That thing looks like a 12 year old Burt Rutan built it from a 310, Navion, Ercoup, and a pair of Chipmunks that he had lying around. Strange looking bird indeed.

I counted 14 knobs that are apparently associated with engine control, all white, all round, all smooth.

That must have been confusing as heck especially at night.

Mike C.

Adam,

Great pic. Now I can truly appreciate your reference to dresses snappily. You were, indeed, quite stylishly dressed in that photo. Cheers mate.

Mark

I counted 14 knobs that are apparently associated with engine control, all white, all round, all smooth.

That must have been confusing as heck especially at night.

Mike C.

Apparently, it has some sort of openable small panel in the front windshield which is used, so I'm told, to see forward when the window becomes covered in ice. Maybe you stuck your hand outside to wipe of the ice? It was called a "direct view" window or some such. Bizarre.

Here's a pic of it:



Mike C.

Cool photo! Bizarre!

It's not as stupid as it perhaps sounds. Anyone ever smoke? Then you probably noticed it was easier to light the lighter in a cupped hand into the wind, than shielding it from it. Some might even remember those silly collars/masks people used to use before the goggles when riding motorbikes in the 50's.

I'd assume this was the same. As long as there was no outlet, most of the air couldn't enter and had to go around.

Okay, you guys have me spooked. A DV window is what I've know to be on the side cockpit windows of many corporate aircraft I've flown. A window that opens on the front windscreen, say it isn't so. I've heard it called a foul weather window as well.

Does anyone have any photos of the baggage compartments in a short body MU2? It appears that there is little room for bags inside the cabin, so I'm curious how much space is available. Is there a nose baggage compartment?

No nose baggage. There is an upper and lower "trunk"

It's pretty big - my memory is that you could probably shoehorn a small adult in either one.

The baggage compartments are pretty good size but not big enough for ski's or snowboards. They fit between the seats in the cabin well. The unpressurized lower compartment will hold four seats of golf clubs fine or a couple of large duffle bag luggage. The upper pressurized baggage compartment will hold a descent amount of bags also. It still does not have as much room as a long body but very sufficient. I have carried bags, boards and groceries for a week long ski trip for three with no issues. Most of my trips have been with three or four people. I am going to the plane in bit and will try to get some pictures.

Thanks much Steve. I'm just trying to get a feel. The Seneca has a great deal of room for bags with a very large nose compartment and aft luggage compartments. We usually fly with the middle seats removed and typically have a lot of stuff in that space as well. Without a nose baggage compartment, I think we'd have a tough time getting everything into the aft compartments in the MU2 but I haven't seen any good photos of them yet. How difficult is it to remove the middle seats in the short body MU2?

Steve,

How long have you owned the Mits? What is the maintenance like between inspections?

Best,

There is much more baggage space than one imagines when looking at a short body MU2.

On the left side, there is the pressurized baggage compartment.Runs across the entire width of the plane. On the right side and further back is the unpressurized baggage compartment. Since my nose is empty, I've put a few baggage items in the nose on occasion. Baggage is allowed allowed on a big hat shelf in the back, under the rear bench seat, and between pilots and middle row of seats.

Officially, baggage load limits are:

Pressurized baggage compartment: 220 lbs
Good for general baggage, stays heated, doesn't freeze. About 20" wide, 22" high, 48" deep.

Unpressurized baggage compartment: 154 lbs
Good for low density items, big, will freeze. About 22" wide, 30" high, 36" deep.

Cabin baggage compartment (hat shelf): 200 lbs
Accessible in flight. About 20" deep, rear seat head rest folds down for access.

Skis don't work that well in a short body MU2. Best option is removal of middle right seat and lay along the floor. Leaves you with seating for 5 (or 6 if you can get three across the rear bench).

The photo below is a trip with full fuel, 5 people, and that much baggage, and I was 400 lbs below gross. Almost all of this went into the external baggage compartments (some on the hat shelf, one item in the nose).

Top of the photo you can see the bottom of the pressurized baggage opening. If you look carefully on the right side of the plane behind the bottom beacon, you can see the unpressurized baggage door open and hanging down.



Mike C.

I will have my first year finished in March and have about 100hrs. in it. I had the 3yr. 600hr due last July that I knew about at purchase. There were very few squawks found but I had a tire and brake lines to replace. The inspection was around 11-12k for that one. The 100hrs inspection each year should be considerably less, probably half. I have had a few issue's but only one unexpected item that stranded me for a day. It was an o ring on one of the fuel pressure solenoids. $4.00 part but a day labor to get it fixed. I am in the process of installing a G600 now and hopefully that will get everything up to date. So far the maintenance has been what I expected for the first year. It does cost more than a Baron to own but it is whole different class of plane. Everything is built on a different level, it is more like a mini airliner than a GA plane. After learning to fly it this year, I love the MU2. I will have a hard time going back to a piston. I had zero turbine pressurized time but about 1000tt and 400multi.. Insurance wanted 50hrs. with a MU2 pilot before solo and I would highly recommend it at first if you aren't use to the speed. Things happen a lot faster on take off.....