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 speed pants, high-lift wing tips, engine oil and much more.

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

Laminar Flow Speed Pants

Laminar Flow Systems has speed pants for all Piper PA-28 and PA-32 aircraft models that the manufacturer claims will add up to 9 kt. over bare wheels and up to 7 kt. over stock wheel pants. A pressure-recovery design is also claimed to improve rate of climb with most installations.

At 10 pounds, these second generation speed pants are lighter and up to five times stronger than conventional Piper wheel pants. They are made of three layers of hand-laid, 10-ounce fiberglass that is oven-cured with a high-strength resin. Additional layers of cloth are applied to stress areas. A removable panel allows easy access to brakes. Wing-to-wheel fairings improve the aesthetics of the main gear.

For pre-1978 Piper models, the speed pants, strut fairings and applicable hardware is $2,470. Later models can be retrofitted for $1,995 for speed pants only, with optional strut fairings available for $475.

For more information visit the Laminar Flow Systems Web site.

Aviat Aircraft High-Lift Wing Tips For All Huskys

Aviat Aircraft is offering a new, composite wing tip with a trailing edge that turns upward, reducing drag and increasing cruise speed. The change follows a recent redesign of the ailerons, which eliminated the need for spades through mass balancing. The reconfigured wing tips that sweep up instead of down have added about 5 kt. to the cruise speed of new Huskys, according to the manufacturer, without affecting stall speed.

The new design feature is available as an option on new aircraft and can be retrofitted to all existing models of the Husky. For more information on the new Husky wingtips, visit the Aviat Aircraft Web site.

Sporty's E6B Virtual Tips & Tricks

Sporty's Electronic E6B Flight Computers are used by pilots of all experience levels. Now users can go beyond the basics with Sporty's E6B Virtual Tips & Tricks interactive software that will make an E6B user proficient at every function of this computer. This software shows every function's operation in depth, and also includes shortcuts and tips for everyday use.

Every E6B feature is thoroughly explained, showing examples and troubleshooting problems along the way. Animated graphics and narration illustrate the actions and help to explain advanced operations.

Sporty's E6B Virtual Tips & Tricks runs on Windows systems and is available for $19.95. It may be ordered from Sporty's Web site.

AeroShell Oil W 80 Plus

Shell Aviation has introduced AeroShell Oil W 80 Plus. Building on the success of AeroShell Oil W 100 Plus, AeroShell W 80 Plus introduces the anti-wear and anti-corrosion additives of its "big brother" in a lighter, single-grade oil for use in colder climates.

The anti-wear additive, equivalent to the Lycoming LW16702, reduces wear on start up by forming a microscopic layer on the engine's moving parts to prevent metal-to-metal contact when there is little oil present. Combined with the protection of a corrosion inhibitor, it's designed for those pilots who fly in cooler weather or less frequently.

AeroShell Oil W 80 Plus is a cold-weather product for those pilots who prefer single-grade oils but who also want the extra protection that anti-wear and anti-corrosion additives can bring. For more information, go to the Aeroshell Web site.

Lowrance Airmap 600C GPS

The Lowrance AirMap 600C GPS is now available, featuring colored sectional map depiction based on GPS input. It also includes the Terrain Awareness Americas along with the Jeppesen Americas and Lowrance Obstruction aeronautical databases, which show obstacle profiles or relationship to mountainous terrain. In addition, there is an enhanced Safe Flight 21 Airport taxiway-map database.

AirMap 600C comes with an MMC/SD digital card reader for online Jeppesen updates; the MapCreate Topographical custom mapmaking CD software; a remote amplifying antenna; AA batteries; a cigarette-plug power adapter; and yoke and car mounts. The unit features a 16-channel GPS+WAAS receiver and a 2.83-inch (diagonal) screen with brightness control for direct sunlight viewing and night flying operations.

Available for $499, the Lowrance AirMap 600C portable GPS is available from GPS retailers such as Aircraft Spruce & Specialty.

Sky Arrow 600 Sport, Disabled-Pilot Version

Pacific Aerosystem has announced the first special light-sport aircraft (SLSA) Sky Arrow produced for the U.S. market that includes a disabled pilot option. The Sky Arrow is manufactured by Iniziative Industriali Italiane (3I) in Italy, which has built several versions of the Sky Arrow to meet the different regulation requirements of the world market.

The Disabled Pilot Option has been available on other models of the Sky Arrow, and will now be available for the LSA. The option allows pilots who cannot operate the rudder pedals with their feet to apply yaw input with a left side-stick that also includes a throttle control. The standard, right side-stick controls pitch and bank, and also has buttons for electric rudder and elevator trim as well as radio push to talk. As always, the brake levers are controlled by the right hand. The left side stick can be quickly removed for easy entry, and also makes the rudder pedals available to able-bodied pilots.

The Sky Arrow 600 Sport is basically the same design as its older sibling, the FAA Part 23, Sky Arrow 650 TCNS. For more information, go to the Sky Arrow Web site.