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Plane Talk MAXIMIZING YOUR INVESTMENT
Going Glass: Displays Of Affection
 If you’ve read any of the aviation press lately, you know that we have entered the age of glass.
Most new aircraft aimed at the general aviation traveler now come with glass-panel displays of one sort or another. The age of figuring out whether you are on a radial from or to the VOR are long gone.
Today’s pilot needs–no, today’s pilot demands—that every aspect of the flight be displayed on a wide-screen display that is as intuitive as a microwave and more powerful than a personal computer.
Those with airplanes that rolled off the line prior to, say, two months ago, are destined to do things the “old” way, stuck with counter-intuitive navigational tools that must surely be on their way out.
But fear not: owners of older airplanes are not destined to become the slaves to a glassless society. There are a handful of manufacturers with devices ranging in price from $9,000 to about $20,000, that will give your “antique” airplane a crystal clear multifunction display that everyone on the ramp will envy.
Avidyne, Bendix|King, Garmin, and UPS (now L-3 Communications) all offer multi-function displays that connect various navigational tools in your airplane to a single, intuitive display. OP Technologies, which has products for the experimental market, is working on a MFD for the certified market.
All of the devices feature moving map, terrain, weather, and optional traffic avoidance display integrated with the airplane’s GPS system.
Installation costs vary by device and based on what different instruments you will be connecting to it the unit. Costs can be as little as $1,000, or as much as $5,000, depending on the number of connections, and the layout of your existing panel.
In selecting an MFD, you’ll need to make sure that it is certified to be installed in your aircraft, and also for your type of flying. Some MFD devices are only certified for VFR flight, so you can’t use the device as your primary navigational aid when flying IFR.
All of the products are roughly 5-inches diagonal and most offer the same basic feature set: terrain and flight mapping capabilities, the ability to download weather and lightning information, integration with GPS and transponders for traffic awareness and avoidance.
Despite the wealth of technology available, manufacturers generally distinguish their products on basic features: ease of use, visibility of the data that is on the screen, and the number and types of devices they will inter-connect with. Since each manufacturer has a different list of inter-connects, the choice of which MFD to buy may be driven more by the other devices in your panel than by which MFD you like the best.
If you decide upgrading your panel is a project you want to tackle, check the system’s capabilities against your airplane and the type of flying you plan to do. Also, compare the list of devices the MFD will interface with to the devices in your panel, and consider whether you plan to replace your GPS or transponder in the future to one that might work with a particular manufacturer’s product.
Finally, if you can, take a flight with the units you are considering. When everything else is said and done, you’ll want a unit that works the you think so you’ll feel comfortable using it.
Which ever system you choose, adding a glass display to your aircraft is sure to make it easier to use in more complicated flight conditions. And it will be money well spent, since any upgrade to your airplane’s avionics will play out in increased resale value further down the road.
After all, this is the age of glass, and you don’t want to be the last person at the airport flying an out of date aircraft.
—Sean Fulton
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