Sunday, September 8 — 11:30 AM - 2:30 PM

Avionics Track

Recent regulatory guidance changes for operations below standard weather minimums have created significant opportunities for avionics to support low visibility approach, landing and takeoff minimums. Changes related to aircraft and crew requirements will be detailed. Enhanced Flight Vision Systems in particular create benefits unique to the new to technology. The tutorial will cover both the airworthiness and operational aspects as they relate to avionics for instrument and visual segments of the approach as well as takeoff and landing for instrument landing systems, GPS, and enhanced vision sensors. Synthetic vision guidance system requirements will be detailed and extension to other approach types will be discussed. Regulatory guidance in FAA Order 8400-13E, RTCA documents DO-315, DO-341, DO-359, DO-374, and Advisory Circular AC 120-118 will be covered in detail as well as when Ops Spec, MSpecs or LOA’s are required for various operations. Specifics include:

  • Precision Approaches down to 2400 RVR
  • 1800 RVR Operations
  • 150 foot DH and 1400 RVR
  • 100 foot DH and RVR down to 1000
  • Operations below 1000 RVR
  • Takeoff down to 300 RVR

Timothy Etherington

Collins Aerospace

Timothy Etherington graduated from North Dakota State University with a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering in 1987. Tim is a Collins Aerospace Technical Fellow currently assigned to NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton Virginia. Mr. Etherington has worked at Rockwell Collins for over thirty years with extensive experience in military and commercial flight deck design and applied human factors. He helped design the flight decks for the Canadair Regional Jet and other business and regional primary flight display systems. He led the perspective, synthetic and enhanced flight deck research at Rockwell Collins including the flight-testing completed with NASA Langley and Air Force Research labs. He holds an FAA Airline Transport Pilot certificate with a Citation Type Rating and holds commercial fixed wing and private pilot rotorcraft ratings. Mr. Etherington is co-chair for RTCA SC-213 working on standards for enhanced and synthetic vision systems.