1st time in a Mooney today! Another soul converted

[jmills]

Well, went up in a Mooney for the first time today. One word. Wow!

Thanks to Ken Reed (and his A&P mechanic who owns the plane I flew in) for coming up to Vegas. My mission today? To see if my cro-magnon sized body (6'3" 250 lbs) would work in a Mooney, and to find out if a low time (80 hours) Cessna-only pilot like myself would be utterly overwhelmed by a Mooney. I can safely report that I fit quite nicely, and it was a pleasure to fly (as all of you already know). With a good instructor and some time behind the controls, I'm sure I could settle right in relatively quickly in one of these birds.

The overall experience was quite positive. The firm feeling at the controls and how fast the plane wanted go (even with the power pulled back while descending for the approach back to HND) was impressive to me. My hunt for either a M20F or possibly a M20J (need some more back seat room for my daughter and to possibly account for a 4th member to the family down the road), is now likely to commence.

- jason

PS Btw, Ken's mission today was quite clear to me; covert another soul from GA pilot to Mooniac. Safe to say, he did so.

[piperpainter]

Awesome! Welcome to the addiction!

[KLRDMD]

Quote: jmills

PS Btw, Ken's mission today was quite clear to me; covert another soul from GA pilot to Mooniac. Safe to say, he did so.

[Qwalton]

I'm glad to hear you've been converted! I was sure a Mooney would be great for you when I first saw your thread on the red board. I'm glad you now feel the same way!  

 

If you should ever find yourself in So Cal let me know and we can get together and do some Mooney flying.

[mooneygirl]

Welcome to the family Jason!

[Hank]

Congratulations and welcome to the club!

     I had 62 hours and a four-week-old paper temporary certificate when I bought mine. All it takes is a good Mooney CFI, some patience, lots of practice and an agent willing to work with you to find insurance. The first year was painful, but well worth it. FLY AT LEAST 100 MOONEY HOURS IN YOUR FIRST YEAR OF OWNERSHIP!! Keep flying while looking, too, aiming for 100 hours total if not PIC. My insurance dropped 50% with 100 Mooney hours, and should drop another third when I finish off my IFR rating next week.

     There is much good information buried in old posts here about the different models and body lengths, but for me, a short body fits just fine and I like the electric gear. Had I ended up with manual gear, I'd probably like it that way instead. Just fly the numbers, Mooneys require finesse . . .

     All said, it's an airplane, fly it like one. Have fun, be safe, and a Mooney is certainly not beyond your ability.

[jmills]

Well, that's good to hear Hank. I have some calls into some Ins. agents now, as I'd like to feel the waters out before jumping in!

[danb35]

Just as another data point, I was at about $1800 for my first year's insurance on '48Q as a 75-hour, non-instrument-rated pilot with 1.5 time in type, and $65k in hull coverage.  Two years later, with 230 hours more (all in the Mooney) and an instrument rating, it's now about $1200.

[KLRDMD]

Quote: Hank

My insurance dropped 50% with 100 Mooney hours, and should drop another third when I finish off my IFR rating next week.

[KLRDMD]

Quote: jmills

Well, that's good to hear Hank. I have some calls into some Ins. agents now, as I'd like to feel the waters out before jumping in!

[KLRDMD]

Quote: JimR

[Barry]

AOPA ... 300 hours total time, 50 hours in complex, 20 of those hours in HP, $50,000 hull + $1Mil = $1400/yr. Not too bad ...

[Parker_Woodruff]

For insurance, like Ken said, you need the agent to shop all underwriters.  There are some new players in the industry, the most notable for me has been Starr who currently underwrites my insurance.

They undercut AIG by $500 for me this year on a policy which includes rental to a local aviation rep.

[Parker_Woodruff]

PS: My agent thru Starr also got me several throw-ins, like $50k hull non-owned coverage, up to $10k or $15k rental should my plane be involved in an accident, among other things, like a waiver of subrogation for my renter.

[jmills]

Quote: KLRDMD

"Some agents" will not be a benefit. You'll find that you have to lock into one agent/broker who will then shop all the possible underwriters. Shopping for aviation insurance isn't like shopping for auto insurance. At this point, you have a bit of a fudge factor as you aren't shopping a specific tail #, however.

[jmills]

Quote: KLRDMD

Excellent point.  So . . . what is the consensus on the "best" Mooney insurance broker to use?

Jim