That may very well be… I’ll shut up and see…
Bobo, I enjoyed your comments very much. A lot of people will ‘logic and conform’ themselves (and everybody else!) right into misery given half a chance – it’s something I’ve observed but never understood. Freedom and individuality require no justification except cash payment.
There’s also the point of view that a lot of wonderful things will never have mass appeal. The market can in that way be something to work to your advantage as a buyer – which is in itself a great freedom.
Is this a longest thread on EuroGA?
Bobo the 252 has a positively deserved cult following – never quite saw the logic of the stretch to the Ovation.
Freedom and individuality require no justification except cash payment.
Hm. Think that will be my next motto/mail sig. Great!
Very nicely put Bobo. Your post would serve well to promote GA for a next generation. Mooney, Cirrus, Diamond, or whatever they end up flying. How the heck can we reach people to get into it? Regretfully, most FTO’s use absolutely afghast training planes, like Peter said numerous times.
Ah, well. I fly a ‘87 M20K 252 and have flown non-stop to many destinations in Europe together with friend(s) and/or my dad. From my home base in Holland to San Sebastian for instance, then continued on to Malaga to enjoy a nice paella the same evening… All in one relaxed day, in my own time, without having to get up early. The thought that one can do that is just fun and inspiring to me and rewarding on its own (doesn’t burn AVGAS either…). The freedom to cross Europe in a day if you feel so inclined gives me a kick, like the kick I got getting my driverslicence: freedom. I love that it’s frugal and fast, I love the sound the six cilinders make when I’m turning of the runway at idle, I love the way you slide in an strap it on, I love the fact that – if I want to – I can firewall the throttle climb up to FL280 as fast any SEP can take me, I don’t care it’s ‘cramped’. I’m two meters and sit comfortably, I love the solid feel on the ailerons, I love the way it sits on the tarmac, with that nose up ‘take me flying’ attitude and quircky tail, I for one love the fact that it was built by hand by a guy in a lumberjack shirt and jeans in a plant that looks like the workshop of my gliderclub, I love the fact that the upholstery was done by someones grandma and it still looks as good as it did when the plane came flying out of Kerrville the first time. It may not be for everyone, but I just love it.
Somehow Mooneys strike the right cord with me, I think that’s what it is all about. That’s the reason people won’t buy a Benz but prefer a BMW or the other way around. I commend Mooney for starting up again and I truely hope they make it.
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Bobo, I enjoyed your comments very much. A lot of people will ‘logic and conform’ themselves (and everybody else!) right into misery given half a chance – it’s something I’ve observed but never understood. Freedom and individuality require no justification except cash payment.
There’s also the point of view that a lot of wonderful things will never have mass appeal. The market can in that way be something to work to your advantage as a buyer – which is in itself a great freedom.
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when an airline could get you there in half the time, at a fraction of the price and in considerably greater comfort?
In this you are certainly right, only people who take that view usually won’t spend any money on GA or are people who are content with flying around the patch of grass where their 90 kt airplane is based. Certainly, for such operations nobody needs a traveller, any Cherokee or 172 will do.
No, people like that are no customers for Mooney, nor for Cirrus or any other types which are primarily made for travelling. However, questioning the motive of why we like to fly our own planes instead of “comfortable” airline seats (flown economy class recently??) you will target much more than “just” people who might be intrested in a Mooney, this is true for just about every GA airplane below a Citation. So what is it you wish to say? Nobody in his right mind travels by GA airplane and GA planes are just fun cruisers for 100$ hamburgers?
Quite a few people in this forum think differently, see their trip reports here.
Speed for an airplane is very different than it is for e.g. cars, where most of the time top speeds are something for the ego of the owner only (unless you live in Germany, where you can actually legally drive those speeds). Speed for an airplane is money. So is range. And while there are people who don’t care about this, there are quite a few who do, either out of principle or necessity.
If we calculate different types along the “standard” 500 NM leg, this becomes obvious, even if we assume for ease of calculation simple overhead-overhead figures.
A PA28-140/150 with 100 kt TAS will fly this leg in about 5 hours @ 8 GPH, which means 40 USG trip fuel.
A Mooney M20 C with 140 kt TAS will fly this leg in 3.5 hours @ 8 GPH, which means 28 USG trip fuel.
A Mooney M20 J with 160 kt TAS will fly this leg in 3.1 hours @ 10 GPH, which means 31 USG trip fuel
A Cirrus SR22 with 190 kt TAS will fly this leg in 2.6 hours @ 19 GPH, which means 49 USG trip fuel
A Mooney Ovation with 190 kt TAS will fly this leg in 2.6 hours @ 14.7 GPH which means 38 USG trip fuel
A Mooney Acclaim with 230 kt TAS will fly this leg in 2.2 hours @ 21.9 GPH which means 48 USG trip fuel
So basically, the normal every day round the airport rental plane uses the SAME amount of fuel a Mooney Ovation will for the 500 NM trip but will do so in exactly double the time. Or, the difference between the two extremes will mean 2.5 hours of fixed costs added to the cost of the full trip or, in the case of the Mooney 201, it will fly the sme trip a full 2 hours less AND 9 USG less. Or, if we look at the Cirrus, it will do the trip in the same time than the Ovation. The Acclaim will do it 30 minutes faster than the Cirrus with the same fuel used. Well, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to make the connection, especcially if you calculate running costs into the game.
Do the same thing with a 1000 NM trip? The figures simply escalate.
The M20J will do the 1000 NM in about 6.2 hours using 56 USG non stop. The SR22 will fly 5.2 hours and 98 USG, the Acclaim will do it in 4.5 hours with 96 USG.
At the other end of the spectrum, a 100 kt cruiser will need to add a landing with costs and 1 hour ground time plus 10 hours of flight time at 80 USG. Also my trusty M20C can’t do 1000 NM non stop and will fly 7 hours (8 hours total with the turn around) at 56 USG.
Another consideration regarding speed is wind. I once read this pretty convincing table assuming a 20 kt headwind.
A 100 kt airplane will loose 20% of its groundspeed and range.
A 150 kt airplane will loose 13% of its groundspeed and range.
A 200 kt airplane will loose 10% of it’s groundspeed and range.
A 250 kt airplane will loose 8 % of it’s groundspeed and range.
If you now consider the fixed costs to this equation, speed is indeed worth a serious consideration when travel is your goal. A SR22 is MUCH better to travel in than any 100-120 kt fixed gear circuit bicycle. And the difference between one of those and a Mooney Acclaim doesn’t need much explanation.
Range is the 2nd advantage. A decent traveller should have at least 1000 NM range plus reserve in order to give it the independence it needs, particularly in Avgas starved areas. 1000 NM range will basically allow travel to almost everywhere we realistically might want to go to. Again, anything more is a bonus, whether the 2400 NM range the Ovation has is something used a lot may be debated. But frankly, what would you prefer for a trip to Oskosh, an airplane with a comfortable 1000 NM or a nail biting exercise with a 600 NM cruiser?
That is why people wo do serious travelling like Peter, Alexis and others here rightly choose an airplane which has the speed and range to do things. 150 kt for a travel plane is I’d say a good starting point, any higher speed is bonus as long as it doesn’t have to be bought by higher fuel cost outweighing the saving in fixed costs on the time. Those who wish to have fun flying 100 kts are very welcome to do so only should they be aware that it isn’t necessarily the cheaper way to do things.
