Ramp Appeal: Mad for a Mooney
Do they deserve acclaim and ovation?
The straight-up vertical stabilizers are a dead giveaway, and all Mooneys have low wings and retractable, tricycle landing gear. Mooneys have been built in Kerrville, Texas, since 1953, and the longest, fastest, and most elegant models are the Ovation and Acclaim.
Outwardly these long-body Mooneys are almost identical. The key difference is the engine. The Ovation has a normally aspirated, fuel-injected, six-cylinder, 280-horsepower Continental IO-550-G, and the Acclaim’s engine is turbocharged, which allows it to fly higher at faster true airspeeds.
The four-seat Ovation was introduced in 1994 and reintroduced in 2017 as the Ovation Ultra with upgrades that included a composite cabin, Garmin G1000 NXi avionics, and—most noticeable of all—a pilot’s side door. Mooneys have always been known for high speed, aerodynamic efficiency, structural strength, and range. It’s an airplane of choice for Earthrounders because it can cross vast distances without specialized ferry tanks.
The designers’ emphasis on speed and efficiency put slightly higher demands on pilots, especially during approaches and landings.
Precise airspeed control is critical in long-body Mooneys because excess speed leads to a prolonged float in ground effect, and—since the wing is so close to the runway surface—ground effect is especially pronounced. Ovations are equipped with speed brakes to help pilots avoid excessive airspeeds during plunging descents, and they’re extremely effective for that purpose.
Mooney history is full of boom and bust cycles, corporate intrigue, and ownership changes. The company has been owned by the Meijing Group of China since 2013.
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