PILOT’S GUIDE

A Buyer’s Guide: Standalone Instruments Backup Instruments: They Stand Up When Standards Stand Down

By Dave Hig d o n

ost pilots remember sig- curs: For pilots in IMC, loss of the atic spinning-iron gyros and suc- nificant events in their AI, for whatever cause, too often tion pumps. Mflying lives: their first solo; results in an unhappy outcome. Still, the Federal Aviation their first cross-country flight; The odds-on favorite for such a Administration requires modern check rides; and significant problem is the dry-air vacuum digital electronic panels to employ because they don’t fit the desir- pump dominant among a backup set of instruments able description of “uneventful.” suction systems. — often a compact, but old style, A newly minted instrument The related parallel failure of spinning-mass , pilot’s first trip in actual instrument the directional gyro (DG) adds to plus an indicator and meteorological conditions (IMC) the pressure of partial-panel fly- . Typically, the standby usually stays with him. And few ing in IMC. The single-point loss AI is electric and the aircraft events imprint as strongly as the of the DG, in contrast, doesn’t sports a secondary source of first time a primary instrument threaten attitude control to the electrical power. fails while flying inside the egg- degree of a loss of attitude indi- Owners of older aircraft have shell. Flying IMC, pretty much any cation; ditto for the turn direction options for adding attitude-indica- failure of a primary system or pri- and rate information delivered by tion redundancy to their panels, mary instrument makes the flight the electrically driven turn gyro, regardless of whether it’s a stan- “eventful.” whether a turn coordinator or turn dard six-pack panel, all glass or a Instrument pilots learn to use indicator. hybrid of glass and analog. the so-called “standard six-pack” Outside the ultimate IMC failure For the instrument pilot, incor- of instruments dominant in our crisis, that of an engine, no other porating standby instruments can predominantly analog panels component loss stresses pilot- help ensure an instrument failure — three of them gyro indicators ing skills and compounds the risk in IMC remains validly described — to successfully execute instru- equation of instrument flight like as “uneventful.” Several manu- ment flight. the loss of attitude indication in facturers offer standby instrument Most of our success hinges on IMC or, a close second, in night equipment created to relieve at our ability to become competent VMC. least the stress of an instrument by trusting a mechanical attitude failure. indicator (AI) in defiance of and Partial Panel: Some pilots opt to add a sec- ignoring completely the attitude Points for Difficulty ondary suction source to their air- indications of our inner-ear mech- One of the benefits of modern plane, a relatively low-cost option anisms. Loss of this AI, the most glass spins off, if you offering the dual benefit of keep- primary of our primary instrument will, from the shift to solid-state, ing the DG and the AI functioning. flight tools, greatly challenges our no-moving-parts sensors and Many pilots have added both a odds of success in IMC. electronic displays with miniscule secondary suction source and The track record from both real failure rates. These technologies a secondary, standby electricity life and objective research con- allow the elimination of problem- source to provide maximum sys-

- 46 - P T O L I ’ s G One of the benefits of modern glass cockpits spins off, if you A Buyer’s Guide: Standalone Instruments E D I U will, from the shift to solid-state, no-moving-parts sensors and electronic displays with miniscule failure rates.

tem redundancy to their cockpits. driven AI a minor change — but power to maintain the integral But only a secondary indicator of it’s a minor piece of work with a battery’s charge. For standby attitude information can give an huge implication for the instrument instruments lacking the ability to instrument pilot the fullest hedge pilot facing the failure of a primary self-power, be sure you either against the possibly catastrophic AI. can shed load to keep the instru- outcome of a primary AI failure. The also must have an ment running until you’re down or In recognizing the lower prior- inclinometer — the trusty old / that it’s on a standby buss to give ity of turn gyros in the instrument skid ball — to comply with the AC. it power priority. And don’t let a cockpit, the FAA issued Advisory By adding a second, alterna- shortage of mounting space hold Circular 91-75 several years ago tively powered AI — regardless of you back. to make adding redundant atti- whether or not it replaces a turn The industry has advisory tude indication easier than ever. gyro — the pilot essentially keeps circular AC 91-75, in large part, In essence, according to AC a full panel to work with in instru- because of the long-term efforts of 91-75, aircraft weighing no more ment conditions. Sporty’s founder Hal Shevers. He than 12,500 pounds, use a sec- Some important issues require petitioned the FAA for nearly two ond AI in place of a turn gyro, consideration when planning an decades to allow replacement of either an AI powered electrically upgrade to add standby instru- the turn coordinator with a backup or an air-powered unit with an ments to the panel. One of the pri- electric attitude indicator. available standby suction source mary considerations is, whenever In 2003, Shevers’ efforts finally — not as appealing a change as adding an instrument or system bore fruit with the issuance of AC going to an electric secondary AI. that increases electrical need, be 91-75, which in turn makes find- sure your generating system can ing space for a backup AI as easy Standing By with meet this need. as replacing the turn coordinator Standby Instruments Independent power for standby or moving it to another location, In this “Buyer’s Guide,” we instruments provides the greatest allowing for a much safer panel examine equipment designed pri- redundancy, allowing the instru- layout in case of vacuum failure or marily to serve in a backup role ment or box to function for some failure of the primary AI. in today’s general aviation panel. limited time in the event of an Shevers’ efforts also helped In some cases, the products electrical-system failure — this is launch production of an electric described can serve as the pri- time a pilot needs to either find attitude indicator with inclinom- mary, allowing the aircraft owner visual conditions or on the ground eter, which was redesigned with to move older instruments else- as quickly as possible using the improvements and helped drive where in the panel and adding a nearest practical instrument- development of other standby layer of redundancy differently. approach option. products. Because turn gyros typically Even with its own standalone employ electric power, AC 91-75 power source, a self-powering makes swapping in an electrically standby device still needs ship’s Continued on following page…

- 47 - STANDALONE INSTRUMENTS And company elements now Continued from page 47 incorporated into L-3 long have offered some of the industry stan- dards in standby instruments: J.E.T. standby AIs; AIM Gyros; and the GH-3000 series for busi- ness-turbine aircraft.

Kelly Manufacturing Co. RC Allen RCA 2600 Castleberry Digital Horizon Instruments Introduced in April 2009 dur- Model 300-14EL ing the annual AEA International This is the attitude indicator Convention & Trade Show, this Sporty’s revived in Hal Shevers’ brand-new, digital-display horizon/ quest to convince the FAA that an attitude indicator allows the addi- electric AI was a safer choice than tion of an optional inclinometer, the turn coordinator found in stan- making it a candidate to replace Trilogy ESI-1000 dard IFR panels. a turn gyro to serve as an electric L-3’s Trilogy ESI-1000, the first After the issuance of the AC, backup unit to a standard suction- solid-state integrated standby Shevers found no competitively powered AI. system created specifically for priced, high-value options that Designed around an all-solid- Part 23 aircraft, is designed as a would convince pilots to make the state digital sensor system, the backup for . safer choice. RCA 2600 fits in the same stan- So complete in its capabilities, After combing the manufacturing dard 3-inch opening, or in a small- it’s easy to imagine some aircraft community with his specifications er opening for the 2-inch model. owners considering the Trilogy for and committing the marketing The RCA 2600 works on any a compact conversion to a glass power of Sporty’s, Shevers con- voltage from 9 to 32, and it draws — defined vinced Castleberry Instruments a fraction of the current required these days as an electronic sys- to update and produce this AI. for conventional spinning-mass tem essentially serving to provide Sporty’s initial commitment was for electric gyros. all the information of the entire 1,000 units, which sold out almost Kelly’s newest RC Allen AI also standard six-pack in an IFR panel. immediately. weighs a fraction of a traditional The name, Trilogy, comes from Castleberry found the enterprise electric gyro, at 16 ounces for the the instrument’s integration of all launch profitable enough to con- 3-inch and 8.5 ounces for the 2- three functions the FAA requires tinue building the 300-14EL as a inch. as a minimum backup stack for a high-value electric AI with inclinom- The full-color, liquid-crystal dis- glass panel: attitude, airspeed and eter and failure-warning flag. play is sunlight-readable and fully altitude. The 300-14EL is available either adjustable. It takes a standard The cleverest aspect of L-3’s 14- or 28-volt compatible, in ver- connector, which should make newest standby offering comes sions to mount either on straight installation a plug-and-play affair. in its presentation: The Trilogy or tilted panels, and in versions for For more information, visit employs a single, large active- fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters. www.kellymfg.com. matrix liquid-crystal display, Castleberry also offers an option which presents all three pieces of that enhances this AI’s appeal as L-3 Avionics Systems information in a format mimicking a standby instrument: a dedicated L-3 Communications Avionics those employed by the primary power supply to keep the AI run- Systems, an increasingly inno- flight display of a glass panel. This ning in the event of an electrical- vative, diverse company offers means the full width of the display system failure. hazard awareness and avoidance presents the horizon line, while For more information, visit www. gear considered staples in the Continued on page 50… ciamfg.com. industry.

- 48 - STANDALONE INSTRUMENTS an optional slip/skid ball, making Continued from page 48 it eligible to replace a turn gyro under AC 91-75. The 1100 also vertical-tape readouts on either works on either 14 or 28 volt, with side provide airspeed (left) and lighting available for 5-volt lighting altitude data (right). systems. Add an optional remote mag- The top-end AIM 1200 offers netometer, and the Trilogy also the same benefits of the 1100 in supplies gyro indication, a 28-volt-only model, which has making the unit a suitable standby optional HIRF and lightning-strike unit for four of the standard six- protection. pack instruments. Drop one into L-3 Avionics also offers a rarity the place of the turn gyro, add a among standby gyros, an electric slip/skid ball, and you’ve got high- standby directional gyro available tech redundancy for even analog for both 14- and 28-volt aircraft. panels. The 3-inch AIM 205 sports its own striped failure-warning flag to alert a pilot should voltage drop below a set level. Options include integral lighting and an bootstrap. This electric DG and any number of electric AIs provide a path to converting an aircraft to an all-electric analog panel.

AIM Gyros It’s been just six years since Goodrich sold its avionics line to L-3 Communications, and many a user of BFG’s formidable standby ADVANCED AVIONICS instruments should appreciate that “We do iit allll, L-3 Avionics Systems continues to J.E.T. llarge or smallll, make and support legacy products simple or complex”. like the AIM line of standby gyros. Durability, flexibility and inde- Today’s four AIM models from pendent describe some of the L-3 offer a variety of features, traits of L-3 Avionics’ J.E.T. line of power configurations, tilt angles standby attitude indicators. and, in the case of the AI models, Tops among the features for size. All sport a warning flag to many instrument pilots are the alert a pilot of a problem. J.E.T. line’s integral power supply, The AIM 520 fills the need for which can provide about 9 min- a compact, 2-inch electric attitude utes of power to the gyro after a indicator, a popular choice for new total electrical-system failure. and newly upgraded glass cock- All but one are 3-inch models; pits. Options for the 520 include a the fifth of five is a 2-inch model. range of three tilt angles (0, 8 and They all sport integral lighting and JET CENTER MEDFORD 15 degrees), internal lighting (5 or power-off warning flags. (800) 359-0297 28 volt) and the ability to mount to The 3-inch models also employ www.jjetcentermfr.com the panel front or rear. wheel-speed monitors to flag the 5000 Cirrus Drive, Medford, OR 97504 The 3-inch AIM 1100 offers pilot if the gyro spins below a pre-

- 50 - P T O L I determined speed and threatens ment hardware for the FAR 23 DACS to denigrate accuracy. market, in particular, Mid-Continent ’ The top three 3-inch models Instruments continues to refine its Digital Audio Control System s G add to their capabilities cross- standing in the standby instrument pointer indicators for localizer field with its aptly named top-of-its- E D I U and glideslope signals, as well as line product: the Lifesaver. requisite warning flags to alert the The Lifesaver 4300 attitude gyro pilot to failure of either signal. boasts a design with a posted mean time between failure of 7,500 operating hours – higher than typical for an electric gyro and a promise of value competitive with some lower-cost alternatives.

• Digital audio processing & control • Designed for tactical operations • Enhanced performance • Flexible & configurable using DACS system software GH-3000/GH-3100 • Reduced installation cost & Picture a full-size, pilot-side complexity primary flight display with attitude • Reduced system weight and heading displays, naviga- The 4300 series runs on 10 to (888) 763-2232 tion information, HSI and air-data 32 volts. The optional slip indica- www.cobham.com/avionics/kelowna functions. Now, imagine this in a tor makes the Lifesaver a legal system mounted in a single 3ATI replacement for a turn gyro per AC opening and weighing no more 91-75. than 4 pounds. But it’s the integral battery You are picturing the GH-3000 that gives this AI its main claim or GH-3100 electronic standby to fame and is the foundation of instrument systems. These ESISs the “Lifesaver” name. Thanks to are all solid-state with an option a custom-design, lead-acid cell to add a solid-state air-data card, Installs, Recertification, array compactly tucked into the which plugs directly into the unit package, the Lifesaver can deliver Troubleshooting & Repair ready for pitot- and static-line con- at least an hour of run time in the nections. event aircraft power fails. Our avionics department understands The GH-3000/3100 products A bezel-mounted button also today’s complex avionics systems. represent the pinnacle of L-3 gives the pilot the option of switch- We engineer, install and support with Avionics’ standby system offer- ing power to the standby battery confidence the latest safety, commu- ings, perfectly suited to serve as in the event a generating-system nication and entertainment systems a single-point standby for either failure necessitates a reduction in available from all major manufactur- an analog six-pack stack or an all- electrical load. ers. We offer you vast experience in glass wonder panel. The same electric indicator line avionics, troubleshooting and For more information, visit www. is available without the battery recertification. l-3avionics.com. option; however, employing this option gives the pilot an instrument P. O. Box 35408 Mid-Continent that can partially backup its own 6423 Bryan Blvd (27409) Instruments operation. Greensboro, NC 27425 4300 Series Lifesaver For more information, visit www.lifesavergyro.com. (800) 334-2001 • (336) 235-3305 Arguably a value leader in [email protected] standalone gyro and flight-instru- Comparison chart on following page… www.atlantic-aero.com

- 51 - Comparison of Standalone Instruments MANUFACTURER MODEL DESCRIPTION LIST PRICE Electric standby attitude indicator; optional standby power pack; applicable $2,295 Castleberry to any airplane as replacement for turn gyro (with inclinometer); 14, 28 volt. Instruments* 300-14EL ($3,995 w/stand- by powerpack) Kelly RC Allen 2- and 3-inch, all-digital electronic attitude indicator; full-color liquid-crystal $2,495 Manufacturing* display; full 360 roll-and-pitch capability; lightweight; low power; optional RCA 2600 inclinometer makes unit eligible for use in place of turn gyro under FAA (both sizes) AC 91-75; applicable to any aircraft; 9-32 volt.

2-inch, FAA-approved electric standby attitude indicator; applicable to any $7,900 AIM 520 aircraft; FAA-approved for back-up use; 28 volt.

3-inch, electric standby attitude indicator; applicable to any aircraft; AIM 1100 FAA-approved for back-up use; 14, 28 volt. $4,860

3-inch, FAA-approved electric standby attitude Indicator with HIRF; AIM 1200 lightning protection available; applicable to any aircraft; 28 volt. $5,990

3-inch, FAA-approved directional gyro, with available autopilot bootstrap $5,820 AIM 205 and heading bug; applicable to any aircraft; 14, 28 volt.

This line comes with integral standby power system and power-off Prices start at J.E.T. warning flags; options available for analog or digital systems, with and (general information) without CDI and LOC/GS. about $20,000

2-inch, FAA-approved electric standby attitude indicator; applicable J.E.T. AI 804 to any aircraft; 28 volt. -

L-3 Avionics 3-inch, FAA-approved standby electric attitude indicator with integral - Systems* J.E.T. AI 330 back-up power; applicable to any aircraft; 18-30 volt.

J.E.T. ADI 3-inch, FAA-approved standby electric attitude indicator with integral LOC/GS indicators; applicable to any aircraft; 18-30 volt; 330 is analog; - 330/331 331 is digital.

J.E.T. ADI 3-inch, FAA-approved standby electric attitude indicator with choice of ARINC 500 or ARINC 429 interfaces; back-course LOC capability; - 332/333 VOR and GS indication; applicable to any aircraft; 28 volt.

3-inch, FAA-approved standby electric attitude indicator with digital display - J.E.T. ADI 335 of VOR/DME, ILS/BC heading information and cross pointers; applicable to any aircraft; 28 volt.

3ATI all-solid-state emergency electronic standby instrument with option for full compass function, airspeed and altitude; AMLCD display of 3.6 inches $16,570 (est.) Trilogy ESI-1000 diagonal; certification pending as of July 2009; applicable to any aircraft; 14 (with converter) or 28 volt.

Electronic standby instrument system that is a primary flight display in a com- pact 3ATI package; attitude, directional, nav, approach and all air data on single GH-3000/ electronic display; can be used as primary or standby instrument; GH-3100 $59,990 and up GH-3100 adds dedicated air-data card with pitot/static connections to eliminate the need for an external air-data computer; applicable to any aircraft; 28 volt.

Long-life 3-inch electric standby attitude indicator with optional battery for $3,950 Mid-Continent Lifesaver standalone redundancy; battery promises at least 1 hour of run time after an w/o battery; Instruments* 4300 Series aircraft electrical-system failure; various configurations available; applicable to $4,770 w/battery any aircraft; 14 or 28 volt.

Manufacturer suggested list prices are subject to change. Contact an authorized dealer for current pricing. * Denotes Aircraft Electronics Association Member Companies

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