Voices

• Jason M
• Ryan K

Synthetic Vision Technology

I was in the Diamond trailer at Sun N Fun when they announced synthetic vision technology. Wow! We’ve all known this was coming so I suppose it shouldn’t be a shock that it’s here. When you look at the technology, however, it does seem unbelievable. If it weren’t for my faith in Garmin I’d say it’s too good to be true.
Synthetic Vision Technology (SVT) displays terrain as though looking out of the window, which is a major improvement by itself, but SVT also does much more -
– It also provides TAWS alert (color coding terrain and obstacles to help alert you of potential collisions)
– It displays traffic advisories as a 3 dimensional target that changes it’s size relative to it’s range to better assist pilots in their ‘see and avoid’ efforts.
– It actually displays airport signs and runway designation onto your PFD
I am so excited about this system! This is a dramatic leap forward in the tools available to pilots when operating in reduced visibilities. This will increase safety. Does anybody know if this is requires a hardware update or can it be added to existing G1000?
Hold on to your hat! This ride is getting fun.

This sounds really, really cool. I found a link to the Garmin release: http://www8.garmin.com/pressroom/aviation/04070…
Aside from the wow factor….does the eventual rollout of this and similar technologies affect the IFR training routines the FFA currently requires? Or is it purely supplemental, cool, helpful (and safer!) but not necessarily going to be standard…?

I’m not sure yet. It’s interesting, though, working with IFR students on the G1000. There are many areas of PTS that I teach differently now but it took some experience on the machine to come to that. I’m sure the same will apply with SVT. Some concepts and items are simply obsolete. On the G1000, for example, there is an HSI. Always. So the ‘two’ ways of visualizing a DME arc are automatically reduced to one. I can’t wait to try it. :)