Avionics News August 2018 - 19

der, including ADS-B hardware.
Two complete electrical systems, with two generating sources, two batteries and two main buses.
* A stand-alone, standby alternator capable of handling the minimum equipment the pilot needs.
Mid-Continent Instruments and Avionics offers such a
battery to back up the main electrical system components.
Multiple avenues exist to give an older aircraft the trappings of a modern panel and the redundant power systems
to give the pilot an edge in the event of an emergency.
Some avenues exist through the field-approval process to
add that second battery, alternator and/or main-power buss.
STC packages are also available through the companies offering the hardware they market for standby power
systems - packages which include alternators to bolt on in
place of suction pumps and voltage regulators capable of
handling a second battery.
Some pilots opt for a second battery and a regulator to
keep it charged, giving the aircraft more time to get on the
ground before the current dies.
*

Required versus wise
Whether a Part 23 piston single, a Part 23 jet or propjet,
a Part 25 commercial aircraft or Part 27 helicopter, going
the glass-panel route means meeting the FAA's requirement for backup instrumentation to the digital PFD.
It's only smart, since the panel no longer employs an
arrangement with built-in redundancy.
Standby power, which all aircraft have to a degree,
becomes more critical when the amount of electrically
powered equipment increases.
For an all-electric aircraft, one with a glass cockpit
and no air or suction powered instruments, redundancy
in power is as important as backup instruments for those
digital displays in the panel.
The issue tends to be covered by the design of today's
factory-new aircraft. But with converting to all-glass
increasingly common - and popular - covering the redundancy needs for both the backup instruments and the
electrical power source offers a degree of security that will
be appreciated most when the lights go out. q

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