Garmin G5 and IFD 540

Flying_Monkey wrote: 2 moths later and wondering if there are any updates.  Lots of people installing dual G5s and with the GFC500 on the horizon I think a lot of people are wondering if they will be able to use their IFDs in this setup.

I too am hoping to replace my AI and HSI with G5's, assuming the IFD's are compatible. Hopefully they will be supported soon.

Flying_Monkey wrote: Any update on if this will be in the upcoming release and when that might be?

AviSimpson wrote: mmozur wrote: AviSimpson, is this in the works for the upcoming release?   Matt   That is the current plan. We just received the G5 so until we can get a few test cycles on it, we won't know if that plan will hold true.

AviSimpson wrote: No G5 competitor announcement from us. We will be looking at integrating with the G5 in the next software release. It appears that they use a similar protocol to the G500/600 that we already support so in theory, it should be straight forward.

Avidyne didn't have an announcement for a G5 competitor, but Dynon sure did! And Dynon prefers Avidyne navigators. Witness how many IFD5x0 are in their promotional photos!

AviSimpson wrote: mmozur wrote: AviSimpson, is this in the works for the upcoming release?   Matt   That is the current plan. We just received the G5 so until we can get a few test cycles on it, we won't know if that plan will hold true.

AviSimpson wrote: mmozur wrote: AviSimpson, is this in the works for the upcoming release?   Matt   That is the current plan. We just received the G5 so until we can get a few test cycles on it, we won't know if that plan will hold true.

mmozur wrote: AviSimpson, is this in the works for the upcoming release?   Matt

I have an IFD 550 and just getting ready to put in a G5 I got at oshkosh.  What's wrong with sending the GPS RS232 info from pin #56 into the G5?

Great news!   Well done! 

Flying_Monkey wrote: Avidyne, please hear us and see that the G5 is and will continue to grow greatly in popularity.  You really need to push to get the IFD units compatible (and legally compatible) with the G5s. If not, I will begin to regret choosing Avidyne over Garmin for my new IFR GPS unit that is currently being installed.  It's too late to change for me but others will continue to have a choice and the G5 will play a major role...

How many GA airplanes have autopilots that can fly the vertical part of an approach?   Ok.  Now how many of those autopilots are under 40 years old?  How many work?  

I don't know how popular this will be. From the marketing information provided by Garmin, the G5 will interface with the listed autopilots only in a lateral mode - HDG or GPSS. It does not appear to have the ability to control a vertical mode - VS, ALT HOLD, FLC, IAS,etc. nor does it appear to be able to support coupled approaches with a glideslope.

I can't see replacing a KI256 with a G5 and lose significant functionality.

Got a 172N and I have a IFD 550.  I'm an IFR pilot.
I'm leaving for Oshkosh this Friday to purchase a Trio or TruTrak which will replace my current ARC Autopilot (not working).  I also plan to buy a stand alone AI.
I have a vacuum AI and DG currently installed right over the yoke.
I was in intermittent IFR two days ago and had the synthetic vision on.  I actually liked the AI and DG display better than the Syn vis.  The problem was the horizontal attitude bar on the Syn Vis is not adjustable up and down (maybe I just haven't read enough of the manual).   There's a lot of data on the Syn vis display and the AI is really simple to read.
Anyway I was just wondering:
1  Which manufacturers make a stand alone AI?
2  Do both TruTrak and Trio autopilots follow the magenta line?


 

Indeed!  From NTSB reports, seems like way too many tragic aviation accidents are transformed from incidents to accidents by pilot error, and often by pilots who should know better.    

So, the key is actually:  pilot proficiency and situational awareness.  But redundancy is not very far behind.

Everything can fail.  Venturis can ice up, and any mechanical gyro has bearings.   (The venturi is at least independent of avgas, so it keeps working during that oh-no! glide through the undercast.)   And there are a number of posts on some of the type forums about G5s and Quattros dying en-mass, some stating the Garmin and Sandia have stopped shipping.   in the 35 years I've been flying (and I didn't fly a lot until we bought our plane 12 years ago), I've had about 5 vacuum instrument or system failures, two electric gyro failures, and three alternator failures.  (The majority in rental aircraft, a few right after we bought our plane).   Never in true IMC, although one was in virtual IMC (night, remote mountainous terrain with no horizon lights, no moon).   Perhaps luckily, I was in the middle of my IFR training and my cross-check proficiency kept me from entering a death-spiral.  

The key is complete independence of the backup system.  An independent battery-backed electronic AI seems to me to (potentially) provide the safest solution, since it would be standalone.   When my vacuum pump hits the 500-hour "mandatory" replacement time, I'll be selecting the self-contained electronic alternative for my backup AI.   Ultimately I'll probably put a back-up alternator on the mounting

ronl wrote: DavidBunin wrote: but I'll stay mechanical for my backups, thanks. When all the pretty screens go dark inside a wet bumpy cloud it is very comforting to cast ones eyes on the face of an old friend:

Edited by LANCE - 09 Jul 2017 at 8:00pm

I was going to just flat-out say "no" because it isn't listed in Section 2.3 of the install manual, which covers the list of approved ADCs. However, the header for that section says "The following list represents the proven interfaces. There may be other devices that can be configured the same as one on the below list but Avidyne has not tested it and can therefore not make any compatibility claims." 

The vacuum pump on my Cessna 182RG failed yesterday on a flight.  It had the usual symptoms, starting with "the leans", finally dying completely.  However it was not an issue at all because I had replaced my IFD 540 with an IFD550 several months ago.

The AHRS display on the 550  presented a very fine display in Synthetic Vision mode and was a most credible substitute for an attitude indicator!

So can dual G5's feed air data to the IFD540?

Seems like dual G5 + IFD540 + Trio A/P is a good IFR solution, made even better with air data connection.

Had TWO vacuum pump failures since I installed my Aspen. No problem with the Aspen.

Just looking through the ASPEN install Rev. C., section 5.2 (pg 31-203). I don't see anything there that would restrict any electronic backup AI, as long as it is on a separate bus OR on an independent backup battery.

I guess it is time for me to put in a vote for the classic T&B as a last ditch safety backup. Nothing else looks like a T&B and if the T&B is wiggling, it is working. My aircraft is all electric with the exception of a venturi powered vacuum T&B.

Gring wrote: The Sandia Quattro technically is not approved with Aspen due to the certification standard and how it degrades with the loss of air speed.

Gring wrote: I spent the money and purchased an L3 ESI500 for my backup. It works great and had localizer and glideslope on it so you have everything on one stand by gauge.