Pilot Products

Bendix/King KFC 225

AlliedSignal recently introduced its Bendix/King KFC 225 Automatic Flight Control System, a follow-on to the company's KFC 150/200 series of autopilots found in many high-end general aviation airplanes.

Advanced autopilot functions abound in the KFC 225. It includes a flight director, aural warnings, an integrated pressure transducer to drive altitude-hold functions, and a built-in altitude alerter. Convenience features such as altitude preselect, vertical speed hold, and a go-around mode ease pilot workload at critical times.

Like the KFC 150, the new KFC 225 has a 6.25-inch-wide control head/computer, sized to fit neatly in the avionics stack. The style matches that of Bendix/King's Silver Crown Plus avionics. Two- and three-axis versions of the 225 are available, and some of the existing hardware need not be changed out if considering an upgrade to a 225 from a KFC 150/200. For example, the KCS 55A and KCS 305 compass systems are compatible, as are the KRG 331 and KRG 332 rate gyros for the yaw damper in three-axis systems.

New airplanes such as New Piper's Malibu Mirage and Raytheon's Beech Bonanza/Baron series are available with the KFC 225. Mooney's Bravo/Ovation will probably be the next series of new airplanes available with the system. Supplemental type certificate approval for the Beech B55 Baron is in hand, and AlliedSignal expects certification for the Piper Aerostar shortly. STCs for other airframes will inevitably follow in the coming months as more owners begin trading up.

New KS 27XC servos are used for pitch, roll, and pitch trim commands. These new servos, which distance the new 225 from the 150/200 series, are monitored and will disconnect when excessive pitch and roll rates or excessive acceleration forces are sensed for more than one second. This is mainly to prevent the autopilot from disconnecting prematurely during momentary upsets that might occur in turbulence.

The new gyros make a difference in ride, too. The KFC-225 is the smoothest attitude-based autopilot we've ever flown with. In two applications — a new Raytheon Beech Baron and a Piper Malibu Mirage demonstrator — the autopilot received praise from the pilots flying as well as from those pilots riding in the back. An ARINC 429 interface (providing turn anticipation) smoothes the autopilot's lateral corrections when it is coupled to a GPS.

Pilots at CarinaStar Airways, which purchased a new Baron in February (see " A Star is Born," May Pilot) have also been impressed with the autopilot. "It's the best autopilot I've flown in a light GA airplane," said Chief Pilot Brion Gluck. The only complaint from CarinaStar pilots was the fact that the OBS's course arrow needed to be turned 180 degrees from the inbound course for back-course approaches in order to provide standard sensing, even though the 225 was already in the REV mode. To them it doesn't seem necessary to have a back-course mode if you need to turn the HSI around anyway. AlliedSignal says that the 225 was designed that way as a situational awareness aid to remind pilots that they are on a back-course approach. The reason the REV mode is still needed is because the 225's gain is lower in back-course operations, since the localizer antenna — which is now on the approach end of the runway — is closer and therefore more sensitive. The KFC 200 performs the same way. However, some other autopilot brands do not require flipping the inbound course around. It's mostly a matter of manufacturer preference.

Preflight testing of the unit is completely automatic and is usually finished before the airplane makes it to the runup area. If the unit fails any aspect of the test mode, it will not operate, and a red "P" and "R" (pitch and roll) will be displayed on the unit's bezel. Trim failures are annunciated with a "PT" on the display, as well as a remote "trim fail" indication for mounting somewhere in the pilot's line of sight. In this instance, autopilot operations and manual electric trim will be locked out.

Aural warnings, a standard feature of the KFC 225, alert the pilot when within 1,000 feet of a preselected altitude by saying "altitude." If you deviate more than 200 feet from the selected altitude, a "leaving altitude" warning chimes in. Last, the unit says "autopilot" when the system is disconnected. Each announcement is accompanied by certain tones as well. Overkill? Perhaps. Raytheon elected to disconnect the voice annunciations in its new airplanes, an option that others in the field may wish to take. Voice warnings that cannot be turned off include the "Trim in motion" alert, which tells the pilot if the trim has been moving for more than five seconds. Another warning, "Check pitch trim," sounds when the airplane is out of trim for more than 16 seconds.

Finally, the KFC 225 has the ability to make autopilot maintenance much easier. An error log is kept in the system. A technician can hook up a standard laptop computer through an RS-232 port and the autopilot simply dumps the information so that the technician doesn't have to listen to a pilot's version of what he thinks the problem is. No specialized test equipment is required.

Retrofit cost of the KFC 225 is $28,883, which does not include a compass system. An encoding altimeter and the KI 256 attitude gyro with flight director command bars are included. Throw in the yaw damper and its associated servos, and the price rises to $35,403. For more information, contact the Bendix/King division of AlliedSignal General Aviation Avionics, 23500 West 105th Street, One Technology Center, Olathe, Kansas 66061; telephone 877/712-2386 or 913/712-0400; or visit the Web site ( www.bendixking.com). — Peter A. Bedell

II Morrow finishes its stack

II Morrow debuted a new VHF navcom, transponder, and color multifunction display at the Sun 'n Fun EAA Fly-In. These new products round out II Morrow's line of transceivers and GPSs, now giving the Salem, Oregon, company a complete stack with which to compete against the likes of Garmin and AlliedSignal.

The 300-watt SL70 solid-state transponder features an alphanumeric LED display of transponder code and altitude and has an RS-232 serial output of altitude information to a GPS or other device, eliminating the need for a second encoder or serializer. A unique feature is Altitude Hold. Once selected at cruise, the feature alerts the pilot when the altitude strays outside selected settings.

Like the transponder, the SL30 navcom fits in a 1.3-inch-tall slot. It features a 760-channel com radio and 200-channel VOR, localizer, and glideslope nav receiver. In addition to the active and standby com frequencies on the left side, the unit can also display the nav frequency, the radial to or from the station, omnibearing selector, or course deviation indicator. It also listens to the nav's Morse code identifier and displays the three-letter identifier. As with other II Morrow coms, the SL30 interfaces with II Morrow GPSs to pull frequencies and other information from the GPS databases. Likewise, the SL30 has a frequency monitor that allows the pilot to listen to the transmissions from the standby frequency until chatter is received on the active side — a useful feature for listening to automated weather transmissions while awaiting air traffic calls. The radio also comes with a built-in two-place voice-activated intercom, National Weather Service frequencies, and 16 memory frequencies. The SL30 also has the ability to determine — based on your position in relation to the localizer — when a back course is being flown and automatically corrects the CDI to compensate for reverse sensing.

Meanwhile, the MX20 multifunction display features a six-inch diagonal active matrix color LCD with a resolution of 6402480 pixels and more than 65,000 colors. The display comes with six main operating functions, including VFR charting that resembles a sectional, IFR en route charting that resembles an instrument en route chart, terrain charting that combines a worldwide terrain database with GPS position inputs to display terrain conflict advisories in four colors, a lightning function that displays BFGoodrich WX500 Stormscope data, a Custom Overlay function that allows features from various pages to be combined, and a Flight Plan function that includes all of the usual navigation information output by GPSs.

The MX20 comes with 3.2 gigabytes of memory and six input/output ports for linking to GPSs and other sensors. II Morrow's Sam Seery says that the unit is designed to be upgradable, giving customers the ability to add other features in the future, such as datalink of real-time traffic and weather information.

The transponder lists for $1,995; the navcom goes for $3,995; and the MX20 lists for $5,995. Combined with an IFR GX60 GPS/com/moving map and the SL10 audio panel, the entire stack lists for about $18,000. II Morrow expects to begin shipping the new products this fall. For more information contact the company at 800/525-6726 or 503/581-8101; or visit the Web site ( www.iimorrow.com). — Thomas B. Haines

Briefly Noted

The hotly contested engine monitor segment gained another member at Sun 'n Fun with Electronics International's Ultimate Bar Graph Engine Analyzer. Using a combination display — vertically stacked analog bars with a digital readout below — this new analyzer is remarkably similar to both the Insight GEM and the J.P. Instruments EDM-700. It has 16 channels of temperature- or pressure-monitoring capacity, and it can be fitted with a wide variety of sensors. It also includes a fuel-flow display but no actual fuel computer. Other functions are quite forward thinking. Not only does it have a lean-find mode that alerts you to the first cylinder to reach peak EGT, but it will also keep track of which cylinders are on the rich or lean side of their respective peaks. Prices start at $1,295 without probes. Probes cost $59 each, while functional modules for pressure and temperatures cost $195 each; the fuel flow option is $395. Electronics International may be contacted at 503/439-8484. — Marc E. Cook

Magellan has introduced the GPS 315A, a new entry-level handheld GPS that lists for $299.99. The unit is a basic ground-bound GPS set up for aviation use, as evidenced by features such as a speedometer and a page that lays out your course like a highway to follow. These screens can be turned off if you'd like. The 315A ships with an aviation database on a CD-ROM that must be downloaded through a PC cable that is provided. It has a basic moving map that depicts navigational data from a Jeppesen database, as well as a few other screens with raw textual nav data. We found the Nav 2 page — with bearing, heading, speed, and distance — to be great for basic yet accurate navigation. With its external dimensions rivaling those of a small cellular phone and featherlike weight, the owner of an ultralight or other basic airplane would find the 315A a powerful primary nav unit. For drivers of heavier equipment, the 315A makes a good backup nav device in the event of electrical failure. It can fit in a glove box or seat pocket when not in use. For more information, contact Magellan at 909/394-5000 or visit the Web site ( www.magellangps.com). — PAB

Unison Industries' Slick Harnesses are now being offered in various colors to spruce up the under-cowl environment. The FAA parts manufacturer approved multicolored ignition leads also come with several design improvements, such as: enlarged wrench flats, longer thread engagement on the spark plug nuts, heavier contact springs, a new plating process for better corrosion protection, and better lead flexibility. Harnesses are available for nearly every model of Lycoming, Continental, and Franklin aircraft engines. Slick Harnesses start at a list price of $234 for four-cylinder applications without color. Add $10 for a full-color harness and $5 for a harness with half of the leads colored (advantageous for easy identification of the source magneto of a particular lead). Slick harnesses are available from most FBOs and Slick distributors worldwide. For more information call 904/739-4000 or visit the Web site ( www.unisonindustries.com). — PAB

Twin Star Industries of Bloomington, Minnesota, has introduced its nonmasking Atmos-Klear Odor Eliminator. Atmos-Klear does not cover up odors with heavy fragrances, which can be obtrusive on their own, but eliminates them with a noncorrosive, nonstaining, hypoallergenic, odorless mixture. We found that the Atmos-Klear Odor Eliminator worked well on various odors around the home, hangar, and airplane. Ozium, the perennial favorite of pilots, has a powerful lemon fragrance — which, Atmos-Klear officials say, masks the stench. Currently, the smallest Odor Eliminator aerosol spray contains 3.5 ounces. The can, which measures six inches tall and 1.5 inches in diameter, is significantly larger than Ozium's smallest bottle, which can be easily stowed in small pockets in the cockpit. Atmos-Klear says that if demand warrants, a 1-ounce container could be produced. For more information, call 800/977-4145 or 612/884-0513. — PAB

ReliefBand

A new method to stave off motion sickness is sending a shock, of sorts, through the aviation industry. The ReliefBand from Woodside Biomedical, like many anti-motion-sickness remedies, straps to the wrist. Unlike the other remedies, however, ReliefBand uses electronic nerve stimulation to soothe erratic stomach rhythms and reduce motion sickness.

Dr. Brent Blue, a 28-year AOPA member, prescribed ReliefBands to his patients who were pregnant or who were undergoing chemotherapy. After seeing the results, Blue used the ReliefBand on days when he flew aerobatics and decided that he should make the product known to the rest of the aviation community, for fliers and nonfliers alike.

We put the ReliefBand to what may possibly be the ultimate test. We strapped the product to the wrist of a typical light-airplane pilot and dropped him in the aft seat of an F-16 fighter jet for 1.5 hours of yanking, banking, and other stomach-wrenching moves. After several maneuvers registering more than seven Gs, the ReliefBand prevented the most embarrassing side effect of motion sickness — vomiting. After several sudden and unanticipated high-G maneuvers, our tester felt noticeably nauseous. With the ReliefBand set on the highest setting, the nausea went away in only a few minutes.

The ReliefBand should be positioned between the two large tendons on the underside of the wrist. At the highest of the five settings, you can actually feel the ReliefBand zapping the wrist. It is not uncomfortable by any means. Conductivity gel is recommended for use with the product to enhance stimulation.

Texas Air Aces, an aerial combat and advanced maneuver training facility near Houston, Texas, strapped ReliefBands to several of its customers' wrists prior to their "missions." Out of 40 participants in the unofficial study, few felt nauseous and none vomited, an unheard-of statistic for the operation, said Texas Air Aces President Don Wylie.

ReliefBand is disposable and is claimed to last 150 hours, according to Blue. Batteries are not replaceable or rechargeable. ReliefBand lists for $119.95 but can be obtained for $97.95 through the Web site ( www.aeromedix.com). For more information, write to Aeromedix at Post Office Box 3370, Jackson Hole, Wyoming 83001; telephone 888/362-7123 or 307/733-8002. — PAB

Unless otherwise stated, products listed herein have not been evaluated by AOPA Pilot editors. AOPA assumes no responsibility for products or services listed or for claims or actions by manufacturers or vendors. However, members unable to get satisfaction regarding products listed should advise AOPA. To submit products for evaluation, contact: New Products Editor, AOPA Pilot, 421 Aviation Way, Frederick, Maryland 21701; telephone 301/695-2350.