Mooney Acclaim Crossing the Atlantic 1-2

[workonitm8]

Love the Mooney videos. This was well done.

[zcg3]

What is the OAT? Experience icing? At FL220, it must be super cold!

[zcg3]

I would assume that the Mooney is not pressurized. Flight level 220 & you're not using O2???

[mkortbek]

@zcg3 It seems that they are. There is a shot in the video where you can see that they're using the oxygen cannula.

[zcg3]

@mkortbek I thought the FAA required pilots to use a facial mask above FL125...

[mkortbek]

@zcg3

No the FAR stipulates the when above 12,500ft for more than 30 mins then supplemental oxygen has to be used for all required crew members. Above 14,000ft all required crew members are required to use supplemental oxygen, but it does not specify that it has to be facemasks. You are allowed to use oxygen cannulas. If you are flying Part 121 at high altitude such as FL400 as an example, then yes, you are required to wear Facemasks such as Quick donning masks whenever the cockpit door is open

[jtkent28]

Very, very impressive. What really gets me is seeing the altimeter at FL23! I was not aware a single engine mooney could get up that hight. Wow.

[pilotalex]

Wow. Amazing. This is on my things to do before i die :) Amaing!!

[justadroid]

unreal!

[stuartmcloughlin]

Outstanding. Well done.

[Deven165]

I made this almost same trip in 1982, with a far less sophisticated Mooney and non-turbo. I had a younger co-pilot from Norway help out on the flying. Now that I am older, I realize how foolish I was!

[krazfm]

My understanding was Cannuals are only good to FL180, are those a unique design?

[GeneralGoopy]

Also... What about the loneliness? You must feel all alone up there sometimes.

I'm a nooby and curious new pilot xD just took my PPL checkride today. How do you male radio calls way Over the ocean? That Mooney seems like an amazing plane

[GeneralGoopy]

This is absolutely insane, truly humbling. It's crazy... The soundtrack was perfect and the video was well edited, views were amazing. Thank you so much for uploading this!!!

[Databamse]

It is one hell of a risky operation. With only a single engine, an engine failure would be fatal. There is no way to survive down there in -40 degrees celsium. Even if you were able to crash land on the snow, you would freeze to death almost instantly. If you met a storm underway would significantly lower the speed and fuel consumption would be doubled which would end in a crash

[210482fmj]

whats the strongest tail winds you can get on altitudes these planes fly at? could this aircraft handle tails winds of over 100 knots or not

[mgautier]

I don't get it right the movie, between Reykavik and Arhus, did you stop? Was the Faroe Islands?

[StateOfTheArts]

Brave Souls

[shooteraod]

Were the orange suits survival suits for the "just in case" thing?

[scbonduk]

Was this the first flight from the factory in Texas?

[soquan]

@scbonduk No the aircraft had over 50 hours before the crossing.

[Scrapheap71]

Does your plane have the Monroy long range tanks??

[soquan]

@Scrapheap71 This Mooney has the long range tanks, but it's a mooney option now, you can get 1400NM easily with a tail wind, although you wouldn't want to plan for that over the ocean as weather can change.

[seaboo143]

@soquan do you need visa in order to stop in a particular country? while crossing the atlantic?

[soquan]

@seaboo143 My experience is no you don't. If you are crew, then you don't, although I'm not sure about Canada. But if you have a US or European license, then I think you will be ok.

[apple2018]

@soquan You don't need a visa to stop in Canada but if you leave the confines of the air port than you have to go through customs.

[Scrapheap71]

You've got the weirdest Texan accent that I've ever heard. X-)

[Mattedatten]

Nice flight .. I'd also like to do this :)

Ehm, how long did it take? Because you didn't stop over greenland etc?

//M

[chris5812341234]

i subscribed

[grissomairport]

What is the service ceiling on this aircraft, is it pressurized?

[soquan]

@grissomairport Certified up to FL250 and it's not pressurized.

[charpsteve36]

what is your job? you have a mooney and have time to fly it across the ocean

[joearnoldhere22]

Wow... That was truly an amazing flight. I would love to go on a flight like that. I live in NC and have my instrument rating, give me a shout if you want a flying buddy!

[FLIGHTSIMEXTREME]

I want to do this route in the simulator. Please tell me all the airports you stoped at, by

city, state, country, and airport ID

[Bill1275w]

@FLIGHTSIMEXTREME better to plan it youself bro.

[seoceancrosser]

The last ferry flight I ever did ended with me dropping the plane in Arhus. I can't believe I gave up all that coolness to go fly jets. Man I am stupid. I miss that northern route every day!!!

[soquan]

Well flying jets helps pay the bills, and you don't need to wear those immersing suits ;)

[giannigiorgio2]

o sry, that was my 2 yr old cuz

[giannigiorgio2]

! <33zz j3r$seY $shOrE ! ! sNoOkiE * LuvRR

[urdaddy4321]

Music is hilarious

[stejensen]

This is just amazing! Great choice of music too. I love this type of flying. It's great

[eminye1]

Hey do you have anymore footage to post flying the mooney?

[soquan]

Working on it, hope to be flying in a week, but weather isn't helping :(

[Flyingfast79]

275 Knots ground speed in a single engine piston aircraft, that is sick!!

[soquan]

Second part of the flight reached over 300kts ground speed

[flightfred]

Man this is amazing! I'm jealous!

[pryan37bb]

I literally just burst out laughing when I heard the music from "The Snowman" playing.

[xrebxtoc]

did you take survival gear with you? the survival suits? and did you wear them while flying?

[damhaugandreas]

how long was the flight`?

[dejourj]

gay ass music... lol nice vid though

[gefferzz]

awesome video thanks for posting!

[RobertGary1]

Wow, I consider flying from my home in Sacramento to Texas to be a long flight in my Mooney.

[coupequattro]

Wow, what an incredible flight. I hope to one day be lucky enough to do the same. I fly a Cessna 152 right now.

[3162jimenez]

Thanks for the lesson. Do you still have this Acclaim??

[soquan]

Well personally have done 1400nm, but arrived with very little fuel to spare, so over water i would like greater margin, but I will concede that my fuel burn wasn't optimal, and could have brought the power back further to improve endurance. But that is with a tail wind, with a head wind, I would never plan beyond 1200nm.

[RobertGary1]

I suspect he's just a delivery pilot. May not own an airplane.

[soquan]

Yes, love this airplane, have a thing for mooneys.

[3162jimenez]

From the Island Fernando de Noronha (northeast tip of Brasil) to Cabo Verde (in front of Mauritania, Africa), there are circa 1,240 NM. Since you know the Mooney better than me, what could it take? Arround 7 hours? Once you are in Cabo Verde, you are in Africa, a whole continent to visit and flight through....

[soquan]

Well the Acclaim at FL250 will do 230kts easily, so if you assume no tail wind, then you are looking at 5.4-5.5 hours. This particular Mooney can reach 1400nm, even more if you have a good tail wind. Personally i would be uncomfortable planning anything greater than 1200nm. So I think this is doable without the need to add extra fuel tanks.

[3162jimenez]

Isn't true that the Acclaim could also reach up to 1,800 NM with greater tanks? At least that is what the Mooney web page publishes...

[3162jimenez]

I might have seen your video at least 10 times...thanks for sharing it with us. I really admire your free spirit...thanks for sharing also your knowledge and bravery...What about the northeast part of Brazil to Cape Verde???? Would be incredible....That is my dream....

[soquan]

Wow, how long of a crossing would that be?

[mikepeavler]

such a wonderful video...I've watched in 2-3 times!

I'm a Mooney Lover!

[harchtocin]

Where in Kentucky did you stop?

[cjellwood]

the garmin showed you was in iceland! Thanks garmin, we would be lost without you

[drummerkid69]

holw long did the hole trip take u guys?

amazing

[soquan]

It took 2 days from Tx to Goose Bay, we were in Goose Bay 5 days because of weather, 1 day to Iceland, 1 day to Denmark, so total flying days from Texas to Denmark was 4. We could have made it to Goose Bay in one day, but got a late start that morning.

[drummerkid69]

holy shit, well right on man. nice plane

[GloriousSky]

iam really proud of you guys , its my dreamto take a small airplane and to make an adventure like that , iam really glad that yo guys made it ,but i was wondering is it possible for the mooney to fly at 22000 FT , did you guys add any equepment to it , or the plane is designed to fly at high alttitude like that ?

[soquan]

Well the Mooney Acclaim can fly up to FL 250 without any problems.

[Jarvyboay]

Excellent video! Admire your guts for setting out over hostile skies in a single too! (Albeit a very trick one!) I'm off to do similar in the not too distant future, only from the US west coast back to Aus over the Pacific in a 208B...I might do a video diary myself now!

By the way Ardrex, the singer is Aled Jones. =)

[Gretschster6120]

Thank you for uploading your adventure. I really love the way you put together the video and great music as well. I hold a Canadian Commercial Multi-Engine Instrument License and I have not flown in nearly 5 years! As much as I miss being up there, it comforts me to know that my flying spirit is still alive, when I find myself enjoying videos such as this one.

[soquan]

I'm very glad you enjoyed this clip, and do hope you get back behind the controls again. Flying, for the sake of flying, is very much alive with many out there :)

[azatecas]

how much did you spend making that flight

[Truemoderate]

I need to play the lottery this weekend. Lovely ride. I'd like a Cessna Stationair also glass cockpit Garmin 1000. Or maybe a Pilatus PC 12 turboprop but i'd want to learn to pilot it myself. I'd be all over this earth!

[muffigw]

Croeso y Cymru good sir :)

[Rippy0870]

Rediculous, a ground speed of 275kts and a tailwind of 103kts? You guys got lucky, that tailwind made your trip so much easier. Some day I plan on flying around the world, just need to get my own airplane first... Great vid!

[HKGJOHN]

Would you consider this a particularly risky flight? I know you had a large O2 tank but and anti-ice precautions? What about these suits you guys are wearing? Are these special? Also, how do you find Goose Bay and Nasasaraq airport? Are the ppl friendly, much to do, see? How much do you gass up? I know usually the distances are not more than 700 nm. Do you fill 3/4 w/ that payload to increase range?

[soquan]

There is risk when you cross water, and when it's the Northern Atlantic, the risk factor increases because of the elements, there is no way around that, it's something you have to be prepared to accept, otherwise don't do it. As for icing, well we have TKS, which worked very well for us. As for the suits, they are supposed to protect you from freezing to death when you ditch, they work and many people owe their lives to it.

[soquan]

As for Goosebay and Nasasaraq, they are professional, but very expensive, especially fuel, so be prepared for that, also in Greenland be sure there is avgas, sometimes they run out and you could be stuck there till more is shipped in. We always fill up the tanks, we have the extended version, which is why we made it from Goosebay to Iceland non stop.

[schmerdtz]

I've owned two Mooney 231's and I loved them, well, except the engines, which were not particularly durable. I'd love to make that run, myself. These days I fly Aero Commander twins, which would never have the range to cover your flights. The music, incorrectly credited to to the UK group, the Choirboys, was actually sung by a young Welsh chorister named Peter Auty, who received only £300 and no credit in the successful animated short, Snowman.

[xoio]

Shame they don't make a pressurised Mooney ... or do / can they?

[Wnbresn]

A question. How much Oxygen capacity does the Acclaim have? Are you wearing a mask? How comfortable is it flying at FL220 on bottled oxygen? Just wondering

[soquan]

The bottle we have has a capacity of 115 cu. ft, but this is slightly bigger than the standard bottles in a mooney. It is very comfortable at FL220 or 250, just make sure you have enough coming through, otherwise be ready for a really bad headache after you land.

[WoodstaS]

So was this just a pleasure cruise?

[soquan]

Well it was fun, but the aircraft is based in Europe, so was flying to its new home.

[OrangeSFO]

What is the music? It's rather haunting

[xoio]

It was the soundtrack to a british 80's animated cartoon called 'The Snowman'. Possibly sung by Aled Jones?

[Ardrex]

Almost 100% certain that is Charlotte Church, a classically trained singer who started her career very young.

[Ardrex]

Sorry, totally wrong about singer being Charlotte Church. It's an adolescent male Soprano.

[N8229Y]

I read with great interest Dick Karl's articles about his Atlantic Crossing in Flying. This video brings life to those articles.

[pross82]

Would this trip be feasible in an M20J with monroy tanks and good ol' fashion dead reckoning? haha.....no, seriously.

I know, I know......if you have to ask, then.....

[N8229Y]

If you are Ernest Gann

[Mnangagwa]

What was your maximum speed on the journey ?

[soquan]

First leg of the crossing we were truing at around 195kts as we were on long range cruise to get us from Goose Bay to Iceland none stop. The second part we were doing 233kts and saw ground speeds of 305 due to good tail winds.

[Mnangagwa]

Well l would like to know how did the plane handle in known icing conditions ?

I would like your opinion, which one is better the Mooney Acclaim Type S or Cirrus Sr22. Does the ballistic parachute on the Cirrus Sr22 make any difference ?

[soquan]

Well it's always a good idea to stay out of icing conditions, the TKS worked great with me though, anti icing mode does well, de icing on the other hand could be problematic if you got into sever conditions before turning the system on.

Comparing the Acclaim to the SR22 is a tough one, the SR22 is a modern design, and very comfortable and roomy inside, passengers always prefer it to a Mooney. I'm just a mooney guy, and I love the way the acclaim handles.

[soquan]

As for the parachute, well it can't hurt to have it, there are reports published on when it was used if you're interested. It's an added safety feature that could bring you peace of mind i suppose. We will probably see a day when all GA aircraft will be equipped with them.

[pross82]

Very inspiring, thank you for posting.

Got a question though, were you able to do this with only VHF Comm? Or did you have an HF radio?

[soquan]

Only VHF, it's the way most if not all general aviation aircraft do it these days, unlike the commercial aircraft flying non stop across the atlantic, it's mandatory for them to have HF

[derek1122339]

whats a good cruise alt

[bg11215]

That's very brave to cross the Atlantic in a piston (isn't it?). Was it uncomfortable, the confined cockpit and temperature? The view looks God-like though.

[soquan]

The suits we wore made it a bit uncomfortable, but the temperature was ok, we had some heating that wasn't perfect, but adequate. I agree there is risk when crossing the Atlantic in a single engine, but the reliability in well maintained or new singles is very good.

[TheTypicalGirl]

Is it just not cost effective for singles like this to offer pressurized cabins?

[soquan]

It makes it more complex and expensive, so not typical in piston aircraft where they usually fly at altitudes where pressurization is not necessary. But on turbine aircraft, pressurization is the norm, as they usually fly at higher altitudes because its more efficient for them up there.

[mechan9]

Awesome!

Did you have your camera mounted in the cockpit (suction cup mount?) or did your copilot capture the video?

[soquan]

No this was filmed with no camera mount, we both did the filming. Although there were some shots taken from another aircraft towards the end.

[adminfx]

dang, what u spend on O2 glass cockpit and time? u could of bought a used sr71 and blew out there in 45 minutes, haha sick plane tho, bet that broke a few pennies

[soquan]

well all new mooneys come with the garmin 1000, and O2 is pretty much standard. but yeah it would be very nice if they were cheaper ;)

[ericld11]

Is this you and your journey, or did you simply post this

[soquan]

It's me.

[CSAPolecat]

hmmm....good point, lol.

[CSAPolecat]

Allright mister, you got me hooked on Celtic Woman, now all I do is search for them on Youtube, I love them!!!!!!

[soquan]

Look at the bright side, you could be addicted to a lot worse!

[skyhawk172p]

Excellent video. Normally I don't like background music, but that music is PERFECT for the video. Very nice job!

[CSAPolecat]

This is an awesome video.  With the music and the narrative, you did a good job. Love this video.

[debiassi]

Also did you use EFT or OPMAS. I have used OPMAS in the past and the service is exceptional. 5 star hotel with all drinks, food and travel at their expense. We were treat like royalty. I suppose we paid for the service indirectly but still saved us a fortune so glowing reports from us.

[soquan]

yes used OPMAS and was very good, they are very organized and efficient.

[mosfet404]

For those who asked about the music.. It is Walking in the Air, by Celtic Women.

Wonderful video and achievement, Bravo!,, Or should I say Acclaim...?

[soquan]

You my friend are very right about the music, it is Walking in the air.

[bg11215]

Amazing. How long does it take to cross the ocean, coast to coast? Are there any tiny islands along the way in case of emergency? I'd love to do the same thing one day, but would be apprehensive about being over water for so long! Also can you tell me what the music is? It's beautiful.

[soquan]

Well time depends how fast, and how many stops, we made one stop in Iceland, first leg just under 5 hours, second was close to 4. The music is Snowman, Aled Jones.

[cmtecarvalho]

Great video soquan! I thought you were using oxygen masks similar to those used in combat aircraft, but then i saw a sort of "tube" - what's the name of that gear, and what's the advantage of using it instead of a mask? Thanks, see you!

[soquan]

A mask is much better especially for high altitude flying, these are more common than masks because of ease of use, more practical, but you need to ensure that you have enough oxygen flowing through and set it up accordingly which you can do depending on your cruising altitude.

[CarMoves]

What's the music?

[CarMoves]

Cabin temp?

Are you wearing the suits?

[soquan]

Cabin temp varies, but around 10-13 degrees celsius there is a heater, but doesn't really work well at high altitudes. And suits are on, it's mandatory, if you have to ditch in cold water, there will be no time to put them on.

[CarMoves]

I read a few years ago about a pilot doing your route and had to ditch.

He was lucky to be able to hit near an oil platform. He had his suit on.

But he died.

It turns out he didn't have the zipper all the way up, past is chin, and the water flooded his suit with freezing water.

[uploader1010]

This is cool. What do you need to have settled before you fly ? Visa's only ? and fuel ?

Thanks.

[soquan]

In this case because we were over the ocean, needed to have a life raft, survival suits, for cold water, sat phone is a good idea. Make sure you are aware of permits needed, visas usually aren't a problem, crew don't need, different countries have different regs. Obviously fuel is critical, some airports don't have avgas. Weather would be at top of my list, not nice to be stuck with no alternate in range. So use common sense before you take off. And don't forget to have fun :)

[mhockey21]

is this the newest acclaim the type S? I think it is?

[dbowie2007]

Great Video, From Madrid, Spain. I own a Mooney myself, good plane,

take care

[303britishrocks]

I must agree, great video. I would give anything to be able to do that. How much did you have to spend on fuel for that flight?

[berndl]

Pretty interesting, especially the screenshots and explanations (I want more of it!). The music is terrible, sorry... sounds like a funeral...

[rasmussigfus]

I'm absolutely GREEN with envy, great video gentlemen.

[warveteran102]

Great Video. Must Have Been One Hell Of A Trip!

[xoio]

Excellent videos!

2 Questions -

1) Whilst fast for a single prop.. it's of course not jet speed by any means... with that kind of crossing.. What do you do it either of you need a 'toilet break'?

2) At 22k feet cruise, is the mooney semi pressurised at all, or do you have an oxygen supply?

Many thanks

[soquan]

Well one can carry something on board that is used when you need to go, but if there are two in airplane, then can be problematic, so best thing is to make sure you go before you take off, especially if you have a long flight, this aircraft can fly for over 6 hours. And yes, no pressurization, but it has oxygen for high altitudes using a mask. We go up to flight level 250

[mjoosterhuis]

Thank you so much for sharing! The Acclaim is a very nice plane. Unfortunately there are not a lot of videos around. If possible I would appreciate many more vids! Again, Thanks for the effort, and the nice explainations!

Mark (The Netherlands)