Avidyne Adds a New MFD; Introduces Flight-envelope Protection

At the AOPA Summit in Tampa, Avidyne announced some new products and enhancements to its DFC90 and DFC100 autopilot systems. New to the market is the latest EX600 multifunction display, priced starting at less than $10,000. Designed for aircraft without an MFD or those that need an upgrade, the EX600 includes new map-panning keys and what Avidyne calls its Quick-Pan function — said to "dramatically improve a pilot's ability to access and display critical flight data." Avidyne describes the display as "map-centric" showing safety information all in one place, with no need to switch to dedicated pages. Avidyne also claims that its EX600 MFD offers the most extensive range of sensor interfaces of all MFDs on the market, including optional TCAS 1 and TAWS interfaces. And compatibility with Avidyne's trademarked CMax approach charts and airport diagrams is standard equipment. Avidyne also announced its new DFC90 and DFC100 autopilot systems would include Avidyne Autopilot Flight Envelope Protection — a feature that protects against inadvertent autopilot-induced stalls and overspeeds. The autopilots also incorporate a "Straight & Level" button that overrides autopilot modes to return the aircraft to wings-level mode and returns pitch to neutral. The button is billed as "an added measure of safety in the event of an unusual attitude or other emergency situation."