Autopilot Opportunity

[rmorris]

just stumbled on an article from 2021 talking about twin certification for the Garmin GFC500. That pretty much blows away argument that these newer low cost autopilot units will only get certified on singles. It takes about multiple models of the twin commanche.

Who knows someone at Garmin to see if they'll step up for the iconic Skymaster line.

I'm happy to provide my plane as a test platform.

[wslade2]

I think I posted the link in some thread in the past; here it is below.

They’re talking out of both sides of their mouth. I plan on going to Oshkosh this year and maybe(?) finding an ear to bend. Not that I’m anything more than a noisy owner. Does lack of adverse yaw and the centerline thrust help them in any way? I’m sure there’s a liability vs profitability equation going on on their side and it would be nice to know the hot button.

https://www.avweb.com/aviation-news/...twin-comanche/

[patrolpilot]

Originally Posted by rmorris

just stumbled on an article from 2021 talking about twin certification for the Garmin GFC500. That pretty much blows away argument that these newer low cost autopilot units will only get certified on singles. It takes about multiple models of the twin commanche.

There are only two models of the Twin Comanche, the PA30 and PA39. Those two models represent about 930 airframes.

The Skymaster gets trickier, there are 20 different models across 633 registered airframes. Cessna was always really bad about creating a new model each year. Not Piper.

Originally Posted by rmorris

Who knows someone at Garmin to see if they'll step up for the iconic Skymaster line.

I'm happy to provide my plane as a test platform.

Here is a list of currently registered airframes by models.