Flying through

Tuesday 21 September 2010

EFIS on the Cessna 172

Today I did my fixed wing instructor renewal. Normally I fly the Tiger Moth, so it was a bit of a shock to fly the Cessna 172 with EFIS. However, it was great - someone designed that very well and it is extremely user friendly. I only fly 50 or 60 hours a year on aeroplanes (compared to some 300 - 400 on helicopters) so any aeroplane is a novelty to me, but I found the whole EFIS system easy to understand and use, and in fact, with the enormous artifical horizon in front of you, it was actually easier to do instrument flying...
I am thinking that the new Sikorsky X-2, with its recent speed of 250 knots in cruise flight, will now also use EFIS or some varient of it, and it will be no problem to change to using it instead of analogue instruments. I really look forward to the day when that will be available for us (journalists/pilots) to fly. OK 250 knots is nothing in an aeroplane but in a helicopter there is something exciting about the extremes - from a fast speed to nothing and all in the air.

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