Avidyne Offers Sneak Peek at Homegrown FMS
In presenting its 2007 technical achievement award to senior engineer Steve Lindsey for his involvement in developing a flight management system for genera

In presenting its 2007 technical achievement award to senior engineer Steve Lindsey for his involvement in developing a flight management system for general aviation, Avidyne has allowed a sneak peek at the heart of the company’s next-generation integrated avionics system, dubbed “Entegra Plus” by some in the industry. The FMS, which will be officially unveiled in two weeks at the Sun ’n’ Fun Fly-In in Lakeland, Fla., “will lighten the workload of pilots operating turbine-class aircraft and will also be great for VFR pilots who fly simple direct-to flights,” said Avidyne CEO Dan Schwinn. According to the Lincoln, Mass.-based avionics maker, the FMS allows pilots to fly WAAS precision approaches to ILS-like minimums (meaning Lnav and Vnav capability) and is designed for required navigation performance (RNP). The FMS also includes GeoFill and Vectors Mode features. GeoFill greatly simplifies entering a complex flight plan, Avidyne said, and Vectors Mode contributes to situational awareness by drawing heading vectors onto the system’s moving map.