Commentary

I have no vested interest in this area, but I do feel that the statement is insulting to field mechanics everywhere. I have owned a number of planes from different manufacturers and they have been serviced by both service centers and field mechanics. Personally, I have experienced some of the worst service from authorized service centers. I have found under my cowling rags and plastic cups. How about watching a mechanic come at your windshield with brown paper towels from the mens room to clean it for you?

As a Lake owner with 25 years experience flying it from South Florida to all corners of the continent, I would like to correct certain information published about Lake amphibians in the September 2017 Aviation Consumer. Some of my quotes in that review were made over 10 years ago and deserve a refresh.

My guess is that many pilots like me are over 40 years of age (Im 62) and may not be completely familiar with newer wireless Bluetooth technology and its limitations. After a radio failure on a recent flight, I tried to pair my newer Bose A20 Bluetooth headset with my new Samsung Galaxy S8 smartphone I bought to replace my aging iPhone 4, which would connect to my A20. The local ATC tower has a recorded phone line where they can issue control instructions in a pinch.

Great article on pulse oximeters in the September 2017 issue of Aviation Consumer. I have been using them for almost two decades and keep one in my turbocharged Bonanza and another in my glider. I routinely fly in the teens and I always insist that passengers use the pulse oximeter every half hour or so just as I do.

I read Larry Anglisanos First Word commentary about the shrinking ANR headset market in the August 2017 Aviation Consumer and was sur- prised that the $895 David Clark DC One-X, launched in March 2016, was not mentioned among the others in the premium headset category. In developing this headset, it was cer- tainly our intention to target the premium ANR headset market and the success of this product, as we’ll as the response from the pilot community, con rms that we hit the mark.

As for whole-airplane parachutes, Ive given quite a bit of instruction in a Flight Design CT LSA and once found the sky ahead filled with seagulls and wondered if I would shortly need to pull the red handle, but Im ambivalent about it when Im flying the Diamond. For me, the cost of servicing the CAPS in the Cirrus was one of the negatives in buying a used one.

I read the portable oxygen concentrator article in the June 2017 Aviation Consumer with interest because my wife has a lung deficiency and has needed O2 when we fly above 6000 feet. We have been using the Aerox system, but she says it dries her nose.

There are very good reasons for not permitting the use of portable ADS-B Out devices and to retain the TSOs as they currently exist. Starting in 2020, ADS-B will be the primary mode of ATC surveillance, and will largely replace the current ATCRBS (ATC radar beacon system, with portions of the ATCRBS retained as a backup). Portable ADS-B Out devices suffer from some major limitations, including reliability of powering, RF radiation pattern nulling and attenuation resulting from the antenna being inside the aircraft. There’s also the lack of connection to the aircraft static system.

I read Larry Anglisanos commentary about BasicMeds altitude restriction in the April 2017 Aviation Consumer. I can only think that restricting BasicMed pilots to altitudes below 18,000 feet is related to limiting them to less complicated aircraft and not the altitude itself. Perhaps the FAA just doesnt want jet pilots flying around with BasicMed certification and while I don’t agree, I think we are lucky to have gotten what we did.

I read the article on owning and maintaining classic and antique aircraft in the March 2017 issue of Aviation Consumer and can certainly relate to the challenges of keeping these old birds. Ours wasnt quite as exotic as your examples-we had a polished 1949 Beech A35 Bonanza-but even with the benefit of continuous production, parts were occasionally a challenge.

The FAAs recently announced BasicMed rule drew cheers from owners and pilots, but there’s still confusion about what effect it will have on the industry and worry that non-AME doctors wont sign off on the FAAs new medical checklist. At press time, the FAA had published a draft of the checklist in AC 68-1 and although BasicMed wont be available until May 1, 2017, the AC serves as a template for pilots to convince non-AME docs to sign the approval.

A critical (but simple) ground check you did not mention is when examining the through-bolts holding the nosewheel scissors to the airplane, put a wrench on the bolt head and turn it. If the bolt is straight then the scissors will not move, but if its bent you will see the scissors move up and down as the bolt rotates. According to my IA, if you catch this early its pretty easy for a tech to remove and replace the bolt, but if its too far bent, as he saw on a Cessna 182 hed recently worked on, he has to remove the nosegear assembly and get the bolt out using a press.