Honeywell Apex Cockpit Enters Flight Testing

The first flight test of the Bendix/King Apex avionics system was successfully concluded last month aboard a Cessna 206 Stationair testbed. Apex, designed for light jets, turboprops, helicopters and high-performance piston aircraft, uses Honeywell’s Visual Cueing and Control (VC2) technology to present a picture of the sky and ground on an instrument-panel-mounted screen. The horizon appears in the distance and the ground appears to be passing under the airplane. Significant features, such as runways and radio navigation aids, appear in the picture in the same relative locations as if the pilot were looking at them through the windshield. “VC2 really improves a pilot’s situational awareness,” said Dan Barks, Bendix/King v-p and general manager of business and general aviation avionics. “You can tell at a glance whether the airplane is banked left or right or pitched up or down, and you can immediately see where you are going in relation to ground features. It is far easier than trying to interpret a bunch of pointers and then form a mental picture of the situation.” Apex will also use high-bandwidth databuses from Germany’s TTTech, the same components that Audi has selected for drive-by-wire systems in its luxury car line starting in 2004. Apex will be offered in three versions: Apex 1000 for piston singles; Apex 2000 for multi-engine piston airplanes, light turboprops and helicopters; and Apex 9000 for heavier turboprop airplanes and light business jets.