Creating RV-12 Checklists For The Dynon SkyView – Part 4 of 8

Part 4: This post contains the text to create the following checklists:


Climb & Cruise, Decent & Approach, Landing, and Shutdown.


As mentioned in Part 2, the beginning and end of each text list will be delineated by dashed lines as an aid for the reader interested in copying the lists. The first line in each list is the Title for the list and is to be copied/pasted into the appropriate line in “Checklist Titles” of the checklist creation tool …. the remaining lines of text are the actual list and they need to be copied/pasted into either a simple text editor if making the checklist file manually or directly into the checklist creator tool in the cell associated with the title.


Return from the future 12/14/2017: The shutdown checklist was modified to reflect turning off the master switch as the last checklist action ... as such, securing the aircraft was omitted from the checklist (hard to keep reading the SkyView if the master switch is off).
Return from the future 11/21/2017: There were a couple of spelling errors and redundant second lines in the lists first posted  two days ago. The spelling has been corrected. The redundant second lines have been removed where needed ... this was done because at the time the checklists were being made, I did not realize the SkyView displays the current checklist title being viewed at the top of the checklist screen. Those who have downloaded the text files prior to today may want to use these updated checklists.


----------------------------------------------------------------------
 
CLIMB & CRUISE CHECKLIST
CLIMB
Throttle  – FULL
5800 RPM Max 5 minutes
5500 RPM Max Continuous

Best Climb Rate (Vy)
Airspeed  – 75 KIAS
Flaps     – UP

Best Climb Angle (Vx)
Airspeed  – 60 KIAS
Flaps     – 1st DETENT

Cruise-Climb
Airspeed  – 85 KIAS
Flaps     – UP
EMS       – CHECK TEMPERATURES
Trim      – TO HOLD AIRSPEED

CRUISE
Flaps     – CHECK UP
Level-Off – ACCELERATE TO 
            DESIRED AIRSPEED
Throttle  – SET DESIRED CRUISE
        POWER BETWEEN 5000 RPM
        TO 5500 RPM MAXIMUM
Trim      – AS REQUIRED
EMS       – MONITOR GAUGES
 
-------------------------------------------------------------
 
DESCENT & APPROACH CHECKLIST
* DESCENT
PFD Altitude Alert–SET ALT BUG
Throttle   – REDUCE POWER
Engine     – MONITOR GAUGES
Airspeed   – AS DESIRED
Flaps      – UP ABOVE 82 KIAS
             AS DESIRED BELOW
             82 KIAS
Radio      – MONITOR ATIS/AWOS
Altimeter  – SET
Transponder– CODE or 1200

APPROACH
Nav Heading   – SET HDG BUG TO
                RUNWAY HEADING
Seat Belts    – FASTENED/SNUG
Parking Brake – OFF/PUSH IN
Toe Brakes    – CHECK FIRM
Fuel Pump  Sw – VERIFY ON
Ignition A Sw – VERIFY ON
Ignition B Sw – VERIFY ON
Flaps         – UP >82 KIAS
                AS DESIRED
                BELOW 82 KIAS

* Descend with enough power
to maintain cylinder head and
oil temperatures in green arc.
If possible avoid wind milling
the engine with the propeller
by reducing airspeed or
increasing power. To plan a
descent from cruise altitude
to the airport traffic pattern
use time to destination to
calculate a realistic and
comfortable rate (500ft/min).
When available, use the EFIS
vertical navigation (VNAV)
function to perform a stable
descent if terrain, airspace
and/or weather permit.
 
-----------------------------------------------------
 
LANDING CHECKLIST
LANDING (NORMAL)
Flaps         – AS DESIRED
                BELOW 82 KIAS
Trim          – AS REQUIRED
Airspeed      – 55-60 KIAS
Throttle      – AS DESIRED
                TO CONTROL
                RATE OF DECENT
Touchdown     – ON MAIN WHEELS

AFTER TOUCH DOWN
Stick         – FULL AFT
Brake         – AS REQUIRED
Flaps         – RETRACT
Engine RPM    – ABOVE 1800

Soft or rough fields fly
approach at 55 KIAS carrying
power into flare & use extreme
nose high landing attitude to
touch down at minimum airspeed

LANDING (Obstacle)
Use normal landing procedures
in addition:
Flaps         – FULL DOWN
Airspeed      – 55 KIAS
Throttle      – AS REQUIRED to
          control descent rate
Slip aircraft as necessary to
increase rate of descent.

WARNING:
High decent rates possible in
this configuration at gross
weight and throttle closed. If
airspeed gets below 55 KIAS,
level off can only be assured
with an application of power.

LANDING (Balked)
Throttle    – FULL OPEN
Flaps       – 1st DETENT
Airspeed:   – 60 KIAS
Flaps       – 1st DETENT until
       clear of obstacle then:
Best Rate   – 75 KIAS
Flaps       – UP
 
----------------------------------------------------------------
 
SHUTDOWN CHECKLIST
* ELT Panel   – LIGHT OFF
    Monitor radio 121.5 MHz
        check no ELT signal
Throttle      – IDLE STOP
Ignition A    – SWITCH OFF
Ignition B    – SWITCH OFF
Avionics      – SWITCH OFF
Nav/Strobe    – SWITCH OFF
Landing Light – SWITCH OFF
Autopilot     – SWITCH OFF
Hobbs Meter   – RECORD READING
Parking Brake – PULL ON
                (if desired)
Fuel Valve    – SHUT/PULL UP
Master Switch – SWITCH OFF
 
* If ELT light ON, press reset
button on indicator panel.
If installed ELT is ACK E-04
immediately call USAF Rescue
Coordination Center at
800-851-3051 to report false
alarm.
 
NOTE:
To prevent vapor building in
the carburetor after shutdown
in hot days, oil door should
be left open to let heat out
of the cowl. Leaving canopy in
the open position latched with
the F-1231G Canopy Catch, will
reduce the risk of vapor-lock.
 
NOTE:
If high winds are anticipated,
aircraft should be hangered If
aircraft must be left out park
into wind and use additional
tie-down ropes for security.
Place the flaps in the full up
position - secure the control
stick full aft with  lap belt.
 
--------------------------------------------------------

Creating RV-12 Checklists For The Dynon SkyView – Part 3 of 8

Part 3: This post contains the text to create the following checklists:


Before Start, Engine Start, After Start/Taxi, Run-Up and Take-Off.


As mentioned in Part 2, the beginning and end of each text list will be delineated by dashed lines as an aid for the reader interested in copying the lists. The first line in each list is the Title for the list and is to be copied/pasted into the appropriate line in “Checklist Titles” of the checklist creator … the remaining lines of text are the actual list and they need to be copied/pasted into either a simple text editor if making the checklist file manually or directly into the checklist creator tool in the cell associated with the title.   Here we go!


Return from the future 12/1/2017: Made some minor adjustments to the Before Start checklist to reflect the Master Switch already being on to power the SkyView. Moved opening the fuel valve and switching on the fuel pump to the beginning of the list and added a check for the EMS Fuel Quantity.  Also modified After Start checklist to change order of turning on switches.
Return from the future 11/21/2017: There were a couple of spelling errors and redundant second lines in the lists first posted  two days ago. The spelling has been corrected. The redundant second lines have been removed where needed ... this was done because at the time the checklists were being made, I did not realize the SkyView displays the current checklist title being viewed at the top of the checklist screen. Those who have downloaded the text files prior to today may want to use these updated checklists.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
 
BEFORE START CHECKLIST
*ELT Remote Panel – LIGHT OFF
Fuel Shutoff    – ON/PUSH DOWN
Fuel Pump Switch– ON
Baggage Area    – SECURE
Passenger Brief – PERFORM
Rt Seat Belt    – FASTENED
Rt Side Vent    – AS NEEDED
Lt Seat Belt    – FASTENED
Lt Side Vent    – AS NEEDED
Fuses           – CHECK
Throttle        – CYCLE
Throttle Friction – AS DESIRED
Cabin Heat      – CYCLE/SET
Avionics        – SWITCH OFF
Nav/Strobe Light– SWITCH ON
Landing Lights  – SWITCH OFF
Autopilot       – SWITCH OFF
EMS Fuel Quantity – VERIFY AND
          CORRECT IF NECESSARY
           (ENGINE MENU >FUEL)
EMS Engine Gauges – CHECK
Hobbs Meter       – RECORD
Flight Controls   – FULL RANGE
                     MOVEMENT
Flaperons         – FULL RANGE
                     MOVEMENT
Parking Brake   – OFF/PUSH IN
Toe Brakes      – CHECK FIRM

* If ELT light ON, press reset
button on indicator panel.
If installed ELT is ACK E-04
immediately call USAF Rescue
Coordination Center at
800-851-3051 to report false
alarm.
 
----------------------------------------------------------
 
ENGINE START CHECKLIST
NORMAL COLD START
Choke         – PULL ON
Throttle      – CLOSE

HOT START
Choke         – PUSH OFF
Throttle      – OPEN 1/4 INCH

WARM START
Follow cold start procedure
for a few blades. If no start
occurs, switch to hot start
procedure.

ENGINE START
Canopy      – CLOSED & LATCHED
Toe Brakes    – HELD & CHECKED
Fuel Pump Sw  – VERIFY ON
Ignition A    – SWITCH ON
Ignition B    – SWITCH ON
Starter Key   – ENGAGE
Throttle/Choke– Adjust 2K RPM
Oil Pressure  – 12 PSI MINIMUM
Fuel Pressure – 2.2 – 7.2 PSI
Ammeter       – CHARGING
Engine Gauges – CHECK SENSORS
Choke         – PUSH OFF/LOCK
             SOON AS POSSIBLE
 
---------------------------------------------------------
 
AFTER START/TAXI CHECKLIST
AFTER START
Avionics     – SWITCH ON
Landing Light– PULSE OR STEADY
Autopilot    – SWITCH ON
Com Radio    – ATIS/AWOS
               COPY
Altimeter    – ENTER BARO
               PRESSURE
Com Radio    – CHECK TRANSMIT
Transponder  – CODE or 1200
EMS          – CHECK GAUGES
Nav Flt Plan –ENTER IF DESIRED
               (MAP MENU >FPL)
EFIS Messages– CHECK MESSAGE
               NOTIFICATIONS
              (Press Button 8)
Parking Brake– OFF/PUSH IN

TAXI
Taxi RPM     – 1,800–2,500 RPM
               UNTIL OIL TEMP
               IS ABOVE 120° F
Toe Brakes   – TEST EFFICIENCY
Steering     – TEST CONTROL
PFD Instruments- VERIFY PROPER
                 INDICATIONS

Taxi operations during high
winds require the use of
conventional flight controls.
With a head wind or quartering
head wind, place the control
stick full aft & into the wind
With a tail wind or quartering
tail wind, use the opposite
procedures. The use of the
wheel brakes in conjunction
with the rudder will assist
in maintaining directional
control.
 
--------------------------------------------------------------
 
RUN-UP CHECKLIST
Toe Brakes   – HOLD
Fuel Valve   – OPEN/PUSH DOWN
Controls     – CHECK MOVEMENT
Instruments  – CHECK
Fuel Quantity– CHECK INDICATED
     Note: No take-off with
     less than 4 gallons fuel.
Autopilot   – ON/CHECK/DISABLE
Trim        – CYCLE/SET FOR TO
Flaps       – SET 1st DETENT
Canopy      – CHECK/LATCHED
Seat Belts  – FASTENED & SNUG

ENGINE RUN-UP
Oil Temp    – MINIMUM 120° F
Stabilator  – STICK BACK
Throttle    – 4000 RPM
Ignition A  – OFF THEN ON
Ignition B  – OFF THEN ON
Max RPM drop– 300 RPM
Max RPM diff– 115 RPM
Engine      – CHECK SENSORS
Fuel Pressure–  2.2 - 7.2 PSI
Ammeter     – CHECK CHARGING
Voltage     – MIN 12v MAX 15v
Throttle    – HARD IDLE STOP
Throttle    - ADJUST 1800+ RPM
Fuses       – CHECK
Radio       – CHECK FREQUENCY
Transponder – CODE or 1200
PFD Altitude Alert–SET ALT BUG
PFD Navigation Hdg–SET HDG BUG
EFIS Messages     – CHECK/PUSH
                      BUTTON 8
PFD Map Scale     – AS DESIRED
Take-off briefing – REVIEW
Abort Plan        – REVIEW
Brakes            – RELEASE

NOTE: Higher RPM will heat the
oil more rapidly. On hot days
CHT can rise significantly if
RPM is low. Operation above
3000 RPM and engine run-up
should be made into the wind
and kept to a minimum during
high temperature conditions.
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
 
TAKE-OFF CHECKLIST
TAKE-OFF (NORMAL)
Stick     – 1/2 WAY BETWEEN
            NEUTRAL AND AFT
Throttle  – SMOOTHLY FULL OPEN
Stick     – HOLD BACK PRESSURE
            TO RAISE NOSE JUST
            OFF GROUND,RELEASE
            PRESSURE AS NEEDED
Lift Off  – 50-55 KIAS
Climb     – 75 KIAS (Vy)
Flaps     – UP
Trim      – AS NEEDED TO HOLD
            DESIRED AIRSPEED

TAKE-OFF (OBSTACLE)
Use normal take-off procedures
with the following exceptions:
Flaps     – 1st DETENT
Brakes    – HOLD
Throttle  – FULL POWER
Lift–Off  – 50 to 55 KIAS
Climb     – 60 KIAS (Vx)

TAKE-OFF (SOFT FIELD)
Use normal take-off procedures
with the following exceptions:
Flaps    – 1st DETENT
Stick    – HOLD BACK PRESSURE
       TO RAISE NOSE SLIGHTLY
   HIGHER THAN NORMAL TAKEOFF
After Lift-Off – LEVEL FLIGHT
      TO OBTAIN SAFE AIRSPEED
        MARGIN PRIOR TO CLIMB
              60 KIAS MINIMUM
 
----------------------------------------------------------------

Creating RV-12 Checklists For The Dynon SkyView – Part 2 of 8

Part 2: Info about my lists of text for the checklist: This post covers the format used to create my RV-12 checklists and the order in which they are assembled in the “master” checklist file.  As mentioned in Part 1, the displayed checklists are either 40% or 50% of the SkyView’s total screen width. I chose to create the checklists for the smaller 40% screen display which will allow viewing of the Primary Flight Display and Engine Monitoring System while the checklists are displayed. The smaller 40% limits each line of text in every checklist to 31 characters … as such, this requires some forethought, creative wording and positioning. Creating meaningful checklist using only 31 characters per line is a challenge to be sure. I feel the checklists and info in Part 3-7 are comprehensive and usable … and, if after using the checklists for a period of time adjustments are deemed necessary, changes can be made at any time by editing the “master” checklist file and reinstalling the revised checklist file into the SkyView. Even though the lists posted in Parts 3-7 are created for the RV-12 specifically, it should be quite easy to adapt them to most any experimental aircraft by changing the speeds and specs for the new aircraft and not installing the Rotax engine related lists.


Fellow RV-12 owners take note: There are entries in my checklists referring to a parking brake and a fuel pump switch. If you don’t have these items, simply copy my text files to a simple text editor and delete the offending lines then copy the remaining lines to the Dynon check list creation tool or the checklist file you are building manually. I did not include a pre-flight walk around checklist because it would just be so very long requiring multiple lists and … frankly, how can you see the list on the Skyview if you are busy outside checking out the aircraft? Thus, I’ve decided to just use laminated checklist pages from the POH for my preflight walk around and just fill the SkyView with checklists, emergency procedures, spec data and miscellaneous info that can be used from the pilot seat.


The Dynon checklist creation tool can create up to 24 individual checklists or informational lists… each of which can contain up to 50 lines of text.  Each checklist and informational list was created keeping the limitations of Dynon’s display and the checklist creation tool in mind. As such, each line of text was limited to a maximum of 31 characters for the desired screen size of 40% and all the checklists or informational lists do not exceed 50 lines. I’ll cover the use of  Dynon’s checklist creation tool in Part 8.


Below is a “master” list that I used to keep track of the order the lists are entered into the checklist creation tool. The master list IS NOT entered into the checklist creation tool, its only use is to keep track of the names and order in which I wanted the checklists to be installed and listed …  fell the reader may benefit from it as well. Note: The master list shows line 22 as blank. I decided to keep one storage location available for future use. The Dynon checklist creator will not build a checklist if there is not text entered for that location, so no worries, you won’t see a “Blank” in you checklist listed … the creation tool just passes over cells not populated with text.
 
List 0. BEFORE START CHECKLIST
List 1. ENGINE START CHECKLIST
List 2. AFTER START/TAXI CHECKLIST
List 3. RUN-UP CHECKLIST
List 4. TAKE-OFF CHECKLIST
List 5. CLIMB & CRUISE CHECKLIST
List 6. DECENT & APPROACH CHECKLIST
List 7. LANDING CHECKLIST
List 8. SHUTDOWN CHECKLIST
List 9. EMERGENCY: ENGINE FAIL TAKEOFF
List 10. EMERGENCY ENGINE INAIR RESTART
List 11. EMERGENCY: ENGINE FIRE GROUND
List 12. EMERGENCY: ENGINE FIRE IN AIR
List 13. EMERGENCY: ELECTRICAL FIRE
List 14. EMERGENCY: FORCED LANDING
List 15. RV-12 PERFORMANCE & SPECS
List 16. RV-12 POH V-SPEEDS
List 17. RV-12 ROTAX 912ULS LIMITATIONS
List 18. MISC: LIGHT SIGNALS
List 19. MISC: PHONETIC ALPHABET
List 20. MISC: SKYVIEW BUTTONS
List 21. MISC: TRANSPONDER CODES
List 22. [left blank for future use]
List 23. MISC: CHECKLIST INFO
 
The viewer should note the lists of text posted in Parts 3-7 will have a dashed line above and below each text list … this is to aid the viewer with a visual queue denoting the beginning and end of each text list. Also of note, the first line in each text list matches one of the entries in the above “master” list. That first line is the title of the checklist and will be copied and pasted into the appropriate line under Checklist Titles in Dynon's checklist creator tool and only the remaining lines of text will be copied and pasted into the spreadsheet cell associated with that title. Here again that process will be covered in step by step detail in Part 8.

Creating RV-12 Checklists For The Dynon SkyView – Part 1 of 8

Last year when Dynon released version 14 of the SkyView software one of the new features added was the ability for the SkyView to display custom made checklists for the aircraft. The process of taking advantage of SkyView’s capability to display customized checklists in the DOG Aviation RV-12 began last winter … but never quite got the lists to my liking at that time, so put the project on the back burner through the summer months. During the latest batch of cold/ rainy/windy/low ceiling days here in northeast Ohio, figured it was about time that I finished off the checklists and tweak them to what I feel is a usable format … even one a pilot barely familiar with the RV-12 could safely use.


Now that the text editing is more or less completed, I’ve decided to share my individual checklists with others so they can use the lists to quickly build a RV-12 checklist as is, or modify my lists to suit their needs and personal taste. In addition to various checklists, there are also emergency checklists, RV-12 specific specifications and miscellaneous information that may come in handy at some point. With a little custom editing the text lists posted in Parts 3-7 could easily be adapted to aircraft other than the RV-12.


Part 1: Becoming acquainted with the checklist file. The checklist file that will be loaded into the SkyView is created on a computer either manually using a simple text editor or by using Dynon’s checklist creation tool. Rather than installing a separate file for each checklist desired, Dynon uses only one checklist file. Think of it as a “master” file which contains all the separate checklists the user wants the SkyView to display. The “master” checklist file has a unique internal format that once carefully looked at, I think most will have no problems creating or editing the file. I’ll show abbreviated examples of the contents of the checklist file which will allow the viewer to see the internal format the checklist file utilizes.


There are some limitations and also a learning curve involved especially when creating the checklist file by hand. The display screen size governs the limit for the number of text characters that can be displayed on each line of the checklist. A 40% display page limits text to 31 characters per line and a 50% display page limits text to 40 characters per line. There is no wraparound … so lines of text longer than the limits are just cut off and simply not displayed.


Creating the checklist file manually: (Using Dynon's Excel-based checklist creator tool will be covered in Part8). Creating checklists manually involves the user creating a text file using a computer. The text file will contain all the multiple checklists the user wants the SkyView to display along with titles for each checklist. On a Windows computer the checklist text file can be created using a simple text editor such as “Notepad” (can be found under Windows Accessories in the program list). When finished entering the text for ALL the individual checklists and making sure the Dynon format for each line of text is adhered to, the user needs to save the text as a plain text file with a .txt file extension. One such example would be saving the file as rv12checklist.txt making sure there are no spaces in the file name.


For those of you Big Mac types (Apple) “TextEdit” is used to generate the text file along with selecting “UTF-8 Character Encoding” before saving the file. Here again, name the file … nameofyourchoice.txt. Below is an example of a test checklist file I made for the reader that has three abbreviated checklists. One can easily see the format used by Dynon to create the “master” checklist file.

Displayed above are the contents of a test checklist file I made that has three individual checklists titled BEFORE ENGINE START, ENGINE START and RV-12 POH V-SPEEDS each containing 10 to 12 lines of text. Looking closely the viewer can easily see the format Dynon utilizes for the checklist file. When manually creating the checklist file or editing an existing checklist file, this format MUST be adhered to.


As can be seen in the above example each line in the checklist file begins with the checklist number followed by a period ... such as CHKLST1. or CHKLST2.
 
First line of each checklist is a title line such as CHKLST2.TITLE, ENGINE START


Below the title entry are the actual line numbers for the checklist followed by a comma such as LINE1, LINE6, as an example: CHKLST1.LINE2,


To the right of the line number there is a space followed by the actual text to be displayed. As an example: CHKLST2.LINE10, Best Climb Angle  (Vx)- 60 KIAS


Note: looking at the above photo one can see there is a blank line between each individual checklist inside the checklist file.


Appendix J in version 15 of the SkyView instillation manual is a good reference location for additional information about the checklist file. Dynon also has sample checklist files on their WEB site for users to refer to as an example of how to build their own checklist files. Documentation and a sample checklist can be found along with the Excel-based Checklist Creator tool at this Dynon link:
Link to Dynon's checklist page


After the checklist.txt file has been created on the computer of your choice, the “master” checklist file is copied to the root directory (don’t place the checklist file in a folder) of a  USB flash drive … which is subsequently plugged into one of the SkyView’s USB ports so it can be loaded into the SkyView. To load the newly created checklist file into the SkyView, enter the Setup Menu by pressing buttons 7& 8 and navigate to Load Files.  SETUP MENU > SYSTEM SOFTWARE > LOAD FILES > (select your Checklist file) > LOAD (button) > YES (button)   …. If all goes well, you should see a message on the screen saying “Operation Completed Successfully”. After instillation, the checklists are accessed via the SkyView’s “Tools” page where there is a “Checklist” button. If successful, you should see something along the lines of the photo below after pressing the “Checklist” button.

Pressing the “Checklist” button on the “Tools” page will display the checklist menu showing the titles for all the individual checklists that were placed inside the checklist file during the text entry process with the simple text editor. The menu will look similar to the one in this screenshot taken after installing my checklist file ... of course, your checklist titles will be the custom ones you entered when creating the checklist file.


Besides requiring a whole lot of typing and attention to detail, it sounds easy right? Actually, it is for those of us familiar with looking at the contents of computer files. However, some users with little or no computer background may find that their eyes glaze over when looking at the contents of a long checklist file and the necessary format within. To Dynon’s credit, an Excel-based spreadsheet creation tool was developed that builds the checklist file automatically for the user … all that is needed is for the user to make text lists on a text editor and then copy and paste the list into the checklist creation tool and when finished, let the creation tool make the “master” file. I’ll cover using Dynon’s checklist creation tool in Part 8.

Dynon SkyView Software Upgraded To Version 15.2.0

One upgrade I wanted to make during the down time for the condition inspection was to upgrade the Dynon SkyView’s software from version 14 to version 15. When upgrading the SkyView software, I like placing a battery charger on the Odyssey battery so the battery does not discharge while the software is being loaded and menus sifted through after the software instillation has been completed. But prior to hooking up the battery charger felt it would be a good time to test the SkyView’s backup battery.

One task that should be completed as part of the annual condition inspection is testing of the Dynon SkyView’s backup battery. The test is simple enough … remove power from the SkyView by powering off the master switch then push a button to enter the battery test mode. A countdown timer will appear on the screen along with a window that shows the backup battery’s voltage. The test timer begins at 45 minutes and counts down …. if all goes well, the counter will successfully count down and after 45 minutes has elapsed, the display will show a test completed message. The goal is to receive the test completed message prior to the backup battery’s voltage dropping to an unusable voltage. Dynon’s documentation states, if fully charged, the SkyView’s backup battery will typically power the SkyView for approximately one hour.

After completing a successful testing of the SkyView's backup battery, a battery charger was hooked up to the RV-12’s Odyssey battery so the master switch could be ON and the SkyView could begin charging the backup battery during loading of the new software and while I sifted through the menus to check out settings and see how & where some of the new features are implemented. The new Skyview software installed changed the SkyView’s software from version 14 to the current latest version which (at the time of the condition inspection) is 15.2.0. The software was obtained from the Van’s WEB site because Van’s does take the time to vet the software to make sure new features and settings are functional in the RV-12. Speaking of new features, version 15 of the SkyView software gives the user quite a few new features (some of which I’m truly looking forward to experimenting with) plus there are many improvements to existing features along with quite a few fixes for minor glitches previously discovered. There is also a software upgrade for the transponder to version 2.11 which took me off guard for a few minutes as mentioned below.

The key new features of SkyView version 15 are:
New: Extended Runways Centerlines.
New: Highway in the Sky (HITS). (HITS is a method of displaying a string of rectangular boxes on the display screen which if “flown through”, will lead the pilot down to the runway. Looking forward to checking this new feature out).
New: Airport Signposts in Synthetic Vision.
New: Maintenance Logging.
New: Weight and Balance Calculator.
New: Support for SV-ADSB-472 Dual Band Traffic and Weather Receiver. Customers upgrading from the SV-ADSB-470 should update the device under serial port setup to SV-ADSB-472.
New: ADS-B Traffic and Weather from SkyView’s SV-ADSB-470 is now transmitted via Wi-Fi for use by 3rd party apps (FlyQ, etc).
New: NEXRAD weather radar animation.
New: Airspace proximity notification. This includes airspace you are in, upcoming airspace along your flight path, and those that are above and below you.
New: Activating “Direct-To” with a runway selected under airport runway info will create a 5nm leg to the chosen runway along the extended centerline.
New: VNAV from SkyView’s flight plan to your destination airport, arriving either above the airport or right at the runway itself.
New: EGT/CHT widget now available in “vertical” orientation.
New: A fourth size of EMS widgets has been added which has larger text for displaying values and labels than any of the other three sizes. The overall size of the widget remains the same as the largest of the other three sizes, and thus, the graphical area of widget is reduced in size to make way for larger text. For EGT and CHT widgets, just the label text increases in size, as there is not enough space to make the value text any larger.
New: Pitot/Static test mode that eliminates the need for display restarts during transponder checks. Available via SETUP MENU > HARDWARE CALIBRATION > ADAHRS CALIBRATION > PITOT / STATIC TEST MODE.

The updating of the SkyView is easy. Copy the file containing the new version 15 software onto a USB flash drive making sure the file ends up in the root directory of the flash drive and NOT in a folder. Place the flash drive in any one of the SkyView’s USB ports and power up the SkyView making sure the Avionics and Autopilot switches are also powered on. Enter the Setup Menu by simultaneously pressing buttons 7 & 8 and select System Software then select Upgrade System Software.

The version 15 software includes an update for the transponder that, as I discovered, is not directly installed at the time the version 15 software is loaded into the SkyView … however, the update is “queued” so to speak. After completing the version 15 software instillation, I began looking through the menus and noticed the transponder status was showing yellow text (which is not normal).

So after loading the version 15 software, the user needs to enter the Setup Menu once again and navigate to Transponder Setup and enter that menu. The first line in the Transponder Setup Menu is the Status line and it will have yellow text indicating the transponder software is not up to date. When the Status line is highlighted, the right side of the screen will display an option to press a Load button to load the new transponder software update. Press the Load button and the transponder will be updated to version 2.11.

The update to SkyView version 15 software went smoothly once I realized the transponder software needed to be updated manually. I’m truly looking forward to dabbling with some of the new expanded features such as highway in the sky, extended runway centerlines, direct to with runway selected, weight &balance calculator, VNAV to airport or runway and the NEXTRAD weather animation. SkyView version 15 is an exciting feature filled update to be sure. Dynon should be commended for their ongoing commitment to improve and expand the capabilities of the SkyView product line for the experimental community.