Story ID: 
Garmin G3000 Brings Touchscreens to the Cockpit
By: Stephen Pope
Caption: Garmin this afternoon introduced an integrated avionics system for light turbine-powered airplanes.
Word Count: 194
Garmin this afternoon introduced an integrated avionics system for light turbine-powered airplanes. Dubbed G3000, the new system sets itself apart by using menu-driven touchscreens for accessing nearly all of the functions that pilots normally control with myriad buttons and dials. Intended for the upper echelon of the Part 23 business aircraft market, the G3000 cockpit adds a pair of 5.7-inch-diagonal touchscreen controllers below the main flight displays. The screens incorporate a variety of icons for performing flight management tasks, radio control, audio adjustment, synoptics and other functions, which, when pressed, provide access to system pages arranged by phase of operation. “Back” and “home” buttons let pilots quickly retrace their steps or return to the main screen. The basic hardware behind the scenes in the G3000 system is the same as that found in the G1000 avionics system. The G3000 system’s all new “extra wide” primary and multifunction LED-backlit displays measure 14.1 inches diagonally versus the G1000’s typical 10.4-inch screen size. FAA certification of the new avionics system is targeted for the second half of 2011. The first OEM customers to choose the G3000 system are expected to make announcements tomorrow in Orlando, Fla., at NBAA’09.