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years. That idea went out the window when we discovered that right across the runway was a very highly regarded paint and interior shop, Murmer Aircraft Services. Since Temple was going to pull the interior and remove some obsolete antennas, which would require some paint work, we decided to take advantage of having both shops on the same field and do the whole job at the same time.
So, to get back to your question, both shops said they needed the airplane for six weeks for a total of
12 weeks. It took 24 weeks almost to the day. To both shops’ credit, that time period included Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s as well as a week of the worst winter storm to hit Texas in recorded history. We thought we would be saving time by doing it all at once, but in the end, I’m not so sure that decision didn’t lengthen rather than shorten the process. With that said, we did save some money by not paying the avionics shop to remove and replace the original interior, and there were definitely some benefits to having the shops working together. The plane did not have an intercom system for the passenger seats, and installing the new system took a coor- dinated effort from both shops.
While it definitely took longer than anticipated, we never felt like our plane had been pushed to the back of the hangar in either shop. They both were meticulous about making things right, even when that meant redoing things that didn’t go right the first time, and that just takes time.
Dianne: Among the capabilities of the Garmin TXi / GTN’s what features did you view to be most exciting and workload reducing?
Dean & Tammie Jo: We love the fact that while they are separate units in the panel, they operate as if they are one. The integration of the TXi’s and GTNs as well as the GFC 600, and even the GI275 is eye-watering.
It is hard to single out a favorite feature, but the ability to display a
georeferenced approach plate right next to the PFD on the TXi is cer- tainly near the top of the list. The engine-out glide ring is also a favorite for both of us.
We are still getting used to hav- ing so many options of how to access information and where to display it, but the fact that it is all available with a touch or two of a screen, or even a voice command with the Telligence system, is nothing short of magic.
Dianne: The GFC 600 is such a smooth and capable autopilot. Share some of your impressions of how it operates, its capabilities & safety features you like.
Dean & Tammie Jo: While we had heard great things about Garmin autopilots in general, our autopilot was working, and the GFC 600 had yet to be certified on the Malibu when we started designing the panel. So, our original plan was to use the existing
King autopilot. We can’t tell you how glad we are that we didn’t stick with that plan. Fortunately, the GFC 600 was certified on the Malibu during our panel design phase, and we made the decision to spend the extra money to make the upgrade. Having flown with it now, we are very happy we made that call.
I was no STEM student, so I really can’t explain why a digital autopilot is so much better than our old one, but it is. The GFC 600 gives our Malibu the stable feel of a much larger plane, and it provides our single-engine piston aircraft the same autopilot functional- ity as a Boeing 737 with the exception of auto throttle.
VNAV is one of our favorite features. It offers altitude protection when flying an arrival with assigned altitudes, but we typically aren’t assigned those in the Malibu.
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MMOPA MAGAZINE
MAY / JUNE 2021 17