Garmin is to include the G1000-equipped Piper M500 aircraft in its portfolio of G1000 NXi integrated flight deck upgrades.

The flight deck boasts a comprehensive feature set with advanced capabilities. SurfaceWatch runway monitoring technology provides visual and aural cues to help prevent pilots from taking off or landing on a taxiway, on a runway that is too short or on the wrong runway based on performance data entered pre-flight. Visual approaches offer pilots enhanced guidance in visual flight conditions based on a three-degree glideslope from the threshold of the runway and pilots can set customised minimums, select vectors or straight-in for the final approach intercept and fly a visual approach coupled with the autopilot. A geographical map overlay within the horizontal situation indicator (HSI) supports the display of NEXRAD, Flight Information Service-Broadcast weather, weather radar, SafeTaxi airport diagrams, traffic, terrain and more. Flight Stream 510 and Connext technology enables Database Concierge, the wireless transfer of aviation databases from the Garmin Pilot app on a mobile device to the G1000 NXi integrated flight deck. Flight Stream 510 also supports two-way flight plan transfer, the sharing of traffic, weather, GPS information, back-up attitude information and more.

The G1000 NXi system supports the display of various ADS-B In benefits via the GTX 345R transponder that are available as an option. Pilots can optionally overlay European Visual Reporting Points on the moving map as these are standard within the navigation database. There is a display of sectional charts, as well as IFR low/high en route charts, available on the multi-function display (MFD) and Smart Airspace highlights the airspace nearest the aircraft’s current altitude and de-emphasises non-pertinent airspace. COM frequencies are decoded and displayed on the primary flight display for easier interpretation and decoded Terminal Aerodrome Forecasts can be viewed on the MFD.

Modern, state-of-the-art processors provide existing M500 owners and operators smoother panning throughout the displays and faster map rendering within the G1000 NXi. The flight displays initialise in seconds so pilots have immediate access to frequencies, flight plan data and more, saving valuable time in the cockpit. The G1000 NXi integrated flight deck also incorporates contemporary animations and LED back-lighting, offering increased display brightness and clarity, reduced power consumption and improved dimming performance.

The STC for the G1000 NXi integrated flight deck upgrade on existing G1000-equipped Piper M500 aircraft is targeted for approval in 2019 and will be available through select Garmin dealers. The company says that M500 owners and operators can easily upgrade to the G1000 NXi with minimal aircraft down-time and disruption of the panel as the displays preserve the same footprint and connectors so panel modifications are not required. The upgraded components of the G1000 NXi also come with a two-year warranty that is supported by Garmin’s avionics product support team.