Industry News

Coded into the DNA of every aircraft owner is a grim acceptance that engine overhauls are a fact of life. But prop overhauls and replacements tend to be last-minute, kicking-and-screaming add-ons and with costs up and flight hours down, there are probably more substandard-if not dangerous-props in the field than ever. At least a couple of prop shops weve talked to report that the overhaul business is down, suggesting owners are stretching prop TBOs more than they used to. Thats bad. But the good news is that the competition in the new prop market is hotter than ever and getting even hotter, thanks to MT-Propellers aggressive push into both the OEM and STC replacement markets. This has forced the established manufacturers, Hartzell and McCauley, to respond in kind, although those two companies don’t agree on where the market will move in terms of materials choices.

From the moment light singles started shipping with no pneumatic (vacuum or pressure) instruments, its been the dream of many an owner to yank out the maintenance-hungry vacuum pumps and replace the pneumatic instruments with electric ones. Doing away with pneumatics makes even more sense after a glass panel upgrade where the only item left is usually a vacuum-driven attitude indicator doing duty as a backup. A dry-vane vacuum pump with over 500 hours in service is of questionable reliability. Many pneumatic instruments last over 1000 hours, but thats the exception rather than the rule. There are also the filters to check and replace.

Its a good thing I don’t own a TV because Id huck a brick at it the next time I heard the words “economic recovery.” As of five minutes ago, productivity is up, help wanted is down, inflation is in stasis and the consumer confidence index is … actually, I don’t know what the consumer confidence index means, really.

Your thorough reports provide a very valuable service to your readers. Unfortunately for your readers, the March 2011 report on private pilot test prep was not up to your usual high standards, in my view. For example, regarding King Schools, your reporter had two major complaints. First was the price. But thats because you compared the King Schools price for six courses with everyone elses price for a single course.

If youre committed to the account-draining task of a major avionics upgrade, your sights are likely set on either of the two most sought-after systems for the aftermarket: Garmins G500 and the Aspen EFD1000-series. We think buyers go into the decision-making process smitten by the G500s bigger size, and for bigger, more valuable airplanes, its easy to label the G500 a logical fit. But our experience is that Aspen wins the install bid more often than Garmin. Why? Its the install complexity that ultimately rules the decision even when a buyers heart is set on the G500 from the get-go. That said, keep in mind that to compare apples to apples, you need two Aspens to equal a single G500.

The two leading contenders to replace 100LL with an unleaded equivalent, Swift Enterprises Swift Fuel and General Aviation Modification Inc.s G100UL, both say their fuel will cost more than 100LL. But how much more? We took our own run at it based on what weve been able to glean about these fuels from patent filings and information from the two companies. According to its patent filings and published FAA test data, Swift is a binary blend of mesitylene (also known as trimethylbenzene) and isopentane. Mesitylene is a bit of an exotic, used for specialized solvents and industrial processes. Its a terrific octane enhancer, but so rare in industy that no commodity prices are available. One supplier we contacted sells it for $53 a gallon, a price thats obviously unsustainable for fuel use.

More than a decade ago, Teledyne Continental bought a fully formed full authority digital engine control system from a startup called Aerosance. It made perfect sense, since at the time, many in the engine business thought the market was overdue for dumping magnetos in favor of electronics, which cars have had since the 1970s. The many turned out to be wrong. TCM got hardly any traction with its FADEC system, even though those who have flown it, installed it and own it say it should have succeeded. Why it did not seems to be due to a combination of bad timing, a hidebound market and conservative OEMs. But with fuel prices rising and 100LL threatened, is there resurgent interest in electronic ignition in general and TCMs PowerLink specifically? It appears so.

Remember that classic line from 2001: A Space Odyssey? Thats the first thing I thought of when one of Garmins engineers was demonstrating the voice recognition function in the new GMA35/GTN series were covering in this issue. I could imagine myself getting into an argument with my semi-intelligent audio panel: “Listen, you pile of transitorized crap, I said switch to comm 1! And my names not Dave!”

Your review of in-the-ear headsets was interesting, but you might want to give a little more space to custom eartips. I bought my Lightspeed Mach 1 with custom eartips as an integrated package, which includes a negotiated, reduced fee for the audiologist and saves a little cash. But either way, its we’ll worth it. With custom earmolds, the Mach 1 is so comfortable I cant feel its presence on my head or in my ears. It also stays in place much more securely than with foam tips, so we’ll that I removed the over-the-ear clip from the left earpiece/mic unit and it still doesnt budge. And, contrary to your quote from the competition, although the low-frequency attenuation isn’t as good as the best ANR earcups, the high-frequency noise reduction is as good as the best head-crushing vise Ive worn.

Oil leads a tough life. Its supposed to lubricate, seal, clean and cool the running engine. After shutdown, its supposed to protect metal surfaces so the next start doesnt scrape off corroded material thats ultimately replaced from your wallet via a premature overhaul. Oil companies will improve the oil as best they can, but their choices to market a case of oil at the right price might not match your preference for long-term investment in your engine. The bottom line is this: Is it worth up to an extra dollar an hour-maybe $2000 over the life of an engine-to beef up your oil?

Imagine a world in which youre considering an expensive new luxury car, only to be told by the dealer that fuel to run it may be legislated out of existence in five years, but don’t worry, someone will come up with something. This is exactly the conundrum buyers of new aircraft face and, increasingly, so do owners of legacy airplanes considering upgrades such as paint and avionics. We wondered if lack of confidence in future fuel supplies is putting a drag on the market, so we asked. In a survey published on our sister publication, avweb.com, more than 3100 owners and pilots gave us their opinions on the quest for a replacement for 100LL. Among the findings: One in five owners told us theyre definitely delaying any purchases or upgrades and more than half-53 percent-say theyre either on the fence about purchases or definitely not buying until the fuel situation clarifies.

When the nuns were futilely trying to educate me at Saint Johns Academy for the Perpetually Misguided, the monthly report card had a blank section for comments. These were meant to be well-intentioned encouragement for depressed parents who, upon seeing columns of Ds and Fs, understandably veered toward alcoholism, if not suicide. For my monthly dispatches of despair, Sister Salisha may as we’ll have had a rubber stamp since she wrote the same thing: Pauls grades continue to fall short of his potential. (If you came of age during the 1960s, your report card said the same thing, unless you were one of those curve-busting nerds who ruined the academic careers of those of us who were too busy teaching ourselves to smoke behind the rectory to actually study.)