Panel before and after

Ryan F.

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Ryan Ferguson 1974
Wow, loving the new upgrade. Thought I'd share... new adds are a G5 HSI, GAD29B autopilot interface, GAD13 OAT/TAS kit, JPI EDM790, GSB15 USB port, a glideslope coupler, and perhaps above all, a revamped Altimatic III including overhauled pitch and roll servos and a lot of other TLC.

Watched my airplane fly a picture perfect HILOPT, auto-switch to VLOC and capture a glideslope today. All I did was lower the gear and pull a little power.

Turn anticipation works great even with 40 knot winds to contend with on a full TAA RNAV approach procedure. Cross track error as indicated on the GTN650 was... 0.00nm. Hard to beat that.

Really looking forward to more family trips with this wonderful configuration. The price was high, but compared to years past, this capability comes at pennies on the dollar.
 

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Very nice man!
 
The only problem now is remembering to look outside ... :p
 
What auto pilot are you using if you don’t mind me asking?
 
What auto pilot are you using if you don’t mind me asking?

Altimatic III. Had the glideslope coupler installed but it wasn't doing a great job out of the gates. Some small adjustments and a test flight later and I'm flying coupled ILS and LPV approaches. Life is good.

Only downside is I have to keep my vacuum system for now.
 
I’ve got some of that same equipment but an old king AP that’s pretty limited. I’m scheduled to have the GFC 500 AP installed and I’m hoping for results similar to yours. Cheers

Altimatic III. Had the glideslope coupler installed but it wasn't doing a great job out of the gates. Some small adjustments and a test flight later and I'm flying coupled ILS and LPV approaches. Life is good.

Only downside is I have to keep my vacuum system for now.
 
While only a C172K...doing the rip out the whole panel and start over down at Princeton. Dual G5s, GNS430W (fresh O/H and update and nav subscription), all pitot static instruments O/H and faces rescreened, vacuum system delete, KN53 and KY197 as my second com/nav, GTX330ES ADS-B, GFC500 autopilot (roll, pitch, alt hold, auto trim, etc..the works...). Can't wait to wring her out (just need to find a CFI who has experience with all those units to work with me before launching off into the clag with it...). The price of advanced avionics (does this turn my 51 year old C172 into a TAA?) is fast becoming reasonably priced for the average pilot to consider.

foto is of the panel on my side; G5s photoshopped in...awaiting install in the airframe...;) Wanted to keep it uncluttered and "Just the facts" in front of me...
 

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A set of G5s makes a whole lotta difference in flying IFR. My AP is 1-axis only, but the G5s fly enroute and approach entries flawlessly, including HILPTs. I usually hand-fly from the FAF. The empty hole where the GI-106 was is begging to be filled with an engine monitor.

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A set of G5s makes a whole lotta difference in flying IFR. My AP is 1-axis only, but the G5s fly enroute and approach entries flawlessly, including HILPTs. I usually hand-fly from the FAF.

Indeed they do. I've owned my Twin Comanche for twenty years but until a bit more than a month ago, never had an HSI, much less an electronic HSI. The improvements to SA and the SPIFR workflow are substantial. About 15 hours after the return to service I think I've mostly sussed out how to integrate the old analog autopilot into the mix, with a few tweaks to go. It's quite a different way of doing things that models a modern multi-crewmember bizjet flight deck much more closely than a 55 year old piston twin.
 
They come in black or grey, no extra cost. This was around 2 years ago.

Garmin charges extra for the grey now. I'm looking at a GTN 750Xi upgrade for my 530 and it appears the grey is 8 to 9 hundred $ more than black. Although I suspect the Garmin authorized dealer shops can probably deal.
 
Indeed they do. I've owned my Twin Comanche for twenty years but until a bit more than a month ago, never had an HSI, much less an electronic HSI. The improvements to SA and the SPIFR workflow are substantial. About 15 hours after the return to service I think I've mostly sussed out how to integrate the old analog autopilot into the mix, with a few tweaks to go. It's quite a different way of doing things that models a modern multi-crewmember bizjet flight deck much more closely than a 55 year old piston twin.

The things that I'm concerned/excited about are: 1) increase in capability (between the G5s, GFC500, GNS430) and 2) finding a transition training enabled CFI who is familiar with, and can work with, the panel beside me (even though I'm also a CFI and assume as a given that the CFI knows how to fly a 172..lol)...I need and want training to be comfortable with the new capabilites.

It's probably easy enough to climb into the left seat and launch off in the area and figure it out for myself...but an extra pair of eyes to run interference and work through some scenarios with me is not a Bad Thing (tm), no?

Safety first.
 
The things that I'm concerned/excited about are: 1) increase in capability (between the G5s, GFC500, GNS430) and 2) finding a transition training enabled CFI who is familiar with, and can work with, the panel beside me (even though I'm also a CFI and assume as a given that the CFI knows how to fly a 172..lol)...I need and want training to be comfortable with the new capabilites.

It's probably easy enough to climb into the left seat and launch off in the area and figure it out for myself...but an extra pair of eyes to run interference and work through some scenarios with me is not a Bad Thing (tm), no?

Safety first.

It will definitely take a few hours to be really comfortable with a new and different scan. The G5s are pretty dense with information, and interpreting tapes is a different brain activity than reading an analog gauge. Some displays, like the VSI and TC, are simply easier to see and interpret on the original gauge. I'm envious of the GFC-500. With a legacy autopilot, there is a lot of button configurating to do on the GPS, G5, and AP to switch between GPS and VOR/LOC. Still a huge safety improvement, though. For night flight, the G5s really shine. (Pun intended.)
 
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