DON'T TELL ME IT CANT BE DONE!

[Tim Jodice]

The usual Cirrus vs Mooney post made me think of this. Not to often people talk about 152s.

I had nice talk with my private/multi instructor. Reminded me of the day I got my private. Like everyone that gets their pilots licence i was excited and I was hanging around the flight school, I couldn't get enough. I had flown only a 152 and I thought it was the best thing since sliced bread even though i knew almost everything out there was bigger faster etc. I was talking about my solo flights and on one of them I climbed to 7000.

Then in the background this guy that reminded me of Fat Bastard from Austin Powers said "I can't believe you got it that high". I asked why not the book says it has a 14,700 ceiling. he starts laughing just like the Fat Bastard and said "no way it would ever get that high"!

Remember I loved the 152 so i am like  Later that day I rented the 152 filed a VFR flight plan so it would show up on flight aware. Filed KASH-KCON-KASH at 14,500. I called ground copied the flight plan and he cleared me to taxi. Halfway to the runway he asked me what I was doing so I told him the story. He clears me for take off and said good luck. I am thinking why doesn't any one think it will make it. I get handed off to approach and then they ask me "what are you intentions?" I tell him and he said with a laugh "altitude your discretion. around 10,000 I got handed of to center, she could care less and was rather busy. Knowing that you can't be above 12,500 for more that 30 min when I passed 12,500 I started the timer. It took 21 min to go from 12,500 to 14,000. Took pictures outside and of coarse the altimeter. I told center I would like to descend to Nashua"proceed as requested. handed back to approach and I said, I made it to 14,000. He said, I know we were all watching and I lost $10 buck to a bet! Back to tower He clears me to land and said I see that you made it up there. he asks what was the point of that? I said because Cessna said I could and someone told me I couldn't.

That following Saturday I Showed Fat Bastard the proof and he got mad that proved him wrong. It was hilarious! looking back at it now he reminds me of my 9 year old right before bedtime.

In his defense it most likely would not have made it there with him in it.

[vorlon1]

You're in good company. On my long cross country solo in a 152 I got to 12,500 and stayed there for 15-20 minutes or so. It was a HOT day and as I recall, that was about as high as I could get it! Good times...

[steingar]

I recall getting my 150 up into the teens on a couple occasions, though it took a LONG time.  Never hit 14K, heck I haven't even done that in the Mooney.

[David Lloyd]

Got an old PA28-140 to 10,500 on one of my solo cross country flights.  Later on a hot day from Abilene with wife and baggage, it would not get to 10k.  No coaxing could get it above 9.5k.  Ah, the good old days!

Just now realized that the old 140 was only 10 years old at the time!  Sold that and bought an old  '65 Mooney that was only 15 years old.

[EricJ]

That's awesome.    I did something similar in a C-150 when I was a teenager, and ATC was not involved. 

 

[rbridges]

Haha.  Good story.  I hope you weren't the kid that got his tongue frozen to the flag pole because someone said you couldn't do it in the winter.  

[N201MKTurbo]

When I lived in Denver, before I bought my Mooney, I was renting, usually a Cutlass RG or a Hawk XP to fly over the Rockies.  I had a job in Steamboat Springs that I knew would only take a few minutes, so I asked my neighbor if he wanted to do a half day of skiing. Well the two 172s were not available. All I could get was a 152. I thought, it will make it to 12,500, that's all I need.

Well we took off and headed to the pass to make the crossing. When we got to 9500 the plane just quit climbing! I think I was in a very mild mountain wave down draft. I cruised north for about 20 miles looking for some climb, but it wasn't going to happen. Turned around, flew back to the airport, apologized to my neighbor and drove to Steamboat....

[Tim Jodice]

14 minutes ago, rbridges said:

Haha.  Good story.  I hope you weren't the kid that got his tongue frozen to the flag pole because someone said you couldn't do it in the winter.  

If Cessna hadn't put 14,700 in the POH I probably would have believed him

[MB65E]

I remember spinning down from one of my 14k episodes In Southern Illinois. I lost count of the turns and the windows fogged over. N6422Q

-Matt

[rbridges]

15 minutes ago, airtim said:

If Cessna hadn't put 14,700 in the POH I probably would have believed him

sadly, you've flown higher in a 152 than I've flown in my mooney.  

[Air pirate]

10 hours ago, MB65E said:

I remember spinning down from one of my 14k episodes In Southern Illinois. I lost count of the turns and the windows fogged over. N6422Q

-Matt

I ran the SIU radio station in the old days “ WCKO Carbondale’s rock and soul”. Didn’t have the $ to fly back then and hardly had enough for food , good times 

[carusoam]

So few people have the C152 experience to climb that high...

When you rent by the hour, your time slot expires before you get there....

The climb takes forever, and the descent is only a few minutes... 

Memorable flight!

Best regards,

-a-

[donkaye]

Brings back memories... It was January 27, 1968; N3660J, a Cessna 150.  10 logbooks ago.  I was working on my private and the instructor, Paul Ellis, a fireman at his day job, said we were going on the dual cross country even though it was a bad weather day.  Being stupid at the time and relying on his experience, I agreed to go.  We took off from San Jose and were going to Stockton.  The 150 was real sloooow in the climb in which, due to weather, we climbed to 11,500 to get around some clouds.  I remember him casually smoking his pipe in the hour long climb with the last 500 feet climbing at about 100 ft/min.  We made it to Stockton.  Then the real fun began.  We visited the FSS that was on the field at the time (good old days).  It didn't look good for the return.  We took off on the way back to San Jose through what I now know was the Altamont Pass.  As we approached the pass we hit really heavy rain and turbulence.  Paul took the plane, rolled into a 60° bank and did a 180.  We landed in Tracy.  I wanted to kiss the ground.  I told him I wanted to take the bus back to San Jose.  He said, "No way" and that we could make it back.  Against my better judgment, I got back in the plane and we took off.  I watched Paul closely this time around.  No casual smoking of a pipe; he was very intense.  That gave me a whole lot of confidence.  Right.  Anyway, we did make it back in one piece with a lot of creaking of the 150's wing.  Years later I saw what the ribs of the 150 wing were made of.  You could easily bend them with you hands.  It was the finished structure and support to the fuselage that held it together.

52 years and 11½ thousand flight hours later it's a different story.  The Mooney wing is like no other, and I don't even give it a second thought to climb to 17,000 feet in 17 minutes in the Bravo.

 

 

[rbridges]

7 hours ago, donkaye said:

Brings back memories... It was January 27, 1968; N3660J, a Cessna 150.  10 logbooks ago.  I was working on my private and the instructor, Paul Ellis, a fireman at his day job, said we were going on the dual cross country even though it was a bad weather day.  Being stupid at the time and relying on his experience, I agreed to go.  We took off from San Jose and were going to Stockton.  The 150 was real sloooow in the climb in which, due to weather, we climbed to 11,500 to get around some clouds.  I remember him casually smoking his pipe in the hour long climb with the last 500 feet climbing at about 100 ft/min.  We made it to Stockton.  Then the real fun began.  We visited the FSS that was on the field at the time (good old days).  It didn't look good for the return.  We took off on the way back to San Jose through what I now know was the Altamont Pass.  As we approached the pass we hit really heavy rain and turbulence.  Paul took the plane, rolled into a 60° bank and did a 180.  We landed in Tracy.  I wanted to kiss the ground.  I told him I wanted to take the bus back to San Jose.  He said, "No way" and that we could make it back.  Against my better judgment, I got back in the plane and we took off.  I watched Paul closely this time around.  No casual smoking of a pipe; he was very intense.  That gave me a whole lot of confidence.  Right.  Anyway, we did make it back in one piece with a lot of creaking of the 150's wing.  Years later I saw what the ribs of the 150 wing were made of.  You could easily bend them with you hands.  It was the finished structure and support to the fuselage that held it together.

52 years and 11½ thousand flight hours later it's a different story.  The Mooney wing is like no other, and I don't even give it a second thought to climb to 17,000 feet in 17 minutes in the Bravo.

 

 

That cessna is still alive and kicking.  Registered in San Diego.  Might be a trainer.  Flightaware shows lots of flights.  

It was only 2 years old when you took that flight.  I don't think I've ever sat in a plane that new.  

Edited June 23, 2020 by rbridges

[donkaye]

1 hour ago, rbridges said:

That cessna is still alive and kicking.  Registered in San Diego.  Might be a trainer.  Flightaware shows lots of flights.  

It was only 2 years old when you took that flight.  I don't think I've ever sat in a plane that new.  

Good find!  I posted last last night and should have looked it up myself.  54 years and still going strong.  I bet it has some history going for it.  Ironically, I left San Diego for the Bay Area, and it left the Bay Area for San Diego.  It got the better deal.

[MooneyMitch]

Well, this thread has prompted me to search for my initial Cessna training airplanes..................so:

1st flying lesson.............May 20, 1972............Cessna 150, N6035G, Lompoc, CA..............now located in Lincoln, CA

7th flying lesson............ May 31,1972............Cessna 150, N50878, Lompoc, CA...............February, 1999, aircraft destoryed/fatality, landing approach to Mariposa/Yosemite airport, CA.

[steingar]

My 150 first moved to Oregon and now lives in Tennessee.  It seems to really like mountains.

 

[MooneyMitch]

I'll have to admit............my first couple of flying lessons, I was ready to stop!

So interesting as I'd loved airplanes from some of my very first memories of my life.  Always hung around the airports.  My dad would take me to watch them and to get up very close to them.  Our country neighbors in Tulsa had their own airplane [C140 then one of the first C172's) and I'd hang around their place all the time.

Always knew I'd eventually learn to fly and have my own airplane!

Yet, the first couple of flights, I was terrified the bottom of the plane was going to fall out from under me................and I seriously asked myself...........WTF are you doing?  After I got past that................all was incredible, and still is to this day.  I still marvel at the ability to fly and behold all................amazing! 

[bonal]

We took our 150 to 11500 on a trip to Quincy two on board with some overnight bags and only about ten gallons under full by the time we reached that altitude .  The mountains around the airport there are around 7k feet and I wanted to be as high as possible when crossing them.  Once we had the field in sight I had to lose about 8k feet with the field only about five miles out.  Learned a lot about flight profiles that day very early in my private pilot experience.  I think when I leveled off we were still getting over a hundred feet per minute.   Interesting that is as high as I've ever taken our C.

[Hank]

I grabbed an instructor and oxygen bottle before heading West and took my C somewhat slowly to 15,000msl. She didn't handle too nicely, a little sluggish; had to step-climb the last couple thousand feet.

When I got down, I wrote down OAT and altimeter setting, then found the formulae online and the DA that afternoon was 18,800--which fully expalined the poor climb.

Coming back down was fun, we practiced emergency descents both straigt ahead near Vne and spirals. Fun! It's amazing how fast you can fall out of the sky in a 45° spiral at cruise power. We did several of each descent type.