Folks,
Another long response. Sorry. And don't take this the wrong way, please. The STC Group LLC is here to help. If you don't need our help let us know. We are offering our services.
1. woot so now it's a race, trio, trutrak or brittain.
I'm not racing anyone. I don't have time for that. If The STC Group LLC gets 25 to 30 FIRM commits that are willing to put up $500 deposits I'll pursue the effort.
Remember that I have a regular job guys and my group is making the effort to HELP people, not take your money like a few other companies out there. My team at Oxnard Airport is doing a great deal of avionics installation work, autopilot installation work, ADSB, etc. We are also gearing up to perform pitot static and transponder certification work since we do this as part of the installation. So we will have to carve out time and move this Mooney effort to make a June deadline (if the gov't opens up).
By the way, we also have excellent customer support, unlike the others I have heard about. And our parts don't look like they came from Pep Boys, which is another Avionics Shop comment I get all the time.
2. No engagement below 500 AGL, not certified for coupled approaches.
This is an FAA requirement for all non-TSO autopilots.
The Trio Pro Pilot is approach capable. Experimental folks use it for approaches all the time.
If you take a look at the Flight Test document attached you'll notice that we are required by the FAA, in order to obtain the STC, to execute LPV approaches as part of our certification effort. These approaches are to minimums with a missed approach, hold entry, and one turn in holding. In order to meet the FAA certification schedule, and due to Small Airplane Directorate schedules, neither TruTrak nor ourselves had the time to carry out full approach certification. Again, this is a scheduling effort. I'll see if I cannot talk to an FAA aircraft certification manager today and ask him if he can give me some guidance to get this completed quickly. Yes, today.
When we test fly a customer airplane we also perform this entire test sheet, to minimums, with a missed approach, hold entry, and holding pattern . The test flight document was assembled by my friend, Ernie, (who also made me get this STC). Ernie is my retired Northrup Grumman friend / engineer / installation designer. You might know a couple airplanes Ernie was responsible for at Northrup. B-2, YF-17, F-20, just to name a few. He ran those design teams.
By the way, for you racing fans. Ernie was one of the engineers that designed the Ford GT-40 for Carroll Shelby when he was a grad student at Cornell. Ernie has great Carroll Shelby / Ford GT-40 stories. Our flight test document is straight out of a standard military flight test document. I flew this test sheet on a customer 1975 C182P the other day (with an LPV to minimums and missed approach).
When we complete our Aspen EFD and G5 integration effort, which is all but complete, The Pro Pilot will have analog approach capability.
3. I wonder what the Trio Pilot uses for attitude? Give Chuck a call at Trio Avionics. He'll answer all your questions. MEM's gyros is the answer but I'm not the expert on this.
4. Install time.
The first thing that my group does is to test fly the customer airplane, with the customer. This is a flight to determine if the airplane is "in rig" and "statically stable". See test number 4. Then my team does a pitot static certification test on the aircraft before installation of the Trio Pro Pilot. Which is the proper procedure we require of all installers. This can add hours to installation costs. Safety first.
When we complete an installation we run the entire Flight Test document.
My group schedules 30 hours to perform an installation. We must "always" rig the aircraft. Every airplane we get into the shop is out of rig, every single one. There is "always" avionics "repair" work required. We are "always" requested to perform additional work required that is non-Trio related. So, that's where those goofy hours you see play into the picture folks. My guys only need a workday or two to install servos and harnesses. The additional time is cleaning up the existing mess so avionics integration can take place. And installing all the new avionics that owners request.
5. Pitch Trim servo - again, I can run this past my a/c certification contact. The Trio ships with electric trim capability "in the box". My FAA friend is behind this effort and I should be able to get this approved on an engineering change. He has already told me he is behind our stronger servo effort and will get it approved under engineering change. Which we understand we need. The servos we have are more than adequate for the Mooney. That engineering is complete and documented.
Have a great week all. I won't have time to get to this forum of for the next few weeks. If you all want to email me directly and tell me you have put together the numbers we require to launch this effort I'll get the team started. We have a mule sitting on the ramp we can use. But we'd like to get our hands on a complete range of Mooney's so we cover all of you. I just talked to Robert and we will start with his 1970 M20C if you all want to move forward.
Be good and don't speculate. It's not productive unless you are certain that you completely understand the process and have been through it 12 time like we have.
Cheers,
Paul
F-1006-43 Rev D - FLIGHT Check CARDS - POST INSTALLATION.pdf
