 RPM and 20" MP.  Since your gear speed is lower, you might need to use less power.  Doing it that way minimizes my power changes.

 

I try to be below gear speed before I hit any segment of the approach.  That way, if I need a steeper than normal descent, I can lower the gear for drag.  If you are high and fast and can't put the gear down, you may never be able to get slow enough to configure, even at idle power.  If you find yourself in this situation, go to idle, level off, slow down, lower the gear, then start the descent again.

 

Study the approach before you go fly.  Calculate required descent rates to meet crossing restrictions.  See if any will need descent rates that will require the gear.

 

Here is what I use in the J:

 

Cruise (above about 7500' and turbulence permitting):  WOT, 2400 RPM, LOP

Descent: 2200 RPM, WOT until 20" then 20", 500 FPM (5 to 6 NM/1000' of descent)

Approaching the first fix: Still 2200 RPM, 20" gives me about 125 KIAS.

One mile prior to glideslope intercept or need for 3 degree descent whichever comes first: 2200 RPM, 15", slow to 105 KIAS

Glideslope intercept: Gear down, power back just a bit more to slow to 90 KIAS on the glideslope.

1000' AGL, start milking in the flaps to be configured and slowed to 80 KIAS by 500'

Runway in sight and below about 300', slow to final approach speed, 70 KIAS for me.

 

You'll come up with your own techniques, but plan ahead and try to minimize the need for significant power changes so you can concentrate on flying the airplane rather than flying the throttle.  Better to be a bit slower than needed and take longer to get to the runway, than to be too fast and never make it to the runway.

 

Bob

[flyboy0681]

But to answer your original question, "what should a new mooney pilot practice before starting instrument training", I would say practice watching the balance of your savings account fall.

[Bob_Belville]

...I would say practice watching the balance of your savings account fall.

You do realize this is a public forum, right? We don't need to be scaring off the potential buyers of our money pits!  

[smccray]

lol flyboy!

 

Start training with an instructor.  I'll never forget a VFR flight I made about 10 hours into my instrument instruction.  I took off from the east side of DFW and was vectored all over the place making my way to the west side to head northwest.  I noticed my accuracy while VMC was significantly improved after just a little instrument training.  I tried to fly accurately when flying before starting my training, but it wasn't the same.

 

It was an awesome feeling- almost like I knew what I was doing!

[DXB]

But to answer your original question, "what should a new mooney pilot practice before starting instrument training", I would say practice watching the balance of your savings account fall.

Ha! And some other good feedback here from Hank, Bob-S50 and others that I will definitely refer back to.