Vectors To Final

After my autopilot testing Friday I flew down to KJZI in Charleston, SC. I had a few business meetings to attend but also got the chance to take up a new friend in the Cirrus. We introduced him to general aviation in style with a lazy tour of the coast. He grew up (and still lives) in the area so he knew all the sights. My business partner sat back seat and filmed the landing for me.

We recently installed a new autopilot in the Cirrus. This one, a DFC90 , is a drop-in replacement for the STEC 55X we used to have and adds a few great features: Much more precise as it uses the digital sensors in the airplane instead of fewer, analog-only sensors as before It can climb at a constant airspeed, which is great for maximizing climb rate without risking the airplane getting too slow It will automatically correct a too-slow or too-fast condition when the autopilot is running It has a "straight and level" button that can be pressed anytime you need a quick way to get the airplane into a good attitude/state. SkyTech in Rock Hill did a great job with the install and everything worked well except we still have a bit of an overshooting of heading when turning right. It's better than it was with the old autopilot, but we are working with Avidyne to sort it out. We also think the turn coordinator may be going bad, so we plan to get that checked. Additionally the ...