Building a Better Panel, Pt2
So you’ve chosen your favorite vario, quite simply, because this is one of the most important things in the cockpit to help you enjoy and get the most out of your flight. It can be the LXNAV V8/S8, it can be a Borgelt or a Winter vario, it doesn’t matter that other people think, it’s what’s important to you, you are the one who has to fly with it daily.
Navigation Computer
What is the next step to complement this? The navigation computer, some may say, the most exciting part! There’s plenty of options out there on the market at the moment, from free software that runs on phones or tablets, all the way up to the premium products such as the ClearNav II, LXNAV 90XX series, or the LX Navigation products. The LXNAV series have many different sizes, with differing budget options relating to what size you’ll be able to fit into your panel, or what your budget maybe! Regardless though, there is a perfect fit for you, one just needs to do their homework...
I’ve flown now in 7 different countries and hired or borrowed countless different gliders in my days. What does this mean? It means that I’ve flown with a ridiculous amount of different navigation computers and what I have learnt at least, is what the optimum solution is for me. The good news is that there are two options here, one which is affordable to all, the Naviter SeeYou Oudie IGC – I take this everywhere with me. No matter which glider you get lumped into, you always have a familiar device with you, it also is just as powerful (minus a few small features) and compliments my preferred product, the LXNAV 9070 with V8 vario.
What makes the LX80XX or LX90XX products stand out to me? It’s the constant research & development that the company is striving for, not only do they listen and implement all good customer ideas, they also have fantastic after-sales support – not that I’ve needed that too often, but it’s great to know all the same.
This particular nav device can be used by the novice or the top competition pilot, the user interface is well thought out and self-explanatory. The other massive advantage to using either the Oudie II or the LXNAV products is that there is always someone on the field that can give you tips/support, it’s a very common instrument to fly within other people’s gliders, you can even upload your own profile into someone else’s glider so you’ll feel right at home asap.
Add-ons
Add-ons, these truly make your life easier. My best recommendation is the WiFi option, with this, you can do so many things. Upload your flight to the OLC after landing, e-mail your IGC file and logbook home, update software/hardware effortlessly, viewing SkySight on the nav display with a check of a box – a small fee subscription required for this one though, which I recommend as well.
You can addon a flap sensor, which helps you always be in the most optimum flap setting, regardless of your weight or speed flown at. All LXNAV computers can have this feature, even in just the standalone ‘S’ series vario!
Water ballast sensor (LXNAV digital inputs), I use this one too religiously. No more using a stopwatch or counting to 10 in your head, when you open the taps and after you’ve calibrated it on the ground, a countdown of your remaining liters will be displayed on the screen. I find this particularly important when you want to confidently dump down to a specific weight or wing loading, no more guessing and hoping you are correct.
Overall a fabulous range of products that I’ve been very happy with over the past 10yrs, they’ve never let me down, I’ve always felt familiar when I step into another glider, all around I recommend the Oudie or the LXNAV highly.
Safe Circles!
Adam Woolley was born into the gliding world, being the 3rd generation in his family. Going solo at 15, his thirst for efficiency in soaring flight & quest for a world championship title to his name has never wavered. One big passion is sharing his experiences & joy with other glider pilots all around the world. Adam is an airline pilot in Japan on the B767 & spends his off time chasing summer around the globe. He has now won 7 national Championships & represented Australia at 5 WGC's & 1 EGC.
