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Garmin Certifies the GFC 600 Digital Autopilot in Select Pilatus PC-12 Aircraft

Garmin International Inc. (Nasdaq: GRMN), a unit of Garmin Ltd., today announced it has received Federal Aviation Administration Supplemental Type Certificate approval for the GFC 600 digital autopilot in select Pilatus PC-12/41 and PC-12/45 aircraft. The GFC 600 digital autopilot is optimized to meet the demands of turbine aircraft, delivering superior in-flight characteristics and operational capabilities such as Vertical Navigation (VNAV), automatic Course Deviation Indicator (CDI) switching when paired with a GTN Series navigator, enhanced go-around capability and much more.

The GFC 600 certification for the PC-12 boasts superior integration with a TXi flight display configured as a primary flight display (PFD) to provide owners and operators an advanced autopilot solution that considers the wide range of speed and performance characteristics of these turbine aircraft. Further, the GFC 600 incorporates solid-state attitude with robust self-monitoring capabilities to provide superior autopilot performance, greater reliability and renowned safety benefits. Environmentally hardened autopilot servos designed for harsh operating conditions contain brushless DC motors offering improved performance and reducing maintenance requirements when compared to decades-old servo designs on the market today. Standard mark-width (6.25-inch) design of the GFC 600 mode controller ensures the autopilot controller allows for routine installation into the aircraft’s avionics stack.

Going beyond traditional autopilot capabilities such as altitude hold, vertical speed and heading modes, the GFC 600 also includes altitude preselect, VNAV, Level Mode with the LVL button, underspeed and overspeed protection and more. Pilots can also select, couple and fly various instrument approaches, including GPS, ILS, VOR, LOC and back course approaches when paired with a compatible GPS navigator.

Additional benefits of the GFC 600 digital autopilot for turbine aircraft include:

  • Premium functions and advanced capabilities such as altitude pre-select on a TXi flight display configured as a PFD and indicated airspeed hold mode;
  • Built-in GPS roll steering capability eliminates the need for external roll steering converters, allowing for smoother navigation tracking when installed with a compatible navigator;
  • Yaw Damping (YD) mode minimizes yawing oscillations while also helping to maintain coordinated flight;
  • Flight Director command bars displayed on a TXi flight display configured as a primary flight display (PFD);
  • Coupled ‘go-arounds’ during missed approach sequencing with a remotely-installed go-around button that commands the Flight Director to display the appropriate pitch attitude required for the missed approach procedure and activates a loaded missed approach when paired with a 
    GTN 650/750 or GTN 650Xi/750Xi navigator;
  • Control wheel steering allows the pilot to adjust pitch, roll, altitude hold, vertical speed or airspeed references using the control yoke while the autopilot is engaged.

U.S. to Revise Chinese Passenger Airline Ban After Beijing Move

A China Eastern Airlines aircraft is seen at Hongqiao International Airport in Shanghai

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Transportation Department plans to issue a revised order in the coming days that is likely to allow some Chinese passenger airline flights to continue, government and airline officials said.

On Thursday, China said it would ease coronavirus restrictions to allow in more foreign carriers, shortly after Washington said it planned to bar Chinese passenger airlines from flying to the United States by June 16 due to Beijing’s curbs on U.S. carriers.

The change should allow U.S. carriers to resume once-a-week flights into a city of their choice starting on June 8, but that would be still significantly fewer than what the U.S. government says its aviation agreement with China allows.

The Transportation Department did not immediately comment.

The department said on Wednesday Chinese carriers could operate “the same number of scheduled passenger flights as the Chinese government allows ours.” It added the order was to “restore a competitive balance and fair and equal opportunity among U.S. and Chinese air carriers.”

The U.S. order would halt the four weekly U.S. roundtrip flights by Air China <0753.HK>, China Eastern Airlines Corp, China Southern Airlines Co <1055.HK> and Xiamen Airlines Co.

U.S. and airline officials have privately raised concerns about the revised Chinese rules and it is unclear if carriers would agree to fly just once a week to China when they have sought approval for two or three daily flights.

Delta Air Lines <DAL.N> and United Airlines <UAL> asked to resume flights to China this month. Both said they were reviewing the order from the Civil Aviation Administration of China.

American Airlines <AAL> is sticking with its previous plan to resume service to China at the end of October, spokesman Ross Feinstein said.

The CAAC said all airlines can increase the number of international flights involving China to two per week if none of their passengers test positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, for three consecutive weeks.

If five or more passengers on one flight test positive upon arrival, the CAAC will bar the airline for a week. Airlines would be suspended for four weeks if 10 passengers or more test positive.

(Reporting by David Shepardson in Washington; additional reporting by Tracy Rucinski in Chicago; Editing by Chris Reese, Richard Chang and Bernadette Baum)