Category Archives: Part 91

Fatigue + Darkness + VFR Only =


Act I

Pair a Mooney M20 airframe with a 200 hp engine and you have a great cross country machine. Our pilot plans to take advantage it by launching on a 1300 nm adventure at 0830.  The weather is clear all day and all the way so lack of an instrument ticket is not a problem.

Act II

We next see our Mooney owner 900 nm later in Tonopah, NV, preparing to launch on his last leg at 2000. Hold on a minute. Even if he is only making 150 knots over ground (1100 / 150 = 7.3) and stopped once before (1 hour for fuel and a meal), it should not have taken 11 and a half hours

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