One unfortunate reality of long certification delays is taking a hit in market credibility. That’s how it went with Bendix King’s KSN770 retrofit GPS. It’s no secret that Bendix King left the market wondering about its ability to earn FAA certification on a product that should have been released years before its time, especially when a certification-savvy Aspen Avionics had its hands in the architecture.
Still, when we flew with the KSN770 in late 2013, we found a fully functional and capable navigator, seemingly catering to what’s left of King Radio loyalists. It has robust controls, has a bright VGA display and it has a rich feature set that’s compatible with a generous list of LRUs, including weather radar and TAWS-B terrain. Who knows why certification dragged on as long as it did?