Foreflight Synthetic Vision in the plane today.

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Reedster

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I finally got a chance to play with Synthetic Vision in the plane.

It took a bit here to actually get something to show up in red.

It was VMC, so I was able to compare it to Real Vision. I would say it was right on. I haven't broken down and ordered my Stratus yet, but after today it won't be long.

Wind was around 35 knots out of the south west and pretty gusty. It was an intersting challenge to try to manipulate the screen.
 

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I'm going to have to play with it in the 185, doesn't really have much use for IFR high altitude/high speed stuff.

I see it as a good night VFR and MVFR tool
 
James331 said:
I'm going to have to play with it in the 185, doesn't really have much use for IFR high altitude/high speed stuff.

I see it as a good night VFR and MVFR tool
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I would agree. I think on an approach down to the mins, just to confirm the runway is where it should be.

The only other thing I could think of was that just off the approach at KEYE is a tower that is pretty tall. I have seen it stick out of the tops, and then have it gone, but not forgotten when in the soup.

Other than that, it has limited use in flat country.

I would trust it as a last ditch backup though.
 
Reedster said:
I would agree. I think on an approach down to the mins, just to confirm the runway is where it should be.

The only other thing I could think of was that just off the approach at KEYE is a tower that is pretty tall. I have seen it stick out of the tops, and then have it gone, but not forgotten when in the soup.

Other than that, it has limited use in flat country.

I would trust it as a last ditch backup though.
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Yep, but not so much for the ILS,

I'd hate to see some pilot get all squirrelly on the ILS with steady needles and everything else 5 by 5, just because foreflight had a hiccup
 
Waiting for sun n fun to check out the program. Not sure I need it.
 
James331 said:
Yep, but not so much for the ILS,

I'd hate to see some pilot get all squirrelly on the ILS with steady needles and everything else 5 by 5, just because foreflight had a hiccup
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Very true. I was kind of thinking of an off field VOR approach. 3 minutes at MDA can feel like an eternity. Although I guess just the FF moving map does the same thing.

Come to think of it, the last time I flew an off field VOR approach at the mins was before I had a moving map.
 
I tried mine out yesterday and compared it to the G1000. I think the terrain detail is better in foreflight than garmin svt. I do think anyone wanting any kind of reliability will want the stratus. I lost gps signal 4 times on the Ipad yesterday.
 
Bravo said:
I tried mine out yesterday and compared it to the G1000. I think the terrain detail is better in foreflight than garmin svt. I do think anyone wanting any kind of reliability will want the stratus. I lost gps signal 4 times on the Ipad yesterday.
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Thanks for the advice. I've read the back-and-forth about whether an external gps is needed or not with the cell-equipped iPads, but I think I'll go ahead and get the stratus when I get back in the saddle.
 
I have never had an issue with losing the signal. For years I had it sitting in my lap, and recently I came up with a solid Ram Mount solution.

I had an external WAAS receiver years ago, thinking it would be better than just the ipad, and I didn't find that to be true. It was just one more thing in my flight bag that had to be charged. I stopped using it about 4 years ago and haven't missed it.

And that may be partially why I have struggled with the Stratus. The traffic and attitude is nice. However in a few years (in theory) the traffic part will be useless. We have weather in the 430, so really for me, the attitude is about it. $500-$600 would be the no brainer price point for me on that. $900 for attitude is a tough justification. Granted a true no gyro at night in solid IMC, will change my mind on that quickly.

I would suggest trying the cell version of the ipad first. It is always easier to add if you find you need it
 
Reedster said:
I have never had an issue with losing the signal. For years I had it sitting in my lap, and recently I came up with a solid Ram Mount solution.

I had an external WAAS receiver years ago, thinking it would be better than just the ipad, and I didn't find that to be true. It was just one more thing in my flight bag that had to be charged. I stopped using it about 4 years ago and haven't missed it.

And that may be partially why I have struggled with the Stratus. The traffic and attitude is nice. However in a few years (in theory) the traffic part will be useless. We have weather in the 430, so really for me, the attitude is about it. $500-$600 would be the no brainer price point for me on that. $900 for attitude is a tough justification. Granted a true no gyro at night in solid IMC, will change my mind on that quickly.

I would suggest trying the cell version of the ipad first. It is always easier to add if you find you need it
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I went ipad on lap -> yoke mount -> stratus over time and I agree with most of what you said here. I have lost signal with the internal GPS however. I also fly rentals in IMC so having that backup AHRS and synthetic vision is pretty important to me!
 
ChrisK said:
I went ipad on lap -> yoke mount -> stratus over time and I agree with most of what you said here. I have lost signal with the internal GPS however. I also fly rentals in IMC so having that backup AHRS and synthetic vision is pretty important to me!
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That is a great point. I know the maintenance level and we have a backup vacuum pump, so that minimizes the chances of something going seriously wrong. If I was going to fly a rental in IMC, it would be a much easier justification.
 
I've flown close to 100 hours using a Stratus 1/ForeFlight combo and have never once had it drop anything on me. Had an issue where it would occasionally crash right after an iOS update, but once they worked that out it was again solid.

I have a buddy that has tried it and hates it, but myself, I've never had a problem.

I certainly wouldn't use it for anything beyond situational awareness (and it does a beautiful job of that!).

The synthetic vision strikes me as a very tempting option, but in order to use it effectively, I'd want to upgrade to a Stratus2. At that point I'm dropping $900 plus whatever else (shipping, etc)... so around $1000 to upgrade that... not sure if it is worth it.
 
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Is there a video out there, of SV in action paired with outside video to compare?
or maybe I misunderstand what SV does.
 
ahkahn said:
I've flown close to 100 hours using a Stratus 1/ForeFlight combo and have never once had it drop anything on me. Had an issue where it would occasionally crash right after an iOS update, but once they worked that out it was again solid.

I have a buddy that has tried it and hates it, but myself, I've never had a problem.

I certainly wouldn't use it for anything beyond situational awareness (and it does a beautiful job of that!).

The synthetic vision strikes me as a very tempting option, but in order to use it effectively, I'd want to upgrade to a Stratus2. At that point I'm dropping $900 plus whatever else (shipping, etc)... so around $1000 to upgrade that... not sure if it is worth it.
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For the $25.00 per year, the cost of the SV to me is pretty much a non-issue for me.

The harder part is its value around here. I mean I had to fly along the lake to get anything tall enough to show up in red. As long as you can avoid the Sears Tower (I know) you will pretty much run out of gas before ever needing it.


Having the AHRS would definitely be nice for a back up. However I am not sure how useful it would be during normal operations.

I hooked FF up to my flight sim, which gives full AHRS info to the ipad. It worked well, however there was a very slight but noticeable lag. So when I tried flying by the SV, I was over correcting. Until I actually use a Stratus 2 in a plane there is no way for me to compare, but I suspect it will be close.

Using the sim I found it distracting with the attitude on the iPad, as I wanted to fly it (I have flown enough glass where it was natural for me to try to use it).

In the plane yesterday I had the SV on the whole flight, just without attitude. Because of that, I just glanced at it to play with over the lake, then kind of forgot about it.

With the Stratus 2, I would have no issue using it as a backup to fly the plane. Flying it on the sim convinced me of that.
 
That is a very good video...but I was hoping for one with live scenery. Maybe even one on an ils in the soup, holding the ipad up next to the front window all the way down until breakout? Maybe asking for too much! Just want a feel for what it is providing.
 
Keep in mind it is still pretty early with the FF release. You will probably see videos like that show up after time.

I will tell you that what was on the screen of my ipad was exactly what was in front of the plane. The buildings above correlated precisely to where the buildings actually are.

On landing, the runway was on the ipad in the same place as it was in front of me.

Actually the only thing that was different was that the water had ice on it, and the ground is a lot whiter in real life, however in the summer it would be right on.
 
Reedster said:
(snipped - DT) I will tell you that what was on the screen of my ipad was exactly what was in front of the plane. The buildings above correlated precisely to where the buildings actually are.
On landing, the runway was on the ipad in the same place as it was in front of me.
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That right there is useful feedback, thanks. Sounds like a 25$ HUD-like add-on!
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
That right there is useful feedback, thanks. Sounds like a 25$ HUD-like add-on!
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That is exactly what it is with one caveat. With just the ipad (no Stratus 2) the horizon moves with the plane, but it moves flat (as if you were yawning the plane to turn). The horizon is always level to the bottom of the ipad. So when I was on base turning final, the runway rotated into view in front of me. But the horizon stayed level.

If you have the Stratus 2, the horizon on the iPad matches the actual horizon. So you get left, right, up, down, changes as you turn.

So flying a straight in ILS would look the same on the iPad either way, however if you had an approach with any turns, the screen would show the turns differently.

Actually if you look at my first pic above, you can see in the map,view that whenI took the screen shot I was turning to the left. However the horizon in the SV was level. If I had the Stratus 2, the horizon in the SV would be showing the turn.
 
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I bit the bullet and sprung for SVT in Foreflight. I didn't have an opportunity to try it in the air yet, but for sh*ts and giggles I played with it driving up the Sierras and back. It looks like a useful tool if you get stuck at night or MVFR in the mountains. Not that it's part of the intended purpose, but it's useless on or very close to the ground.
 
Sac Arrow said:
I bit the bullet and sprung for SVT in Foreflight. I didn't have an opportunity to try it in the air yet, but for sh*ts and giggles I played with it driving up the Sierras and back. It looks like a useful tool if you get stuck at night or MVFR in the mountains. Not that it's part of the intended purpose, but it's useless on or very close to the ground.
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my safety pilot had it up and running when taxiing for takeoff. the runway was almost 100% accurate. I was impressed.
 
One feature I would really like to see - glide path based on the GPS trajectory of the airplane and not attitude. Like you would see on a HUD.
 
I'm anxious to fly with my new Synthetic Vision, but things keep popping up to prevent it.

To the GPS signal reliability, I have flown with Foreflight and an IPad with internal receiver and have NEVER lost a GPS fix. From reading so many posts about this issue, I have come to the conclusion that it has a lot to do with the particular aircraft you are flying.
 
Mt. Rainier and the Cascade range, looking south, departing Seattle last night:

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Sweeet. That is awesome. I love flying in that area. Great screenshot!
 
MBDiagMan said:
I'm anxious to fly with my new Synthetic Vision, but things keep popping up to prevent it.

To the GPS signal reliability, I have flown with Foreflight and an IPad with internal receiver and have NEVER lost a GPS fix. From reading so many posts about this issue, I have come to the conclusion that it has a lot to do with the particular aircraft you are flying.
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It is definitely possible. I don't think I have ever lost a signal. I fly a Saratoga and a Debonair.

An occasional Archer and a 182. I have flown all over the country right seat in a PC-12.

Commerical is a little sketchier. If I hold the ipad up against the window it generally does pretty well. Moving it away from the window will often make it drop.

The case may make a difference. I use a thin leather case on my main ipad. This one is an Air. My backup is my old Ipad 3 with a silicone case. Often I let my passengers play with the backup, and it doesn't seem to ever drop.
 
Tried it today, most of you will know but here is the setup:
Foreflight
Stratus
Synthetic vision
on a pal's Ipad 2
I am on the edge of ADS-B coverage.

With SV, the moving map now has interactive terrain I will call it; as you descend into hills they rise up around you, seem 3D.
Also instead of a flat, non-changing runway on say, the airport diagram.. the runway moves on the image as the aircraft pitch changes, and grows appropriately as you approach. If your a/c lost all electrics, I believe you could find a runway in very low weather.
I did not see any traffic..across the entire nation. Traffic was selected on. I was getting weather feeds, but not sat imaging or radar cycling - only a static image. I suppose I was not close enough to a tower in which another a/c was broadcasting ADS-B out?
Is there anyway to pseudo-transport the device to a big city in order to check out the traffic? I probably don't understand how it all works.
Kept looking for a flight director! What would that take? A target altitude for starters I suppose.
And is there any way to convert from a 360° compass rose to an um, abbreviated one or the type that only shows about 60° of the rose?
Tell me more about this thing!
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
Tried it today, most of you will know but here is the setup:

Foreflight

Stratus

Synthetic vision

on a pal's Ipad 2

I am on the edge of ADS-B coverage.



With SV, the moving map now has interactive terrain I will call it; as you descend into hills they rise up around you, seem 3D.

Also instead of a flat, non-changing runway on say, the airport diagram.. the runway moves on the image as the aircraft pitch changes, and grows appropriately as you approach. If your a/c lost all electrics, I believe you could find a runway in very low weather.

I did not see any traffic..across the entire nation. Traffic was selected on. I was getting weather feeds, but not sat imaging or radar cycling - only a static image. I suppose I was not close enough to a tower in which another a/c was broadcasting ADS-B out?

Is there anyway to pseudo-transport the device to a big city in order to check out the traffic? I probably don't understand how it all works.

Kept looking for a flight director! What would that take? A target altitude for starters I suppose.

And is there any way to convert from a 360° compass rose to an um, abbreviated one or the type that only shows about 60° of the rose?

Tell me more about this thing!
Click to expand...


Stratus or stratus 2? The stratus 2 can display traffic based on direct output from appropriately equipped aircraft while the stratus 1 is limited to receiving responses from the ground based on adsb out equipped aircraft.
 
Finally broke down and ordered my Stratus 2 today. I knew it wouldn't take long for me to justify it to myself.

Now that I decided to get it, I want it now, but it is on back order until the 20th. Arghh
 
ChrisK said:
Stratus or stratus 2? The stratus 2 can display traffic based on direct output from appropriately equipped aircraft while the stratus 1 is limited to receiving responses from the ground based on adsb out equipped aircraft.
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The device says, "Stratus Appareo", 'MN PRX V2' on bottom and "Stratus" on top.
I can see I have some studying to do - I honestly cannot tell what your description is saying about it Chris! Thanks for trying to educate someone who is behind on this technology....most tech, in fact.
 
Pretty accurate depiction of local hills this am:
 

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James331 said:
Yep, but not so much for the ILS,

I'd hate to see some pilot get all squirrelly on the ILS with steady needles and everything else 5 by 5, just because foreflight had a hiccup
Click to expand...

Yeah, any of the App generated SVT units are limited usefulness in IMC. However having it on a real panel with your regular HSI and other data available right there with a 3D visual confirmation and a predictor make anything with proximity to the ground go much nicer, especially when the winds are strong and the clouds are low and bumpy. The predictor along with the traditional slope indications makes getting it exactly where you want to be at the bottom of the approach a whole lot simpler and much less less stressful.
 
And sometimes it DOES paint some weirdness.

Departing Phoenix Sky Harbor, runway 25R. What's with the mountain adjacent to the runway on the north side? The terminal building isn't THAT close! Red Star on the Google Earth view marks the spot, looking west.

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