Has the Mooney Caravan abandoned Mooneyspace?

[donkaye]

55 minutes ago, Pinecone said:

I am unlikely to go to Oshkosh (can't take the heat, humidity and the walking), but if I did, I would check out one of the formation clinics and see what I think.   I think I have a pretty good background to assess the program.

 

We started going to Oshkosh in 1999.  Since then we've missed 2; One in 2020 AirVenture cancelled due to Covid and another in 2023.  During the  early years there were some AirVentures where the weather was hot and humid.  For some lucky reason for the last 5 years that we have attended the weather has been dry and cool for the most part.  This year, after a lot of arm twisting, I was finally able to convince Shirley to rent a scooter for $80/day.  I walked, she rode.  After the fact she really liked it.  I figured I walked about 5 or 6 miles per day.  I tried to get the exact mileage but the app I was using took so much battery that after 3 hours and 3.5 miles my phone was down to 22%.  Being a life member of EAA allows you to use the Oasis where everything is free; drinks, candy, chips, etc.  Even better is being a donor where you can use the PHP house.  We had invitations there to a very good breakfast and late afternoon get togethers where a lot of food is served.  Also, the AOPA dinner at  the Waters is one of the highlights of AirVenture (see photo)

 

 

[Rick Junkin]

19 hours ago, Skates97 said:

That was just one individual, and I know many others who fly in the Caravan and he is not representative of the group, but it was a turn off.

One bad apple. Sometimes that's all it takes. You're not alone, others share your perception and opinion.

My wife and I flew with the Caravan in 2018 and had an amazing time. We met a lot of awesome folks who have become life friends. We met some few other folks as well, as is to be expected in a relatively diverse group. We weren't able to participate in 2019 so we have no first hand knowledge, but we were not surprised when we heard of what had happened and who was involved. We decided to sit 2020 out because of it, which became a moot point. We haven't made time to get to KOSH again until this year, which I did single ship with my good friend @Zulee in the right seat on Thursday morning before the NOTAM went into effect.

Lots of good work has been done by the Caravan leadership to further formalize and enforce what was already a good program. The formation clinic program was already excellent in 2018. The revised administrative and operations procedures close some holes and explicitly prevent the misses that occurred in 2019. This is my opinion after reading through everything on the Caravan website. They did a good thorough job in reviewing and mitigating the 2019 incident.

The Caravan is an awesome way to get to KOSH. In the process of preparing you get to learn a new skill, and meet and build trust in a great group of Mooney pilots. The trust you build is perhaps the most important part. The friendships are the most valuable part.

Cheers,
Junkman

[Pinecone]

On 8/26/2024 at 11:36 AM, donkaye said:

We started going to Oshkosh in 1999.  Since then we've missed 2; One in 2020 AirVenture cancelled due to Covid and another in 2023.  During the  early years there were some AirVentures where the weather was hot and humid.  For some lucky reason for the last 5 years that we have attended the weather has been dry and cool for the most part.  This year, after a lot of arm twisting, I was finally able to convince Shirley to rent a scooter for $80/day.  I walked, she rode.  After the fact she really liked it.  

 

I would definitely need a scooter.  Did you camp?  How did that work?

If you were there for opening day 1999, did you see the 63 plane formation of T-34s for the 50 anniversary?  I was flying in that formation.

[Danb]

On 8/6/2024 at 11:46 AM, donkaye said:

I think the Mooney Caravan is one of the most professionally run, most organized and safety conscious groups I have had the privilege of flying with.  I've flown into Oshkosh with them a number of times.  No one is permitted to participate without training.  My main reason for not flying the Caravan the past few years has to do with my weekly logistics, the fact that I don't want to taxi on grass, and I want my airplane hangared for the week.  As such, I land in Madison, rent a car for the week, and drive through some beautiful country for an hour and fifteen minutes on my way to Oshkosh.

I do the same but go into Green Bay..

[hoot777]

Anyone report on the Caravan this year ???

[Marc_B]

19 minutes ago, hoot777 said:

Anyone report on the Caravan this year ???

52 Mooneys, great weather, very smoothly done by all and a great year.   Here's a video from YouTube; caravan starts around 7:30in

 

[JohnB]

On 9/3/2024 at 5:46 AM, Marc_B said:

52 Mooneys, great weather, very smoothly done by all and a great year.   Here's a video from YouTube; caravan starts around 7:30in

 

What great videos! Thanks for sharing Marc. Was very nice to see one's own plane's arrival in awesome formation. And the takeoff from MSN, lead organization, masterfully crafted by Clippy. Incredibly Great experience!

[N9201A]

One bad apple. Sometimes that's all it takes. You're not alone, others share your perception and opinion.
My wife and I flew with the Caravan in 2018 and had an amazing time. We met a lot of awesome folks who have become life friends. We met some few other folks as well, as is to be expected in a relatively diverse group. We weren't able to participate in 2019 so we have no first hand knowledge, but we were not surprised when we heard of what had happened and who was involved. We decided to sit 2020 out because of it, which became a moot point. We haven't made time to get to KOSH again until this year, which I did single ship with my good friend [mention=8793]Zulee[/mention] in the right seat on Thursday morning before the NOTAM went into effect.
Lots of good work has been done by the Caravan leadership to further formalize and enforce what was already a good program. The formation clinic program was already excellent in 2018. The revised administrative and operations procedures close some holes and explicitly prevent the misses that occurred in 2019. This is my opinion after reading through everything on the Caravan website. They did a good thorough job in reviewing and mitigating the 2019 incident.
The Caravan is an awesome way to get to KOSH. In the process of preparing you get to learn a new skill, and meet and build trust in a great group of Mooney pilots. The trust you build is perhaps the most important part. The friendships are the most valuable part.
Cheers,
Junkman

You’re always welcome Junkman! We’ve advanced our ADM and risk management quite a bit in the last few years.