Hands Up

[dont overfil]

Hands up those who fly with GNS430/530 or glass cockpit but also carry a handheld GPS. Not just for backup but because it's easier to use or perhaps you are more familiar with it.
DO.

[S-Works]

I use a 496 as redundancy and for the better visual mapping. I am perfectly happy how the GNS430 works and use it is BRNAV for airways flying without problem as well as overlay for approaches.

I would not say the 496 is any easier to use than a 430 just different.

[nigelisom]

I use a GNS 430 as my primary GPS (also linked to the autopilot) and my 496 (on its own battery and external aerial) as backup. I find both are straightforward to use and both give useful information. I hope I will never have to use the 496's pseudo flight instruments in earnest in IMC but I reacon at a pinch you could just about get youself out of trouble on them if all else had failed.
Also when I go home the 496 goes with me and the tracks are downloaded and saved as a record of my flights. You never know when you might have to be able to prove you outside controlled airspace!

[wsmempson]

As they said, above. More specifically, I regard the 296/495 and 6 as VFR devices, whereas the 430 is an IFR tool.

[bjornhall]

I don't, but I can see why people do... In our club we have four GPS equipped aircraft, with four different GPS models of two different brands (including one with dual 430s). It's a pain to remember the pecularities of each one when doing anything more complex than a direct-to! All they have in common is that it takes at least 20 mins with a battery cart to feed them a typical VFR route, using non-database waypoints that have to be added as user waypoints, if you actually want to use them in flightplan mode... Bit of a PITA really...

But not to worry, there's always the map, plog and eyeball!

[gyrotyro]

GPS

Like Bose X I find that the Garmin 430 I have which although coupled to my autopilot and HSI is useful I don't find the button pressing sequence to be user friendly.

Whereas the Garmin 496 that I have on the yoke is simple and intuitive to operate so I tend to use the 496 for map mode and track corrections.

IMHO the 430 is like a PC but the 496 is like a MAC in simplicity of operation.

[PlasticPilot]

Being quite proficient with the GNS430, I use it for both VFR and IFR, coupled to HSI and autopilot.

I have a 96C at hand, with the route in (pre-flight planing...) ready for the dirtiest emergencies. I usually store it in the co-pilot seat pocket, together with the handheld radio that I use to copy IFR clearances. These two can be quite helpful if all electrics quit while IMC...

[IO540]

Hands up those who fly with GNS430/530 or glass cockpit but also carry a handheld GPS. Not just for backup but because it's easier to use or perhaps you are more familiar with it.
DO.

I have a Garmin 496 yoke mounted, mainly to get the TAWS warnings through the intercom, but also to act as a last resort battery powered backup for a total loss of electrics. I still have an old Skymap 2 in a bag but the 496 is right there all the time.

Due to its poor interface, the 496 is much harder to use (load a route into) than the panel mount stuff I have (KLN94/KMD550) but is not bad for a DCT - DCT - DCT route which is all one would do in an emergency, especially under IFR.

[ShyTorque]

I have a 530 as Box #1 and a 430 as Box #2, with a KNS 550 moving map in the middle.

I don't find either Garmin user intuitive although I have no major problems now I'm self trained in their use. My big gripe at the moment is the convoluted way they "auto" alter the display backlight settings (screen brightness) for night flying. These are coupled in to the main instrument panel lights and should gradually self adjust as it gets darker. They do change, but not to an acceptable level. I've had them go so bright in the default "AUTO" that it's impossible to see past them and so dim that the screen disappears altogether, most disconcerting. Every time I night fly I find myself having to go into the aux pages to manually adjust the brightness, which isn't straightforward, especially if you need to change it in a hurry, and it defaults back to the "AUTO" setting on every stop/start. Why they didn't just put a simple rotary brightness control on them like on the KNS I'll never know.

I've never carried a hand-held GPS though.

[S-Works]

You can connect the GNS range to the standard lighting rheostat in the aircraft or set as auto dim. Or both.

[Fuji Abound]

Depending on the aircraft twin 430s or G1000 which is effectively driven by 430s. There is a trusty 195 in the bag - black and white it maybe but it does the job. I have only had to get it out the bag when flying something different. I dont bother in the Cub I have been flying as its fun to just use the map but without it I reckon I'd get lost in the Aztec - never could understand those strange needles. Mind you I had the No 1 FM immune all singing GS VOR fail over Belgium earlier this year, couldnt get a signal on box 2 and the scren starting playing up on the previously fail proof 195. Fortunately you cant really get lost through Belgium - I call it fly by mast.

Edit to add - I dont know why but I plan on the Avidyne or G1000 failing one of these day so I have this cuning plan for shooting an ILS using the 195 and the standby AI Please wish me luck.

[A and C]

Not so Good!

The GNS430 has taken the market by storm because it was the right box at the right time...........it fitted into the hole left by the KX170 and did far more.

However it is not the most user friendly box on the market and is rather too menu based for use in IFR without the autopilot. I find the most irritating thing with it is that the logic seems to have no logic unlike the King products that seem to follow the same logic as most airliner FMC's.

It will be interesting to see if the new King Apex edge products recapture the market from Garmin.

[n5296s]

I have a 530 and a 430 which I use all the time. There's a bit of a learning curve but no big deal. I also have a Lowrance hand-held GPS (forget the model number, but it cost about $600 iirc) strictly as a backup in case I ever find myself in IMC with dead electrics. Not very likely considering the amount of actual time I get to fly round here, but would be kind of annoying if it did happen without a backup. For the same reason I carry a hand-held radio. They both run on AAA batteries, so no risk of discovering that the battery isn't charged when you need it (one of my selection criteria, in fact). The biggest risk with the handheld GPS is that I forget how to use it - the manual is in the plane but hopefully I could at least get a Direct To into it without rereading the whole manual.

I also have a backup electric AI with internal battery - not to mention that whenever I do currency flights they're invariably partial panel (when I fly IFR for real I have to stop and think about what to do with this funny blue-and- brown thing in the middle of the panel).

I guess as an engineer I just can't help being focussed on "what happens when it stops working"...

n5296s

[Robin400]

Stby Battery for GPS

For standby use these are first class. Only need to recharge every six months or so.



Rechargeable Battery AA 2000mAh [SAA20B4] (4pk) Sanyo Eneloop


Rechargeable Battery AA 2000mAh @ 1.2v Ni-MH
Digital Cameras & High Drain Devices
Sanyo Eneloop rechargeable AA batteries last upto 1000 cycles
4*50 x 14.2mm dia Cells
Retains 85% of charge after 1 year
Charged ready for use

[ShyTorque]

You can connect the GNS range to the standard lighting rheostat in the aircraft or set as auto dim. Or both.

Yes, thanks, I've already tried it both ways as I do a lot of night work at this time of year. Auto dim is far too bright, enough to instantly ruin night vision. Allied to the lighting rheostat makes it unreadably dim. Either way I have to adjust it manually and then adjust it further as it gets darker. I will be seeking engineer's advice to see if they can adjust the brightness response to the cockpit lighting rheostat.