My Son needs retract time — best plane?

[JayDub6387]

Hello,  My Son has his private check ride on April 19th.  I fly a TBM and my Son will need a few hundred hours of retract and high performance time before he can be insured to fly my plane.  Would a 1998 Ovation be a good plane for my Son to build hours?  He learned in an SR-20.   Thanks for your counsel. JW

[802flyer]

If he did the PPL in a SR20, I would recommend he get enough hours in the SR20 to feel truly proficient at solo cross country flight. There’s no real point to stepping up to something complex and high performance for pattern work and 25nm hamburger runs.

Then ideally it would make sense for him to log some SR22 time which can get him used to the extra power/torque/speed, as well as more complicated/careful engine management. Assuming he’s renting the SR20 from a school, hopefully they have a 22 he can grow into.

Once he is proficient in the SR22, moving into an ovation would be a good next step to build complex time and do some fun traveling while building time towards insurability in the TBM.

There are folks here who did initial training in high performance Mooneys and I’m sure they’ll be along, but if he’s already comfortable with the cirrus platform, this seems like a much more logical progression. And building some time in the SR22 won’t exactly suck.

If you own the SR20 and need to buy the next plane rather than renting a 22, maybe that tips the scales toward the “drink from the firehose” approach.


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[Schllc]

Yes, the ovation would be an excellent choice. The Mooney flies a lot more like the tbm than the cirrus.
Get good instruction, be serious about the training, and learn the Mooney and its idiosyncrasies. 
I completed my ppl in an ovation and moved straight into my IR in the ovation. 
it is a great learning platform. 

[exM20K]

Considering the frequency of prop strikes by both Mooney and TBM pilots, the Ovation is probably an excellent choice to build retract time and learn to protect the nose gear on landing.

-dan

[LANCECASPER]

11 hours ago, JayDub6387 said:

Hello,  My Son has his private check ride on April 19th.  I fly a TBM and my Son will need a few hundred hours of retract and high performance time before he can be insured to fly my plane.  Would a 1998 Ovation be a good plane for my Son to build hours?  He learned in an SR-20.   Thanks for your counsel. JW

If all he does is just the obligatory insurance-mandated transition hours with a CFI in the Ovation, he may OK, or he may learn some bad Mooney habits.

Depending on what part of the country you live, @mike_elliott (east coast) or @donkaye (west coast) would provide excellent transition training. The number one new Mooney pilot incident is a porpoise then a prop strike on landing, These guys will help him avoid that.

[mike_elliott]

I have had a number of clients move on to TBMs after they have owned s long body Mooney. They both are "numbers" planes and behave very similarly. A few have gotten their PPL in the Ovations and Acclaims and paid the big bucks for first year insurance premiums. One Boeing fellow bought an Ovation for his son in lieu of college as he wanted to be an airline pilot. He currently is flying for netjets professionally. 

Lots of ways to skin the retract time cat, but not too many better than in a Mooney

[MikeOH]

Another great Mooney CFII on the west coast is Paul @kortopates

[Mooneymite]

16 hours ago, JayDub6387 said:

 will need a few hundred hours of retract 

Retract time?  Here's a GREAT choice.  No 'complex'ities to distract from the main task:  making sure the gear is down for landing!

The 4 GPH and sliding canopy are just side benefits!  

[Andy95W]

2 hours ago, Mooneymite said:

Retract time?  Here's a GREAT choice.  No 'complex'ities to distract from the main task:  making sure the gear is down for landing!

The 4 GPH and sliding canopy are just side benefits!  

Gus, I agree with you 100%, but somehow I get the impression that cost effectiveness isn’t going to figure into this decision.

Makes me wonder why my father didn’t buy me an Ovation. 

[LANCECASPER]

20 minutes ago, Andy95W said:

Makes me wonder why my father didn’t buy me an Ovation. 

My parents didn't buy me a bicycle . . lol. I had a paper route and earned it myself.

[Danb]

Sounds familiar L

[JayDub6387]

Gents,  Thanks very much for your responses.  Prior to my TBM I owned two SR-22’s, and Ben flew many hours with me in that platform.  He also flies with me in the TBM, so he’s used to high performance machines.  I appreciate the referral to Mike Elliott and I’ll reach out to him for some extended Mooney Ovation training for Ben.   With appreciation,   JW

Edited April 8 by JayDub6387

[JayDub6387]

3 hours ago, Andy95W said:

Gus, I agree with you 100%, but somehow I get the impression that cost effectiveness isn’t going to figure into this decision.

Makes me wonder why my father didn’t buy me an Ovation. 

Thanks.  My Son’s purchasing the aircraft — I’m just assisting with the DD and cost is definitely factoring into the equation.

Edited April 8 by JayDub6387

[Mufflerbearing]

Isn't the M in TBM Mooney?  Why move away from the family?

The Ovation is an amazing platform and I think the perfect step to the TBM.

[philiplane]

A later model Ovation with G1000 avionics would make an even easier transition to the TBM.

[LANCECASPER]

52 minutes ago, philiplane said:

A later model Ovation with G1000 avionics would make an even easier transition to the TBM.

I agree, but only if the TBM is 2008 or newer, when they started using the G1000. Hard to believe but TBMs have been around since 1990. 

[Schllc]

The tbm is a really nice plane. It is a completely different class from any piston, and even the meridian. It is built like a military plane.
It is solid and quality everywhere. I was surprised at how tight it is for the pilots, and you miss the position of the Mooney as well as have limited recline on the backs of the seats, but I logged some time in one, flying  to Alaska and back from south Florida.

[William Munney]

Yes.  A very good trainer for the TBM depending on the avionics.  Speed management and descent planning are a must.  Great airplane.  My son is building time in ours as well for his aviation career.

[Danb]

On 4/7/2024 at 10:00 AM, mike_elliott said:

I have had a number of clients move on to TBMs after they have owned s long body Mooney. They both are "numbers" planes and behave very similarly. A few have gotten their PPL in the Ovations and Acclaims and paid the big bucks for first year insurance premiums. One Boeing fellow bought an Ovation for his son in lieu of college as he wanted to be an airline pilot. He currently is flying for netjets professionally. 

Lots of ways to skin the retract time cat, but not too many better than in a Mooney

Things have changed there are many avenues to get to the bigs, I have a friend pilot who had his daughter go the route without attending college I just finished her tax return which was her first as  an officer, this being her first real job BTW at PSair, her w-2 was in excess of $155,000,  not bad for a country girl emulating daddy. Get those kids up and flying I have quite a few pilots, mechanics etc, one mechanic for Delta made $100+, gosh I’d be great to be young again. Hell I have a surgical nurse making just under $200..