AV-30C reliability reports? - 1st hand experiences or published data preferred

asicer said:
I'll take the opposing stance in that with a dual-ADAHRS EFIS, the system does the cross reference rather than the pilot and probably does it better.
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Probably true and not a luxury currently have.
 
AV8R_87 said:
I installed mine in the cabin fresh air intake duct. Didn't want to drill holes in the skin.
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My cabin fresh air intake duct has an OEM analog temperature sensor in it. That sensor only reads accurately when the duct is open with air flowing through it. When I close the duct the indicated temperature rises several degrees.

Of course that is just my duct, others are designed differently and YMMV.
 
MRC01 said:
Of course that is just my duct, others are designed differently and YMMV.
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True. I installed the sensor upstream of the buttefly valve, and there is a small amount of airflow even with the valve fully closed. I get accurate OATs as soon as the prop starts turning.
 
Regardless of sensor chosen and location, wires still need to be run from the sensor to the Av-30 to display the temp and enabled real-time display of TAS.
 
Steamflyer said:
Are we talking AI or DG? The AI works fine in IMC and gives backup airspeed and attitude. HDG is worthless without a magnetometer in either set up.

The only thing about a MEM accelerometer based AI is assume that if it fails it’s dramatic. Feel a vacuum unit will fail more gracefully so keep one of each.
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I use it for AI but the compass is useful in the AI display. As a stand-alone AI the AV-30 is fine. It does the job. I have an AV-20 for backup.
 
Steamflyer said:
Feel a vacuum unit will fail more gracefully so keep one of each.
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How many have you had fail? I've had 3 fail so far. In my experience, things only fail when you need them most. If you are in IMC and it fails, it doesn't matter if it was graceful or not.
A vacuum AI failure often means that it leans to one side for a while before it drops over dead. That could cause the pilot to not notice being in a turn until it's too late. It almost happened to me. Luckily I wasn't in solid IMC when it happened. After that incident I prioritized installing a digital instrument. After using the AV-30 for a while as primary, I'm comfortable flying it in IMC.

The instrument overhaul shop said it's very difficult to get good parts these days. Not many are made and the vendors who make them cut corners for profit. Candidly he said they are only getting about 3-5 years out of them. So do the math. $700 overhaul every few years (and rising exponentially in cost) vs. just replace it.

I still have my vacuum AI because of my autopilot. But I plan to install an autopilot that is independent. That way I have redundancy in an emergency.
 
rickgn said:
How many have you had fail? I've had 3 fail so far. In my experience, things only fail when you need them most. If you are in IMC and it fails, it doesn't matter if it was graceful or not.
A vacuum AI failure often means that it leans to one side for a while before it drops over dead. That could cause the pilot to not notice being in a turn until it's too late. It almost happened to me. Luckily I wasn't in solid IMC when it happened. After that incident I prioritized installing a digital instrument. After using the AV-30 for a while as primary, I'm comfortable flying it in IMC.

The instrument overhaul shop said it's very difficult to get good parts these days. Not many are made and the vendors who make them cut corners for profit. Candidly he said they are only getting about 3-5 years out of them. So do the math. $700 overhaul every few years (and rising exponentially in cost) vs. just replace it.

I still have my vacuum AI because of my autopilot. But I plan to install an autopilot that is independent. That way I have redundancy in an emergency.
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Have had several AI fail - they got the leans first. One attitude indicator failure was of a dry vacuum pump, which was pretty much instantaneous. Now only wet pump or no pump (AHRS/AFIS units). Some were in IMC, some were not.

However, all aircraft I presently fly have 2 AI, one sometimes replacing the T/C as allowed. New ones without two get a second right away if flown IMC.
 
Updating an old thread. First, now have two AV-30-C installed as AI in two different aircraft each with more than 500 hours of use with no issues. Another aircraft has one of the earliest units also functioning well with about 200 hours as it flies much less.

In the higher time aircraft the AV-30 AI has been used as the primary AI in IMC without issue. The only appreciable difference between the oldest and newer units is the switch to barrel pins, which does require the Daniels crimper, but which are much more robust and thus an appreciated change.

Recently did a uAvionix "full stack" 2x AV-30 (AI and HSI, locked to function), AV-HSI, AV-MAG, AV-LINK, and tailbeaconX (1090 ES TXP). Fairly straightforward installation and all in all a bit cheaper than the G5 route and quite a bit cheaper than the 275 route. All fed by a WAAS GPS of course. Only a few hours on the install, but all seems to work as advertised. They've added two new features to the AV-30 with this setup: if you also have a temp probe, it will show a live wind vector on the compass rose and the same vector in a user field with velocity. It will also now put markers at the standard rate bank angle on the AI.

The only new new thing to me is the HSI which works very well. The AV-HSI box, actually an ARINC 429 to serial converter like (I think) the GAD29, will feed both AV-30s if wired to do so. Oddly many of the promo pieces and reviews of the HSI show it in en route mode (lateral deviation only) and with "GPS TRK" selected rather than "DG HDG" (by which they mean magnetic heading) from the magnetometer with vertical deviation bars. That's the mode where it's truly an HSI and differentiated.
 
Steamflyer said:
They've added two new features to the AV-30 with this setup: if you also have a temp probe, it will show a live wind vector on the compass rose and the same vector in a user field with velocity.
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I have 2 AV-30, locked to function as AI and HSI, with MAG, LINK, and OAT probe. Connections are GPS-In via serial and ADS-B traffic via WiFi. I have about 350 hours with no issues. Probably 30% of that was aerobatic flight.

I did have one weird issue on my last long XC from Kansas to Florida. The wind vector seemed "stuck". It was reporting about 20 MPH from 9 o'clock. It would change a little bit when I climbed or turned, but it seemed not to match any of the reported winds I could access.
 
Ed Haywood said:
I did have one weird issue on my last long XC from Kansas to Florida. The wind vector seemed "stuck". It was reporting about 20 MPH from 9 o'clock. It would change a little bit when I climbed or turned, but it seemed not to match any of the reported winds I could access.
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Will have to watch and see how it does. So far it has been accurate in the sense that the wind correction angle and amount seems about right. But I have all of two hours on this setup. I was pleased that the magnetometer alignment for both units worked the first time around the circle. Not always the case in the past.
 
I have about 4 years and 500 hours since installing mine and removing the vac system. Added the magnetometer about 2 years and 300 hours ago. And about 60 hours IFR. Every once in a while the AI shows an error message on startup saying its configuration was lost and it reset itself. Over the past 2 years the DG has twice "forgot" the magnetometer is installed, so that takes setting a few menu items to re-enable it.
No GPS or adapter. Just dual AV-30C with temperature, pressure and magnetometer.
I find the AoA indicator somewhat useless because even when calibrated, it has about 2 second latency/lag. No big deal, just FYI.
Overall they're way better than the vac system and mechanical gyros. Back then every year I had something to overhaul or replace - either the AI, DG or the vac pump. Not anymore!
Oh, and having the static pressure connected to both makes my IFR certifications more expensive - it means I have several "altimeters" to check.
 
The traffic display is great, especially overlaid on the route line.

PXL_20250926_194542205.jpg
 
MRC01 said:
I have about 4 years and 500 hours since installing mine and removing the vac system. Added the magnetometer about 2 years and 300 hours ago. And about 60 hours IFR. Every once in a while the AI shows an error message on startup saying its configuration was lost and it reset itself. Over the past 2 years the DG has twice "forgot" the magnetometer is installed, so that takes setting a few menu items to re-enable it.
No GPS or adapter. Just dual AV-30C with temperature, pressure and magnetometer.
I find the AoA indicator somewhat useless because even when calibrated, it has about 2 second latency/lag. No big deal, just FYI.
Overall they're way better than the vac system and mechanical gyros. Back then every year I had something to overhaul or replace - either the AI, DG or the vac pump. Not anymore!
Oh, and having the static pressure connected to both makes my IFR certifications more expensive - it means I have several "altimeters" to check.
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Thanks for the feedback. In September 2025 the FAA approved a software version, 3.1.1, which included a reworked AoA algorithm and resolved the reset to defaults issue you mentioned.
 
compjtc said:
Thanks for the feedback. In September 2025 the FAA approved a software version, 3.1.1, which included a reworked AoA algorithm and resolved the reset to defaults issue you mentioned.
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Good to know, thanks!
 
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