No.
1
Subjects:
Navigation:
RSVM?
Avionics: Definition
Technicians: Salaries
Autopilots: Interfacing Old Radios
Navigation
RVSM - Reduced Vertical Separation Minimums
Q.
What does "RVSM" mean?
A.
Reduced Vertical
Separation Minimum is a standard which cuts the
vertical separation between aircraft in half for
certain flight conditions. Thus, it
effectively enables twice as many aircraft to fly
in a given airspace. The concept originated
over 20 years ago when international
planners (including ICAO, IATA,
airline pilot associations and others) realized
that a rapidly growing population of aircraft
would need to fit into a limited number of
altitudes.
Besides increasing airspace
capacity, RVSM enables a pilot to select among
more altitudes and routes to find favorable
winds. and save fuel and reduce en route time. It
also provides more options for the air traffic
controller to manage traffic.
RVSM has also invoked a new set
of maintenance requirements, The conventional
vertical separation for long-range aircraft is
2000 feet vertically; but by halving that figure
there's greater emphasis on accurate
navigation. As we will see, that
responsibility is spread among the aircraft, the
system and air traffic control.
RVSM airspace is now defined as
any airspace or route where separation
between aircraft can be as small as 1000 ft
vertically from FL 290 (Flight Level, 29,000
ft) and FL 410. After early proving trials
over the North Atlantic, the new standard has
spread to the Pacific and Europe, and full
implementation is under way. The Caribbean
will probably follow. If an aircraft is not
qualified for RVSM it must fly above or below that
airspace.
For readers interested in
the technical and maintenance requirements of the
standard, it is described in the Practical
Avionics section of this website: click RVSM
Avionics:
A definition
Q
"What is avionics?"
A.
A contraction of the words "aircraft
electronics," the term appears to have been
first used during World War II.
At that time it defined a military fire control
system aboard naval aircraft. Even as
late as the 1970's many defense contractors used
the word only in the military context. Any
civil use of airborne electronics was simply
termed "aircraft radio" and, indeed, one
of the oldest companies in that business was
ARC---Aircraft Radio Corporation, which produced
some of the earliest equipment for instrument
flying, pioneered by Jimmy Doolittle.
With the semiconductor revolution
that began with the transistor in 1947, it
was clear that many systems in the airplane
would become candidates for solid-state
devices. Because of their light weight, low
volume and small power consumption, transistors
were soon designed into more than just aircraft
radios. Instruments, displays,
switches, inverters, sensors, actuators,
converters and other devices enjoyed a major
changeover to integrated circuits and
microprocessors beginning in the late
1970's. As that happened, scores of
companies with no military affiliation began to
adopt the term "avionics" in their
corporate names.
Today, the term
"avionics" can be generally applied to
three major classes of airborne equipment, often
called "CNI" for Communications,
Navigation and Interrogation. Under the
heading "Communications"
fall two-way systems used aboard
aircraft, such as HF, VHF, satcom and datalink
radio. "Navigation" refers
to the sensors, actuators, computers, receivers,
autopilots, flight management, map databases
and other devices for creating and following a
desired track. "Interrogation" refers to
the monitoring and tracking of aircraft, usually
through the ground radars of air traffic control
interrogating airborne transponders.
Sometimes the term "Surveillance" is
used instead of "Interrogation".
Because there is so much
electronics outside those just described which are
maintained by "radio mechanics"
the term "avionics" is expanding
rapidly. A smoke detector in a lavatory, the
nose wheel steering of a corporate jet or the
controls of an auxiliary power system all may
require the skills of a technician trained in
electronics. The fastest-growing systems are
for passenger entertainment, which are
maintained by people trained in avionics.
The word "avionics"
appeared in Websters Dictionary in 1954. Because
it takes at least a decade of usage for
words to be published by such texts, it is safe to
say that "avionics" is over a
half-century old, but only in the past generation
has it come to dominate much of the cost and
function of modern aircraft of every size.
Technician
Salaries
Q
"What is the starting salary of an
avionics installation technician in General
Aviation?"
A.
In large metropolitan areas we find that
a typical range of technician starting salaries is
from about. $14 to $20 per
hour. The lower figure would
apply to someone with little practical experience
in the field but who has some schooling or
electronic experience, and has
sufficient background to be trained. The
higher figure might be offered to a technician who
already has several years' experience in General
Aviation electronics.
Outside large cities, hourly rates
are somewhat lower.
Persons with extensive military
experience in avionics may still have to start at
the lowest rung. Although military avionics
are complex, technicians tend to be trained on few
systems and often work with highly automated test
equipment. This is in contrast to the
General Aviation environment where a technician is
expected to tackle a wide variety of systems and
aircraft. However, some military candidates
have attended schools in the service which provide
a sound background in electronics and may improve
the starting salary.
These salaries are for installation
technicians, where the demand is now greatest. The
tasks involve preparing wiring harnesses,
fabricating instrument panel sections,
sheet metal work, removing aircraft interiors,
routing cables and interconnecting with aircraft
wiring. A knowledge of ramp test equipment
enables the technician to check the installation
for error, interference and efficient operation.
There is paperwork to complete to comply with FAA
airworthiness requirements. When the
airplane is delivered to the customer, the
technician often explains the operation of new
equipment to the pilot.
Autopilots
Interfacing Old Radios
Q. I have an aircraft with old radios
that need upgrading. My problem is that I
will be buying used avionics and I don't know if
everything will complement each other. I
have a Twin Bonanza with mostly 1969
equipment. I also want to make sure that
whatever I purchase will interface with the
Mitchell autopilot.
A.
Such upgrades can be accomplished but there are
many precautions that might make the job
impractical. Count on several
hours of engineering time by your avionics
facility, especially since the Mitchell
autopilot will not interface with much of
the newer equipment without expensive
adapters. Another pitfall is the aircraft
wiring, which is now over 30 years old. Because so
many problems are traced to wires and connectors,
you would probably want to renew the
harnesses. Finally, you may have difficulty
finding an avionics shop which is not only willing
to do the design and interfacing work, but is also
willing to work with used equipment.
