Overwhelmed by the selection of pilot and aviation supplies on the market? Trust the reviews below for to find the best general aviation products on the market.
Ah, the flight bag. What, in the air-mail days, was a lowly canvas sack into which was stuffed a bedraggled map, a candy bar and a dime for a phone call if the weather got bad has become a cockpit staple.
Get a bunch of pilots together, and the talk will eventually turn to gear. Aviators tend to be folks who embrace technology, or at least the technology that centers on aviation.
We familiarly call them “George” or “Otto.” But Avidyne’s DFC90 autopilot makes a strong case for being called “Doctor” George or “Professor” Otto.
A 2008 study by hearing expert Sergei Kochkin found that 35 million Americans have permanent hearing impairment.
The heart and soul of civilization, if you buy the exhaustively researched conclusions in Matt Ridley’s top-selling book The Rational Optimist, has been trade between the world’s people, from the very beginnings of humankind’s first yearning to explore and occupy the far horizons of planet Earth.
Since 1930, the standard paper navigation chart for VFR pilots has been the venerable sectional, originally produced by the Coast and Geodetic Survey, whose aviation department has since become the FAA’s National Aeronautical Chart Office (NACO). NACO sectional charts are widely available, and provide key data on terrain, airspace, navigational aids, etc. We all learn to use them in primary flight training.
The iPad is slick, dazzling and infinitely upgradeable, with over 100,000 applications in Apple’s App Store.
Year in, year out, up economy or down economy, enterprising aviation entrepreneurs always find new and exciting ways to get our juices flowing and our checking accounts draining.
So much has changed in aviation in the last 15 years. Never mind the fact that LSA and the sport pilot category have instigated innovation rivaled only by the “golden age” of aviation in the ’40s.
Once upon a time, intrepid pilots rapped with their oil-stained, gloved knuckles on balky steam gauges; needles quivered unstuck, and all was right across the skies.
Like many pilots, I carry a little insurance against the possibility of an alternator failure. I have a portable GPS on my Skylane’s yoke, a handheld VHF NAV/COM in a seat-back pocket and a cell phone where I can reach it.
If you took one look at my airport car, you’d probably conclude that I’m not the most organized person in the world.
The world of panel-mount avionics has changed almost beyond recognition in the past 10 years, with glass panels and digital displays rapidly taking over from the “steam gauges” of the 20th century.
 A flight down Florida’s east coast is replete with tropical playground panoramas, but the million-dollar view isn’t enough at the moment to pry my eyes from the dual IFDs (Integrated Flight Displays) of Avidyne’s new Entegra Release 9, installed in the company’s Cirrus SR22. |
 If you hadn’t noticed, the Garmin 696 is bigger. Anyone who has seen the advertising for Garmin’s new world-beater 696 GPS navigation unit knows it’s a definite departure from Garmin’s traditional philosophy of thinking small. Garmin entered the market back in 1989 by producing a small, high-quality, portable GPS unit; but the new system’s most obvious talent is simply its size. (In fact, the 696 isn’t the first larger-format Garmin portable GPS. |
 Ask any two pilots what the best headset is and you’ll get two distinct answers, each with solid claims to back it up. There are scores of headsets on the market, and the different features of each model make choosing the correct headset a quagmire of myth, hearsay and fact. |
 Pilots today are increasingly dependent on electronic navigation and communication equipment: GPS for navigation, satellite radio for weather avoidance and VHF for voice communications (since September 11, no pilot can seriously think about flying in controlled airspace without one). |
 One of the best things about EAA AirVenture, more than any other aviation gathering, is the sheer number of cool things you’ll find, whether cruising the fly market for tools, sheet metal and bungee cords, or stalking through the hangars for treasures and things you never knew you’d need. We’ve found some incredibly clever products; many that you may not have sampled yet. Prices run the gamut of ranges, but the items are all worth a look. When you go to Oshkosh, you never know what you may come home with! |