woodstock
Final Approach
Well just call me turncoat. First, it was my first flight in a DA-20 - well I was ready to give up high wings for good.
Then yesterday it was my flight to Farmville with a 99er who had bought herself a brand new 182 from the factory last year with every bell and whistle on it. G1000, Nexrad weather, XM radio, etc etc. also autopilot, which she engaged and was neat to watch. Look Ma no hands!
I told myself well beforehand- no way would I buy a plane with this, sure they may be nifty but I like steam gauges.
Well I just got pulled into the 21st century yesterday. My gosh was that cool. I want one!
I could barely take my eyes off of it (still a good reason not to use it for primary training!). You can tell where the wind is coming from, with the helpful arrow graphic and speed right there... you can see traffic coming in - how high, direction, etc... (Q here - traffic with transponder on, sure - anything else a requirement for it to "see" traffic? I can see how this could give you false comfort, there had to have been other traffic out there we didn't see on the display.. right?). The plane is encircled, just like a VOR, with the radials coming off it so you know at all times which direction it is heading. You can make the display zoom in, zoom out (duh). You could see terrain and how high it was by color, just like the regular map - if it is RED - look out (and what was funny is when we were sitting on the ground it was ALL red - pull up, pull up!). It was pretty nifty to watch her set in the various checkpoints we had along the way and then just follow the drawn line. (LDN first, but south turn at Upperville airport... next GVE and then at that point direct to FVX). It made it all seem so very easy.
Does Garmin make the same GPS panel to put in your regular steam gauge planes? By this I do not mean "replace steam gauges" - I mean, steam gauges left seat, but the whole big pretty GPS panel on the other side - with the same functions, and so on? Or does it really all have to be integrated - so you gotta buy a plane with the G1000 in it?
Note to anyone who followed my flight plan questions - I NAILED it. dead on. I made the plan, brought my sectional (not TAC, as it was only good for half the flight) and followed along outside and via the G1000. I had the times dead on - within 30 seconds each time. go me!
Then yesterday it was my flight to Farmville with a 99er who had bought herself a brand new 182 from the factory last year with every bell and whistle on it. G1000, Nexrad weather, XM radio, etc etc. also autopilot, which she engaged and was neat to watch. Look Ma no hands!
I told myself well beforehand- no way would I buy a plane with this, sure they may be nifty but I like steam gauges.
Well I just got pulled into the 21st century yesterday. My gosh was that cool. I want one!
I could barely take my eyes off of it (still a good reason not to use it for primary training!). You can tell where the wind is coming from, with the helpful arrow graphic and speed right there... you can see traffic coming in - how high, direction, etc... (Q here - traffic with transponder on, sure - anything else a requirement for it to "see" traffic? I can see how this could give you false comfort, there had to have been other traffic out there we didn't see on the display.. right?). The plane is encircled, just like a VOR, with the radials coming off it so you know at all times which direction it is heading. You can make the display zoom in, zoom out (duh). You could see terrain and how high it was by color, just like the regular map - if it is RED - look out (and what was funny is when we were sitting on the ground it was ALL red - pull up, pull up!). It was pretty nifty to watch her set in the various checkpoints we had along the way and then just follow the drawn line. (LDN first, but south turn at Upperville airport... next GVE and then at that point direct to FVX). It made it all seem so very easy.
Does Garmin make the same GPS panel to put in your regular steam gauge planes? By this I do not mean "replace steam gauges" - I mean, steam gauges left seat, but the whole big pretty GPS panel on the other side - with the same functions, and so on? Or does it really all have to be integrated - so you gotta buy a plane with the G1000 in it?
Note to anyone who followed my flight plan questions - I NAILED it. dead on. I made the plan, brought my sectional (not TAC, as it was only good for half the flight) and followed along outside and via the G1000. I had the times dead on - within 30 seconds each time. go me!
