Re DME, there is a practical side and a legal side:
On the practical side, the general consensus is that if you take certain precautions, you can use GPS in lieu of DME anytime. (Some people however like to have a DME for backup purposes, in case of a total GPS outage).
On the legal side, the current situation is that some countries generally mandate a DME for IFR flight (so this is an airspace requirement). Hence, theoretically, they could bust you on a rampcheck.
Some of the above countries also have the habit of specifying whether an aircraft is “IFR approved” or not in various airworthiness documents and these will obviously not give you their “tick” if you don’t have a DME (so this becomes a country-of-registration issue).
The above will soon (August) no longer be the case, because that’s when Part-NCO will go into effect and Part-NCO does not categorically require DME for IFR flight.
Hence, in the future, they will no longer be able to deny you an “IFR certification” just because you don’t have DME. Also, they will no longer be able to bust you on a ramp check.
All that said, a big number of ILS, VOR and NDB approaches still require DME as per the approach plate / approach design. So legally speaking, you would not be able to fly these approaches and would often have to fly the GPS approach instead. Again: very theoretically speaking.
Once you sell, would you get your money back on the invest for a DME? I would say today probably yes, but in the future probably no. After August 2016, some buyers might even consider it a bit of a negative, because it costs a few kilos of useful load and possibly costs 50-80€ per year for the yearly avionics check scam (this again depends on where the aircraft is registered).
NealCS wrote:
But it CAN live outdoors if that’s important – I imagine lots of flying schools that would matter a lot. (They say the Robin can live outdoors if covered -but I wouldn’t chance that).
I don’t know how the situation is in UK, but I seldom see aircraft permanently tied up outside in Germany. Anyway, without protection, permanent outside storage isn’t than easy on the Diamond either, the gelcoat / surface does suffer quite a lot in these conditions and fittings and cables do oxidise, even in a FRP-plane. You could store any of those aircraft outside for a season, but they all deteriorate. I’d be more careful with (non corrosion proofed) metal aircraft than with new*ish wood constructions, especially when fitted with clouddancer or jaxida covers. But nothing beats a wooden hangar to store wooden aircraft, because the hangar itself would do a lot for moisture control.
For a couple of weeks in summer, you might just need a normal cockpit cover for the DR401, especially when covered with Oratex. For anything longer than that Jaxidas (with hail protection) seem to be very good, although I’d rather not store my pride that long outside :-)
Personally I’d find it a pity to buy such a nice airplane and park it outside. If you have any chance, try to get it under a roof somewhere …
Boscamintico thanks for very helpful explanation re DME – sort of as I suspected. Unless i can find a used diesel Robin I have to make SOME compromises and that seems like a good thing to drop in favour of a decent GPS.
Im not too concerned about resale value – unless I lose my medical this go=anywhere plane has to last me ten or twenty years. After that, being diesel it’ll always find a life in a French flying school or a Glider club.
To complement Peter’s pics, here are a few shots of the one I flew at Shoreham last week – this one has the all-glass panel:
PS: Flyer69 – if I get one, it is CERTAINLY living in a warm dry hangar – it’ll be costing more than my first house!
Now i see it, it’s an S-TEC55X autopilot, right?
That’s really the only downside to that G500 panel – that Garmin is not willing to accept the DFC90 autopilot. I think the reason is that they are developing a new autopilot, very similar to DFC90 and GFC700, themselves …
You might also consider a 650 instead of the 750, the logic being that, having the G500, you already have a big size MFD and thus don’t need a second one.
boscomantico wrote:
All that said, a big number of ILS, VOR and NDB approaches still require DME as per the approach plate / approach design. So legally speaking, you would not be able to fly these approaches and would often have to fly the GPS approach instead. Again: very theoretically speaking.
One thing you might consider is that you could have insurance issue if you ever have an accident on an approach which includes DME, whilst not having an DME.
Aspen is also working on their STC for the Robin DR-400. You might want to wait for that as well. The Aspen EFD2000 offers better pricing then a Garmin G500 when comparing different options, and would be completely dual redudancy. You also might consider a lower level of autopilot.
After an accident situation a Robin is far more repairable then an composite aircraft
I have said this before but wish to repeat it.
Using GPS distance instead of DME is setting you up for a pilot indiced CFIT.
Now that the Americans are taking out DME units the cost of high quality DME units on the second hand market are very reasonable there are even less reasons to cheapskate you way into a hill.
A_and_C wrote:
Using GPS distance instead of DME is setting you up for a pilot indiced CFIT.
For the approach phase, I couldn’t agree more! But enroute use of DME in a radar environment can safely be replaced by GPS distance.
A_and_C wrote:
Using GPS distance instead of DME is setting you up for a pilot indiced CFIT.
I too am very reluctant to replace DME distance with GPS for approach. I think it is one of the stupid pilot tricks that might very well bite you one day. Another thing is that willingness to disregard regulations/procedures because one thinks one knows better is a common personality trait in pilots that buy the farm.
