Commentary

Early on, it was simple and few if any questions were asked. But, some offices would not issue permits, while others would. It becomes a big deal not being able to ferry if the aircraft is stuck out in the boondocks away from practical maintenance. The most recent and biggest headache came a few years ago when the Miami, Florida, FSDO changed the jurisdiction for the Bahamas to an international office. For a while, it stopped issuing permits to move the aircraft out of the Bahamas.

Your article on ADS-B transponders suggests you can save $500 by wiring in your existing Stratus portable ADS-B receiver to the new Stratus ESG transponder, instead of buying the new 2i receiver. This is true only if you don’t wire it in, but continue to use it standalone. I just had NexAir Avionics in Massachusetts install the Stratus ESGi transponder system in my Ercoupe and I chose the package with the 2i because the savings without it is only $350. That is because the interface cable set costs $150, but its included with the ESGi bundle.

Years ago, I was flying a friends P-51 Mustang and was flying low-level at roughly 400 knots (at the time there was no speed restriction below 10,000 feet) when the rudder flutter began. I flew vertical and reduced to idle power to slow the airplane down, where the flutter stopped at about 170 knots. The violence of the flutter was unbelievable and destroyed nearly every instrument in the cockpit, leaving gauge needles lying at the bottom of their instruments. We tiptoed back to the airport in Van Nuys, California, for an immediate and uneventful landing because the airframe had a vibration that made me nervous.

This year at AirVenture, Quiet Technologies caught my attention, so I got a demo of its $359 Halo in-ear model and bought one. Initially, the headset offered a good fit and promised to be quiet. When I started the engine, I immediately noticed low-frequency noise that isn’t present in my Lightspeed. I reserved judgement until two hours in cruise flight at 11,000 feet.

During our research, we asked static wick manufacturers about ICAW procedures (instructions for continued airworthiness) and all noted that aside from a preflight visual inspection, its important to look for signs of corrosion where the wick attaches to the skin. Additionally, you’ll want to inspect the tips. Testing rarely happens on the shop level.

In my Mooney 252, I once took off from Atlanta, Georgia, right behind a Piper Aerostar 601P and landed right behind it in Washington, D.C. But, while I was using oxygen on the way there, he was flying in pressurized comfort. I bought an Aerostar. The last one was a factory-new model 700P. Flying above the clouds and being called a jet by ATC was always a kick. In the DA62, it seems to me that the kick has to come from the smell of leather. Im just saying.

This segment is absolutely prime for electric power, which is attractive for several reasons. It eliminates the terrible reliability factor and is independent of density altitude. The mission only requires a 10- to 15-minute initial burn to climb to 3000 feet and begin the soaring day. If battery capacity is one hour, this is easily adequate to serve the mission needs for a backup to get home. If far out on course and low in altitude, the regime is to climb under power for another 10 minutes and then glide for around 30 miles (50:1 glide ratio), and then another 10-minute climb (if necessary) to get home.

I read with interest your coverage of seaplane transition training in your last issue, since Im planning on earning my rating to transition to the Glastar amphib Im building. I was surprised how gently Aviation Consumer treated a product that has been promised for years, has been offered for sale since 2014, yet has so many major shortcomings. I wish you guys would write another report on servicing old avionics. It seems there are many in service that need repair.

Ive been a fan of Rosen visors, and for every aircraft Ive purchased, Ive changed out the factory visors for the Rosen products. Larry Anglisanos commentary on the ridiculous regulatory snag thats unraveling with the idea of using electronic attitude gyros for backup is spot on. Im looking to upgrade the software in my Zaon XRX portable traffic receiver. Is there anyone who can help?

It takes two to Tango (two batteries, that is). After reading your January 2106 report on the Lightspeed Tango wireless headset, it seems Lightspeed desperately needs a new charging system. I would like to add a footnote to the worthy Aircraft Appraisal article in the January 2016 issue of Aviation Consumer. One should be very careful of the aircraft appraiser when having a unique aircraft appraised such as warbird, antique and homebuilt aircraft. I agree with the gist of your recent aircraft appraisal article, but take issue with the conclusion that labor has no market value. As a decades-long Aviation Consumer subscriber, I hesitate to argue with the editors experience, but feel I must stand up for the enduring value of quality installations.

Trackers, intercoolers, and GPS- see what our readers have to say about last month’s featured topics.

Thanks for the helpful article on the cost of navigation data subscriptions in the September 2015 issue of Aviation Consumer. One point you did not mention was the cost of data for a portable GPS.For example, Garmins pricing for the Americas database bundle is $499.99 per year for its aera 796. This is almost as much as data for a panel-mounted unit, and much more than $149.99 for the same data for the Garmin Pilot tablet app.