Do you have a Transponder Scottie.......

[1600vw]

Lets go a few steps further....

Remember your transponder requires an antenna. For your stick and fabric airplane, the antenna will likely require a ground plane. Installing the antenna might require more effort than you are allowing for. Second, once installed, the transponder and encoder have to comply with regulatory performance requirements. If it doesn't, there might be some additional expense to get things up to spec. It's like taking a plane in for an annual. The inspection itself is not much $$$ but if the inspector finds any discrepancies, it gets more expensive. But we'll say your optimism pays off and there are no snags getting things installed, once up operating routine checks should not be an issue. Add $75/yr to your operating costs and you're covered.

If I had intentions of upgrading to a more capable aircraft one day, I'd use the extra cash to save for that. Avionics upgrades rarely return more than 1/3 on investment. IOW's $1000 of avionics upgrades adds about $300 to the value of the aircraft. Install if for your own entertainment cause you won't get your money back.

Marty thanks again for this info. My panel would be a lot cleaner with just an EIS and gps. I really do not care about getting my money back from this unit, but it might make the plane easier to sell.

[WLIU]

You guys are making this a lot harder than it has to be. 1600vw already has the gear in hand.

The transponder and encoder and wiring should weight less than 5 lbs. and take less that 2A at 14V. You can use a modern light weight battery.

Because transponders run in the 1Ghz range, the antennas are small. Aircraft Spruce sells a little dipole antenna that is a total of 6" high. Look at https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catal...?clickkey=4083

I think that 1600vw can figure out the mechanics of the installation and decide whether it is worthwhile. And it is not a lifetime commitment. The gear can always be unbolted and sold.

I will comment on the quotes from the AIM. The AIM provides the FAA view of best practices for pilots. In fact, the ATC folks are essentially a different FAA and work from a different set of rules in the controllers handbook. The two documents do not complement each other. So what ATC really does and the expectations set in the AIM do not necessarily match. Ask a controller about the AIM and you might get a blank stare. In fact, while you get advisories as their workload allows, the IFR guys get advisories all of the time, and the TCAS equipped IFR heavies absolutely get advisories full time. Its a non-trivial deal for an IFR heavy to have the TCAS go off on traffic that an advisory was not provided for. That is not in the AIM. Go take a peek into the world of the controllers.

So I practice acro in the same area day in and day out. Approach once upon a time tried sending traffic over me, a little above my top practice altitude. One heavy was overhead when I pulled to the vertical for a hammerhead and after that surprise TCAS alarm approach started vectoring traffic to give my practice area a wide berth and verbalized lots of advisories about me. TCAS sees a closure rate and vector and does not know that I will be kicking the rudder to head back vertical down. I listen only as advisories are worthless unless you are in stable level cruise flight. With the radar painting me only every 10 secs or so, there is no way that the controller has any idea whether I am upright, inverted, on a vertical line, or doing a rolling turn. So attempting to call traffic at 2 o'clock is just a waste of time. After a few years of this I hear myself called to other pilots as "you have traffic at 11 o'clock, appears to be maneuvering between 6000' and 2500', probably aerobatic." Works for me. I can see the Boeings coming a long way off.

So looking at the sectional chart online, it looks like 1600vw's concern might come from V67 going almost right overhead his airport. I can only surmise that some traffic gets vectored to the ILS RWY 31 approach. That said, the approach chart says that you arrive at the final approach fix somewhere over 2000'. So while a Boeing or Airbus looks big, it should be in the Class C airspace and not a hazard to flying right around Holmes.

Do the airports around there use 1000' AGL patterns? Seems pretty rude and maybe unsafe for folks to be zooming through the traffic pattern of Holmes field trying to get around the Class C. I find it hard to believe that folks circumnavigating that Class C are a significant hazard. But then I live 1000 miles away...

Fly safe,

Wes
N78PS

[1600vw]

Wes I really do like the way you think. Thanks once again.

When I looked over that one evening and saw that big airplane over lake springfield which is just maybe 1 mile from me, it looked huge and maybe a little above me. As hard as he was banking I believe he saw me but was planing on flying where I was or close to it. When I looked over thats when I saw him make a really step turn to the north. before the turn he was heading right at me. In a litle airplane weighing at most 500 lbs and moving 70mph this was a site to see. I felt like a mouse compaired to that airliner Heavy.

We have a hellipad here at holmes and a refueling station for those helli's. They do try and watch for me but we all know if midairs are going to acure its more then likely it will happen between a low wing and hellicopter. These helli's come from not only our base but other Air-e-vac bases to refuel.

You would be shocked to see how many times I have had an airplane buzz right over the top of my hangar maybe at 1000' or a little higher. Now those crops dusters buzz over at 300-500'. That day this crop duster flew under me, I had "two" buzz my hangar as I was pushing my plane out and doing my preflight. I just thought to myself, I hope they stay clear once I am up airborn. It was a couple days later I had one buzz under me.

Wes yes that Vectors airways concerns me, you are right.

H.A.S.

[martymayes]

When I looked over that one evening and saw that big airplane over lake springfield which is just maybe 1 mile from me, it looked huge and maybe a little above me. As hard as he was banking I believe he saw me but was planing on flying where I was or close to it. When I looked over thats when I saw him make a really step turn to the north. before the turn he was heading right at me.

More likey he was being vectored for an approach and probably a lot further away than it looked. I seriously doubt they saw you and were taking evasive action.

You would be shocked to see how many times I have had an airplane buzz right over the top of my hangar maybe at 1000' or a little higher.

That would be the guys avoiding SPI Class C

Now those crops dusters buzz over at 300-500'. That day this crop duster flew under me, I had "two" buzz my hangar as I was pushing my plane out and doing my preflight. I just thought to myself, I hope they stay clear once I am up airborn. It was a couple days later I had one buzz under me.

Unfortunately, having a transponder won't change that, or the one above.

Wes yes that Vectors airways concerns me, you are right.

So all you have to do is avoid the victor airway. The best collision avoidance is to stay clear of areas where planes congregate.