Magellan EC-20X
In the size war of handheld moving-map GPS receivers, the Magellan EC-20X will take the prize for having the biggest screen of a "portable." The screen measures seven inches diagonally and is sharper than that of any handheld we've seen. Because of its size, though, it wouldn't quite be correct to call the EC-20X a handheld. It's best used when strapped to your thigh, a position for which it is designed.
The grayscale map depicts cartographic features such as roads, lakes, and towns as well as staples like special-use airspace, navaids, and user waypoints. In testing we found that cartographic information, such as road locations, were as much as one-quarter of a mile off. Magellan says that will happen in smaller map scales be-cause of the data compression required to store all that information in the EC-20X's memory. A regional data cartridge, which covers about a three-state area, will enhance the accuracy of the cartographic information if you so desire. Aviation data, the information that really counts, is dead-on accurate. The screen is sunlight readable; but at viewing angles of more than 30 degrees, the information on screen begins to wash out.
The EC-20X has its own GPS receiver, but it can also be connected to the airplane's existing GPS or loran unit through an RS-232 data port, eliminating the unsightly cockpit clutter involved with stringing up the portable antenna. The EC-20X can also connect to an external GPS antenna through a stand-ard BNC connector and a short extension cord if your airplane is equipped with a remote antenna connection. Either method reduces the hassle of having to find a convenient and attractive way to mount the portable antenna.
The EC-20X can only be powered by a cigarette lighter or an optional $60 rechargeable lead-acid battery pack. The coiled power cord therefore is not removable, somewhat negating the aforementioned efforts taken to reduce the spaghetti-in-the-cockpit effect. In the event of an aircraft electrical failure and without a battery pack, you won't have any backup navigation from the EC-20X. On the positive side, having a unit that runs only on ship's power means the map's backlighting can be used indefinitely without frying your new set of alkalines in a matter of hours.
Operation of the EC-20X will require a little armchair flying in simulator mode before taking it along with you in the cockpit. It's not a particularly hard unit to learn; it's just different. There are multiple layers of menus and directional keys to navigate through them. Direct-to navigation requires several keystrokes. If the point you'd like to fly directly to is nearby, you can select it on the map with the cursor keys and hit the Direct button. If the point is far away and you're in a small map scale, you can go to the database menu, enter in the identifier, and push Direct. In the busy Northeast, where flight plans are constantly changing, it would be nice to have a quicker way to enter a direct-to waypoint without requiring so much head-down time.
For VFR flights the EC-20X clearly depicts airspace boundaries and also shows obstructions, including their altitudes in feet above mean sea level. Mode C rings around Class B airspace are depicted with the same size lines as those used to define the boundaries, which can cause confusion if the airspace depictions are selected. Altitudes of the airspace sectors must be determined through a series of keystrokes. According to Magellan, SUA sector altitudes could not be depicted on the map because the screen redraw rate would be unacceptably slow.
Screen redraws are slow, especially in congested areas, because there is so much to depict on the EC-20X's screen. Declutter features in the map setup pages will speed screen redraw. The map can be viewed in north-up, track-up, or course-up orientations. The EC-20X uses C-MAP Aviation's Jeppesen NavData updates that cost $115 for a one-time update or as much as $897 per year for 28-day updates.
Not sure if your alternate has a rental car or hotel nearby? The EC-20X's database also includes AOPA's Airport Directory data which lists FBOs, rental cars, hotels, and other information, including phone numbers. The AOPA data and basic trip-planning functions make the EC-20X great for preflight as well as in-flight duties.
The EC-20X has a limited number of E6B functions consisting of actual wind calculation, vertical navigation, and fuel consumption. Vertical speed is determined by entering a glideslope angle instead of the desired descent rate in feet per minute. The HSI page shows a glideslope-like depiction for monitoring VNAV progress.
The leg strap and rounded underside are welcome features of the EC-20X because it provides a solid foundation for mounting. But even on a thin-legged tester the elastic leg strap was a snug fit for the long haul. Those with larger legs will find the EC-20X's leg strap almost tourniquet-like. In fairness, the big Magellan was strapped very high on the thigh in order to allow full travel of the yoke in the test airplane. In aircraft with more room between the yoke and legs, the unit can be strapped on the lower (and thinner) area of the thigh just above the knee. This is also a more comfortable position from which to view the unit.
An optional yoke mount is available from Magellan, as is a $229 OmniView Mount from C-MAP Aviation. The OmniView affixes to the seat track of most Piper and Cessna airplanes and swivels to bring the EC-20X to a comfortable height in the center of the cockpit. Add this to a $1,499 minimum advertised price for the EC-20X and this "handheld" represents an investment encroaching on panel-mount GPS territory. Of course, a panel mount for that price won't have a dreamy moving-map display and the ability to work in the rental car at your destination.
For more information, contact Magellan, 960 Overland Court, San Dimas, California 91773; telephone 909/394-5000; or visit the Web site ( www.magellangps.com). — Peter A. Bedell
Tail Hook Inc. of Wilmington, Delaware, has introduced the Tail Hook Valet, a battery-powered winch used to pull an airplane into its tiedown or hangar. Tail Hook Valet uses a car battery (not included) that is kept charged by a solar panel mounted on the top of the unit. The solar panel can be mounted re-motely for airplanes stored in hangars or other shaded areas.
The Tail Hook Valet is attached to the existing tail tie-down anchor buried in the asphalt or grass. A remote control unit allows the Tail Hook Valet to be operated from inside the cockpit, allowing the pilot to steer the airplane with the rudder pedals — a nice touch for those rainy days. Bridles for the nose or main landing gear are available for aircraft that cannot be towed by the tail tiedown ring.
The $649 Tail Hook Valet can heft a 6,000-pound aircraft on paved, level surfaces, a figure that decreases in grass or on inclines. During a paved-surface demo inventor Bob Brown had the unit set up and running within minutes. The winch easily tugged a Beech Bonanza back into its tiedown against a slight incline — a feat nearly impossible for one person pushing and steering an airplane of that size with just a towbar. It wasn't a speedy process but that's typical of any product designed to move airplanes, especially under battery power.
For more information, contact Tail Hook Inc., Three Mill Road, Suite 104, Wilmington, Delaware 19806; telephone 888/568-2538; or visit the Web site ( www.tailhookvalet.com). — PAB
Briefly Noted
Looking to boost the performance of your Lycoming-powered Cessna 172 or Piper PA-28? Power Flow Systems recently received a supplemental type certificate to install a new tuned ex-haust system that is claimed to boost performance of the Lycoming O-320-powered airplanes by as much as 18 percent. Power Flow claims that the new exhaust system can increase climb performance, cruise speed, and range, while offering lower cylinder-head temperatures, smoother operation, and lower fuel burn. According to data from Power Flow, a 150-horsepower 172 with a Cessna exhaust system creates only 133 hp because of exhaust inefficiencies. The tuned Power Flow exhaust boosts the same engine to a claimed 157 hp. Work is continuing on an STC for Lycoming O-360-powered airplanes. Introductory price of the complete Power Flow exhaust is $2,345. For more information, contact Power Flow Systems at 888/327-8140 or visit the Web site ( www.powerflowsystems.com). — PAB
Northstar Avionics introduced the CT-1000 Flight Deck Organizer in February. The $11,500 CT-1000 is a portable computer loaded with preflight planning software, Internet access for downloading weather and filing flight plans, and a 2.1-gigabyte hard drive to store the information and bring it along in the aircraft. Once airborne, the CT-1000 interfaces with an onboard GPS to provide an in-flight moving map, run terrain-avoidance software, access weather services via datalink or telephone, and select appropriate approach plates using JeppView, Jeppesen's electronic chart service. A 233-MHz Pentium MMX processor, CD-ROM drive, dual PCMCIA slots, and an RS232 port are encased in an aluminum alloy housing. Northstar says that the CT-1000 is ideal for "today's busy pilot" who needs a portable computer that can satisfy nearly all preflight and in-flight needs. For more information, contact Northstar at 978/897-0770; or visit the Web site ( www.northstarcmc.com). — PAB
AviatorPro 98
AviatorPro 98, designed by training company FlightSafety International, is a first step toward making Microsoft's Flight Simulator 98 more useful as an IFR proficiency tool. AviatorPro is purchased separately as an enhancement after Flight Simulator has been installed.
Users may select from five flights that are like final exams for the fully trained instrument pilot. Make one mistake, and fail to correct it within a minute and 15 seconds, and your adventure is over. The FlightSafety team said that the requirement to start over is caused by limitations in the Flight Simulator software as designed by Microsoft. Some of those limitations may disappear in Flight Simulator 2000.
For purposes of this review the flight from Vero Beach, Florida, to Titusville, Florida, was used. To make the flight successfully, radios must be tuned correctly, headings and altitudes held, ATC instructions obeyed, and approaches flown correctly.
The flight instruments were sometimes difficult to read, and pitch control with a two-axis Microsoft Sidewinder joystick was difficult. The brakes, represented on the keyboard by the period key, seemed not to work well, allowing the aircraft to taxi off the airport and over hill and dale with the brakes locked.
FlightSafety officials said more advanced sticks seem to work better. You'll get a warning of problems before the program terminates your adventure. You may fly on, if you desire, but the flight will no longer be directed by controllers or scored. On the second attempt, I made it to Titusville and was on the NDB approach when the official's voice, one of 14 used in the program, began nagging about my having changed over to tower frequency before the approach controller told me to. Since the program does not have a flip-flop radio tuning feature, and I did not remember the frequency, my "adventure" was terminated. I called the official to complain that in the real world I would have had a flip-flop radio. "In the real world," the official said in her best AviatorPro 98 voice, "you would have written it down." Oops.
Requirements include Flight Simulator 98, a multimedia personal computer with a 100 MHz or faster processor and a double-speed or faster CD-ROM, Windows 95, eight megabytes of RAM, and 25 megabytes of hard disk space. AviatorPro 98 is available on the FlightSafety Web site ( www.flightsafety.com) in a boxed version ($34.95 plus shipping, handling, and applicable sales tax) and a download version ($29.95 plus applicable sales tax). For more information write FlightSafety Training Systems Division, Post Office Box 11527, Daytona Beach, Florida 32120-1525; telephone 904/226-4900. — Alton K. Marsh
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.
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