The initial write-up on the lecture from the RAeS
Aerospace International magazine:
Robinson slams glass cockpits
Light helicopter pioneer and former president & ceo of Robinson Helicopters, Frank Robinson, speaking at the Royal Aeronautical Society’s Cierva lecture on 5 October has branded modern glass cockpits a ‘distraction’ — arguing that they may contribute to aviation accidents. While he did not rule out glass cockpit-equipped Robinson helicopters in the future — he stressed he wanted to keep pilots looking outside the cockpit.
helicopter-redeye - Frank's 100LL argument is a red herring: given the number of recip-powered planks in service (
GAMA counts 160,000 in the U.S. alone, compared to only 3,500 recip helos), a replacement fuel
is going to appear, no question.
AvWeb is doing a good job of tracking the issue, including the
SwiftFuel and
G100UL offerings.
I/C