donkaye

I flew with the KFC 150 for 26 years. For the first 22 years, except for a couple of servo overhauls, it provided good service for an autopilot of its time. For the next 4 years I got around the wing rock in NAV mode by flying in GPSS mode most of the time. There was no wing rock in that mode. So when the GFC 500 came along, I really didn't think about money in my decision to get it. It was meant to interface with all my other Garmin products and provide added functionality not available with the KFC 150--and it has. Does spending money on any upgrade item for your plane make economi

Yes, that's a good reason for getting the G600. SVT is really worth having. Regarding upgrading the AP: yes, the 225 is a nice autopilot, but if anything goes wrong with the servos it's a minimum 3,000 to overhaul. If anythng goes wrong with the computer, then you have to deal with BK and their exorbitant pricing. During the tine I had my KFC 150 I need to overhaul servos 3 times. The cost of the GSA 28 servos is only 1,500 per servo. Personally I had a wing rock that I spent over 5,000 trying to get rid of after I installed the G500. It never got solved until I upgraded to the GFC 50

I'm not sure why you would want the G600 instead of the G500. At any rate, the GFC 500 is a significant advance over the KFC 225. Some of the extras you get with the GFC 500 is ESP (Electronic Stability Protection), LVL Protection if inadvertently entering an unusual attitude, VNAV with automatic multiple step downs, and IAS climbs and descents. You also get light weight brushless servos, which are much less expensive, if they ever need to be replaced. You do lose one item, CWS. I find that to be a non issue.

You write well. I read your Blog on those last flights and noted something that will allow ATC to view you as more of a professional. They listen to people all day long and can tell whether you know what you're doing both by how you sound and what you say. The pro is likely to get more favorable treatment from ATC because ATC is more likely to trust the pro (or non pro who sounds like a pro). When ATC gives a climb or descent or when you're climbing or descending and a handoff is given, the AIM says you should come back with, or check in with, 2 altitudes, the altitude you are at and the

All approaches with vertical navigation should be run with the APR button. All approaches without vertical navigation should be run with the NAV button.

I recommend pulling the card and updating through your computer. It's nice to have the FS 510 and all, but I have found the reliability to be less than stellar. I spend more time trying to figure out why database sync doesn't sync than just bringing home the card and updating it there, which is what I have been doing ---reliably.

Yes, it was an exceptional deal.

$169.95 for all databases for a year. Yes, the GXM 40 provides XM weather and radio.

At higher altitudes my oil pressure decreased into the yellow range making me very uncomfortable. Top Gun changed the oil pressure spring to a stiffer one. At higher altitudes the pressure is now in the normal range. However, on startup the pressure is in the red range until the oil heats up. This means a longer wait on the ground until the pressure goes into the green range. So, higher oil pressure on startup is normal.

As a result of my recent purchase of the Aera 760 and GDL 52, I've decided to sell my trusty Aera 796. This is by far the best Handheld Garmin put out before the Aera 760. It comes with so many extras that I purchased that I almost don't know where to start. aera 796 GXM 40 XM antenna Yoke mount DC cigarette adapter 12/24 volt cradle with XM adapter DC cigarette adapter 12/24 volt cradle with XM adapter and GDL 5X adapter Bare wire cradle for installation in aircraft 2 Home A/C cradle docks GA 25 remote antenna with suction cup mount U

Main Menu >Tools>Track Log>Menu>Clear Active Track

A trim switch (also used for manual trimming when the AP is not engaged) is added on the yoke and the Y/D is engaged on the GMC 507 Mode Controller and disengaged on GMC 507 or AP disengaged switch on the yoke..

I don't see how you can make any money. From several bids I got before I installed my GFC 500, the parts alone for a 4 servo system including adding the G5 came to $16,000.

Of course it was tongue in cheek.

Actually, yes, but it was in bad weather and incorrect use of the parachute. It was the accident over Donner Summit a number of years ago. The parachute failed by being deployed at too high a speed and the plane disintegrated. So, having a parachute didn't necessarily help when used incorrectly. This person had just taken the Cirrus training course a couple of weeks earlier.