Avionics News March 2014 - 43

trouble. I ﬂew in a brand new Cessna 172 that had a GPS
and autopilot, which I had no clue how to use.
What aircraft do you ﬂy?

I'm a lucky pilot. Due to the amount of installs we do
on a wide variety of aircraft, I get the opportunity to ﬂy
many diﬀerent planes. We insist that after each install, no
matter how big or small, we provide a ﬂight with a pilot
so the owner can get some one-on-one time with the new
equipment. Otherwise, I ﬂy a Piper PA32R-300 Saratoga, or
Piper PA 28-140, or my dad's Cessna 210.
What is your favorite aircraft to ﬂy?

My favorite is the Piper Saratoga; it is just comfortable to
ﬂy. I can put my whole family in it, pack bags for a week and
still have room to relax.
When did you know you wanted to become a pilot?

It was in middle school. Our basketball team was traveling
for a game, and I knew how late we would be getting home
after the long bus ride. I also knew because of the travel
time that my dad would not be able to attend after work
since we were so far away. To my surprise, my dad made it
to the game. I was happy but confused. I asked him how he
got to the game, and he said that he ﬂew. He had a Mooney
at the time. He ﬂew a friend and me home instead of riding
the bus. That was my ﬁrst night ﬂight. I thought it was cool;
you could see all the towns, hundreds of miles away, and
they just looked so close with all the lights. At that moment,
I knew I wanted to ﬂy.

How does being a pilot impact your job?

It's "instrumental." I realized it early during my ﬁrst
job out of school as a bench technician. I realized how
important it was to understand and communicate what the
discrepancy was with the radio in ﬂight conditions. Today,
it's more important than ever. With the new NextGen
pilots redesigning and customizing new equipment for
their aircraft, I'm able to oﬀer a pilot's perspective to both
the customer and our engineers. I get into the aircraft, sit
in the pilot's seat and relate to the customer on how they
ﬂy the plane and what's important to them. Together, we
conﬁgure the layout from this conversation.
What are your current ratings?

I am private pilot and have been continually working on
my IFR for the past few years. I told myself when I got my
VFR, I would get my IFR later. But with the work schedule
and kids, I don't see it happening for a few more years.
As a pilot, what are your thoughts on ADS-B?

I love ADS-B. We have the GDL 88D in our aircraft with
so much more information on the traﬃc. It doesn't jump
around like I see on some TCAS boxes. I love how you
can see ground speed and closure speed. We have ours
displaying on the new Garmin GTN 750 touchscreen. You're
able to easily interface with the aircraft. 

Would you like to be featured in AEAviators? Contact Geoﬀ
Hill at geoffh@aea.net or 816-347-8400 to discover how.
AVIONICS NEWS

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MARCH

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Avionics News March 2014

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