Avidyne DFC90 Autopilot Receives EASA Certification

Jan. 5, 2011
It has received STC approval from EASA for retrofit installation of the DFC90 attitude-based digital autopilot in European-registered Cirrus aircraft.

Lincoln, MA. – Avidyne Corporation, a leading provider of integrated flight decks, displays, and safety systems for general aviation aircraft, announced they have received Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) approval the from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) for retrofit installation of the DFC90 attitude-based digital autopilot in European-registered Cirrus aircraft.

“There is a large installed base of Entegra-equipped aircraft in Europe, and this EASA certification allows our European-registered Cirrus customers to take advantage of the significant performance and safety enhancements of our DFC90 autopilot,” said Patrick Herguth, Avidyne’s Chief Operating Officer. “The DFC90 has particular value to European pilots with its enhanced attitude-based guidance that significantly improves non-GPS overlay approaches such as VORs and NDBs still prevalent in Europe.”

“Avidyne continues to provide upgrades and enhancements for our customers, and we are pleased to make the DFC90 available as a retrofit for our European-registered Entegra owners,” said Avidyne President and CEO, Dan Schwinn. “The fully digital, attitude-based DFC90 provides our customers with significant improvements in autopilot performance — especially apparent on gusty ILS approaches, while innovative features like Flight Envelope Protection and the ‘Straight & Level’ button offer dramatic improvements in safety in all phases of flight.

About the DFC90

The DFC90 is an attitude-based digital autopilot system that is designed as a slide-in replacement for the S-TEC55X autopilot in existing Entegra-equipped Cirrus SR20 and SR22 aircraft. The DFC90 has all the standard vertical and lateral modes of operation of a turbine-class autopilot system, including Flight Director (FD), Altitude Hold (ALT), Airspeed Hold (IAS), Vertical Speed Hold (VS), Heading (HDG), and Navigation (NAV, APPR, LOC/GS, GPSS). Customers upgrading from the STEC 55X will notice several major performance and feature improvements including:

1. Superior Performance – Attitude-based precision, especially when tracking an ILS to minimums in windy conditions, and when hand-flying the Flight Director. Improved user interface including a dedicated GPSS button, plus a new Indicated Airspeed Hold (IAS) mode which provides a more efficient way to make Flight Level changes.

2. Increased safety - Flight Envelope Protection guards against autopilot-induced stalls (underspeed) and overspeeds, and the “Straight & Level” button provides one-touch recovery from unusual attitudes.

3. Ease of Installation – The DFC90 is a slide-in replacement for the STC55X. No wiring changes are required which dramatically reduces down time & installation cost.

DFC90 Availability

Avidyne also offers a full Money Back Guarantee for customers who purchase a new DFC90 Digital Flight Control System with Flight Envelope Protection. Under the terms of this offer, if for any reason within the first 30 days after purchase, you are not completely satisfied with your DFC90 Autopilot Flight Computer compared with the performance of the S-TEC 55X, Avidyne will refund the entire cost of your upgrade and reinstall the S-TEC 55X.

Prices do not include installation costs or shipping charges. STEC55X unit must be returned to Avidyne.

About Avidyne Corporation (www.avidyne.com)

Avidyne’s continuing leadership in innovation and its Flying Made Simple™ system design make flying safer, more accessible and more enjoyable for pilots and their passengers. The company’s expanding line of products include the industry-leading Entegra integrated flight deck line for new and existing aircraft, DFC90 and DFC100 digital flight control systems, datalink-capable EX600 multi-function displays, the dual-antenna TAS600 series of active traffic advisory systems, the MLB700 broadcast datalink receiver, the MLX770 world-wide datalink transceiver, and the TWX670 Tactical Weather Detection system. Headquartered in Lincoln, MA, the company has facilities in Westerville, OH, Melbourne, FL, and Boulder, CO.