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Texas Aircraft and the Colt — Expanding the Light-Sport Aircraft in Several Directions

By Dan Johnson || August 30, 2020 2 Comments

Garmin IFR Colt

"Wait," I hear some of you exclaim! "A Light-Sport Aircraft cannot be used for flying with reference only to instruments." Wrong!

Rather than repeat what I have already written several times, I invite you to explore this article which makes an attempt to explain the situation surrounding IFR or IMC, that is, flight in actual instrument conditions; different from filing to fly in the IFR system for training or other reasons. Certainly, most readers will see the value in a new, modern, fuel efficient, comfortable, and marvelously-equipped Light-Sport Aircraft versus a 30-50 year-old Cessna 172 or other legacy general aviation aircraft. One has the gear a student may one day find in an airliner he or she flies. The other has older, analog gauges that are disappearing from modern aircraft. In fact, most LSA have zero round dials in them. That's the way it will be going forward.

Texas Aircraft announced, "The addition of the Garmin G3X flight display and GTN 650 touchscreen navigator to the options list is mainly in response to the many requests the company has received from flight schools wanting to offer Garmin’s long list of advanced features and capabilities to their students." The company added that this equipment will be offered as "options for its new-generation Colt-S and Colt-SL Special LSA." “In the short time since the Colt was introduced, it has received a lot of attention from flight schools looking for a modern and affordable technically advanced aircraft (TAA),” stated Texas Aircraft Manufacturing’s Customer Engagement Team Member, Scott Musselman. “Couple the Garmin avionics with the Colt’s attractive pricing and low operating costs, and you’ll have an ideal industry standard training aircraft for entry-level up through instrument and commercial training.”

Scott explained that while the Colt’s standard Dynon avionics package is TAA compliant and amazing for flight training, "flight schools are asking for Garmin." Providing Garmin equipment can help reduce the time and cost associated with training students on multiple avionics systems as they progress. “Today’s students want to train on the same avionics they will be using later as they advance into more complex Garmin-equipped aircraft,” Scott said. “The wide variety of Garmin avionics that we will make available for the Colt will give flight schools and private owners a great deal of flexibility in how their avionics are configured.”

More Pricing Options

While Texas Aircraft upped their game for flight school operators they also kept the individual buyer in mind.

“We are now offering Garmin-equipped Colt aircraft with the basic VFR package starting at $139,000," said Scott. The fully-equipped, “Heavy IFR” Garmin package is priced starting at $170,500 (see below). “So, whether you want a sleek single-display Garmin G3X Touch panel or dual G3X Touch instruments for a truly impressive digital screen experience, we offer choices,” Scott said. “All Garmin-equipped IFR-capable Colts come standard with a G5 backup. We are extremely excited to be able to offer Garmin’s popular line of avionics in our new-generation Colt.”

Optional Garmin Avionics for the new-generation Texas Aircraft Colt Special LSA: All pricing and equipment is subject to change

10.6-inch G3X Touch configurable touchscreen display with built-in synthetic vision
GTN 650 touchscreen GPS/IFR Navigator
G5 back-up instrument
GMC 507 autopilot control with level mode
GSA 28 smart three-axis autopilot
GMA 245 audio panel
GTR 200 and 20 COM radios
GTX 45R remote ADS-B Out/In transponder

Electric-Motor-Powered eColt

Electric power is certainly coming to light aircraft. The tipping point will be dictated by battery development. I have written plenty about this as well.

Almost everyone knows at least some facts about batteries. Everything we carry around these days seems battery powered and all of us are ever in search of an electric outlet to get more charge. Until battery energy density takes a substantial leap forward, electric airplanes have some clear limitations. Yet primary flight instruction — at least done in the pattern within easy reach of landing back on the field — is one early potential for electric powered LSA. However, not all batteries are identical. — The British Lithium-Sulfur (Li-S) battery technology company, Oxis Energy and Texas Aircraft Manufacturing are developing an electric power system for Colt and initially, Oxis projects that the flight time will be in excess of two hours and an approximate range of 200 nautical miles. While still short of true cross country flying, this sounds encouraging.

Huw Hampson-Jones, CEO of Oxis Energy, said, “Oxis Li-S technology offers significant benefits to aviation. The use of sulfur as a non-conductive material provides enhanced safety and is superior to current Lithium-Ion technology. Our 90kWh battery system is 40% lighter than current Li-Ion technology and will be powered by its 'High Power' cell at 400Wh/kg." Oxis is involved in the design, development and now the move towards commercial production of Lithium Sulfur cells for battery systems. Oxis manufactures and produces all aspects and components in the making of the Li-S cell and does not use any toxic or rare earth material in the composition of its Lithium Sulfur cell technology. Oxis has been granted 193 patents with 115 pending. Texas Aircraft's Matheus added, "Our eColt, manufactured at our factory in Texas, will use Li-S battery cells made at the Oxis factory. The powertrain will be supplied by WEG and the battery and its management system (BMS) will be provided by Akaer Group of São José dos Campos, Brazil." (Note that while Texas Aircraft is an all-American company, Matheus and his team hail from Brazil so they have many connections in that southern hemisphere country.) "This project is in early stage," said Matheus. "We are not changing the Colt, but we are studying the possibility to add some battery packs under the plane (maybe looking like a Cessna Caravan cargo) but this is still under discussion since we are also evaluating adding the battery packs into the wings."

At last year's Midwest LSA Expo (the 2020 event IS ON and starts September 10th), we flew Colt: https://youtu.be/DkPD07-z0Wc

I always enjoy when a new airplane company arrives on the market and sets plans in motion to expand and improve their flying machine. Texas Aircraft and their Colt 100 Light-Sport Aircraft is one such company. Lead by the energetic and ambitious Matheus Grande, Texas Aircraft is moving on several fronts. Here is some update on the Colt builder based in Hondo, Texas. Garmin IFR Colt “Wait,” I hear some of you exclaim! “A Light-Sport Aircraft cannot be used for flying with reference only to instruments.” Wrong! Rather than repeat what I have already written several times, I invite you to explore this article which makes an attempt to explain the situation surrounding IFR or IMC, that is, flight in actual instrument conditions; different from filing to fly in the IFR system for training or other reasons. Certainly, most readers will see the value in a new, modern, fuel efficient, comfortable, and marvelously-equipped Light-Sport Aircraft versus a 30-50 year-old Cessna 172 or other legacy general aviation aircraft.

Garmin Announces Remote Learning As Offset to a Summer Without EAA AirVenture Oshkosh

By Dan Johnson || July 10, 2020 Leave a Comment

Garmin is going to Oshkosh 2020! No, wait, that can't be. Oshkosh is going to Garmin! Nope, that’s not right, either. Ah, how about Garmin simulating being in Wisconsin, in effect, bringing a virtual AirVenture airshow right into your home. Now we're talkin'!

To learn more or to sign up for one or more sessions, go to Garmin's special Virtual Oshkosh page.

Actually, this is rather cool. I don’t know about you, but when I go to Oshkosh, I race around from display to display getting the latest news. Because hundreds of airplanes and engines are located outside, that’s where I’m focused. Getting inside the buildings to visit hundreds more displays generally happens only for specific news. Almost never do I get to explore avionics or flight planning software. That’s all changed for what would be Oshkosh 2020.

Virtually Yours…

The team at Garmin has cooked up an online version of a regular occurrence at their AirVenture display where they deliver seminars and offer experts to help explain or debug your gear. In the age of digital, two points must be made.

Garmin's G3X Touch is one of the most successful digital instruments in light aviation.

One, these new gizmos can do everything but make you lunch. Compared to the analog instrumentation of days gone by — all those rows of round steam gauges we used to navigate or fly IFR — pilots have so much more information available to them today. That’s good.

Garmin's InReach satellite communications device.

Two, these new gizmos can do so much, it can be overwhelming. Oh, eventually we get used to the many new features. Then we come to think we can’t live without them. Yet if you don’t use them all the time, you may need a tune-up. When digital avionics are new, most of us need a helping hand to learn the ropes. Whatever you may need or desire, Garmin has a plan. (For the record, Dynon has done similar efforts — they call it a "virtual booth visit" — to augment their airshow outreach; good for both companies.)

Like Going to KOSH

On July 8th 2020, Garmin announced they were kicking off a new virtual AirVenture Oshkosh.

The revised and enlarged Garmin aera 760.

“[We have] a comprehensive line-up of virtual AirVenture Oshkosh events,” the Kansas company said. “Beginning Monday, July 20 through Saturday, July 25 — the days when the live show would have occurred — Garmin will host a series of free educational webinars and product demonstrations, and feature unique opportunities that will bring the Garmin exhibit experience direct to its customers.” Customers can view a detailed list of events, dates and times. “While we are very disappointed AirVenture Oshkosh will not physically take place as expected this year, we are thrilled to bring eager attendees, loyal customers and friends as much of the Garmin experience to you virtually, and in the best way possible given the times,” said Carl Wolf, vice president of aviation sales and marketing. “Our team has put together a terrific agenda of events for the week, so please join us for as much of it as you can. We look forward to seeing you again in person in 2021!”

Garmin's Pilot app shown with full screen sectional chart including the "pie chart" with each "pie slice" working as a link to more info.

Garmin serves aviation markets from jets to helicopters to kit-built aircraft to LSA to ultralights. I have selected from the wide curriculum to highlight sessions I believe may be of interest to readers of this website.

Training webinars will also be available throughout the week and are led by Garmin’s aviation training department. They will feature a general operational overview of Garmin products. Customers can attend any of the following webinar or training topics throughout the week.

Garmin “University” Selected Items for Sport Pilots

Latest portables: aera series, inReach, more
Cost effective autopilot upgrades
Garmin Pilot flight planning: Getting started & pro tips
Solutions for experimental aircraft
Sporty’s and Garmin Present: Preflight weather with Garmin Pilot
Garmin Pilot: Cross-country planning
G3X Pilot Academy: Introduction
G3X Pilot Academy: Autopilot

Similar to meeting with a Garmin expert one-on-one at the exhibit, customers can schedule individual discussions with a Garmin expert throughout the week of Garmin’s virtual AirVenture.

The Pilot app shown with simple flight planning.

These expert sessions will be held online via Microsoft Teams and allow customers to ask operational questions or receive support updating databases or software. During these individual meetings, customers can also receive an individualized consultation on upgrading the avionics in their aircraft, ask troubleshooting questions regarding their experimental avionics installations, and receive help with Garmin Pilot. Go to their special web page to schedule a one-on-one meeting with a Garmin expert. Below, get a review of the G3X Touch with Jessica Koss.

https://youtu.be/R1i-FV1c5-Y

Garmin is going to Oshkosh 2020! No, wait, that can’t be. Oshkosh is going to Garmin! Nope, that’s not right, either. Ah, how about Garmin simulating being in Wisconsin, in effect, bringing a virtual AirVenture airshow right into your home. Now we’re talkin’! Actually, this is rather cool. I don’t know about you, but when I go to Oshkosh, I race around from display to display getting the latest news. Because hundreds of airplanes and engines are located outside, that’s where I’m focused. Getting inside the buildings to visit hundreds more displays generally happens only for specific news. Almost never do I get to explore avionics or flight planning software. That’s all changed for what would be Oshkosh 2020. Virtually Yours… The team at Garmin has cooked up an online version of a regular occurrence at their AirVenture display where they deliver seminars and offer experts to help explain or debug your gear.

Tecnam Aircraft — Here, There, and Everywhere, It Seems

By Dan Johnson || October 16, 2018 Leave a Comment

This week kicks off the truly gigantic trade show known by its sponsoring organization's abbreviation: NBAA, or in common lingo, "Enn, Bee, Double A." While not taking up the extensive terra firms of Oshkosh, NBAA actually has more paying exhibitors. They even tow aircraft down city streets in the dark of night so a reported 100 aircraft can be on display at the Orlando Civic Center. The show has become so large that supposedly only two U.S. convention centers are big enough to contain the sprawling affair: Las Vegas and Orlando. The latter is just down the street for me so every other year I go and look for something to report amidst my wandering around astonished at the sheer size of the event and how much money gets spent for a three-day show.

I always find something of interest to the light aviation, recreational flying community. This year, I'm on the lookout for Tecnam, one of this website's longtime sponsors and surely the largest company serving up Light-Sport Aircraft around the world. At NBAA 2018, Tecnam will be showing their 11-seat P2012 Traveller, a model made for feeder airlines such as Cape Air, which said it is "one of the largest independent regional airlines in the United States, serving 39 cities in the US, Caribbean, and Micronesia." Cape Air is the launch partner for the transport aircraft. As alert readers will observe, P2012 still looks significantly like a Tecnam, albeit with too many seats and too many engines to be anywhere near a LSA.

Business Around the Globe

While Traveller is their foray into NBAA's glittering world, Tecnam remains highly active in aircraft that readers of this website recognize. Tecnam has been busy this year; here are a few of their recent successes at delivering their light aircraft all around the globe. Greece — Hellenic Air Force Academy, based at an air base near Athens, is a unit of the Hellenic (Greek) Air Force. A recent delivery is the first of 12 Tecnam P2002JF trainers HAFA ordered. The Academy selected the Tecnam model as its next-generation screening/primary training aircraft. P2002JF is a two-seat, single-engine, low-wing aircraft powered by the Rotax 912 and fitted with the latest avionics from Garmin. Tecnam is familiar with supplying government air forces. In 2016 Tecnam delivered eight P2002JF aircraft to the Argentina Air Force. "This [South American] fleet has amassed a total of over 6,000 hours and performed 16,000 landings to date," noted Tecnam. ByDanJohnson.com readers know this model as the Sierra. Poland — Tecnam announced today that the Polish Medical Air Rescue (PMAR) has placed an order for three Tecnam P2008JC Mk II airplanes. PMAR is a very active organization using a fleet of aircraft to perform nearly 10,000 flights in the first eight months of this year alone. P2008JC is comprised of a carbon-fiber fuselage with metals wings and stabilator. "This combination of composite and metal resulted in a more fuel efficient and much quieter aircraft," said Tecnam. The MkII version of P2008JC features a number of significant enhancements including a new avionic suite with a refreshed interior design. Australia — This summer, Tecnam announced the sale of eight P2008 light sport aircraft training aircraft to Soar Aviation of Melbourne, Australia. Soar claims to be Australia’s largest private flying school with with over 500 students. It operates a fleet of 48 Rotax-powered training aircraft and has a team of 100 employees, including more 67 instructors. Soar has facilities at the Moorabbin Airport in Melbourne, Australia and at the Bankstown and Bendigo airports in Sydney, stated Tecnam. France — The same month as the Aussie sale, Tecnam said they took an order for four P2010 MkII four-seat aircraft from Air Paris Academy based at the Tours Airport. Tecnam describes their P Twenty Ten as "the first new single-engine, high-wing, four-seat aircraft from Tecnam that brings together an advanced technology all carbon fibre fuselage with a metal wing and stabilator." Just a month earlier, Tecnam announced that Australia's Civil Aviation Safety Authority and the Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand validated the Tecnam P2010 based on the EASA Type Certificate including a 215 horsepower version of the Lycoming IO390-C3B6 powerplant. Tecnam's large portfolio of aircraft from LSA and sport aircraft to four seat GA aircraft to twin engine personal aircraft to the new 11-seat regional airliner makes for an active company rapidly growing to be one of the world's aviation powerhouses.

This week kicks off the truly gigantic trade show known by its sponsoring organization’s abbreviation: NBAA, or in common lingo, “Enn, Bee, Double A.” While not taking up the extensive terra firms of Oshkosh, NBAA actually has more paying exhibitors. They even tow aircraft down city streets in the dark of night so a reported 100 aircraft can be on display at the Orlando Civic Center. The show has become so large that supposedly only two U.S. convention centers are big enough to contain the sprawling affair: Las Vegas and Orlando. The latter is just down the street for me so every other year I go and look for something to report amidst my wandering around astonished at the sheer size of the event and how much money gets spent for a three-day show. I always find something of interest to the light aviation, recreational flying community. This year, I’m on the lookout for Tecnam, one of this website’s longtime sponsors and surely the largest company serving up Light-Sport Aircraft around the world.

Major Benchmarks for Manufacturers Serving the Light Aircraft Community

By Dan Johnson || December 5, 2017 2 Comments

Van's Aircraft's Immensely Popular RV-Series

According to a recent report in General Aviation News, "[When] David Porter took his first flight in his RV-7 on Nov. 24, 2017, he probably didn’t know he was making history. The Martinsburg, West Virginia pilot’s kit-built airplane became the official 10,000th Van’s RV-series aircraft." Van's labeled David's first flight as "official" because more than 10,000 RV-series kit aircraft are definitely known to be flying, but the company recognizes it may not know about all of them. President of his local EAA Chapter (# 1071), David spent three and a half years building his RV-7 from a standard kit. It was the first airplane he has built. His airplane was RV-7 #1,662 to fly, according to the Oregon company. Dick van Grunsven's Van’s Aircraft began selling RV-3 plans back in 1973. From this modest start the company now calculates that over the last 44 years a new RV has taken to the air every 1.6 days on average. Now, that is one impressive achievement, I believe.

2016 Pacific Coast Dream Machines Show, Vans RV-7A. Both RV photos published by GA News

“No one is exactly sure when the 1,000th RV flew — our best guess is around early 1994,” company officials said in a prepared release. “The 2,000 mark was passed in November 1998, 19 years ago. The increase from 9,000 flying RVs to 10,000 took just 33 months or under 1,000 days.” Therefore, "About one new RV airplane leaves the ground each day, with 360 taking to the skies already in 2017." Great job, Team Van's!

Garmin's One Millionth

"We’re celebrating the delivery of our one-millionth certified avionics product from our manufacturing facility in Olathe, Kansas," announced the popular avionics producer. This large number does not include the huge number of sports or auto products and more made by Garmin over its three decade history. The milestone product was a GTX 3000 DI-260B compliant Mode S Extended Squitter (ES) transponder, which enables ADS-B Out transmissions, a timely offering given the last two years of push to fit GA aircraft with ADS-B Out before the 2020 FAA deadline.

“Since our inception over 28 years ago, Garmin has been committed to providing superior products that are known for their innovation, reliability and intuitive design,” said Phil Straub, Garmin executive vice president, managing director of aviation. “This milestone is a testament to our long-established commitment to making significant investments in research and development, as well as the hard work and dedication of thousands of passionate Garmin team members that I have the pleasure of working with every day.” “As we celebrate this exciting accomplishment, I am very proud of how our teams have managed such significant growth, while maintaining the culture of our company as our founders set forth,” said Carl Wolf, vice president of aviation marketing and sales. “The breadth and depth of our certified aviation product line has expanded greatly over the years, allowing us to develop new markets for Garmin. This incredible milestone doesn’t even include the hundreds of thousands of portable and other non-certified products that our customers use every day. On behalf of Garmin, I wish to express my utmost gratitude to our loyal customers, our dealers and the aircraft manufacturers all around the globe, who have helped us to accomplish such a tremendous achievement in Garmin’s history.”

Decades of progress from the simple monochrome GPS 90 to the colorful and highly versatile touchscreen G3X.

Established by co-founders Gary Burrell and Dr. Min Kao — Gar' and Min, hence the company name — in 1989 in Lenexa, Kansas, Garmin was founded with its core roots in aviation. Today, the central U.S. corporation has evolved into five business segments with more than 11,000 employees around the globe. "From a single product," said Garmin, "the evolution of our avionics solutions has grown to serve multiple segments within the aviation industry, including general aviation, business aviation, helicopter, experimental amateur-built (EAB), defense and air transport." I'm sure Garmin meant to include LSA in that roster but many recent product releases by the company show it is pursuing the high end avionics market aggressively. In the LSA space the G3X Touch and Garmin 796 are the most popular devices with many supporting items benefitting the Garmin ecosystem of avionics. Congratulations to both Van's Aircraft and Garmin. We are lucky both company are involved in the kind aviation enjoyed by sport and recreational pilots.

Where do readers of General Aviation News live?

To close, I thought I'd again reference my friends from General Aviation News to show you their recently-offered map of where their readers are located. I submit to this Washington-state-based publication every month and know they provide a journal read enthusiastically by tens of thousands of pilots. As proof of their success at transitioning from only newsprint to electronic communication, GA News can boast the largest Facebook following (around 350,000!) of any aviation publication or organization. Great job publisher Ben Sclair and team mates! Subscribe to GA News and you can also receive their free The Pulse of Aviation e-newsletter.

Recently, a couple major benchmarks were reached by some of our important brand names. These notable achievements deserve mention given their relationship to the LSA and light aircraft sector that this website serves. One is an airframe builder and the other is a avionics giant. Van’s Aircraft’s Immensely Popular RV-Series According to a recent report in General Aviation News, “[When] David Porter took his first flight in his RV-7 on Nov. 24, 2017, he probably didn’t know he was making history. The Martinsburg, West Virginia pilot’s kit-built airplane became the official 10,000th Van’s RV-series aircraft.” Van’s labeled David’s first flight as “official” because more than 10,000 RV-series kit aircraft are definitely known to be flying, but the company recognizes it may not know about all of them. President of his local EAA Chapter (# 1071), David spent three and a half years building his RV-7 from a standard kit.

Instrument Flying in Light-Sport Aircraft

By Dan Johnson || March 19, 2017 Leave a Comment

"It cannot be done," is the quick dismissal from many in aviation, referring to instrument flying in a LSA. In 2017, I venture to say everyone in aviation (worldwide) knows about Light-Sport Aircraft and the Sport Pilot certificate, but a superficial knowledge can be a bad thing. The details unveil more.

Think about IFR in an LSA this way: Can you fly IFR in a homebuilt aircraft? Can you do so in a Cessna 172? Does it matter that these two distinct types have not gone through a thorough IFR evaluation by FAA? If you know those answers then why should such flying be prevented in LSA?

It's true, the industry committee called ASTM F.37 issued advice on this subject to LSA producers. F.37 is the group that has labored for a dozen years to provide FAA with industry consensus standards allowing FAA to "accept" (not "certify") SLSA. The group has been working on a IFR standard for some time without arriving at consensus. Partly because the work is not done the committee urged manufacturers not to openly sell IFR capability until the standard was in place and accepted by FAA. (The agency accepts standards and aircraft under different processes.)

F.37's advice is directly related to a present lack of such a standard and possible resistance from legacy aircraft producers. However, neither the committee's advice nor the regulation creating SP/LSA prevents you from filing IFR. Instead yes-or-no relates to a manufacturer's preference plus written FAA-issued operating limitations.

So, as some say, it cannot be done, right? Wrong.

Bristell USA, importers of the superlative LSA of the same name built in the Czech Republic by BRM Aero, has a different approach. They use the ELSA opportunity.

An Experimental LSA starts out as a bolt-for-bolt copy of the SLSA version. Once issued its airworthiness certificate the owner can elect changes. He or she may not use an ELSA for compensated flight instruction or rental, but in other ways, they are significantly the same airplane. Am ELSA owner can change panel gear and other components (even including the engine) and need not seek permission for each change from the manufacturer.

Rather than repeat facts already reported here, I refer you to these articles: "A Raging Debate... IFR, IMC, VMC, and LSA" — "IFR and LSA: Much Ado About... What?" — "IFR 'Certification' of Avionics" — and, for those who want to examine FAA's exact words, go to "FAR Part 91.205 (required equipment for IFR)".

At Sebring 2017, I flew with Bristell USA's John Rathmell. John is not only a highly experienced pilot, he is knowledgeable about Bristell's IFR option. In our video shown below, I asked John to cover some of this detail for you and he was most accommodating.

Now, I understand plenty of readers of this website or viewers of the many videos produced by Videoman Dave and myself perhaps do not care a whit about flying IFR. If you fly strictly for fun in nice weather, good for you! Have at it and enjoy! Yet, if you like the versatility of IFR, it is possible.

To fly under IFR rules, the pilot must have an IFR rating on his or her Private or better pilot certificate, that person must be current in those skills, and the airplane must be qualified by the means referenced above and maintenance must be up-to-date. You cannot — and more importantly should not — go fly into clouds simply because you have wonderful equipment on board from companies like Dynon, Garmin, or MGL.

In summary, if you are an instrument pilot, and if you are current, and if you have a medical, and if you purchase an aircraft like the Bristell and register it as an ELSA, no regulation prevents you from filing and flying IFR including into IMC. Only you can judge if that is a smart activity for you, and I hope you'll do so wisely.

Hear more about IFR in a Bristell and join John and I for a flight in this gorgeous, well flying Light-Sport Aircraft in the following video:

“It cannot be done,” is the quick dismissal from many in aviation, referring to instrument flying in a LSA. In 2017, I venture to say everyone in aviation (worldwide) knows about Light-Sport Aircraft and the Sport Pilot certificate, but a superficial knowledge can be a bad thing. The details unveil more. Think about IFR in an LSA this way: Can you fly IFR in a homebuilt aircraft? Can you do so in a Cessna 172? Does it matter that these two distinct types have not gone through a thorough IFR evaluation by FAA? If you know those answers then why should such flying be prevented in LSA? It’s true, the industry committee called ASTM F.37 issued advice on this subject to LSA producers. F.37 is the group that has labored for a dozen years to provide FAA with industry consensus standards allowing FAA to “accept” (not “certify”) SLSA. The group has been working on a IFR standard for some time without arriving at consensus.

An Excellent Bargain in a Composite LSA

By Dan Johnson || October 16, 2016 Leave a Comment

However, if you want an all-composite design with a digital panel, your choices of lower-cost models is, admittedly, more restricted. It costs money to make things with more exotic materials and with fancier equipment. The great news in late 2016 is customers are getting more choices in "reasonably" priced airplanes (shown in quotes as reasonable is a term that varies from person to person).

The new model in this article will be at the DeLand Sport Aviation Showcase coming up in just over two weeks. I hope you're planning to attend. I'll be present and the first-ever show is already enticing visitors with more exhibitors than most were expecting. Obviously, it pays to hire an experienced leader — Jana Filip — and have a highly supportive airport manager in John Eiff along with town leaders that are all-in for sport aviation at their municipal airport.

Jabiru North America boss Pete Krotje announced, "The FAA was here recently and issued a fresh SLSA airworthiness certificate for our new J170-D aircraft." The new addition logs in as SLSA #142 on our SLSA List.

Pete explained, "Our J170-D is the latest iteration of Jabiru's popular two-place aircraft that is widely used as a trainer in Australia and other places around the world." He added, "It is even used in South Africa as a rhino spotter and for rhino poacher patrol (photo).

No stripped-down flight school model, a standard J170-D in the USA comes equipped with the deluxe Garmin G3X Touch EFIS, a Garmin communications radio, Garmin Mode S transponder, 2020 compliant ADS-B in and out including a certified WAAS GPS, night lighting, and leather seats. All this may be fairly common for higher end LSA, but not at this price: $99,900.

You might wonder why FAA had to make a visit for an airplane we've seen in the USA before. "What changed," I wondered?

DCIM100GOPRO

"J170-D has some major changes in the airframe from the [earlier] J170-SP," Pete clarified. "The SP was a bit prone to aft CG issues if too much baggage was stowed behind the seats and a bit less stable than the larger J230-SP. Jabiru in Australia set about to remedy those problems in 2012 and the result was a longer engine mount to put the engine four inches farther out front and the new swept, airfoil shaped vertical tail." A version of the new tail shape made the J230-D highly stable but was actually first developed on the J170. See Jabiru history for the full story but Pete confirmed the result is a much more stable J170 needing much less rudder input than previously.

"We had to go treat it as a new make and model since Jabiru Aircraft Pty, Ltd., is the manufacturer instead of Jabiru USA or Jabiru North America," Pete said. "Similar to the J230-D, we could no longer manufacturer the aircraft in the USA after an FAA rule change in 2012." Pete refers to internal FAA guidance that attempted to tighten the controls over what companies could declare themselves a manufacturer.

This photo of the panel in Jabiru's demonstrator shows an optional second G3X Touch screen but is otherwise the standard issue, said Pete Krotje.

"Mr. Gib Shelpman from the Atlanta MIDO (Manufacturing Inspection District Office) did the inspection since it was a first article make and model." When I inquired about any need for a formal FAA factory audit as part of the first article inspection, Pete responded, "The audit was done by CASA in Australia for ASTM compliance." On the Airworthiness Certificate FAA issued, Jabiru Aircraft Pty is listed as manufacturer and the aircraft is built by the Australian company in their South African facility. "In the USA we only install the Garmin panel and assemble the airplane out of the shipping container," Pete explained.

Canadian readers will be interested to hear J170-D can also be configured as a Canadian advanced ultralight. In that vein, I should note that DeLand, Florida can be a nice change in early November perhaps encouraging our neighbors to the north to come for a warm-up visit. If they do, they can see J170-D along with all other DeLand attendees.

"We will be at the Deland Sport Aviation Showcase in booth #82, right inside the entry gate," noted Pete. He also assured, "Demo flights will be available." J170-D will be arrive at DeLand Friday, October 28th a few days before the show. I hope to get a flight in the updated model and will look to report on that in November. C'mon down and see us in Florida. Hurricane Matthew did not bring major damage and the show will go on as planned.

The lines are separating a bit. Once we had a flock of LSA priced closer to one another than today. While some are put off by splashy marketing from companies offering LSA priced north of $200,000, your choices do include fixed wing aircraft for $50-80,000 and alternative (weight shift, gyro, and powered parachutes) LSA for even less. However, if you want an all-composite design with a digital panel, your choices of lower-cost models is, admittedly, more restricted. It costs money to make things with more exotic materials and with fancier equipment. The great news in late 2016 is customers are getting more choices in “reasonably” priced airplanes (shown in quotes as reasonable is a term that varies from person to person). The new model in this article will be at the DeLand Sport Aviation Showcase coming up in just over two weeks. I hope you’re planning to attend.

Garmin — G3X Touch EFIS (0414)

By Dan Johnson || August 19, 2016 Leave a Comment

Garmin is one of the most familiar brand names in Light-Sport Aircraft. Very popular devices include handhelds like the 496 (now aera) or iPad-like 796. For those who prefer permanently panel-mounted, a top choice is now the G3X with touchscreen capability. Garmin is a multibillion-dollar company but they've had to work to stay ahead of smaller but nimble competitors. Their G3X Touch is a very strong play to keep in the lead. Garmin's Jessica Cox walks us through some of the features of this grand new instrument.

Garmin is one of the most familiar brand names in Light-Sport Aircraft. Very popular devices include handhelds like the 496 (now aera) or iPad-like 796. For those who prefer permanently panel-mounted, a top choice is now the G3X with touchscreen capability. Garmin is a multibillion-dollar company but they’ve had to work to stay ahead of smaller but nimble competitors. Their G3X Touch is a very strong play to keep in the lead. Garmin’s Jessica Cox walks us through some of the features of this grand new instrument.

Garmin Goes Touch with New G3X Avionics

By Dan Johnson || March 29, 2014 Leave a Comment

For a billion-dollar, publicly-listed company Garmin (stock symbol: GRMN) has repeatedly displayed the nimbleness of a start-up enterprise. As if to prove this point Garmin announced several new products for the start of Sun 'n Fun. And for those of us who need some introduction to these new gee-whiz gizmos, the company has a seminar tent just north of Hangar D where you can learn it all from the experts. No wonder Garmin remains one of the most trusted names in aviation. (My trusty auto Garmin will be leading me around the winding roads of Europe as we head over to Aero immediately following Sun 'n Fun.) So ... G3X Touch, now in a giant 10.6 display • GTR 20 remote comm controlled through the touchscreen • Angle of Attack (AoA) info when paired with their GSU 25 ADAHRS and GAP 26 probe • and, you can even watch VIRB (Garmin's HD action camera) video in a PFD inset. "Our dedicated Experimental engineering team, known as 'Team X,' continues to raise the bar with the introduction of G3X Touch. This team of pilots and homebuilders have ... introduced innovative avionics to the sport aircraft market," said Carl Wolf, vice president of aviation sales and marketing. The big deal is G3X Touch and "big" means a touchscreen glass display for experimental amateur-built and light sport aircraft that is larger than the largest iPad of today. Showing their commitment to recreational aviation, Garmin notes these are high-resolution, sunlight-readable non-certified displays with split-screen PFD/MFD functionality. G3X Touch is scalable, easily configured; pilots can install up to three displays in one panel. As I have long enjoyed on their also-excellent 796 removable unit, VFR sectionals and IFR enroute charts are available on G3X Touch. Equally important for those who already have a G3X is a "low-cost and easy path" upgrade to Touch system because the same connectors and sensors are used. For those of who like 796, Garmin said, "G3X Touch interface is similar to existing Garmin touchscreen avionics so information is easy to find." Think of those who use iPhones and iPads interchangeably. G3X Touch is priced at $5,499 including Synthetic Vision Technology, a built-in WAAS receiver, video input, ADAHRS, magnetometer, OAT probe and interactive mapping. G3X Touch with EIS starts at $6,099. Either price is affordable especially compared to just a few years ago and much less than certified systems. Personally, I appreciate Garmin maintaining the strong support for sport aviation. Indeed, five top LSA builders selected G3X Touch as an option: Van's Aircraft; CubCrafters; Flight Design; Tecnam; and, Pipistrel. G3X Touch works with XM Weather but for those who prefer the free weather and traffic may choose a new GDL 39R remotely mounted ADS-B receiver that is compatible with Touch. The big company did more than come out with new touchscreen glass. A new GTR 20 remote comm "offers a clean, powerful communication radio and intercom ($995), which can be controlled from the G3X Touch display." Since AoA appears to be all the buzz lately, Touch can display angle of attack information. Another activity with growing popularity is the chance to see video in flight. No, this doesn't mean Netflix for your passenger but flight schools have seen the value of video for review by their students. Using a composite video connection (BNC) that connects to VIRB, Garmin's HD action camera (or other compatible camera), occupants can see video in an inset of their Primary Flight Display or Multi-Function Display. So, got all that? OK, if you need more detail and if you are present at Sun 'n Fun like so many other aviation enthusiasts, head to Garmin's seminar tent and get expert help. Thanks, Garmin!

Tim Casey Explains All-Things Garmin

By Dan Johnson || October 13, 2010 Leave a Comment

Tim Casey is just plain full of it. Garmin's jovial, well-recognized manager of the instrument company's aviation hand-held and LSA line of avionics products, is one knowledgeable character. In fact, he is so full of information that his one-hour seminar at the Midwest LSA Expo only scratched the surface of the seemingly limitless capabilities of the company's digital instrument line. For example, synthetic vision comes preinstalled on the G3X and if you want, the Garmin unit can even be wired to show the closure of doors. *** I enjoyed his review of the Garmin G3X line used in some LSA and plenty of homebuilt aircraft. It's a deluxe system that costs $14,500 for the full dual-screen unit... BUT, if you act before the end of 2010, you can secure a whopping 25% discount, saving you $3,600. Garmin also makes the increasingly common GPSMap 696, or the 496 used in a large number of LSA. In his talk, Tim touched on those products and the handheld Aera, my personal favorite with its touchscreen interface that works similarly to my iPhone. *** In a comment certain to warm the heart of a pilot, Tim noted, "The software engineers as well as the hardware, mechanical, and systems engineers behind the company's G3X systems are all airplane builders." In a similar vein, he explained that Garmin stitches together features from many other databases including maps, of course. "We have no less than 45 cartographers to handle these duties," Casey added. *** G3X comes with all engine software preinstalled for the Rotax, Jabiru, Continental, and Lycoming. Of course, you'll need the correct engine probes and sensors — the same as any engine gauge, even an analog gauge. In addition, Garmin recently added a fuel calculator to speed awareness of this important parameter. And, the GPS giant added the opportunity to create several checklists; you build your own using your laptop or desktop computer. *** In one hour, Tim could not possibly review all the features of Garmin avionics, which explains why you really need to visit Garmin's mini-website for these devices.

Tim Casey is just plain full of it. Garmin’s jovial, well-recognized manager of the instrument company’s aviation hand-held and LSA line of avionics products, is one knowledgeable character. In fact, he is so full of information that his one-hour seminar at the Midwest LSA Expo only scratched the surface of the seemingly limitless capabilities of the company’s digital instrument line. For example, synthetic vision comes preinstalled on the G3X and if you want, the Garmin unit can even be wired to show the closure of doors. *** I enjoyed his review of the Garmin G3X line used in some LSA and plenty of homebuilt aircraft. It’s a deluxe system that costs $14,500 for the full dual-screen unit… BUT, if you act before the end of 2010, you can secure a whopping 25% discount, saving you $3,600. Garmin also makes the increasingly common GPSMap 696, or the 496 used in a large number of LSA.