PiperJet To Be Equipped With The Garmin G3000

 

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PiperJet To Be Equipped With The Garmin G3000

By Bill Goldston

 
PiperJet

October 24, 2009— Piper Aircraft, Inc. announced that the revolutionary PiperJet will deploy the all new, state-of-the-art Garmin G3000 – the world’s first touchscreen-controlled integrated flightdeck for turbine aircraft.  

The company’s selection of the G3000 is yet another commitment to provide unparalleled performance with the very latest in innovation and capability that complements the aircraft’s luxurious interior and advanced manufacturing techniques pioneered by Piper. By integrating the G3000 in the PiperJet, Piper takes yet another step in providing advanced, cutting-edge technology to the marketplace.  

 

“The PiperJet is an amazing aircraft with a unique blend of capabilities that makes it the best-in-class choice for pilots focused on performance, style, utility, capability and pricing,” said Piper President John D. Becker, who led the engineering team that brought the PiperJet from concept to first-flight and beyond. “We have a long and rich relationship with Garmin, and our choice builds on that legacy while incorporating avionics excellence equal to the PiperJet’s promise.”  

Designed specifically for Part 23 turbine aircraft, the G3000 is Garmin’s evolutionary leap forward in taking glass avionics to a much higher level. It seamlessly integrates numerous Garmin-designed system components into an easy-to-use flightdeck, the heart of which is the all new GTC 570 vehicle management system: a 5.7-inch diagonal touchscreen controller that uses a desktop-like menu interface with intuitive icons. The console-mounted GTC 570 allows full control of radios, audio management, flight management, weather systems management, synoptics (graphical systems displays) and other key vehicle systems.  

“The PiperJet’s revolutionary design and impressive performance have positioned it to be another great Piper aircraft,” said Gary Kelley, Garmin’s Vice President of Marketing. “We are proud to continue playing a vital role on the PiperJet team with what we believe will be one of the most intuitive and powerful flightdeck systems ever designed for Part 23 turbine aircraft.”

The PiperJet team emphasized that the G3000’s focus on being intuitive is key to melding with the PiperJet’s focus on avoiding needless complexity and enhancing user-friendliness. With an icon-driven interface that leverages the experience Garmin gained by designing and delivering millions of automotive consumer products, the G3000 will play an integral role in making the PiperJet second to none.  

By eliminating buttons, switches, and extraneous knobs, the touchscreen G3000 relies on common sense functions that have been the mainstay of cutting-edge smart-screen technology in consumer electronics. In effect, the G3000 lets pilots quickly retrace their steps or alternatively return to the home screen. The system has gone to great lengths to ensure simplicity in operation.  

“PiperJet pilots will have the ability to reach out and touch real-time information,” said Becker. “Gone will be the days of looking for cursors and cryptic confusing menus that lead to heavy pilot workloads.”  

The G3000 is versatile, with the GTC 570’s incorporation of three conventional knobs at the bottom of the display: a volume control knob, dedicated map joystick and dual concentric knobs for data entry. Pilots are consequently able to use the knobs in addition to the touchscreen to enter information, and the knobs’ functions are always labeled on the display.  

The primary flight displays (PFD) and multi-function display (MFD) are large, high-resolution, wide-aspect ratio displays. The landscape oriented displays make it possible to have an enhanced view of Synthetic Vision Technology (SVT™) that displays three dimensional terrain, obstacles, pathways, and traffic. Situational awareness is enhanced further with a large inset map and an extended horizon line.

The G3000’s large MFD also has split-screen capability so that two separate vertical pages may be viewed side-by-side. Pilots may simultaneously view maps, charts, TAWS, flight planning, weather or video input pages. In addition, aircraft synoptics can be graphically depicted on the MFD to help simplify monitoring and speed troubleshooting.  

As with the Garmin G1000®, the G3000 has full reversionary capabilities, including in-flight dynamic restarts, so that all flight critical data can be transferred seamlessly to a single display for added safety during flight.  

The G3000 also includes a fully capable three-axis, fully digital, dual channel, fail passive auto flight system. The autopilot includes features you would expect in this class of aircraft, including coupled wide area augmentation system (WAAS) approaches, vertical navigation, and flight level change (FLC).  

In addition, the G3000 features Garmin’s synthetic vision technology (SVT™) that presents 3D depictions of terrain, obstacles, traffic and the runway environment, replicating what pilots would see outside the cockpit on a clear day. The G3000 avionics suite also integrates synoptics (graphical systems displays), Garmin’s SafeTaxi®, FliteCharts® and ChartView (optional), which simplify operation, enhance situational awareness, and increase safety during flight and when taxiing.

The G3000 adds significantly to state-of-the-art safety measures featured in the PiperJet’s design. With its strong, smooth all-metal body, the PiperJet is capable of reaching a cruising speed of 360 knots and a maximum operating altitude of 35,000 feet. The six passenger PiperJet – with an option for either a seventh seat or enclosable lavatory – offers a mission-capable profile and sensuous luxury that set the standard in its class, with a range of 1,300 nautical miles and a full-fuel payload of 800 lbs.  

The PiperJet proof-of-concept aircraft continues to advance through various stages of flight testing. To date the aircraft has logged in excess of 230 hours of flight time and 160 flights.  

From Flight Into Known Icing (FIKI) to FADEC, the PiperJet’s focus is on optimal operational excellence, user-friendliness, and safety. Its design focuses on versatility and an elegant melding of form and function. Configured to be flown by a single pilot, the PiperJet will be certified in the Normal Category under FAA Part 23 and applicable foreign certification standards. It will also be RVSM certified. Moreover, its innovative design includes ample baggage space and class-setting useful load. The PiperJet will be certified to a maximum operating altitude well above the weather while combining performance with the latest safety technologies and features.
  
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