elimansour

the only Altitude PreSelect is for the KFC200. https://aspenavionics.com/products/aps4a-altitude-preselect

I also watch all of those - also watch Flying Doodles https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRW7tzjWFIIbjjO3Te2HhrA Jonas Marcinko https://www.youtube.com/user/Jonas27 And our very own Mooney201er https://www.youtube.com/user/SoarBird134

That would be awful if true and if it contributed to the suspected loss of control. It’s way premature to speculate on instrument failure let alone a specific OEM. For what it’s worth, one thing to consider if the plane has a certified EFD1000 install is that there would be a required backup ADI - so if the unit reset he would have immediately know (EFIS failures are pretty obvious vs vacuum gyro failures) and he could have shifted his scan to the backup. Autopilot would have also disconnected so any Aspen issues would not translate to bad autopilot commands. Whatever happened - it seems like things went bad pretty quickly and overwhelmed the pilot’s ability to keep the aircraft under control. Prayers for the families of those affected by this tragic accident. Everyone stay safe out there and stay current in all training and currency requirements.

This is tragic.

I wanted to let everyone know that I have had really good support and communication with Aspen so far with my EFD1000 Pro Max install. Prior to installing the new unit we decided to send it back to Aspen to undergo their new bench testing to determine if it would exhibit the reset behavior that affected some units in the field. The idea was to get it addressed first and avoid having a reset in flight down the road. After a week, Aspen finished running our unit through the test procedure and let us know that it exhibited the reset behavior reported in the field. I am glad the reset happened on the bench and not in flight! They also let us know that they have a SW update that addresses the underlying cause of the reset that is being finalized and submitted to the FAA. We were told that once they get the SW update approved, they will resubmit the affected units through the test procedure and will be able to ship back our unit with the update once the issue is confirmed as cleared. This probably is what is driving the delay in getting upgrade units shipped out but it appears that Aspen is dealing with this issue as fast as they can and pushing to get everyone their Max units. Hopefully the FAA can approve the update quickly so we don't have too much longer to wait.

I have a KI256 / KCS 55A/ KFC150 with electric mechanical gyro backup in my M20J and unfortunately the KI256 gave up the ghost late last year. I subsequently have researched the various options ad nauseum (looking at OH of the KI256, or getting Aspen, G5, Gi 275 or G3X) finally deciding on going with an EFD1000/EA 100 with a GI 275 as the backup and removal of the vacuum system. The plane is in the shop now and should be done in a week or so. I'll post a pirep when it's done. Factors for me were as follows: Wanted to get rid of vacuum system and mechanical gyros - MTBF of <500 hrs and insidious failure mode is not acceptable; The KFC150 is a good autopilot and I wanted a path that could continue to drive the KFC150 with improvement in efficiency (i.e. GPSS); G5 would not drive the KFC150 flight director and required retaining the KI256 (after OH'ing it) to drive the FD (which knocked out the G5s early in my search); The Aspen requires a backup with an independent power source (or vacuum driven - which did not work for my goal of getting rid of the vacuum); The GI 275s did not require separate backup since they could back each other up; The GI275s do not require an additional box to drive KFC150 (Aspen requires the EA100); I wanted to retain the ability to upgrade the KFC150 to the Aerocruz and still use whatever EFIS system I went with (Aspen plays very well with King autopilots and GI275 is supposed to also interface nicely); I found the GI275 presentation to be a bit busy and not a full EFIS as with the Aspen presentation; I found the Aspen presentation to be most efficient for the IFR flying that I frequently do; The G3X requires a total panel redo which I wanted to avoid and was the most expensive option; All units will talk nicely to the twin Garmins GNS units in the panel; What pushed me to the Aspen route was that it had (in my opinion) the nicest presentation for the space and was easily expandable without locking me into any specific domain. It also gave me a pretty powerful and easy to use EFIS without the need to wreck the panel and do a whole rebuild. Finally, I found the menu structure and buttonology very intuitive and easy to use. Let us know which way you decide to go.

Oops. Sorry - I should read posts more thoroughly. I guess the length was beyond my ADHD limit! LOL. I’m also not aware of any other way to do it.

You can create a user waypoint based on the given radial and distance. See page 140 of the manual https://static.garmin.com/pumac/190-00357-00_K.pdf

These products all look great! Thank you for getting that set up!

What a dream airplane! Your price very competitive - should sell very quickly!

Wow. That is a heck of a crosswind. You had a decent correction on short final but it seemed like the crosswind pushed you sideways during the flare. No bounces though so not a bad result!!

I had my last annual there. Nice group of folks and professionally run shop. Stan is great to work with and did my annual last year. I was very pleased with the quality of the work and the attention to detail and open communication. They work well with Savvy also which was a plus.

Did you determine why the Aspen failed?

In a piston helicopter, putting a heavy load on the engine such as by applying full up collective (esp. in a high density altitude) may exceed the available power and start to degrade RPM but it is not so sudden and you would have other indications (such as loss of tail rotor effectiveness) which would cause the pilot to reduce collective and keep the RPM in the green. I am not sure if that applies in the Sikorsky S-76 - it is a very powerful twin turbine helicopter and they were operating a low altitudes - but I am guessing here as I do not have any specific experience flying that particular helicopter.

You don't really stall a helicopter - if you do, you're pretty much history. In helicopters, lift is generated by the rotary wings and as long as you maintain blade RPM, you maintain lift and stay aloft. If you allow the RPM to degrade below the minimum % RPM then the blade will stall (just like a wing stalls - the air separates from the surface and lift is lost). Unlike a plane, you can't push the nose down once you stall to recover - in fact you will be falling down like a rock since the lift is gone. In helicopters, all emphasis is on keeping that blade RPM above the minimum. So, if the RPM starts to degrade for whatever reason (primarily engine failure) the drill is to actually pull back on the cyclic and lower the collective which then transitions the helicopter into an autorotation. If the RPM % is retained you glide it down and cushion the "landing" with some collective at the bottom. Very different flight regime and actually a bit counterintuitive when you're coming from the fixed wing world where we are taught to push nose down at the first indication of stall...

I just heard back from my avionics shop and Garmin engineering confirmed that the GI 275 can provide the attitude information directly to the KFC 150 - no additional box is needed. With this confirmation the GI 275 is a very compelling offering. I am considering replacing the KI256/ KCS55A and ripping out the vacuum system and going with either a 2 x GI 275 install or an Aspen EFD1000 + EA100 + Sandia 340A backup install, in either case to interface and drive the KFC 150. The Aspen presentation is nicer and it has more features but the required install of the sensor module near the tail will require a lot more work on the Installation and the interior to be removed to run the wire. The GI 275 will not require taking out the interior as the GPS antenna sits on (possibly under) the dash. The Aspen installation cost + required backup make it a more expensive install - so lots to think about...

I’m not sure what version they have - it would be great if this ends up not being true. Funny thing is that the Garmin tech noted it as well and I was told was unsure. Maybe there are different versions of the manual it being so new...will report back as soon as we get the definitive answer.

Thank you. I left a similar message there.

I have been seriously looking at the GI 275 as a replacement to my old mechanical gyros (ki256/kcs55a) and was impressed in reading the manuals and documentation. I especially liked that it would allegedly interface with and drive the KFC150 as a complete replacement to the ki256/kcs55a. I am now getting conflicting information on the GI275 and how compatible it is with legacy autopilots such as the KFC150. Specifically, my avionics shop got stumped with the following notation from the install manual: [3] An attitude source must be provided to the autopilot in order for it to function properly. The KVG 350 gyro or the KI 255/256 ADI may be retained, or the KG 258 ADI may replace the KI 256 ADI to provide attitude information to the autopilot system. They initially thought that the GI 257 ADAHRS+AP would interface completely and Garmin’s own materials and online compatibility chart would suggest this - but the install manual suggests otherwise so they are investigating further. A call to Garmin tech support did not resolve this as they are still getting up to speed on this so they escalated to engineering and told us to expect a call back. If it ends up not being to be capable to provide attitude to the autopilot then this would be very disappointing. Will update when we hear back from Garmin.

Great news!!

Wow! She is a beauty!

Do I read the autopilot interface list correctly in that it does not support GPSS or simulated GPSS for the KFC150 which a lot of us have? That would seem like material shortcoming...

I’m keeping the ASI and airspeed indicator. Will just want to have a backup for the Aspen (AI).

Any update on using G5 as backup for a single Aspen Pro Max PFD? I currently have an RC Allen electrical backup AI w/o battery and would need to buy and add their ESP backup battery plus wiring plus indicator/button to be legal as a backup for Aspen. For a little bit more, A G5 would fit nicely in the panel to replace the RC Allen and would not have the battery/wires/indicator. Has anyone had any issues getting a G5 approved as a backup to an single Aspen installation?

An icing encounter is indeed quite sobering. On a recent PC12 flight out of KMCO in raining / cold front conditions while we were climbing through 16000 for FL280 (tops were reported around FL230), we got into a severe icing layer and the speed and effect was dramatic. First the plane turned into an ice magnet - the ice did not build on the wings, but rather it felt (and sounded) like it was hitting the whole plane in mass quantities from all directions. Looking at the wing (sorry no pictures...I was a bit preoccupied) it turned from a light dusting from before that was easily managed with 3 min. boots to a jagged snow-coned heap with minimal effect by 1 min. boots. The side windshields started to fill up as well and we went from a climb rate of 1500+ fpm to less than 300 fpm...all in a couple of minutes. Needless to say we had to get out ASAP and only option was to descend. Luckily northeastern FL is fairly flat and we descended fast to 8000 for positive temps and the ice all just came off in massive sheets. We slogged through the rain below till there was a clearing to get back higher. I had never been in severe icing before and it really was pretty wild how quickly and thoroughly the plane got smacked.