Aviation and AOPA Events

Cirrus to combine private, instrument training

April 11 • by Mike Collins

Beginning this month, Cirrus Training Centers and Cirrus Standardized Instructors will utilize a combined private/instrument curriculum, Cirrus Design Corp. announced at Sun ’n Fun. Cirrus said it’s the first aircraft manufacturer to support a combined training program.

“Customer safety is a top priority at Cirrus, and we are proud to lead the industry towards new and improved training initiatives,” said Alan Klapmeier, Cirrus chairman and CEO. “By utilizing a combined curriculum that has clearly proven to be beneficial and effective, we look forward to helping build a new generation of highly advanced pilots.”

Cirrus will use a syllabus developed and tested by the Paul Craig, a professor at Middle Tennessee State University, which for several years has employed the integrated private pilot certificate/instrument rating curriculum to train its flight students (see “Is There Glass in Your Future?” March 2007 AOPA Flight Training). Training materials will be tailored for Cirrus’ implementation of the combined curriculum. Craig, who holds 11 FAA pilot certificates and ratings, is highly regarded within the industry.

John Gauch, director of fleet and training center development for Cirrus, was excited about the move. “We are dedicated to providing the latest training initiatives to our pilots to ensure their safety and the safety of others,” he said.

Delta Connection Academy partners with ERAU

April 10 • by Mike Collins

Delta Connection Academy, a flight training academy based in Sanford, Fla., has partnered with Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University to allow academy students holding specific FAA certificates to apply for college credits toward a degree from ERAU.

For example, a pilot with a commercial multiengine certificate could receive up to 36 credit hours toward a degree. Credit also is available for holders of FAA airframe and powerplant mechanic or air traffic controller certificates.

“This partnership comes on the heels of much advancement at the academy,” said Doug Blissit, DCA’s president. The academy just opened a new 27,000-square-foot simulator and training center, which includes new aircraft maintenance facilities. Its fleet of more than 100 aircraft includes 34 new Cirrus SR20s, with more on the way.

New Sporty’s video series are only online

April 10 • by Mike Collins

Sporty’s Pilot Shop has launched a new video series focused on advanced avionics and real-world flying that harness the power of online learning.

The first two offerings in the Learning Beyond the License series are WAAS Approaches: Garmin 430W and WAAS Approaches: Garmin G1000. Both videos, available via download only, demonstrate the significant safety enhancements of Wide Area Augmentation System-enhanced GPS approaches—including ILS-like guidance with glideslope information.

“They’re about 20 to 25 minutes of real hands-on use,” said John Zimmerman, vice president of Sporty’s catalog division. “The online program has been a real success for us,” Zimmer added, noting that Sporty’s customers have downloaded more than 10,000 video products to date.

Sporty’s displayed a new DVD, Introduction to Flying, designed especially for passengers in modern GA aircraft.

“There are a lot of people flying around in the right seats of technologically advanced aircraft,” Zimmer said.

The DVD explains to nonpilots many concepts basic to VFR and IFR flight, allowing them to participate in the flight as a helpful crewmember as well as to aid in an emergency. Sporty’s also announced a makeover and update of its popular Flight Gear series of pilot flight bags.

Sporty’s Foundation to go public

April 10 • by Mike Collins

Although Sporty’s Pilot Shop has made charitable contributions totaling $200,000 per year, founder and Chairman Hal Shevers announced that Sporty’s Foundation will go public, allowing tax-deductible contributions from anyone who wants to help support GA’s future.

“The foundation will allow us to do more,” he said, adding that there will be no endowment. “We’re going to spend it all.”

Initial efforts will be focused on safety and the maintenance of small aircraft. The foundation is working with maintenance and technician schools to attract more professionals into maintaining small aircraft.

“Where are you going to get them maintained in the future?” Shevers asked. “We need people.”

EADS Socata 850 joins synthetic vision parade

April 9 • by Dave Hirschman

EADS Socata will offer Garmin Synthetic Vision Technology (SVT) on its TBM 850 turboprops beginning in the next “couple of months,” said Nicolas Chabbert, the company’s president for North America.

EADS has delivered 78 of its 850s in North America, about 73 percent of its 95 total deliveries in the last 24 months. The company has a backlog of 65 aircraft and is sold out through 2008.

EADS also named industry veteran Charlie Holomek as its head of customer support for North America.

Continental tops century mark for FADEC-equipped engines

April 9 • by Steven W. Ells

Teledyne Continental Motors topped an important milestones recently as a TCM IO-240F engine was installed in a new Liberty XL2 airplane.

It was the 100th Powerlink FADEC-equipped engine delivered by TCM. TCM also announced that the Powerlink FADEC fleet has accumulated 13,000 flight hours. The Powerlink FADEC—for full authority digital engine control—system is the only FAA-certified single-lever electronic engine control system for avgas-fueled piston-powered general aviation aircraft. The Liberty XL2 is the first FAA type-certified aircraft to be certified with the Powerlink FADEC system. The XL2 is a modern IFR-equipped two-place aircraft designed to withstand the rigors of flight training at the same time offering private owners an economical cross-country airplane.

Liberty Aerospace ups gross weight, offers other goodies

April 9 • by Nathan A. Ferguson

Liberty Aerospace is now offering an improved version of its XL2 two-seater.

It’s called the Vanguard Edition, and it features a gross weight increase to 1,750 pounds (up from 1,653), toe brakes instead of the finger brakes, WAAS-enabled Garmin GPS receiver, Jeppesen’s terrain database, and entry steps for pilot and passenger. The changes were driven by flight schools.

As for new options, the company is offering the Aspen Avionics glass-panel flight display, Garmin GTX 330 transponder, S-Tec GPS-coupled two-axis autopilot, and Insight Avionics True Flow 500 fuel computer.

The 100-pound gross weight increase allows the planes to carry two 200-pound occupants plus full fuel. Finger brakes will still be available for owners who want them.

Liberty has delivered about 110 aircraft and has orders for more than 600. Most of its customers are overseas flight schools. The planes are assembled in Melbourne, Fla., from parts manufactured in Romania. Once flight-tested and certified, they are shipped to customers worldwide. XL2 prices range from $170,000 to $200,000.

Diamond puts a price on Garmin Synthetic Vision

April 8 • by Dave Hirschman

Diamond Aircraft will begin offering Garmin Synthetic Vision Technology (SVT) on G1000-equipped DA40s immediately as an option for $9,995, the company announced.

“It’s an amazing technology at a price that’s actually affordable to the general aviation pilot,” said Heike Larson, Diamond’s vice president of sales and marketing. “We want to be very aggressive on pricing because we really want people to have it. We believe it will greatly enhance pilot situational awareness and reduce controlled flight into terrain.”

Garmin announced April 7 that SVT has been FAA certified, and the company is selling it through aircraft manufacturers. The manufacturers set the schedules and pricing for customer installations.

Larson said about 600 DA40s currently flying are equipped with G1000s, and SVT will be available for retrofit in the future, but no dates—or costs—have been set for SVT retrofits. Larson said Diamond also plans to offer SVT across its entire product line, including the Diamond D-Jet.

The D-Jet is equipped with two G1000 PFDs, so SVT prices will likely be higher than single-PFC cockpits, Larson said.

SVT installations require software patches only, and no additional hardware is needed to upgrade existing G1000s. Diamond intends to perform the retrofits through its service center network. Watch a video of the SVT system >>

Jeppesen offers mobile flight planning

April 8 • by Alton K. Marsh

Now you can do flight planning, including a weather briefing, over the new Jeppesen Mobile service using most phones that use the Windows Mobile Operating System.

It is not currently available for Blackberry phones. Software for the system costs $169 and includes a year of data updates. After that, updates are $129 a year. Service is available in all 50 states.

Available are DUATS legal weather briefings and flight plan filing, graphical weather images, TF data sorted by state and time, color-coded METARs, TAFs, winds aloft, and graphical trend charts. You’ll also access the FAA Airport/Facility Directory and JeppGuide information, FARs with Jeppesen FARs Explained, and customizable weight and balance calculations.

The color-coded METARs place a vertical row of color codes down the left side of the page, allowing you to immediately interpret the weather at airports along your route. See a video demo of Jeppesen Mobile >>

G1000 training available from Jeppesen

April 8 • by Alton K. Marsh

Find it difficult to stay up to speed on the Garmin G1000 avionics system? Jeppesen now offers a $259.95 course called Jeppesen G1000 Training—Core Functions and VFR Procedures.

The company is expected to offer an IFR version by the end of May for $229.95. The company has offered for the past year the Jeppesen CFI Toolset for $99.95, which helps instructors when transitioning “steam gauge” pilots to the Garmin glass flight deck.

Avidyne launches new flight management system

April 8 • by Paul J. Richfield

A desire to reduce the workload of single-pilot IFR operations has led Avidyne to develop the FMS900W flight management system.

The new product is seen as an enhancement to Avidyne’s Entegra glass cockpit and takes advantage of that system’s large-format displays.

System components include single or dual remote-mounted line replacement units, each containing GPS and WAAS sensors, VHF nav/coms with 8.33-kHz spacing and voice/data capability.

Avidyne said the FMS900W is compatible with all domestic and international airspace requirements and comes with an automatic fill feature that simplifies flight planning by predicting the next leg or waypoint.

The pilot is presented only with logical choices based upon the action required, Avidyne said, and the FMS will “autofill” the remaining characters in an entry based upon distance from the current aircraft position.

Up to 100 routes may be stored in the FMS900W, each with up to 128 legs. In dual FMS installations, the system eliminates the need to manually cross-fill active flight plans and waypoints.

FMS900W also continuously finds and tunes VOR and approach frequencies into the nav/coms so the pilot never has to manually tune a navigation frequency.

Pricing and FAA certification details of the FMS900W will be revealed in the coming months, Avidyne said, adding that Entegra owners will be offered “several hardware/software upgrade paths” to the FMS900W.

Garmin launches G950 avionics suite

April 8 • by Paul J. Richfield

Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) seeking a standard glass-cockpit configuration to certify with their own avionics now have a new option—the Garmin G950.

Garmin describes the G950 as a step between the G900X [experimental aircraft only] and the G1000 integrated electronic flight information system delivered with many certified aircraft.

“The G950 serves a new niche,” said Gary Kelley, Garmin’s vice president of marketing. “Since the G950 isn’t customizable and doesn’t include the GFC 700 autopilot, OEMs will also have the benefit of a streamlined certification process.”

G950 buyers can choose between two- and three-display setups offering many of the same functions found on Garmin’s other glass cockpits.

These features include primary flight and multifunction displays, an attitude and heading reference system, a digital air data computer, an engine monitoring display, and a Mode S transponder.

Dual radio modules support VHF communications and navigation (ILS and WAAS approaches), a digital audio control panel, and electronic charting.

LSAs gain prominence at Sun ’n Fun

April 8 • by Alton K. Marsh

There are now more than 75 models of light sport aircraft on the market. As proof of the new category’s growing importance, they had their own special place by the front gate at this year’s Sun ’n Fun.

The newest was the Paradise from Brazil, commonly used in that country by ranchers to patrol their land. Representatives of Gobosh were there to explain the letters of their name to the curious: go big or stay home. LSA guru Dan Johnson said so far there has been no shakeout in the industry as new models continue to emerge.

More expensive models (like the Gobosh at $127,000) represent more than 95 percent of the available models, but there are promises of less expensive models yet unannounced.

Cessna SkyCatcher production aircraft nears completion

April 8 • by Alton K. Marsh

The second Cessna SkyCatcher light sport aircraft (LSA), designated as the first production serial number, will be completed in time for display at Oshkosh this summer. It will be the first to have a full interior. Cessna officials also said TruTrak Flight Systems, a tiny company in Arkansas started by autopilot pioneer Jim Younkin, will build an optional two-axis autopilot, available as a dealer-installed item. TruTrak was used by the late Steve Fossett in his record-setting solo trip around the world in 2005. Younkin, while he did not invent the first general aviation autopilot, is credited with inventing the first practical and affordable general aviation autopilot. There are no plans to certify the autopilot, but it may be purchased for certain categories of aircraft including experimental and LSA.

Here comes the LoPresti Fury, again

April 8 • by Alton K. Marsh

LoPresti Speed Merchants has leased new facilities, some of them still to be built, in Sebastian, Fla. This is in preparation for marketing, maintaining, and giving training in the Fury, formerly known as the Swift Fury.

It is the brainchild of the late Roy LoPresti. The aircraft will be manufactured in Belen, N. M., 30 miles south of Albuquerque.

Curt LoPresti said the company will still have a presence, although a greatly reduced one, at its present building in Vero Beach, Fla. The company says it has 60 firm orders in the first production group, and will offer it to those in later groups at $355,000. The aircraft is estimated to be ready to fly in two years.

It was first offered in 1989 under the sponsorship of Piper Aircraft. LoPresti got the rights to the airplane and at one point had orders for more than 500 of the speedy two-seaters. While they still look like a Swift, only the landing gear struts remain as common parts with the original Swift design. It is expected to fly at speeds well in excess of 200 knots IAS.

Mud ’n fun: Lakeland sprouts even more lakes

April 7 • by Dave Hirschman

Record rainfall deluged Lakeland, Fla., on Sunday night and left some of the earliest campers at LAL soaked and muddy.

“It’s all part of the experience,” said Suzy Kryzanowicz, a corporate pilot from Bay City, Mich., who flew to Sun ”n Fun in a 1946 Taylorcraft that soon sank up to its axles in muck. “I’m glad to be here with my friends, and we’re not going to let the weather get us down.”

Kryzanowicz said she had enough credits from frequent stays at Hilton Hotels to get a dry room for the night. And plenty of rooms were available because fliers who had planned to fill them were weathered out.

Other campers decided to brave the elements.

William Greenhaw, a Cherokee 140 pilot from Guntersville, Ala., spent Sunday night in a rain-soaked tent next to his plane. On Monday morning, his airplane and tent were in the midst of about three inches of standing water, and he was wringing out some of the saturated items.

“I managed to keep my clothes dry, and my computer’s dry,” said Greenhaw, (AOPA 00901446) who was attending his fifteenth fly-in here. “I knew it was going to rain—but I didn’t expect this much water on the ground.”

A drain appeared to have become plugged in the camping area, and that caused standing water to collect throughout the grassy expanse. Frogs were swimming amongst a half-dozen parked aircraft, and birds were wading in search of meals there on Monday morning.

Troy Tassin, an Air Force C-130 flight engineer based in Valdosta, Ga., planned on camping next to his 1965 Cessna 172 but checked into a nearby hotel on Sunday night instead. Once there with several fellow would-be campers, the group jumped into the outdoor pool, en masse.

“We’re already wet,” Tassin said. “So it doesn’t matter to us if it keeps on raining.” Watch a video of the campers >>

Commemorative Air Force present for duty

April 7 • by Dave Hirschman

The Commemorative Air Force showed up at Sun ’n Fun in large numbers Monday for the first time in recent memory.

The 51-year-old organization based in Midland, Texas, whose volunteers restore and fly military airplanes from World War II and beyond, is trying to raise its national profile. The group also plans to display and fly its aircraft at AirVenture, Wings over Houston, and its own “Airsho” in Midland, September 20 and 21.

“We’re doing this to raise the visibility of CAF and our mission,” said Stephen C. Brown, president and chief executive of the 9,000-member organization. “We own 170 rare airplanes, and we have units in 27 states. But a lot of people don’t know about us or the things that we do.”

The group plans to bring 13 aircraft to Sun ’n Fun including the world’s only flying SB2C Helldiver, a pair of P-51 Mustangs, and an SBD-5 Dauntless.

Brown said the CAF is looking for more volunteers to fly, maintain, and promote its mission of honoring U.S. military aviation.

“Anyone who has the desire to keep these airplanes flying is welcome in the CAF,” he said. “They don’t need any special abilities. The only prerequisites are passion and desire.” See a video about the CAF >>