Avionics News January 2014 - 37

want to give up their aircraft for as little time as possible, and
the installation turn-time does not need to be significant."
According to Harpster, "There are very little CRT replacement solutions available other than doing the LCD upgrade.
At the end of the day, if a CRT was produced that directly replaced an existing legacy CRT, you might have a new unit but
it still needs initial STC (supplemental type certificate) certification. Customers are primarily seeking additional capabilities to enhance their flying environment, as well as charts and
weather. Those CRTs won't paint that picture in the level of
details we're accustomed to in the marketplace, especially if
you have an early model.
"For example, I had a guy call me the other day with an early
Citation and he wanted to upgrade his avionics. I told him he's
stuck; there isn't an upgrade STC for that airplane available.
His only option is to convince 100 other Citation 550 owners
to go in together and find someone to develop an STC for their
aircraft. That's very, very expensive; you are talking millions
of dollars potentially. You really need 100 airplanes to begin
justifying that expenditure, and not just 100 airplanes. You

need 100 airplanes with 100 owners who are willing to make
a long-term commitment to that particular aircraft. It's hard to
imagine that many aircraft owners willing to make this kind of
commitment to develop an STC."
Ongoing Debates Continue
Recognizing that parts obsolescence is an industry-wide issue affecting several manufacturers, authorized dealers and the
end users, the Aircraft Electronics Association's Strategic Outlook Committee tackled this subject in 2012, along with many
other challenges facing the industry. Not surprisingly, the committee endured hours of healthy debate on the subject of parts
obsolescence.
The consensus, after several months of meetings and examination, was that industry should establish a best-practices guide
to begin the controversial conversation of CRT obsolescence.
Needless to say, this will be a long process with many
points of view involved. But the time for a reality check
is now. How much longer can manufacturers be expected
to support spare parts to keep a dying technology alive? q

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2013-12-Nov.indd 1

11/12/2013 9:54:05 AM
avionics news

january

2014

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Avionics News January 2014

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