Why owning a Mooney is cool!!

[jlunseth]

Yes. Last week I decided to go see my youngest brother who lives in Duluth about 125 miles from me.  I left about 6, we had supper and I was home in time for bed.  The next day I decided to go see my other brother who lives in Grand Forks about 250 miles from me.  We looked at his new house, had supper, and I was home a little late for bed.  On the way home with no winds aloft and cruising 17,500 I saw 183 kts. for quite awhile.  VFR Flight Following asked me to confirm I intended to fly 17,500 (what's a little guy like you doing up there?).  I could do without the maintenance issues though.

[The-sky-captain]

Here's another cool example why being a Mooney pilot is great. I had to visit hree jobsites scattered around the state today. If I would have driven I would have been behind the wheel for right around 14 hours. Mooney time was 3.5 on the tach. Gotta love it.

[hansel]

Plus you arrived in style.

I used to commute by Mooney from Sacramento to the bay area when I worked out of Palo Alto. 45 min of flight time each way. There were days when I had to drive the 6 hour round trip, which were incredibly painful. God Bless our Mooneys.

[MooneyMitch]

I can't tell you how thrilled I am each time I fire that machine up and take it on a flight.  It still amazes me!!  Aren't we all lucky?

[Sven]

When I explain to friends "Why a Mooney?" I tell them that Mooney is to the GA world what Apple is to the PC world. Then they get it.

-Sven

[231Pilot]

Long distance in a short time.  Making 1.5 to 3 hour flights instead of 6 to 9 hour drives enables my wife and I to visit family on the MS and FL gulf coasts, vacation in Destin, go to our cabin in Pigeon Forge, TN, travel to college football games we otherwise wouldn't have seen, and of course, make the visit to grandchildren a day trip instead of imposing for an overnighter.  I love flying a Mooney!

[Gone]

Quote: Sven

When I explain to friends "Why a Mooney?" I tell them that Mooney is to the GA world what Apple is to the PC world. Then they get it.

-Sven

[Hank]

I have one of each, and I have to agree. But there are fewer maintenance squawks on the Mooney. Both have quite similar seating positions, but the Mooney has more headroom, and is, of course, faster.

Mechanics hate working on both of them, as there is little extra room for hands, arms, etc. There's just something about them both . . .

[flyby201]

Quote: The-sky-captain

I love the freedom too. Last week I was able to be on a white sand beach for my 6th wedding anniversary and next week I'm going to climb a 14er in Colorado. Both would be in excess of 15 hour drives (each way)and I'm there in 3.5 to 4 hours in the Mooney. Great video George, thanks for sharing.

[MooneyMitch]

At Porterville Eagle Mountain Airshow last Saturday, there were 8 Mooneys on display for the public to view.  4 M20's of various vintage, and 4 M18 Mites.  I've read the Mooney books [Al Mooney Story and Those Remarkable Mooneys] so I've learned some Mooney airplane history and some Al and Art Mooney history too. 

Looking at the Mite close up and personal, it really hit home the amazing evolution of Mooney airplanes.  What a genius Al was and what an American legend he is.   There are such basic design elements that have carried through from the Mite to our M20's.  Very cool!

Another aspect which I thought about is how, through all the past Mooney Airplane Company owners, CEO's and engineer's, they have all kept the orignal style concept intact during this evolution.  That is also very, very cool indeed.

[The-sky-captain]

Quote: flyby201

Bodie, What 14'er are you going to climb?  Trying to get a trip together, but Art says he's going to climb Grand Teton in July and I can't get Tommy to commit.

[Qwalton]

I agree with Mitch.  I really love that Mooneys really haven't changed much since the first M20, and they're still some of the fastest planes on the market.  Very cool. 

[carusoam]

Another one of those annual refresh type of posts...

Where are you going by Mooney this year?

Best regards,

-a-

[drapo]

 

Sven:

Since I am a Mac user, I can see how that might work.  Here is another.

A news announcer from WKOW (27) Madison, Wisconsin refered to our Mooneys as "the Jaguar of general aviation" during a short clip on the 2005 Mooney Caravan to Oshkosh.  It is posted on the Mooney webring (http://www.mooneyevents.com/index.html) at:  http://www.aviating.com/mooney/video/news.mpv

Enjoy.

 

To make people understand that I cannot bring 4 normal persons and their luggage in my Mooney, I often tell them that the M20E is the Porsche 911 of airplanes. It's fast, solid cornering, a little hard to get into and, although is has 4 seats, sits 2 comfortably and be sure to pack light...

 

[Mooneymite]

 

 

 

Why did you have to say that?

 

  I hate Apple!

 

Mooneys are not like that at all!

[Jeff_S]

I'm going to Sun n Fun, the Masters, Sanibel Island, that's all just before July. Not sure after that.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[aviatoreb]

Driving places seems to be a thing of the past for me. I mean really, your not going to get a speeding ticket, fight traffic, road construction etc. Plus you just sit there barely touching the trim wheel (unless its bumpy) listen to the music and every so often talk to ATC to change freqs! I have managed to drive only within about 1-1.5 hr distances in the last year. Everywhere else I flew!  

 

+1

 

I live in remote rural America.  My 10 year old car has I think 65k on it.  Mostly from winter around town driving.  I live 1.5 miles from work and just over a mile to the airport.  In the summer I ride my bike to work and sometimes I only fill up my car after 6 or 8 weeks.

 

When I need to go someplace far away I fly (usually).  

 

(Full disclosure - we have a minivan too…for all hands on deck with the kids and we do drive between towns in that).

[N601RX]

I'm going to Sun n Fun, the Masters, Sanibel Island, that's all just before July. Not sure after that. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Does Sanibel have an airport? We went to North Captivia which is one island north of Sanibel last fall. We picked it because it had a loading strip. We had a very good time, it's only a short flight on down to Key West

[Htwjr]

I am currently in Freeport, Bahamas thanks to my Mooney. My wife, daughter and I flew down from SC tuesday VFR and will be heading back saturday. Great trip, beautiful place from the air and on the ground. This is my first trip out of the US in the plane but hopefully it wont be my last. Less than 4 hrs from home and 1/3 the cost of commercial. We saved enough on air fare to pay for the hotel. Loving me some Mooney and the ultimate freedom it represents.

[Bob_Belville]

I am currently in Freeport, Bahamas thanks to my Mooney. My wife, daughter and I flew down from SC tuesday VFR and will be heading back saturday. Great trip, beautiful place from the air and on the ground. This is my first trip out of the US in the plane but hopefully it wont be my last. Less than 4 hrs from home and 1/3 the cost of commercial. We saved enough on air fare to pay for the hotel. Loving me some Mooney and the ultimate freedom it represents.

Curious, did you carry a raft? We took our first Mooney to the Abacos (Marsh Harbour) many years ago. We rented water survival equipment at West Palm.  I don't recall if it was required or just prudent.

[Jeff_S]

I haven't picked a landing site yet for Sanibel. We're also looking at Anna Maria island, so it will depend on which place we can get the best condo for our dates. I'm open to suggestions on best places to fly into for either!

[N601RX]

Jeff,

I'm not sure what atmosphere your looking for, but North Captiva is only about a mile North of Sanibel.  It has a runway and you can rent a house on the corner of the runway/beach, literally 20 ft from the runway.  There is no bridges to the island, so its quieter and less congestion than some of the other places. There are a couple of places to eat as well as a small store. You can also rent a boat or jetski for the week.  There is a ferry back to the mainland or you can use it as an excuse to fire up the plane.  Most all the homes come with a golf cart and kayaks. The island has been left more natural and not commercialized like some. Its also a quick trip down to Key West for the day. We really enjoyed it. The prices there are very reasonable.

 

http://www.mooneyspace.com/topic/10293-flew-the-mooney-into-north-captiva-island-for-a-long-weekend

 

http://www.saltyapproach.com

[Htwjr]

Life raft is not required, but I carried life vests which are required. I tried to rent a raft at Ft Pierce but none were available. I also carried a handheld marine radio. Since I did not have a raft we crossed in the morning by the shortest possible overwater route by going down to West Palm before crossing. We were only over water 20-25 minutes and there was a good bit of boat traffic so I felt safe. Another thing I love about the Mooney is the retracable gear which I believe gives you a much better chance of a successful ditching than a fixed gear.

[Bob_Belville]

Life raft is not required, but I carried life vests which are required. I tried to rent a raft at Ft Pierce but none were available. I also carried a handheld marine radio. Since I did not have a raft we crossed in the morning by the shortest possible overwater route by going down to West Palm before crossing. We were only over water 20-25 minutes and there was a good bit of boat traffic so I felt safe. Another thing I love about the Mooney is the retracable gear which I believe gives you a much better chance of a successful ditching than a fixed gear.

I crossed Lake Michigan once from Milwaukee to Muskegon which is probably more risky the WPB to Nassau. Definite pucker power. Engine makes strange noises... 

[Hank]

I heard strange noises going over the Everglades from Palm Beach to Ft. Lauderdale. Turned out to be Com 2, tuned to FXE ATIS, with the volume all the way down. Made me feel much better. That's a lot of swamp down there!