I've helped a guy load his Mooney (on his final flight, but that's another
story), and was appalled at how truly difficult it was to load suitcases and
other luggage through that dinky little hole cut into the TOP of the
fuselage.

You have to do a virtual dead lift, straight up, then over, and then down
into the cabin -- preferably without scratching the paint. A truly bad
design.

My Cherokee, on the other hand, has a side baggage door that opens wide and
tall, and allows me to load 200 pounds of luggage without lifting any higher
than the very bottom of the fuselage.

The designers of the Cherokee got this one right. Mooney, however, did not.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"


Mooneys have their shortcomings, you've IDed one of them. A hurt back can
prevent you from getting aboard, that's another. On the positive side, among
SEL airplanes I've known, the Mooney is among the best endorphin producers I've
known. It's easy to pick out the Mooney driver at the fixed base office (no,
not because his suit pants are dirty because he just checked his fuel) -- we're
the ones with the big smiles on our faces. And it's NOT because we get out tail
backwards, it's because it's a sweet airplane to fly. BTW, if you want to land
one really short (no, damn it, with the gear down) add a few RPMs deep in the
flare and if you get the yoke all the way back you'll be able to do a three
point touch down the old fashioned way.

Hey, there's a good question. How many of you actually get a stall warning in
the flare?