New Avionics & Equipment Round Up
All the stuff you just gotta' have
by Dale Smith |
| Every year, general aviation avionics manufactures and installers meet at the
Aircraft Electronics Association's Annual Convention and Trade Show to trade
ideas and show off the new stuff. At the most recent convention, many manufacturers
introduced extra slick advanced avionics that will soon be the hottest things on the
market. Others introduced new services they offer. This covers the latest technology
that you'll want in your cockpit. (more) |
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Weather the Weather
Datalink, sferics and radar for the light aircraft pilot
by Julie Boatman |
| The best forecast is still just a prediction-an educated one, but a prediction nonetheless. We know that the
only weather we can count on is the weather we see out the window. And from the windows of our cockpits, what
we see isn't always the big picture. Enter weather products for the cockpit. (more) |
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Avionics for your Homebuilt and Sport Aircraft
by James Wynbrandt |
| Building or buying a high performance kit aircraft? If so, you're probably planning on installing
an equally sophisticated panel to match. Avionics professionals say most of the homebuilt panels
they're helping fashion today feature gear like MFDs (multi-function displays), IFR-certified GPS
units, real-time weather display capability and more. (more) |
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From MFD to PFD--Displays for Your Cockpit
by George Wilhelmsen |
| The options to install a display in your cockpit have literally exploded in recent years. Text and
monochrome moving maps have given way to equipment that can display position and its relation to
various features and hazards in living color. Multi-function and primary flight displays have
been developed to help pilots improve situation awareness, avoid hazards, to provide primary flight
guidance, and reduce cockpit workload. (more) |
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Compliance Countdown
by Gordon Gilbert |
| Reprinted with permission from Aviation International News. This cronicles mandated regulatory
issues from the FAA that deal with general aviation and commercial aircraft. (more) |
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Finding the Right Combination of Avionics for Your Panel
by George Wilhelmsen |
| One of the toughest questions for any pilot to answer is which avionics they should get for their
instrument panel. After all, there is a virtual plethora of avionics available, each with its own
associated features to choose from. With the dizzying array of products and features that are available,
more than one pilot has been left trying to figure out which avionics they should buy for their panel.
(more) |
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TAWS FAA mandates a new proximity to safety!
by Gary Picou |
| Sometimes a government mandate seems like bureaucratic meddling. Yet in the case of Terrain Awareness
Warning System (TAWS) the mandate makes sense. It very well can save your life. The only airplanes
that won't benefit from TAWS are those that never, ever fly with reduced visibility, over an
unobstructed flat surface. The ocean is all that might qualify, as long as you don't go near oil rigs.
(more) |
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Livin' and Flyin' with Old Time Radios
by Dale Smith |
| NEWS FLASH–Oshkosh, Wis., July 2004, tens of thousands of pilots discover that they don't need a
$15,000 full-color multifunction COMM/NAV/GPS to safely fly from Point A to Point B…Well,
OK, so it's not really a news flash. But when you flip through all the popular aviation magazines
you'll probably get the idea that if it doesn't have a "Direct To" button, it has got to go. (more) |
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Avionics: Enhancing Situational Awareness Via Integration
by Paul Novacek |
| In this information age we have been falsely led to believe that more data is good, but it's not
necessarily so. Often more is not better, just more. Bits and pieces of data are meaningless unless
the data is integrated into information, and that's the key, integration. (more) |
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Avionics with a Past---and a Future
Buying Used Equipment
by James Wynbrandt |
| Pre-owned avionics and panelware can be an excellent value and help buyers significantly reduce
equipment costs. They can also leave purchasers with a stack of defective or outdated merchandise
that ends up costing them more in the long run than new equip-ment. Considering the potential
risks and rewards, there are a few basics anyone considering tapping the pre-owned market needs to
know. (more) |
