Below are some photos courtesy of a Facebook page called ‘Crap Instrument Panels’.

As technology advances, you sometimes need to start over with a better instrument panel and not just continually add instruments. Visibility and electronic distractions can be equally bad.

Portable FLARM

One reader asked about how Portable FLARM interfered with forward visibility. It really depends on your glider and how you sit in it. When I had the portable FLARM in my Nimbus 3 on the edge of the glare shield it sat below my line of sight for the compass, still allowing me to view the top of the compass behind it. Not that I used the compass, but it did not interfere with any outside visibility. In the ASW-19 I flew it obstructed more of my view.

However, you might sit low in the seat and/or have a high instrument panel. So really the best is to make a cardboard cutout and stick it in place and try it for yourself.

Do the set-up first

This leads to another problem, not just visibility. But a distraction from electronics. It is very important that you program your flight computer to view the information that you want. That you set the information where you want to view it. Most of the flight computers have a simulator mode or some way to play with them on the ground or in your office.

LXNav

LXNav has a pretty neat computer program where you can set up all of the pages, order, information, font, color, etc. All of the screens are set up in a very easy to see format on the computer. One of the local pilots took his USB stick into his brand new glider and magically it was set-up and gave the impression he had been flying with it for years. Yet the only flying he had been doing with it is on his desktop.

Nice to Know vs Need to Know

There is another article where I talk about what information I want to see when I am flying, what is useful and what is just nice to know. At the 2018 WGC in Hosin, my computer in the back seat had all of the nice to know information and sometimes just distraction information.

Look Outside

Having electronics reduce your outside visibility is not good. Having electronics inside the cockpit distracting you from outside is also just as bad. I remember my first flight with FLARM connected to the ClearNav. I spent an embarrassingly long time watching W3 behind me and not looking outside reading the clouds or realizing the cloudstreet was ending.

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 Banner Photo by Krystof Peterka HpH Shark instrument panel

 Garret Willat holds a flight instructor rating with over 8000 hours in sailplanes. His parents have owned Sky Sailing Inc. since 1979. He started instructing the day after his 18th birthday. Since then, Garret has represented the US Junior team in 2003 and 2005. He graduated from Embry-Riddle with a bachelor's degree in Professional Aeronautics. Garret represented the US Open Class team in 2008 and 2010 and the Club Class team in 2014. Garret has won 3 US National Championships.