Garmin Flight Stream

Like many active pilots, Ive enthusiastically embraced the transition to digital technology in the cockpit. The panel in our V35B Bonanza is well equipped for instrument flight, with Garmin navigators and an Aspen Evolution EFD1000 Pro primary flight display. But, I also wanted to add ADS-B traffic and weather information, and a way to carry instrument charts electronically without compromising safety.

Editorial Staff

Wednesday, January 13, 2016 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

The author, an early adopter of digital cockpit technology, initially integrated a GDL 39 and iPad with Garmin Pilot for enhanced situational awareness and electronic charts, moving away from paper.
Integrating the Flight Stream 210 presented several unexpected challenges and costs, including required firmware updates for avionics, a Jeppesen NavData subscription for flight plan compatibility, and a GDL 69 hardware upgrade.
To overcome connectivity limitations (Garmin Pilot couldn't simultaneously link to Flight Stream and GDL 39) and ensure redundancy, the author adopted a two-tablet solution.
This dual-tablet setup significantly improved flight preparation and in-flight procedures, enabling automatic flight plan synchronization, superior weather display, redundant chart access, and ultimately allowing the pilot to abandon paper charts entirely.

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Like many active pilots, I’ve enthusiastically embraced the transition to digital technology in the cockpit. The panel in our V35B Bonanza is well equipped for instrument flight, with Garmin navigators and an Aspen Evolution EFD1000 Pro primary flight display. But, I also wanted to add ADS-B traffic and weather information, and a way to carry instrument charts electronically without compromising safety.

I now carry two tablets. (No, I don’t wear suspenders with my belt, but I’ve thought about it.) Both have Garmin Pilot and all the current instrument charts I need. One tablet connects to the navigators through a Flight Stream 210, and both use a Garmin GDL 39 ADS-B receiver to get traffic, weather and flight information.