Date: Thursday, May 24, 2001, 11:19:35 PM Subject: Flying with a new dashboard Howdy, This week, I've been flying my Cherokee 6-300 with its new 3-blade prop and its new dashboard, which has lots of new gizmos all over it. It'll take some time before I'm fully and comfortably automatic with the systems, but already I've experienced the "wow!" feeling from almost hands off IFR, all the way down to MDA/DA. First, I've got two Garmin GPSes: GNS530 and a GNS430, both coupled to a Sandel 3308 electronic HSI/RMI/moving-map/etc. There are also new S-Tec S55X with altitude hold/alert, and the GPSS option. Round this off with a GTX327 (Garmin digital transponder), a PS 7000S audio panel/intercomm, a CD player/AM/FM radio, with a 2" electric backup AI, all placed on a new panel. It is simply amazing how much information is packed into the Sandel screen, yet still completely legible and useful. I have the benefit of a CFI that has over 17,000 hours in all kinds of craft, including turbines with FMS. He's teaching his system of using the two GPSes, Sandel, and S-Tec 55 autopilot with altitude hold/alert--not that it's the only way, but it's certainly been developed based on his many hours of experience, which I lack. Anyway, he's teaching me to use the upper GPS, the 5" GNS530, as the moving map display, running the flight plan, and the lower GPS, the 3.5" GNS430, as the frequency/navaid display, with flow-through enabled from the 530 to the 430. This arrangement allows me to do occaional "nearest" functions on the lower GPS and display frequencies, without affecting the running flight plan in the upper GPS. With the A/P in "HDG" mode, the GPSS enabled, and the Sandel in GPS1 mode, I hit the CWS (control wheel steering) button on the yoke and it's fly-by-wire. The GNS530 will drive the plane to track to the IAF (Initial Approach Fix), and fly into a possible holding pattern, at which point, you must steer the entry yourself, but as soon as you round the corner, the GNS530 will automatically continue the terminal approach pattern. If ATC tells you to hold, you just push "OBS" to hold the GPS in the pattern (gotta do this before you actually cross the hold waypoint), and you do the hold turns manually, but let the GPS drive the inbound track and cross the hold waypoint when ATC releases you. When you get within 2 miles of the FAF, the GPS automatically sequences into APPROACH (APR) mode. While the GPS is flying the plane, you can turn the A/P VS (Vertical Speed) dial to induce a precise descent, say at 400ft/min, or whatever you like. You set the DH (Decision Height) altitude on the altitude alerter, and the system will beep at you letting you know when to initiate the missed approach (or push the button to confirm that you can see the runway). For those approaches involving an ILS, the GNS and Sandel both automatically switch to ILS mode when a localizer signal is detected. The GNS will not automatically change VLOC frequencies, but all you have to do is simply push the <=C=> button to switch the standby ILS frequency (which the GNS loaded automatically for you) into the active one. Of course, when making an ILS approach, the A/P will keep the localizer and glideslope centered, performing a really nice descent. We did one of those too, into Santa Barbara (SBA) ILS RNY 7. When entering the holding pattern, the GNS also starts and displays a timer automatically. It is *SO* cool. The only problem I've had is with the precise set of steps needed to get the system completely set up. If you do the sequence in the wrong order, the GPSS switch "blinks" at me, indicating that it's not getting the data it needs. Of course, I'm still practising my IFR training without any of these gizmos, flying by hand, turning, tuning, timing, etc., but this only makes using the GPS-driven autopilot that much more enjoyable and appreciated. Just today, Joel (my CFI) and I flew the Santa Ynez GPS RNY 8 approach, with a circle to land at rny 26. Just in case you might have been wondering, today was a "vacation" day for me :^) Tomorrow, my family and I fly to Watsonville (WVI) for the fly-in and airshow. Hope to see some of you there! -- Best regards, Alan K. Stebbens , N4184R, PA32-300, SBA