What's New -- Products and Services

This month AVweb's survey of the latest products and services for pilots, mechanics and aircraft owners brings you an adjustable LED emergency light, an experimental Light Sport Aircraft, visors, simulators and much more.

If you know of a new product or service other AVweb readers should hear about, please send us a note.

Photon Freedom Micro

The Photon Freedom Micro is the latest in the Micro-Light series of small, LED "flashlights." Single-button operation provides quick access to range of features including fully adjustable brightness and multiple strobe and signaling functions. Available in 10 different beam colors.

And as of April 2005, the white Freedom Micro is now 100% brighter, making it twice as bright as any other micro-light on the market, according to the manufacturer.

A squeeze of the button gives you instant, full-power illumination at any time. To dim the light once it is turned on, simply press and hold the button to dim the light to the desired level. Pressing and holding the button when the light is already off will turn it on at the lowest level and allow you to gradually increase the brightness, to give you just the amount of light you need to accomplish your task without disturbing your night vision or disrupting those around you.

When needed, the four safety strobe functions (fast, medium, slow, and SOS) can be accessed by continuing to hold the button down. Once the light has dimmed or brightened fully, it will proceed to cycle through the various strobe functions; release the button when you reach the desired beacon mode.

An additional "signaling" mode can be accessed by tapping the button several times in rapid succession. When in the signaling mode, the Freedom Micro will behave like the squeeze-only Photon I, with the light turning on only while the button is pressed and off when it is released. To exit the signaling mode and return the light to normal operation, simply press and hold the button for several seconds until the light turns off.

Most colors of the Photon Freedom Micro cost about $20; infrared and ultraviolet versions are $23 and $30, respectively. For more information visit the Photon Light Web site.

Sport Pilot Flashcard Course

Above It All Aviation is has announced the latest addition to its line of FAST Flashcards courses, Sport Pilot Knowledge Test. Packaged in the size of a deck of playing cards, knowledge test questions can be studied anywhere, with the answers at the students’ fingertips. The Sport Pilot course can be supplemented with the Private Pilot course for a thorough study of the subject matter. Each topic is color-coded for easy selection.

The Sport Pilot Knowledge Test course joins the family of courses that includes Private Pilot, Instrument Pilot, Multi-Engine Pilot and VFR/IFR Regulations. The Private Pilot course has been used to prepare for the Commercial rating and the Instrument course has been used to prepare for the ATP rating and airline interviews.

The Sport Pilot Knowledge Test course retails for about $16.

Learn more about the entire line of FAST Flashcards courses at their Web site.

Sporty's E6B Adds Rate of Climb

Sporty's has added a "required rate of climb" function to its line of popular E6B flight computers. The new function is currently available on the Electronic E6B and the Palm E6B. The function will be available on the flat E6B within a year.

Now pilots can decipher departure procedure climb requirements with ease. Simply enter your groundspeed and the required climb rate in ft/nm as denoted on the chart, and Sporty's E6B provides the minimum required climb rate in ft/min. Measure your performance directly against the VSI with no need to consult the hard-to-find rate-of-climb table in the approach chart book.

The function will also provide the climb gradient, a useful feature for pilots of high-performance and turbine aircraft.

Sporty's Electronic E6B is available for about $60, and the flat E6B for about $70, and can be ordered right from Sporty's Web site. The software for the Palm E6B is available for about $20 and may be downloaded from the Web site.

Magnifico Plus PDA/GPS Magnifier

In an airplane, it can be difficult to see the small screen on your PDA or portable GPS -- especially if it's mounted on your yoke. Officeonthegogo has a magnifier that works for many different kinds of PDAs and handheld GPS: Magnifico Plus. The hand-held device attaches to the base of a clam-shell unit, which is collapsible into a compact stowaway unit that can be easily carried and be readily put to use in three quick steps.

For more information visit the Officeonthegogo Web site.

Zenair CH601 LSA Certified

The FAA presented the first Experimental Light Sport Aircraft (eLSA) Certificate of Airworthiness for a Zenair CH601 at the 2005 Sun ‘n Fun Fly-In.

Certified Special Light Sport Aircraft (sLSA) Zenair 601 are being built ready-to-fly in Eastman, Ga., here in the U.S. The aircraft can be equipped with one of two engine choices: the Contential O-200 and the Rotax 912S. The eLSA may now also be used for flight training by flight schools. The eLSA are being built at Czech Aircraft Works in the Czech Republic. Loaded with standard features, the new models provide all-metal durability, first-class comfort for two large persons in a wide cabin, large baggage compartments, and much more.

Orders are now being taken for the CH601 as an ELSA and SLSA. For more information on availability, cost and performance, visit their Web site.

Oakley Ballistic Visor

New visors from Oakley shade your eyes like a ball-cap -- cutting down on dangerous glare -- but they don't cover the top of the head or have a button on top (like ball caps) that can cause pressure points or excessive heat retention when wearing headsets.

The Visors are available in five colors for $22.00. Purchase the visors directly from the Oakley Web site or from a reseller like AvShop.

Instrument Landing Scrapbook

[All information provided by the publisher.] The book deals with the origins and development of instrument landing as seen by the author from 1940 to the present time. The cover photo (at right) shows a portion of the front main antenna of the first production Model 105 End Fire Glide Slope installation at Charlotte, N.C.

United Air Lines, in the 1940s, supplied a retired Boeing 247D transport, with pilot, to the Aircraft Radio Laboratory, Wright Field, for many of the early tests and demonstrations of Instrument Landing as well as automatic landing or coupled approach. The CAA Experimental Station at Indianapolis had a similar Boeing 247D. A third 247 was shipped to England for use by the RAF Blind Landing Experimental Unit at Defford. In all three aircraft, the hydraulic autopilot had been replaced by Honeywell Type C-1 electric autopilot with coupling unit, connected to the ILS crosspointer signals.

The book is divided into decades, continuing in a similar way to the present time. It is available for about $27.

For more information visit the publisher's Web site.

Avidyne Entegra MFD Adds Radar Display

Avidyne has added airborne weather radar display capability to the FlightMax Entegra EX5000, when interfaced with the RDR 2000 digital radar system. The EX5000 is a 10.4-inch diagonal, high-resolution, multi-function display (MFD) that is available for stand-alone applications or as part of Avidyne’s FlightMax Entegra integrated flight deck suite. According to Avidyne, they are the first to add radar display capability on an integrated flight deck for general aviation.

The EX5000 is also available with CMax Electronic Approach Charts, Avidyne’s implementation of Jeppesen’s JeppView electronic charts service.

The radar-capable EX5000 provides dedicated knobs for bearing and tilt control, as well as one-button access on the map display to turn the radar ON or put it into TEST or STBY mode. In addition to overlaying weather radar returns on the moving map, the EX5000 also provides a dedicated radar page with a traditional radar indicator presentation, and includes support for the RDR2000’s Vertical Profile display capability. The EX5000 also supports many other radar modes including Ground Map, Target Alert, Auto Tilt, Sector Scan, and Avidyne’s exclusive BeamView and TiltView.

For aftermarket applications, the RDR2000-compatible EX5000 with integrated MultiLink datalink starts at $17,000. The CMax Approach Charts option is $2,500. Aftermarket systems are available now.

For more information visit the Avidyne Web site.

Frasca Mentor Simulator

Frasca International has developed a new simulator for flight training dubbed the "Mentor." The Frasca Mentor is a simulator capable of training pilots to fly integrated avionics systems such as the new Garmin G1000 as well as conventional instrumentation without investing in more advanced FTDs. While compact in size, the Mentor uses much of the same technology as Frasca's higher level FTDs and FFSs.

The Mentor includes an FAA approved flight data package, Jeppeson Nav data, full-size flight controls including rudder pedals and brakes, conventional instrumentation or Garmin G1000, Graphical Instructors Station (GISt), multi-channel sound simulation, and TruVision visual system with optional visual display systems.

For more information on the Frasca Mentor, visit the Frasca Web site.

Hartzell Propeller for Aviat Husky

Up to this past winter, the Husky was produced with a 76-inch, two-blade, Hartzell propeller. Recently it became possible to order a new aircraft with an 82-inch MT composite propeller (see What's New, Nov. 2004), and now it is possible to opt for an 80-inch, Hartzell, all-metal propeller.

An STC is available for owners of Huskys who would like to upgrade to either the longer Hartzell or the MT.

According to Aviat, the extra blade length eliminates an undesirable harmonic that occurs with the Lycoming engine in the 2,000 to 2,150 rpm range, and which must be avoided except for brief durations. Both new blades create more thrust, which in turn provides improved rate of climb, better floatplane operations, and better high-density response. Added thrust shortens the takeoff run in any configuration.

Back country pilots engaging in bush operations will prefer the metal blades which offer better resistance to stone encounters and with filing, a quicker resolution. The lighter composite blades allow for a heavier a baggage load.

As an option for new aircraft production, the MT propeller will cost about $9,500. The 80” Hartzell will increase the base price of a new Husky by about $8,600.

For more information on the Husky, visit the Aviat Web site.

Power Flow Short Stack For Cessna's, Pipers And Grummans

Power Flow Systems, manufacturers of a tuned exhaust system that is now available for a wide range of single engine aircraft, has introduced a new “short stack” exhaust pipe that can be retrofitted to Cessna C172s and C177s, Piper PA-28s, and Grumman AA5s. Designed to significantly reduce the profile and weight of the original exhaust duct, the new version protrudes no more than the original equipment.

While dramatically changing the forward appearance of the aircraft on which it is mounted, the shortened version offers many of the performance enhancing qualities of earlier models of the Power Flow Exhausts Systems. With the ceramic coated, optional version, the short stack will retain its shiny appearance for many hours of use.

For the Cessnas, the optional short stack is available with new orders or as a retrofit change-out for second-generation Power Flow Systems for $450. The older, first-generation Cessna systems can be exchanged for $2,200, substantially lower than the original $3,875 purchase price.

As a part of new equipment, the short stack adds $400 to the price for a PA-28 install, and $450 for the Grumman. Second-generation tuned exhaust-system retrofits will run about $600 for both.

For more information and to review flight test information, visit the Power Flow Web site.