Auto pilot in a morgan sierra?

[Guernsey]

Hi everyone,

 

Has anybody fitted an Auto Pilot to any of Gary Morgans aeroplanes in particular the

 

Cheetah or Sierra models if so which brand and the reasons for your choice.

 

Please no comments such as to why you would need one in the first place.

 

I realise that a glass panel (EFIS) would be required.

 

 

[HEON]

No need for glass. I have a Trio Avionics and Tru Trak in different aircraft and both "stand alone" (Need GPS)

 

 

[Guernsey]

Thanks HEON, A Google search revealed a Tru Trak agent here in SA however is there an Australian agent for Trio Avionics.

 

Which of the two systems do you prefer.

 

 

[HEON]

Google lists Aero Assist at Seacliff Park SA for Trio Avionics.

 

Have not had much time with the Trio as new aircraft. Think Tru Trak is a bit easier to use but I am more used to it.

 

Both mine are two axis and both seem to work well.

 

I would buy either on price AND the best support you think you will get from agents.

 

 

[Jabiru Phil]

Google lists Aero Assist at Seacliff Park SA for Trio Avionics.Have not had much time with the Trio as new aircraft. Think Tru Trak is a bit easier to use but I am more used to it.

 

Both mine are two axis and both seem to work well.

 

I would buy either on price AND the best support you think you will get from agents.

SA agent service is very good

 

 

[Guernsey]

Thanks Jabiru Phil, which agent are you refering to, or in fact are they both good.

 

 

[HEON]

Do not know about Phil's view but have found Flymore (TruTrak) very helpful when talking about my Digiflight. Lots of knowledge...you should know the name when you talk! (auto pilot installed by LightWing...purchased via Flymore)

 

Had no need yet to talk to Aero Assist thus not in position to have an opinion either way (auto pilot installed in Brazil)

 

 

[Jabiru Phil]

Thanks Jabiru Phil, which agent are you refering to, or in fact are they both good.

We have two planes, a 160 and a 230 fitted with the EZI-PILOT at Loxton, supplied by Jake Jansen S.A.

The Guys tell me that they are very happy with Jake who is very knowledgeable and no probs after sale service.

 

Both these A/P's are coupled to a GPS. They do not go through the Dynon EFIS. However if you had a Dynon it would be considerably cheaper to use Dynon A/P.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Phil

 

 

[Guernsey]

Thanks guys for your help, fantastic! I shall contact the relevant agents after Christmas before my Son-in-law and I visit Gary Morgan early January to check out his aircraft.

 

My Son-in-law does not like glass panels and I must admit I am a bit old school having flown many different types both GA and Recreational even a Meteor Mk7 when I was only

 

sixteen and none of those had Glass Panels, but did however have an Auto Pilot in a Beechcraft Sierra. I suppose we should be looking to modernize but there is something

 

nostalgic about all those ROUND dials.

 

Special thanks to IAN for providing this site where we can meet other interesting and very helpful flyers.

 

 

[Guernsey]

Hi Guys, once again thanks for your help regarding Auto Pilots the decision has been made by Kevin (my Son-in-law) to fit the Trio Avionics unit. Jake Jansen has been extremely helpful even offering good advice on GPS units and Radios.:thumb_up:

 

The aircraft is coming along nicely and will be fitted with ALL the bells and whistles which could prove to be somewhat noisy in a small cockpit. Kevin told me yesterday that it is about time that he contributed to this forum because, after all, he is the owner of the aircraft, however he has been so busy running his factory lately that he hasn't been able to spend time on his computer.

 

Everything on the aircraft has been decided upon with the help of his wife such as colour scheme,

 

fabric, instruments, controls, wireless head sets, onboard coffee making facility, microwave oven for long trips, vanity mirrors and make-up pouches, porta potty and the list goes on. I am not going to go into specific details of the above items as this article will be like a box of cornflakes in other words it will be a cereal (serial)

 

 

[Jabiru Phil]

Good choice with auto pilot

 

Love to hear from Kevin as work progresses

 

Cheers,

 

Phil.

 

 

[sfGnome]

Hey, forget the auto pilot! I want details on the porta-potty

 

 

[kgwilson]

I hardly ever used the auto pilot in the PA 28 mainly because I liked flying the aircraft myself. Mind you with a good LCD screen and DVD for long trips plus a decent air hostie it would be worth having.

 

Kevin

 

 

[Guernsey]

Hi Gnome thanks for your interest in the Porta Potti, I was going to release all the info as a serial but since you were first to enquire I will give you the details as follows. I probably shouldn't use the brand name as it has been designed by us and being fabricated at Kevin's metal fabrication factory.We ourselves are not tall people so Gary Morgan is raising the seats which allows us to put a small toilet under each seat with a zip in the fabric to gain access, they in turn are joined with a pvc pipe which then runs down the centre of the aircraft to what was the nose fuel tank which we are not using because we have two 50ltr wing tanks. Inside this pipe is a small electric pump which not only pumps but has a similar blade to a food processor and liquidizes the solids. The final waste product is collected in the forward tank which can either be emptied on the ground or by opening a flap underneath the cowl can be released during flight. If the tank is relatively full, after awhile methane gas will build up so we are going to fit an electric ignition spark as used in gas water heaters on the under cowl flap. This should prove very useful if trying to use short runways by providing a rocket assisted take off. We have calculated that a full tank of excrement would give a rate of climb exceeding 2,000 ft per min with a fuel burn duration of 8 minutes. Should we decide to merely dump the waste, we would ensure that a local farmer would benefit. In the event that we needed a rocket assisted take off and the toilet tank was empty we would fill it with the contents of this article which is entirely made up of BS.

 

Yes us Guerns have a weird sense of humour.

 

 

[sfGnome]

 

 

[kgwilson]

Hey Alan, have you thought about being able to get mile high ratings. I've read of stories about the goings on in loos in passenger jets.

 

Kev

 

 

[Guernsey]

Hi Kev, you will notice that I did reply to your message and although I thought it was quite funny at the time, I have decided to delete it because it may offend some people

 

and I have no desire to do this on a public forum. Best regards Alan.

 

 

[kgwilson]

Not only was it quite funny it was accurate from a regulatory perspective and invited a response that I was planning. Bugger. Anyone who considered it offensive would have had to be excessively prude in the most Victorian (I mean Queen Victoria for the uninitiated) manner. You must, however, manage the process by doing what you believe to be the best course of action.

 

Still I reckon had the sillyness of the result eventuated there would have been a logjam of instructors pushing to get the rating. Wink Wink Nod Nod Say no more. I'd be with them like a rat up a drainpipe.

 

 

[Guernsey]

Thanks Kev for your encouraging response. Normally when I post something of a comical nature I do get several responses, however, on this occasion after several days I had no reactions whatsoever and started wondering

 

whether my remarks may have been inappropriate. Although I did not contact Gary Morgan, I was using his Morgan Aeroworks site and wondered if he would be offended.

 

Perhaps I am overeacting.

 

 

[kgwilson]

It'd be hard to offend Garry based on some of the Email jokes he's sent me.

 

 

[Twister Timmy]

hey i am currently fitting a 2 axis autopilot into a sierra cant think of the brand name off the top of my head but is is seeming surprisingly simple just 2 servos wired to a 3" instrument and a small dial

 

 

[jakej]

hey i am currently fitting a 2 axis autopilot into a sierra cant think of the brand name off the top of my head but is is seeming surprisingly simple just 2 servos wired to a 3" instrument and a small dial

It's called a Trio :-)

 

 

[dazza 38]

hey i am currently fitting a 2 axis autopilot into a sierra cant think of the brand name off the top of my head but is is seeming surprisingly simple just 2 servos wired to a 3" instrument and a small dial

Welcome mate,

 

 

[Guernsey]

High Timmy, good to see you on this site, I have only just realized who you are.

 

As you would know Jake Jansen has just been up to Taree to fit a Trio Avionics auto pilot in our Sierra, it was going to be horizontal axis only but Kevin my son in law decided, what the heck let's

 

go all the way and fit the vertical add on as well whilst Jake was up there.

 

For the benefit of others on this forum Jake has also fitted the GPS and Radio as this is his job.

 

Whilst Jake is not an official agent for any particular type of avionics he is extremely helpful with regards to the pros and cons of different units and well worth a call. Alan.

 

 

[Guernsey]

Today after flying in a friends Foxbat at Gawler we were discussing 'Auto Pilots' when he told me a story where a friend of his had gone on a cross country flight in a GA aircraft with three other friends and because the flight was long and boring he fell asleep and woke up 20 minutes later to find that everyone else was asleep. They were on Auto Pilot at the time so what am I getting at.

 

It suddenly hit me that although we thought we had every conceivable bell, whistle and gadget on our Morgan Sierra, we forgot the alarm clock which goes off automatically 5 minutes before our next way point.

 

That damn Guern again, can he ever be serious.