External GPS receiver

[busav8r]

Would any external GPS receiver (Garmin GLO, GNS 5870, Bad Elf, Dual GPS XGPS150A, etc) work inside the cockpit of a commercial airliner? I presently fly the A320 and it's very difficult to get any GPS signal for any device (iPhone, iPad, etc). Would appreciate any feedback. Thanks.

[Manual Reversion]

Xgps150a works at #3 windows on 747-400. Only used it on one trip but it seems to work well

[Zoner]

Bad Elf works in the #2 & 3 windows on the 747-400. The key is to find a window that is anti-fogged, not anti-iced.

[Okivan]

I use Dual XGPS150 on A320 , and i am happy with it.
I place it between the window and the window control arm for the best signal reception.

[FE Hoppy]

No GPS fitted to your AC?

[Intruder]

Individual airplanes and individual receivers are significant variables. I had a Dual that didn't work in most of my cockpits; a friend had one that worked OK in most cockpits...

[porch monkey]

I use the gns 5870 in the 737. Works fine in any window. At least i did up until the company I work for recently banned Bluetooth devices from the cockpit.:sad:

[flighttest-engineer]

I am using Garmin GPS MAP 60 CSX with an external active antenna (Model MK-76) connected which I usually place (with double-sided sticky tape) to one of the windows (inside). The antenna cable is long enough to place the GPS receiver at any convinient location in the cockpit.
If you only want to track the flightpath, the GPS tracker (Travel Recorder) from QSTARZ BT-Q 1000X works fine and gives you approx 20 hours of continuous operation.

[Okivan]

I used to use it with JEPP FDon my iPAD to track the plane on the enroute map but now the company has swtiched to LIDO so i use it with google maps to see where i really am and get aligned with the geography, lakes , mountains , cities etc.
But you need to preload the map before..
Do you guys discovered any offline map compatible with the gps position?
And what apps do you use with your Blutooth GPS?

[thermostat]

I used a Garmin 76 hand held with external antenna attached to the rear cockpit window of the 320. Worked most times.
I don't think the GPS can be called a "Blue Tooth" device. GPS is GPS, not BT. I would not allow anyone to prevent me from using it as a back-up in the cockpit. GPS has all you need to save your skin : ground speed, heading and altitude (true, not pressure alt). Many pilots and passengers would be alive today if the crew had a GPS unit with them when all others failed.
Unfortunately the shielding in electronic aircraft can cause reception problems, but the external antenna placed at a certain place will help. You just have to play with it to find a good spot.
T

[I.R.PIRATE]

The external receivers such as bad elf and dual 150 communicate to iPad and iPhone via Bluetooth thus classify as Bluetooth devices I would say??

[Airmann]

Thermostat - I think what people are talking about here is a bluetooth GPS receiver that can send position info to an iPad for use with products like Jepp FD. The device is connected via Bluetooth.

http://xgps150.dualav.com/
https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?pID=423

[AviatorTB]

For what it's worth, the bad elf plugs directly into the ipad in a very loose, insecure way, whereas the 150A uses bluetooth. I had no trouble getting a gps signal in my Cirrus with either device, however, the bad elf did not receive a thing in the 75 I flew in as pax from JFK>SJC>JFK (haven't tried the 150A in a large plane yet). I also note that trying to keep track of the tiny lil bad elf device (which did not seem to enjoy being connected to the ipad) drove me batsh:t and I switched to the 150A.

[Capn Bloggs]

Bad Elf now has a multiple-channel GPS:

Bad Elf GPS Pro for iPod touch, iPhone, and iPad (High-performance Bluetooth WAAS GPS Receiver and Datalogger) - Bad Elf (http://bad-elf.com/products/be-gps-2200/)

Connect up to 5 devices by Bluetooth! Capt, FO, FE, Nav, Radio Operator...oh hang on, wrong century...

[FlightPathOBN]

The FAA is sorting out the issues now to allow devices like the iPad in the cockpit for nav (so the pilot can have the same features as the passengers!) The issue is a bit stuck on security and the ability for the WiFi signal to be tampered with...

[Intruder]

The FAA has already approved the iPad in the cockpit at several airlines.

Dunno why WiFi is an issue, because it's usually turned off when in use in the cockpit...

[FlightPathOBN]

For the electronic flight bag..charts. The future is for navigation and ADSB tracking of other aircraft.
They are concerned about signal validation/corruption, and a secure WiFi connection.

Rather than a physical connection, the aircraft systems such as GPS, FMC, and IRU, would be wireless.

As we know, a passenger in the back, could have a Google Earth program with live ADSB tracking, or even a site such as flightaware, while the pilot does not have that capability....

[chimbu warrior]

When did Airbus start fitting GPS to the 320? Are all new 320's GPS-equipped?

[porch monkey]

The reason for the banning of the Bluetooth devices is Boeing's discovery that they could interfere with certain series Honeywell displays. It can cause blanking of the display for up to 6 minutes according to the Boeing bulletin. Not all displays are affected, only some for the 737 it seems, and not all of those, just a particular model. Hence, no Bluetooth until some sort of fix is in place.

[Geezers of Nazareth]

I have a small Bluetooth GPS receiver (about the size of a match-box) which worked very well when connected (via BT) with my old Nokia N70 phone. I bought a program which connected (BT again) with the GPS and gave a read-out of various lat/long, height, speed, bearing, and so on. It also made a 'track' record of where you'd been (based upon your lat/long) and you could zoom in/out as required to see more detail.

I never got to try it in an airliner, and I think that the Bluetooth connection would have raised a few eyebrows.
I did try it in the USA a few years ago, on a sight-seeing flight in a Cessna 172. I asked the pilot about it before we flew, and he was all for it. As we flew around he kept asking what I could see on the phone display, to compare it with his instruments. There was a 'lag' of about 1-2 seconds if we were manouevering, but if we were straight-and-level it was remarkably stable.
And the Bluetooth never even interfered with the instruments!

Now, I have a smartphone, an HTC. You can get an App for it which uses the inbuilt GPS, it displays all the usual GPS values on-screen, so no need for a BT connection, just a reasonable view of the sky.
I also have an App that allows you to create a 'track' of your route; its intended for driving or walking, but you can switch-off the map display and it will still record your track. With the map display, if you were driving or walking it will download a new map (via the phone network) every now and then; you don't want that happening whilst flying, so switch-off the map display and record the route you've flown. It also works when the phone is in 'flight-mode', in case you were wondering.
Once you're home you can download the track data to a PC, fire-up Google Earth, and superimpose the track on the GE map to see where you've been.

[busav8r]

I tried a Bad Elf GPS Pro inside the 320 yesterday and all I can say the reception is absolutely great. It gets strong signals almost everywhere inside the cockpit, all you need is to keep it close to any side window or even in the front windshield. Really great stuff.

Now I am just wondering if there is any decent offline map on the market compatible with the gps position?

[FlightPathOBN]

Better check the regs first....

[Capn Bloggs]

any decent offline map on the market compatible with the gps position
I'm using Memory Map (http://www.memory-map.com/). Works well on Android and there is a ithingee version as well. Download the maps (most will cost money) and then install on device for offline use.

[busav8r]

Memory Map is an excellent application, but unfortunatelly its worldwide map availability is very limited.
I just found out this new App made by National Geographic, called World Atlas. I think this one is awesome, with really nice graphics and you can dowload several map types (satellite, political, roads, etc) for offline use. Excellent stuff.

[Founder]

Galileo offline maps for iOS and Android work very well! Its cheap and you always have fresh maps although if you download the whole world it'll take up 13-15 gb on your device. It can also track your movements, speed etc

[Shanwick Shanwick]

I have a Garmin Glo which works well in light aircraft but not in the 787. I have tried it in-flight against all flight deck windows, the overhead hatch, crew rest and in various locations around the cabin. Nothing!

Works well in an A320 cabin though.

[Fratemate]

A mate of mine says, allegedly, the Bad Elf works really well in the 767 close to any of the side windows. Unfortunately our company realised that us being able to plot our position accurately on the Jepps was a stupid idea and ruins their plans to embarrass everybody in NRT's taxy zone of confusion, so they've contrived to disable the 'ownership' function. Yeah, let's turn something off and reduce safety :rolleyes: