For those who have been asking about soft instrument panels, how about this
line of approach? (Quoted from a list in another part of the forest.)
>>Rutan's Boomerang Leaves Oshkosh Crowds Slack-Jawed
>>
>>On opening day, Burt Rutan arrived at Oshkosh flying perhaps the
>>weirdest-looking aircraft that EAA regulars had ever seen. After a
>>nonstop flight from Mojave, California, Rutan stepped out of his latest
>>aeronautical creation called "Boomerang."
>>
>>(snip)
>>
>>An Apple Macintosh Powerbook notebook computer is required equipment to
>>fly the Boomerang, since no engine instruments are installed in the
>>sparse panel. The Mac monitors all flight parameters.
>
>
>That's not all. According to the talk Burt Rutan gave at Oshkosh, the Mac
>in the Boomerang supplies more than the engine instruments. It also
>controls the pressurization of the cabin, and monitors all the
>instrumentation about the plane. (The Boomerang is bedecked with gobs of
>sensors, like it were going to undergo flight testing -- except the
>sensors are a permanent part of the plane) Burt said that the Mac records
>all of the flight data, and that ANY flight ever made by the plane can
>easily be reviewed.
>
>There's also a set of smart alarms, so you can actually use the Mac for
>word processing or whatever while in flight. If anything happens that
>requires your attention, the software will automatically bring it up on
>the screen.
>
>Best part is, if you need a replacement panel, you can just go down to
>your local computer store or even mail order one. And a PowerBook is MUCH
>cheaper than a custom aviation instrumentation panel.
Sounds good to me! (any of you windoze guys want to chance flying behind
your operating system? - sorry, couldn't resist that!)
cheers
Rowland
... that's Rowland with a 'w' ...
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