I was flying in the Rio Grande Valley in south Texas a few weeks ago and heard an IFR clearance given to a King Air that pricked my ears up. It was a clearance from CRP to LRD, but the routing was one you don’t hear too often anymore. Because of active military airspace, the routing was via a radial and DME off the CRP VOR (so a point defined by the radial and DME) to another radial and DME point off the LRD VOR.
It took me a second to think about how to do this the easiest (without setting up the VOR and watching the DME). After a moment’s thought, it’s actually a snap with the G1000. You create 2 user waypoints, one for each Radial/DME spot, then put those 2 user waypoints in your Flight Plan.
Here’s how.
Step 1
Using the big knob, go to the Waypoint chapter. Once there, scroll down to the User Waypoint page using the small knob.
Step 2
Press the New soft key. If you want to name the waypoint something specific, you can do that at the top of the page. If not, it will default to something like VOR 1 or VOR 2.
Step 3
Under Waypoint Type, use the small knob to select RAD/DIS (stands for Radial/Distance).
Step 4
Under Reference Waypoints, again using the small knob (or your keypad), type or dial in the VOR identifier, the radial from that VOR, and the DME distance. Press enter and you are done.
Once you have both User Waypoints created, then just put them in your flight plan (if you forget what you named them, you can just go back to the User Waypoint page), and off you go.
For years, there has been clamoring for airplanes to get rid of lead in piston engine Avgas. In the early 2000s, Thielert created a Jet A burning piston engine for Diamond Aircraft that gained some traction, but Thielert had internal issues and ended up declaring bankruptcy. Several other Jet A piston engines have come down the line since then to some success (Diamond is currently using 2 Austro manufactured Jet A piston engines on it’s DA62 and a Continental manufactured Jet piston on the new DA50).
The problem with a Jet A burning piston engine, though, is that those engines would be very expensive to put on existing airplanes, not to mention the cost of the STC alone.
Insert GAMI (General Aviation Modifications, Inc.), the famed Ada, Oklahoma company that championed turbo normalization, balanced injectors, and lean of peak operations. For those that have been to GAMI’s engine class, you know that these guys are at the very top of their game in engine knowledge.
In 2010, GAMI started the process of creating an Unleaded form of Avgas, terming it G100UL (the irony of traditional Avgas, 100LL, is the LL starts for low lead, but the lead levels in 100LL are actually quite high. UL stands for UnLeaded). Just before Osh Kosh in 2021, GAMI revealed that it’s work has come to fruition, gaining an STC for G100UL for Lycoming powered Cessna 172s.
The amazing thing about GAMI’s product is that it is able to mix with 100LL and not cause any issues. This means fuel trucks, fuel lines, fuel pumps, and aircraft fuel tanks don’t have to have any modifications to them to use G100UL. Plus, pilots will see longer engine life using G100UL because of the simple elimination of the lead. In tests, combustion chambers in cylinders burned cleaner, so theoretically, cylinders and engines will last a lot longer.
According to the company, GAMI has a few more tests to run and, assuming those go well, G100UL will be available for a whole lot more airplanes. An STC will still be required for the use of G100UL in a specific airplane, but the hope is, eventually, 100LL will be completely replaced by G100UL. The only downside is that G100UL is expected to cost about $1/gallon more than 100LL.
GAMI has partnered with Avfuel, so expect to see 100UL showing up at all Avfuel FBOs in the next year or two.
To read more, check out the press release on AOPA’s website.
Diamond Aircraft announced in June that the company is going to bring it’s Diamond DA50 RG to market. The company expects European certification in early 2021 and FAA certification toward the end of 2021.
This is not the first iteration of the Diamond DA50, but it is the first with retractable gear. Diamond is known for it’s use of Jet A burning piston engines and you can’t beat the efficiency. The technology in the Continental CD-300 Jet A piston engine is new, but it has been in development for a long time. Diamond advertises 180 knots on only 9 GPH, which is just about as efficient as you can get with a single engine piston.
The addition of the retractable gear from previous iterations of the Diamond DA50 RG is a nice touch. Diamond already had the RG technology from the DA42 Twin Star as well as the more powerful cross country machine, the DA62. Equipping the single engine Diamond DA50 RG with retractable gear just makes sense. It definitely puts the airplane in a class of it’s own.
Diamond’s website shows a nice roomy cabin in the DA50 RG with plenty of space to spread out, plus plenty of baggage. The fuel tanks only hold 50 gallons of Jet A (which still gives a 4 hour + range with an hour reserve at 9 GPH), so the payload, even with full fuel, is an eye popping 897 lbs, though Diamond’s site does not mention if that includes TKS, air conditioning, and oxygen. If it does, then compare that to a fully fueled Cirrus SR22T (which would give an equal speed) at 537 lbs and the Diamond DA50 RG has an argument.
As with all new airplanes these days, the Diamond DA50 RG has the Garmin G1000 NXi complete with keypad and the GFC 700 autopilot with yaw damper. The interior has a 3 person bench seat for the back seat, which, at least to the naked eye, appears that it might actually fit 3 adults, albeit small ones. Diamond’s signature stick in the middle of the seat is still present for the front seats, but the right seat stick in the Diamond DA50 RG is removable for passenger comfort, a nice touch.
The single engine piston market is a hard one to break in to since Cirrus has such a leg up on the competition. However, with a Jet A burning engine, a higher payload, and a roomier cabin, the Diamond DA50 RG might actually be able to make an impact. Look for this bird at Sun N Fun and Osh Kosh in 2021.
When the Epic E1000 was finally certified in the spring of 2020, there was much celebrating across the aviation world. Epic Aircraft expended a lot of time and energy getting the E1000 certified and into production (more information on that journey here and in Flying Magazine here).
The airplane is amazing. In the single engine, 6 seat turboprop market, it easily blows away the competition. With it’s 1,200 SHP PT6-67A, it has double the horsepower of the M600 (600 SHP), and 350 more horsepower than the TBM 940 (850 SHP). It’s 60 KTAS faster than the M600 and, even though the TBM can keep up (both airplanes have equal top cruise speeds of 330 KTAS), the Epic E1000 can carry a payload of 1,024 pounds with full fuel, while the 940 can only carry 584 pounds with full fuel. The TBM carries about 15 minutes more of fuel, but to me, that’s pretty negligible.
Did I mention climb rates? The E1000 climbs at an average of 1500 FPM at Vy (it’s capable of 4,000 FPM), making it to 25,000 feet in 10 minutes. The TBM climbs at 1000 FPM, taking 13 minutes to climb to the same altitude, while the M600 settles in at about 800 FPM, reaching FL250 in 21 minutes.
If you expand the comparison to include the Pilatus PC-12, the two airplanes have 1,200 SHP, but the Epic is 50 KTAS faster and they both have about the same weight carrying ability.
In the most important arena, price, the E1000 is around a million dollars cheaper than the TBM 940.
The one drawback to the Epic E1000 that immediately was noticeable was the autopilot. Epic originally installed the STEC 2100 autopilot to pair with the G1000 (and later the G1000 NXi). Epic decided to stick with the STEC 2100 through certification for the plane since that autopilot was on all of the E1000s paperwork going through all the levels of FAA approval. To change to the GFC 700 during the certification process would have been a massive undertaking that probably would have delayed certification.
The STEC 2100 is a good autopilot, but, as any G1000 pilot can tell you, the lack of integration between any STEC autopilot and Garmin panel leaves some to be desired. Not all the bugs talk, which often requires dual data entry, which can lead to forgetting to do both the bug and the autopilot when things get busy. Hello, altitude deviation.
The goal for Epic was never to leave the STEC autopilot in the airplane. The first E1000s were rolled off the line with the STEC, but Epic didn’t take long to change the autopilot to the much more integrated Garmin GFC 700. That took place this winter (2020), and the E1000 received it’s first upgrade, with Epic dubbing the airplane the Epic E1000 GX.
I expect the innovators in Bend, OR, where Epic is based and where tons of innovation in aviation happens (Lancair/Columbia started in Bend while RDD is based there as well), to quickly come out with more avionics upgrades for the airplane. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a G3000 version at some point, complete with auto throttles and the new Garmin Autoland. Epic would be smart to follow in the steps of Daher and offer two models, one with the G1000 and one with the G3000 (the TBM 910 has the G1000 NXi while the TBM 940 has the G3000).
I have yet to fly in an Epic E1000, but I would certainly jump at the chance to do so. Someone asked me yesterday what airplane I would buy if I had a blank check. With the GFC 700 now in the Epic, it would absolutely be the E1000 GX.
I’m a big fan of having my Foreflight map always match up exactly with the way I am flying. Having a Flight Stream in the airplane helps a lot with that as it always prompts me to load the new flight plan from the GPS into my Foreflight map. When I load an approach in the GPS flight plan, Foreflight will put it into my Foreflight flight plan via the Flight Stream.
The problem I run into on Foreflight is when there is a published hold at the Initial Approach Fix (IAF), but ATC has told me to fly the straight in approach and skip the hold. Up until recently, I didn’t think there was a way to set up a straight in approach on Foreflight, so I just settled for the hold staying on there.
Not anymore! There is a simple trick that I discovered that allows you to remove the hold from the Foreflight flight plan. Here’s how to do it.
Load the Approach
The first step is still to load the approach into your Foreflight flight plan on the Map page. In this scenario, we are flying from KAQO, the Llano Airport, to KHYI, the San Marcos Airport. Austin Approach has told us to expect the straight in RNAV 17 KHYI via PUKIY. So, on Foreflight, we have KAQO and KHYI in our flight plan. Then, I tap the Procedures button on the upper right hand corner of the screen. I then tap Approach, then RNAV 17 KHYI. Then I select my transition.
The options given are either PUKIY with the hold, seen below;
Or Vectors to Final, which lines me up inside of PUKIY. Neither of these are what I want.
But, to get this to work, I select PUKIY, then tap add to route. Now we have our approach loaded into our flight plan.
Removing the Hold
The RNAV 17 is now in the Foreflight flight plan, but the hold is displayed at PUKIY. To remove the hold, the first step is to tap the approach in green and a menu pops up.
The 7th option down is “Remove Hold in lieu of PT.” Eureka! Tap that, then the approach is displayed without the hold. Houston, we have success! It even says “NoPT” in the flight plan.
EAA Airventure at Osh Kosh always draws great innovators every year, leading the aviation consumer to discover something new and different. Flying cars have always been a dream for the everyday pilot. Why not fly to work? Why not park the plane in the parking lot? Why not drive from the runway onto the freeway? All excellent questions!
Well, Samson Motorworks is trying to make those dreams a reality. Samson’s Switchblade flying car is in the (hopefully) finally stages of development this summer. The company expects to be able to conduct test flights early next year, then begin selling the experimental kit.
The Samson Switchblade will be in the Experimental category, but Samson has a builder assist program that only adds $20,000 to the final cost of the kit. The total price of the kit, which comes 49% completed and only takes 3 weeks to complete with the builder assist program, comes in at $140,000. That includes the engine, avionics (it’s equipped with Dynon’s 7″ Skyview glass panel display, a Dynon radio and transponder, a Dynon intercom, a Dynon AOA, an iPad mini, and an ADS-B GPS), and the builder assist program. Similar to a Cirrus, it is also equipped with a Ballistic Parachute Recovery system.
The Samson Switchblade has several different engine options, including a supercharged, liquid cooled, V-4 similar to a Corvette engine that will produce 190 HP. Max cruise in the air should be around 170 knots. The Switchblade will hold 30 gallons of mogas, burn 9 GPH in the air, and get 35 mpg on the ground. The gross weight will be 1,750 pounds.
How does the car to plane transition happen? Samson has developed a fly by wire system to retract the rudder down while the car is in drive mode. The wings use a mechanical linkage to fold up into the belly.
There are several different packages for the Samson Switchblade: the Snowbird, the Aurora, and the Trek options. Details can be found on Samson’s website.
I, for one, will be keeping an eye on the freeways next summer to keep an eye out for cars sprouting wings. No more traffic jams!
