Avionics News July 2018 - 4

The time to comply is now!

he July issue of Avionics News is traditionally one
of the publication's most widely read editions each
year, as thousands of copies end up in the hands of aircraft
owners and pilots visiting the Aircraft Electronics Association's booth at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh. This year will
likely be no different, as these aviation enthusiasts will no
doubt make it a point to stop by Hangar B and discuss all
things avionics, and of course, pick up this month's complimentary Avionics News along with the newly released
AEA's Pilot's Guide.
Naturally, this month is an ideal time to
remind these aircraft owners and pilots who and
what the AEA and Avionics News is all about.
Now in its 55th year of publication, Avionics
News is the AEA's monthly magazine, making
it the largest, single representation of repair stations in the world.
As Avionics News has now been available
Geoff
online in a web-based format for nearly a
decade, along with a new mobile app available
for iOS and Android devices, more and more pilots and
aircraft owners have been gladly welcomed to the Avionics
News family of readers.
Founded in 1957, the AEA has served the general aviation industry for more than 60 years. A truly international
organization, the AEA membership includes manufacturers
and distributors of avionics and instruments, and government-certified repair stations specializing in maintenance,
repair and installation of avionics and electronic systems in
general aviation aircraft.
Each government-certified repair station brings with it
a degree of oversight that cannot be matched in the private
sector. After all, pilots and aircraft owners don't want just
anyone working on their airplane or helicopter, as life
depends on it.
Owners and employees of AEA member repair stations
regularly attend technical training workshops on the latest avionics products. As AEA members, they have access
to an organization that helps train qualified technicians
and provide stable business practices and safe operations,

avionics news

july

2018

which pays dividends to aircraft owners and pilots.
That expertise will likely come in handy for thousands
of general aviation pilots and aircraft owners, particularly
as the Federal Aviation Administration's deadline to equip
with ADS-B Out avionics quickly approaches. While it's
a little more than a year away, New Year's Day 2020 will
arrive sooner than you think. With more than 100,000 general aviation aircraft to equip by the deadline, the capacity
for repair stations to meet the U.S. installation demands is
shrinking each day.
An AEA member shop is ready to help these
aircraft owners, so don't delay and make your
installation appointment today if you haven't
done so already. Without a doubt, the time to
equip has never been better than now. In fact,
the longer aircraft owners delay their ADS-B
Out installation, the more likely they will pay
higher installation costs as we get closer to
Hill
the deadline. Not only do we face a potential
logjam and capacity issue in 2019, the repair
stations may start charging higher installation fees based
upon supply and demand.
To help incentivize aircraft owners to equip, the AEA
will randomly award five aircraft owners with $1,000
toward an ADS-B compliant upgrade during EAA
AirVenture Oshkosh, July 23-29. Each of the five winners
must use an AEA-member avionics repair station to complete the installation, and the installation must be scheduled by Aug. 1, 2019. For those aircraft owners who will
be in Oshkosh during this annual pilgrimage, I encourage
you to stop by booth No. 2035/2036 in Hangar B beginning July 23, and register for your chance to win. q

GEOFF HILL
Director of Communications,
Aircraft Electronics Association
Editor, Avionics News

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Avionics News July 2018