Avidyne’s plug and play replacement for the Garmin 430, the Avidyne IFD 440, finally received certification from the FAA last week. The touch screen GPS unit is being marketed as a simple swap out for the Garmin 430. This release follows up Avidyne’s release last year of the IFD 540, also a plug and play replacement, but for the Garmin 530.
The features and touch screen of the GPS units sound quite nifty, but it will be hard for Avidyne to compete with the GTN 750 and 650 from Garmin. The unit prices for the IFD 540 and 440 will be less (and installation is simpler), but we will see how the company does.
The STC allows for installation in 1,000 makes and models of aircraft, according to the company, so there are a lot of possibilities for installs.
In conjunction, Avidyne also released a new version of it’s software for both GPS units. According to Avidyne, this will unlock multiple features that enhances the capabilities of both units.
To read more on the IFD 440 and it’s bigger brother, the IFD 540, check out Avidyne’s website.
Mooney announced last week the redesign of their current Ovation and Acclaim models. The biggest change that Mooney pilots will love is the addition of a pilot’s door, allowing the pilot to enter on the left side instead of having to crawl over the passenger seat.
Other upgrades include a keypad for easier data entry on the G1000 and an all in one, digital standby instrument that includes attitude, airspeed, and altitude.
This raises the question, will Piper and Beechcraft follow suit?
As was the case with the Class B Airspace around Houston several months ago, the Class B Dallas airspace has been overhauled as well. These changes were implemented at the last database update on September 18th. If you’ll be flying into any of the Dallas airspace airports IFR, make sure you have current charts and your GPS databases are updated.
According to AOPA, 14 SIDs and STARs were deleted, a number of new procedures were added, and changes were made to most of the other remaining procedures. The new procedures in the Dallas airspace consist mainly of RNAV procedures for turboprops and jets, so most GA aircraft won’t be affected by those. The legacy procedures that remained in place over went changes, including new frequencies, so piston aircraft going into the Dallas airspace are still affected.
From AOPA, departures from Dallas Love (KDAL) that file their flight plan with special equipment /G in their flight plan will automatically be given an RNAV departure procedure. This does not appear to affect piston aircraft as all the new RNAV SIDs in the Dallas airspace are for turboprops or turbojets.
The reason for the changes to the Dallas airspace? Similar to the changes in Houston, these airspace changes are meant to streamline departures and arrivals in the Dallas airspace area, reduce controller workload, and give continuous descent angles for arriving high altitude traffic.
Don’t be surprised the next time you are in the Dallas airspace area if you receive a clearance that states: “Descend via the arrival.” In that case, just check the chart and aim for the appropriate altitudes at the appropriate fixes. As we move closer to the ADS-B requirement, I believe we will see more and more of these terminal procedure overhauls, so be prepared and keep those charts and databases up to date.
Figuring out the pattern altitude at an airport should be pretty simple, right? But, in this day of helpful technology, most pilots actually get it wrong. How can you always get it right? Well, it just takes about an extra 15 seconds. Here’s how.
John Wayne Airport Traffic Patterns
As outlined in the Aeronautical Information Manual, section 4-3-3, “traffic pattern altitudes for propeller-driven aircraft generally extend from 600 feet to as high as 1,500 feet above the ground.” Further, in the Pilot’s Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge on page 13-10, it states: “1,000 AGL is recommended pattern altitude unless established otherwise.”
Okay, so for piston driver’s, we’ve got it narrowed down to 1,000 AGL (Above Ground Level for those who don’t like acronyms). But wait! There’s that very important phrase at the end of the last quote: “unless established otherwise.” That means not all airports have traffic pattern altitudes of 1,000 AGL, or else they wouldn’t put that line in there!
How do you find out what the TPA (Traffic Pattern Altitude) is for a certain airport if it’s not 1,000 AGL? Great question! Your first guess is probably to look on Foreflight. Though this is a good start, it is not the full answer.
Let’s use an example. Look up KAQO, the Llano Airport on Foreflight. At the top of the page, the airport elevation is stated as 1,101′ MSL and the pattern altitude is stated as 1,902′ MSL. From what we just learned, 1,902′ MSL is not 1,000 AGL, so is 1,902′ MSL otherwise established?
On the Airports page with KAQO pulled up, tap the A/FD tab, second to last on the left. Scroll down to Llano Muni. Read the whole entry. Does it state in the entry that pattern altitude is different than 1,000 AGL? It sure doesn’t. So, because it is not otherwise established, pattern altitude at KAQO is 2,102′ MSL not 1,902′ MSL.
Where did Foreflight get that? I have no idea. Too often, though, pilots look at the Foreflight pattern altitude and don’t actually check the Airport Facilities Directory (A/FD). Then, they get the pattern altitude wrong.
What does it look like when pattern altitude is otherwise established? Look up KSGR, Sugar Land Regional, on your Foreflight app. Foreflight states the elevation as 82′ MSL and the Pattern Altitude as 1,000′ MSL. Is this correct? Well, tap that A/FD button again and let’s find out.
On the second line of the A/FD entry, it says TPA-See Remarks. Down in the remarks section, we find the following:
TPA-1000 (918) single engine piston acft, TPA-1500 (1418) for twin and turbojet acft, TPA-500 (418) for helicopters within 2NM.
Foreflight got it right this time for single engine pistons, but if you are in a twin, the pattern altitude is different. What’s the lesson here? Always check the A/FD and don’t always go by what Foreflight says. The A/FD is always right and usually has a little more detail to help set you straight.
One last thing. Both the AIM and the Pilot’s Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge, when talking about pattern altitude, state, “When operating at an airport, traffic pattern altitudes should be maintained unless otherwise required by the applicable distance from cloud criteria in…section 91.155.” 91.155 defines basic VFR weather minimums. So, to fully interpret what the AIM is saying, we have to take into account the type of airspace we are in to determine if we can safely and legally operate at pattern altitude at a particular airport.
For example, let’s say we are at KCVB, the Castroville Airport. Pattern altitude there is 1,602 feet, which is 829 AGL. CVB is Class G airspace up to 700 AGL, then Class E above that. Let’s say there is a 700 AGL broken cloud layer. Pattern altitude is 829 AGL, so you won’t be able to get up that high with a broken ceiling. What altitude can you do pattern work at to stay legal?
Class G VFR weather minimums during the day below 1,200 AGL is 1 SM visibility and clear of clouds. So, legally, you could fly at 699 AGL (which at CVB would be 1,472 MSL) while in the pattern and be legal. Safe? Maybe, but probably not if you are skimming the base of the clouds. Is 1300 MSL a safer pattern altitude in this example? Well, that is 527 AGL, so probably not, since towers tend to stick up that high sometimes.
Let’s go back to KSGR and put a 1,000 AGL overcast ceiling there. SGR is Class D airspace and we already determined pattern altitude there was 1,000 MSL for piston singles. VFR visibility and cloud clearance requirements in Class D airspace are 1,000 feet above clouds, 500 feet below clouds, and 2,000 feet horizontally from the clouds with 3 SM visibility. In order to stay 500 feet below the clouds, you would be flying a 582 MSL pattern. Safe? Probably not, though it is legal.
To summarize, don’t take Foreflight’s word for pattern altitude. Cross reference the A/FD (it only takes 15 seconds at the most) to verify. If it’s cloudy, it’s really best to stay on the ground, but if you want to find out your legal pattern altitude with a cloud deck, cross reference 91.155. I don’t recommend flying below pattern altitude because it is there for a reason.
We have all been hearing about the HondaJet for quite a while now. It’s been in testing for a number of years, but it sounds like certification and deliveries will commence early in 2015. Honda says they expect FAA certification in the first part of 2015 and deliveries will commence soon thereafter.
For those of you in the San Antonio area, if you’d like to get a glimpse of the first production HondaJet, it will be at Landmark Aviation at KSAT on Wednesday, October 29th. Cutter Aviation is hosting the event, as they will handle the regional sales for Honda. No flights will be conducted, but folks are welcome to walk around the airplane, climb inside, and give it a good once over.
For those planning on attending, RSVP is required. Contact Lisa Harris at Cutter to RSVP either by phone (602-267-4054) or by email (lharris@cutteraviation.com). Drinks and snacks will be served. The event runs from 5:30pm-8:00pm.
When I was working on my instrument rating back in 2007, my instructor and I did a lot of unpublished holds. In ground school, I heard a lot about holding for weather or holding due to a traffic delay. At my first job, my chief flight instructor was also a Continental (now United) captain and he told me a lot about having to hold for weather going into different places.
I heard all this, but I figured it would never happen to me when I’m flying GA airplanes.
Boy was I wrong!
I was flying a Piper Malibu into Phoenix with two passengers for Super Bowl weekend and the weather was awful. No thunderstorms, but moderate precipitation and low ceilings. We were coming into Deer Valley (KDVT) on the north side of Phoenix and about an hour out, ATC advised me that arrivals into DVT were having to hold and to expect a delay. The controller said the delay would be about 30 minutes, so by doing a quick calculation, I determined the delay would probably be all cleared up by the time I got in the area. At the time, I didn’t know if the delay was due to weather or traffic congestion.
Twenty minutes later, the controller advised me that there was still a delay. I queried what it was for and he informed me it was due to weather. He asked me if I wanted to hold or divert. I listened to the ATIS and heard the ceilings were variable from just below the minimums to just above. I told him I would hold as the TAF I saw predicted the ceilings to go up.
“Malibu, hold present position, hold east, expect further clearance 2140 Zulu.” Gulp.
At this point, my autopilot had gone out, it was turbulent and I was definitely in the soup. This was going to be fun.
After recovering my wits, I read back the clearance, then set about setting up this hold without getting too far from my present position. The Malibu I was flying had a Garmin 530 which I was using as my primary means of navigation. I was on V190, but I didn’t have all the fixes in my flight plan. What to do? And what to do fast?
The 530 has a rarely used function called a User Waypoint. It comes in handy in situations like these. On the moving map, you can turn the cursor on, move the cursor to any point on the map, and, by pressing enter, create a User Waypoint. This is what I did on V190. After I created it, I had to go to my flight plan, find the right spot, and input the User Waypoint just like I would any fix. Just a note here, when you create a User Waypoint, make sure you remember what you named it so you can find it again.
After I input the User Waypoint in the flight plan, I had to go back and activate the leg that the User Waypoint was the end point on. Then, to make sure the flight plan didn’t go to the next waypoint once I crossed my User Waypoint, I had to press the OBS button on the 530 in order to put the GPS in suspend mode.
Keep in mind, my autopilot wasn’t working, so this involved a lot of multi-tasking!
That’s how to do a present position hold using the Garmin 530. Got all that? Here’s a concise review:
Create a User Waypoint
Turn the cursor on by pressing the FMS knob
Move the cursor to the point where you want your User Waypoint
Press enter and name the User Waypoint
Press the Flight Plan button
Input the User Waypoint into your flight plan at the proper point
Activate the leg that the User Waypoint is the end point on
Finally, press the OBS button to put the GPS in suspend mode
After you’re cleared onward, just press the OBS button again to take the GPS out of suspend mode
Ever wanted to be a Cirrus owner, but the economics of being a single owner just don’t make sense for you? If you’re in the Houston area, you now have a chance to join a Cirrus SR22 partnership at the West Houston Airport, KIWS.
The group, CirrusShare, is a 4 member group, but one of the members is looking to sell his share. The airplane is a 2007 G3 SR22. It is in excellent condition, with dual WAAS 430s and air conditioning.
