Looking to buy a FIKI Mooney

[gjkirsch]

I have owned two Bravos one with inadvertant icing protection and one (current) with approved known icing protection.  I never had any problem with the system in either plane.  FWIW, my plane with inadvertant icing protection DID have a windshield spray bar, prop slinger,  and ice light but not the heated stall and second pump. 

I have never been in a situation where the system did not handle the ice (and don't want to be!).  To me the turbo is  another out that may allow you to climb above the weather. 

[N513ZM]

So I'll tell a story… this is from memory so if anyone has a copy of an email post I made contemporaneously to mooney, mooney-tech or longbody-mooney@aviating.com that differs in some details please forgive my aging neurons. 

 

Couple of years ago I was heading back to Cincinnati from Bridgeport CT. Leaving KBDR and heading west through PA, pretty much the only route you will get is KBDR-BHVN5-CMK-SAX-V249-SBJ-V30-ETX-V162-HAR-DIRECT. It's climb to 6000 out of BDR, up to 7000 once past KHPN and up to 8000 once over the Hudson River. The route is essentially a big left hook around the NYC Class B and ATC is very constrained in the altitudes and lateral routes they can give you due to the arrival corridors for KHPN, KLGA, KTEB and KEWR. Once you've crossed the river and until you get past KMMU you are in a virtual tunnel that extends from 6000 to 8000 and a couple miles on either side of the route. During a push (rush hour) ATC has to move heaven and earth to respond to any unusual requests. Once you are past KMMU and turned right towards KABE things ease up and when handed off to Allentown Approach they are very accommodating re altitude and course.

 

It was January I think, 3 or 4 years ago and in the early morning during the push. PIREPS were being posted for light to moderate icing between 3000 and 7000 along my route of flight but the reports seemed spotty with holes in them (areas of non icing) and I figured I would be above it. The tops were being called around 7000. Seemed doable - a 30 minute slog and then freedom as the wx cleared west of NY metro.

 

Out of KBDR with TKS primed on the ground, I was in the clouds by 2000' or so and I began accreting ice abeam KHPN. In an out of the clouds in layers, I would get ice, no ice, cloud, no cloud but once I was climbed to 8000 I was still in the clouds (so much for the tops report) TKS on high, and the ice became constant and began accreting very rapidly. Within 2 or 3 minutes I had at least an inch of shiny clear ice on my leading edge and the TKS was clearly being overwhelmed. I had no way of knowing how widespread this icing region was but I could hear multiple reports of ice - some of them using the word "severe", on the frequency. I motored on, my heart beating faster and palms getting sweaty as I waited what seemed like an hour to get a word in edgewise on the frequency. 

 

Finally I grabbed a moment and managed to squeak out : "Mooney 3ZM, in moderate to severe icing, I need a climb immediately". The response was (pardon the pun) chilling: "unable, stand by". Another few minutes passed and I had lost about 15KIAS and had a LOT of ice all over the plane. I was afraid to look back at the tail feathers and held the yoke lightly trying to feel for any "snatch"  from a tail stall and trying to talk my brain into staying calm. I was talking to myself out loud, talking myself thru what to do if I stalled, what I could do, where I could go. Finally, after what seemed like forever ATC came back to me and asked if I was still in icing conditions. I replied I was and that I needed higher immediately. 

 

I think the controller could hear the rising panic in my voice and she came back right away with a climb to 9000. I was climbing before she finished talking, but 9000 wasn't too much better. The ice seemed less severe, but I was getting thrown around something fierce and the airplane had a sloppy feel to it. I could see I was in or near the tops, the clouds were lighter above me. "NY, 3ZM, this isn't much better, I'm going to need higher and I need it right now". Again: "Unable higher, let me see what I can do". She cam back shortly and offered me a climb to 10,000 if I would accept a vector to LHY (a right turn). You betcha!

 

At 9400 or 9500 I broke out into the sunshine and began breathing again. It took 15 or 20 minutes before the TKS could get rid of all that ice.

 

Now for questions about approaches - I have been fairly lucky in that I've never had to shoot an approach in heavy icing conditions. Most of the time I would get ice in the descent or on a segment of the flight plan leading to the approach and the TKS pretty much had take care of things before the FAF. There have been one or two exceptions but on both I broke out relatively high and landed with 1/2 flaps and 10 KIAS extra speed. Anytime I encountered ice in the last 30 minutes of flight I would land with 1/2 flaps and extra speed, just in case. I have not had to make a no flaps landing due to ice on approach - yet - but I am prepared and have practiced no flap landings to make sure I was comfortable with the different sight picture, the extra speed and driving it onto the runway. 

 

I want to say that in the 5 years and hundreds of flights I made back and forth from Cincinnati to Bridgeport, my tolerance for dangerous wx initially went up and then gradually went way down. By the time I stopped commuting I had no more stomach for ice flights as I have described above. The most dangerous aspect of FIKI systems on Mooneys is not pump failure or electrical failure etc. It's the fact that you are likely to make flights in a FIKI airplane that you would not otherwise make.

 

Be careful, be cautious, be chicken. While there is no official determination yet the TBM 850 that crashed in NJ on 12/20/11 sounds very much like an icing accident that killed 5 people including 2 children. Need I mention that the TBM 850 has 700-850 SHP? And is a FIKI airplane (boots). So much for climbing to safety…

 

So some SOPs of mine - YMMV and I don't recommend these practices to anyone - this is simply how I fly my FIKI Ovation2.

 

Prime on the ground if icing conditions are expected enroute.

TKS on low before entering clouds.

Titrate fluid flow as needed - low, high, off.

I always play a mental game of conserving TKS fluid as much as possible in the first half of a flight and as I get closer to destination I use it more freely (if available).

Anything more than light rime, I hand fly.

I'm always watching the wings, tail and ASI.

Loss of 5KIAS gets my attention.

Loss of 10KIAS and I'm changing something - altitude, course etc.

ALWAYS leave an out.

 

Needless to say, ice flying is somewhat stressful. You never know when conditions may change for the worse (see story above).

 

And yes, I'm aware that inadvertent ice systems come with some of the goodies - I wasn't sure if that included the spray bar or the light. I stand corrected.

 

Be safe. Be humble. Nature is bigger than a Mooney.

[dpmatsalla]

I've read it twice now...  What an amazing story!  I certainly aspire to learn from your lessons in NY, and I'll be considering a lot of your recommendations in my own checklists.  Thanks, so much Mike! 

[aviatoreb]

Quote: N513ZM

Needless to say, ice flying is somewhat stressful. You never know when conditions may change for the worse (see story above).

 

And yes, I'm aware that inadvertent ice systems come with some of the goodies - I wasn't sure if that included the spray bar or the light. I stand corrected.

 

Be safe. Be humble. Nature is bigger than a Mooney.

 

[DaV8or]

Quote: N513ZM

 

So I'll tell a story…

 

The most dangerous aspect of FIKI systems on Mooneys is not pump failure or electrical failure etc. It's the fact that you are likely to make flights in a FIKI airplane that you would not otherwise make.

 

Be careful, be cautious, be chicken. While there is no official determination yet the TBM 850 that crashed in NJ on 12/20/11 sounds very much like an icing accident that killed 5 people including 2 children. Need I mention that the TBM 850 has 700-850 SHP? And is a FIKI airplane (boots). So much for climbing to safety…

 

Be safe. Be humble. Nature is bigger than a Mooney.

 

[N513ZM]

I'd like to add that I remember the departure decision as being one where conditions just didn't look that bad. I'm not a daredevil - I'm actually pretty cautious and have often made decisions to cancel or postpone a trip or to divert due to wx - including icing. The point I'm making is the unpredicatble nature of ice from one minute to the next. The most important factors I look at is how widespread is the forecast icing and how low is the freezing level and clouds. That with a supply of PIREPS is usually a very good indicator of what a trip will be like.

The real learning experience for me in the story I related was not how qucikly the ice could accrete, or how the airplane handled, etc - but the fact that there are pieces of airspace where you may not have the escape route or bolt hole you think you have due to ATC restrictions. In those conditions the E word can be the only way out. You can be assured that after that experience I looked at flyng that departure corridor in icing conditions differently.

I have been in cruise at FL170 west of LHY, headed east where when I began picking up ice I was uncomfortable with and asked for and recieved lower. The ice actually increased as I descended and was worse through FL150 so I asked for and was given clearance to take it all the way down to FL110. At FL12.5 I came out the bottom and all the excitement ended.

I've made many a trip that I wouldn't have been able to make without TKS, many more without FIKI, and the TKS gave me a sense of assurance and confidence that would otherwise have been lacking. But I've probably made several trips I simply should not have made simply because of that very same sense of assurance.

Its a great thing, just use carefully.

 

[N513ZM]

Quote: DaV8or

Thanks again for the story. Maybe you can move somewhere sunnier someday.

[aviatoreb]

Quote: N513ZM

I've made many a trip that I wouldn't have been able to make without TKS, many more without FIKI, and the TKS gave me a sense of assurance and confidence that would otherwise have been lacking. But I've probably made several trips I simply should not have made simply because of that very same sense of assurance.

Its a great thing, just use carefully.

[dpmatsalla]

Well, I finally got my FIKI Mooney!!  Here's a couple of pictures of N223KT, my 1990 M20M from Arizona.  Not only is it FIKI, but that turbo really pushes this plane through the teens and twenties.  I just flew it back to Ontario, Canada yesterday and wow, what an improvement from my old J!  At 13,000' we were averaging about 190 KTAS at 18 GPH - pretty sweet!  The long body and extra takes a bit of getting used to - it takes a little more muscle to manoeuvre it, and it seems to sit back on landings - but I'm definitely sold on the Bravo!

Now I'll have to wait for a week or so until the customs paperwork goes through.  Once it does, the plane will be renamed to C-GDEV (named after me... Devon), and I'll be flying it all around Central and Eastern Canada.  Knowing the weather around here, that TKS will probably get a good workout now and then.  

Thanks again to everyone that helped me out with all the advice and support!  

Devon

[BrianNC]

Congrats! Looked your flight up on Flightaware and has you at 193KT average groundspeed for that first leg. Not bad.

[Steve Dawson]

Congratulations Devon, Your plane is parked close to my hanger so I had a quick look at it this morning. Great Plane. Just curious, what is the "Aerotech certification"  thats mentioned on the cowl?

Steve

 

[dpmatsalla]

Thanks, Steve.  The previous owner was using the plane as a charter/courrier service in his company called Aerotech.  He sold N223KT because he's upgrading to something larger.  

Seems I'll have some painting ahead of me to get rid of all that, plus putting the new CA registration on it.  

See you around!
Devon

[jelswick]

Congratulations Devon!  Beautiful Mooney!