Air-to-Air Mooney M20J

skier

skier

Line Up and Wait
Joined
Jan 8, 2007
Messages
968
Location
CT
Display Name
Display name:
Skier
Some of you may remember that last year I was (and still am) looking for people in and around Connecticut that would like photos of their aircraft. See my other thread for some ground-based shots. https://www.pilotsofamerica.com/community/threads/free-photography.99146/

Anyways, last weekend I got a chance to do my first air-to-air photo shoot of a beautiful M20J 205. The photoship was an experimental Bearhawk with the rear doors removed which gave me a great view of the subject. We held around 90 kts for the shoot which, while a bit slow for the Mooney, seemed to work well.

The air was very smooth, but it was a hazy evening. We departed around 6:30pm and sunset here that day was slightly after 8:00pm. After taking off, we all realized that we may have jumped the gun a bit as it wasn't quite the evening light we were hoping for. No matter, we flew our plan and I got some good shots. It was a fun first try and I can't wait to give it another go!

If anyone's curious, I used my Canon 6D with my 70-200mm lens with shutter priority set between 1/30 and 1/125. Most of the shots were taken out near 200mm.

Below are my 2 favorite from the shoot.

v2


v2
 
Awesome! Love the belly shot.
 
90 knots is slow for a Mooney. Last time I tried it I had to lower the gear.
 
As a Mooney fan all I can say is "great photos"!
 
tspear said:
How does the gear help with lift?

Tim
Click to expand...
Gear creates drag. The Mooney is a very clean airframe so he's saying that in order to fly at 90kts, he had to lower the gear. Not sure what you're thinking.
 
Yeah. I didn't want to reduce the engine power quite that much. That, and I was on approach to Oshkosh. Better to drop the gear early than forget it later.
 
@steingar @Ryanb

That would never have occurred to me. why not back the power down? I was taught the engine recovers power faster then the gear raises.
Now on a few planes, the gear can offer stability, but I did not think that applied to the Mooney.

Tim
 
tspear said:
@steingar @Ryanb

That would never have occurred to me. why not back the power down? I was taught the engine recovers power faster then the gear raises.
Now on a few planes, the gear can offer stability, but I did not think that applied to the Mooney.

Tim
Click to expand...
Higher performance airplanes are not as simple to slow down as just reducing engine power. Gear and flaps are needed to create drag. You can get away with slowing up on a dime in a 172, but slicker airplanes require a bit more time and planning to slow them down. Not entirely sure what you mean by "the engine recovers power faster then the gear raises." ??
 
You'd be at idle a looonnnggg time waiting for the speed to bleed down to 90 KIAS in an M20J with gear & flaps up. Now the one in the photos has speed brakes in the upper wing surfaces, which help a lot. Without 'em it's hard to even get down to flap speed (115 KIAS) without lowering the gear (132 KIAS) first.
 
Ryanb said:
Higher performance airplanes are not as simple to slow down as just reducing engine power. Gear and flaps are needed to create drag. You can get away with slowing up on a dime in a 172, but slicker airplanes require a bit more time and planning to slow them down. Not entirely sure what you mean by "the engine recovers power faster then the gear raises." ??
Click to expand...

I have about five hours total in a C172. My flying is basically all Cirrus SR20 and Aerostar 700. So I am used to fast, sleek planes.
In terms of power recovery or drag reduction, I was responding to your comment that you would have kept more power in, and used the gear. I was taught when you get a plane slow; especially in the area of reverse command, that the engine will react faster then the gear or flaps. That is why, it is always taught power first on light piston twins.

Tim
 
With a little planning the Mooney could have approached the camera plane from a lower altitude and lost speed as it climbed with reduced power, probably pull power to 1500 RPMs. 90 is pretty close to best glide speed for a M20J.
I'm going to assume the Mooney pilot wasn't an idiot and came screaming in from the same or higher altitude. Mooney pilots, particularly those who own M20Js, have been shown to have higher intelligence than average.
 
Last edited:
Nice pics! No way I could go below 1/60 and most of my air-to-air shots are 1/80.
 
SkyDog58 said:
Nah, he used a special lens filter.
It's called a .....
oil filter.
Click to expand...

Both you guys are wrong. Mooney's are just so fast and so slick that nothing can stick to them.

Pilawt said:
You'd be at idle a looonnnggg time waiting for the speed to bleed down to 90 KIAS in an M20J with gear & flaps up. Now the one in the photos has speed brakes in the upper wing surfaces, which help a lot. Without 'em it's hard to even get down to flap speed (115 KIAS) without lowering the gear (132 KIAS) first.
Click to expand...

The pilot did use the speed brakes to help slow down as he approached.

And he said with how slow we were going that the gear warning was sounding most of the flight.
 
Lowflynjack said:
Nice pics! No way I could go below 1/60 and most of my air-to-air shots are 1/80.
Click to expand...

Thanks! I spent a lot of time studying your shots to figure out what to do before this flight.
 
tspear said:
I have about five hours total in a C172. My flying is basically all Cirrus SR20 and Aerostar 700. So I am used to fast, sleek planes.
In terms of power recovery or drag reduction, I was responding to your comment that you would have kept more power in, and used the gear. I was taught when you get a plane slow; especially in the area of reverse command, that the engine will react faster then the gear or flaps. That is why, it is always taught power first on light piston twins.
Click to expand...

I agree with you. Two (essentially) windmilling props of a twin at idle are very effective speed brakes that can "go away" quick with application of throttle. For that matter, the (essentially) windmilling prop of a Mooney with the power pulled back (8" of manifold) and prop in fine pitch is pretty good as well. They slow down pretty well, although if you're expecting to decelerate like a 172 or Cherokee you'll be disappointed.
 
The belly shot is definitely unique! I've had all my planes photographed air-to-air and not a single belly shot was taken.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top