Am posting this since there are no owner reviews of this device out there on any forum, as far as I can tell. Only short blurbs written by aviation magazine based on a brief demo flight by the company.
In case you're not familiar with this product - http://l-3lynx.com/
TL;DR: This unit fails randomly. Do not install unless you are well aware of the limitations and can work around it. This is true of all the Lynx products, not just the NGT-9000.
INSTALLATION:
Installed the NGT-9000 in late March by Sky Manor Avionics in NJ. Installation was delayed a few days by a particular right angle fitting for the antennae in the rear that did not come in the kit and had to be separately ordered. On the first test flight, after spending 30 mins in Class B airspace, I failed the FAA ADS-B accuracy check (failed check = no $500 FAA rebate). Took the plane back to shop, they hooked it up to a diagnostic computer, but were unable to diagnose the issue. Took it out for another 30 mins of maneuvering in Class B, and it passed. Very odd. See below for full story.
Also received an ATAS enablement certificate by watching a webinar. ATAS stands for ADS-B Traffic Advisory System. Basically, it adds an audio call-out that says, "Traffic, 3 o'clock"
Before the install, I had a Narco xponder, no GPS in the plane. An old FlyBuddy Loran unit was pulled to make room for the L3 unit. ADF was removed. My plane gained 10 pounds of useful load.
I have over 40 flight hours on the system since installation, all of it VFR time, most of it cross country.
PROS:
TRAFFIC- Cool to have a dedicated traffic display. I routinely around NYC and Boston. After two near-misses (though we should change the terminology and call these incidents near-hits), traffic functionality was my primary reason to install the system. Planes are damn hard to see in the air even with ATC coaching me where to look. Class D airports are the worse, ATC isn't telling you where to look because it's not their job, and there's no standard pattern. Having this system basically eliminates en-route in-flight collisions. Yes, planes with inoperative transponders or planes that lack a transponder will not show up, but most of the traffic I run into are within the Mode C veil. See next section for limitations.
WEATHER- As an VFR only pilot, in-air weather is a really nice benefits. I like how I can pull up ceilings on ForeFlight and get a good overview of the weather system in my area. However, it's usefulness is limited. See next section.
SIGMETS, AIRMETS, TFRs- These are displayed on the tiny screen, and also streamed to your iPad/iPhones but generally not useful. Planning to avoid TFRs is best done before becoming airborne.
TRANSPONDER- Nice to have a dedicated VFR squawk button. I know it's not particularly special but I'm used to an old Narco box so this saves lots of knob twisting.
CONS:
GPS ACCURACY- Not something I would think would be an issues, since there's a WAAS GPS on board. Unfortunately, this is a new product and there are operational bugs that haven't been worked out yet. After spending lots of time (and gas money to fly the minimum number of minutes within designated ADS-B testing airspace, and back and forth to the avionics shop) to diagnose an intermittent GPS failure issue, I learned that if a particular satellite shows up over Europe, it causes the Lynx unit to fail on the East Coast! This issue has been known to Lynx since March, and was an issue I encountered on my first flight. When this happens, accuracy is degraded and causes the moving map functionality to fail on ForeFlight. Frankly, this is unacceptable. Imagine if you are VFR on top of solid overcast and suddenly lose GPS signal. Or are within the outer ring of a presidential TFR at night and have to revert back to pilotage. I didn't have to imagine these scenarios because I actually experienced it. :twisted: Reliability is the most important trait in aviation. I am annoyed that Lynx released a product, and continues to sell a product, that has bugs in such a basic and critical functionality. By the way, this error affects all of the Lynx product, not just the NGT-9000. WAAS GPS has been around for over 10 years people. This is not new fangled stuff. Attached is a service letter dated from April explaining the issue. Lynx's proposed solution is to fly out of the East Coast for the unit to resume working properly?!?!?! Are you f***** kidding me? Three months later, I am still waiting for the promised software patch. Speaking of which...
CUSTOMER SUPPORT- There is no email address on their website or phone to call to ask for technical support. The devices are so new, my avionics shop has little experience in troubleshooting. Once this software patch for the GPS is out, Lynx will need to notify owners ASAP about getting their units fixed. Oh wait, Lynx has no way to contact owners because they didn't keep a database of who installed what. Oops.
TOUCH SCREEN- The screen is actually comprised of two separate screens with a hard divider down the middle. This isn't obviously from published pictures. I don't like touch screen, but I understand that's the compromise to cram all that functionality into a tiny screen. Touch screens on such a small display is next to impossible to use in mild turbulence. Would not even attempt to pan the map in moderate turbulence.
ATAS- The audio doesn't go off unless traffic is really really close. Had a regional jet pass directly overhead at 500ft from 12 o clock. The audio alert went off when the plane was already out of sight, directly overhead. A little late in my opinion. Had another regional jet coming at me from 3 o'clock that passed 400 ft below me. The audio alerted when the plane was 1-2 mi out, as noted on the distance rings. Considering how fast these jets are, if I had not already been visually tracking the jet, it would not have been enough time to acquire the target and maneuver appropriately. Basically, neat concept but thus far, useless in real life. The alert parameters should be broadened. I find Foreflight's traffic aural alert system better. Except I can't hear it since the audio isn't wired into the panel.
TRAFFIC- Most in-flight collision occurs around the airport environment. ADS-B traffic works well only if you have sufficient altitude to communicate with a nearby ADS-B ground tower AND the traffic you're trying to spot has sufficient altitude to be tracked by ATC surveillance radar. There is a little symbol on the Lynx unit that tells you when you have ground tower reception, but you have no idea whether other traffic is being tracked by radar. How high you need to be to be tracked by radar depends on local terrain and how far you are from a radar site - basically, it's a mystery. If other traffic has ADS-B also, then all is well regardless of altitude, but most planes don't have ADS-B (yet?). So avoiding traffic around an airport still boils down to Mark 1 Mod 0 eyeballs and good radio communication.
WEATHER- Display screen is very small, METARs takes multiple clicks to bring up. Having an iPad or iPhone to display the data is a must. METARs in flight are updated about every 20 minutes, but sometimes delays are over 60 mins. If you're using an iPad/iPhone, there is another delay for the METARs to be pushed over wifi. Be careful about relying on outdated information. Technically, the ADS-B system has the bandwidth to handle METAR updates every minute. But FAA has no definite plans to implement that. Getting Wx at destination field still means tuning into ASOS/AWOS. Same with Nexrad info. There's a 1-8 minute delay to uploading the data from groundlink to the unit, but who knows how long it took to actually process the Doppler signal. Maybe 10 mins? Maybe 15 mins? FAA, can you please tag Nexrad info with lag time? This rules out using Nexrad to squeeze between storms cells.
OVERALL IMPRESSION: While this unit has potential, I can't recommend this in its current state. Basically, L3 is knowingly selling a defective unit without informing buyers. The hassle of GPS failure and difficulty in getting support isn't worth it. If the GPS doesn't pass, FAA isn't happy and you won't get your $500 ADS-B rebate. If you can, wait until suckers like me get the bugs worked out first. I feel like I am doing Lynx's debugging job for them. I guess that's the price of being an early adopter. Lynx really ought to compensate early adopters by unlocking eTAWS/TerrainVision and ATAS. This is no cost to them and doesn't hurt their market since no way Cherokee owners are gonna shell out $3,500 to unlock eTAWS.
Given my experience, I looked into L3's reputation a little more. Check this out:
I guess old habits are hard to break.
View attachment SL-326_NGT9000_NGT1000-2000-2500_GPS_NIC-NAC.pdf
In case you're not familiar with this product - http://l-3lynx.com/
TL;DR: This unit fails randomly. Do not install unless you are well aware of the limitations and can work around it. This is true of all the Lynx products, not just the NGT-9000.
INSTALLATION:
Installed the NGT-9000 in late March by Sky Manor Avionics in NJ. Installation was delayed a few days by a particular right angle fitting for the antennae in the rear that did not come in the kit and had to be separately ordered. On the first test flight, after spending 30 mins in Class B airspace, I failed the FAA ADS-B accuracy check (failed check = no $500 FAA rebate). Took the plane back to shop, they hooked it up to a diagnostic computer, but were unable to diagnose the issue. Took it out for another 30 mins of maneuvering in Class B, and it passed. Very odd. See below for full story.
Also received an ATAS enablement certificate by watching a webinar. ATAS stands for ADS-B Traffic Advisory System. Basically, it adds an audio call-out that says, "Traffic, 3 o'clock"
Before the install, I had a Narco xponder, no GPS in the plane. An old FlyBuddy Loran unit was pulled to make room for the L3 unit. ADF was removed. My plane gained 10 pounds of useful load.
I have over 40 flight hours on the system since installation, all of it VFR time, most of it cross country.
PROS:
TRAFFIC- Cool to have a dedicated traffic display. I routinely around NYC and Boston. After two near-misses (though we should change the terminology and call these incidents near-hits), traffic functionality was my primary reason to install the system. Planes are damn hard to see in the air even with ATC coaching me where to look. Class D airports are the worse, ATC isn't telling you where to look because it's not their job, and there's no standard pattern. Having this system basically eliminates en-route in-flight collisions. Yes, planes with inoperative transponders or planes that lack a transponder will not show up, but most of the traffic I run into are within the Mode C veil. See next section for limitations.
WEATHER- As an VFR only pilot, in-air weather is a really nice benefits. I like how I can pull up ceilings on ForeFlight and get a good overview of the weather system in my area. However, it's usefulness is limited. See next section.
SIGMETS, AIRMETS, TFRs- These are displayed on the tiny screen, and also streamed to your iPad/iPhones but generally not useful. Planning to avoid TFRs is best done before becoming airborne.
TRANSPONDER- Nice to have a dedicated VFR squawk button. I know it's not particularly special but I'm used to an old Narco box so this saves lots of knob twisting.
CONS:
GPS ACCURACY- Not something I would think would be an issues, since there's a WAAS GPS on board. Unfortunately, this is a new product and there are operational bugs that haven't been worked out yet. After spending lots of time (and gas money to fly the minimum number of minutes within designated ADS-B testing airspace, and back and forth to the avionics shop) to diagnose an intermittent GPS failure issue, I learned that if a particular satellite shows up over Europe, it causes the Lynx unit to fail on the East Coast! This issue has been known to Lynx since March, and was an issue I encountered on my first flight. When this happens, accuracy is degraded and causes the moving map functionality to fail on ForeFlight. Frankly, this is unacceptable. Imagine if you are VFR on top of solid overcast and suddenly lose GPS signal. Or are within the outer ring of a presidential TFR at night and have to revert back to pilotage. I didn't have to imagine these scenarios because I actually experienced it. :twisted: Reliability is the most important trait in aviation. I am annoyed that Lynx released a product, and continues to sell a product, that has bugs in such a basic and critical functionality. By the way, this error affects all of the Lynx product, not just the NGT-9000. WAAS GPS has been around for over 10 years people. This is not new fangled stuff. Attached is a service letter dated from April explaining the issue. Lynx's proposed solution is to fly out of the East Coast for the unit to resume working properly?!?!?! Are you f***** kidding me? Three months later, I am still waiting for the promised software patch. Speaking of which...
CUSTOMER SUPPORT- There is no email address on their website or phone to call to ask for technical support. The devices are so new, my avionics shop has little experience in troubleshooting. Once this software patch for the GPS is out, Lynx will need to notify owners ASAP about getting their units fixed. Oh wait, Lynx has no way to contact owners because they didn't keep a database of who installed what. Oops.
TOUCH SCREEN- The screen is actually comprised of two separate screens with a hard divider down the middle. This isn't obviously from published pictures. I don't like touch screen, but I understand that's the compromise to cram all that functionality into a tiny screen. Touch screens on such a small display is next to impossible to use in mild turbulence. Would not even attempt to pan the map in moderate turbulence.
ATAS- The audio doesn't go off unless traffic is really really close. Had a regional jet pass directly overhead at 500ft from 12 o clock. The audio alert went off when the plane was already out of sight, directly overhead. A little late in my opinion. Had another regional jet coming at me from 3 o'clock that passed 400 ft below me. The audio alerted when the plane was 1-2 mi out, as noted on the distance rings. Considering how fast these jets are, if I had not already been visually tracking the jet, it would not have been enough time to acquire the target and maneuver appropriately. Basically, neat concept but thus far, useless in real life. The alert parameters should be broadened. I find Foreflight's traffic aural alert system better. Except I can't hear it since the audio isn't wired into the panel.
TRAFFIC- Most in-flight collision occurs around the airport environment. ADS-B traffic works well only if you have sufficient altitude to communicate with a nearby ADS-B ground tower AND the traffic you're trying to spot has sufficient altitude to be tracked by ATC surveillance radar. There is a little symbol on the Lynx unit that tells you when you have ground tower reception, but you have no idea whether other traffic is being tracked by radar. How high you need to be to be tracked by radar depends on local terrain and how far you are from a radar site - basically, it's a mystery. If other traffic has ADS-B also, then all is well regardless of altitude, but most planes don't have ADS-B (yet?). So avoiding traffic around an airport still boils down to Mark 1 Mod 0 eyeballs and good radio communication.
WEATHER- Display screen is very small, METARs takes multiple clicks to bring up. Having an iPad or iPhone to display the data is a must. METARs in flight are updated about every 20 minutes, but sometimes delays are over 60 mins. If you're using an iPad/iPhone, there is another delay for the METARs to be pushed over wifi. Be careful about relying on outdated information. Technically, the ADS-B system has the bandwidth to handle METAR updates every minute. But FAA has no definite plans to implement that. Getting Wx at destination field still means tuning into ASOS/AWOS. Same with Nexrad info. There's a 1-8 minute delay to uploading the data from groundlink to the unit, but who knows how long it took to actually process the Doppler signal. Maybe 10 mins? Maybe 15 mins? FAA, can you please tag Nexrad info with lag time? This rules out using Nexrad to squeeze between storms cells.
OVERALL IMPRESSION: While this unit has potential, I can't recommend this in its current state. Basically, L3 is knowingly selling a defective unit without informing buyers. The hassle of GPS failure and difficulty in getting support isn't worth it. If the GPS doesn't pass, FAA isn't happy and you won't get your $500 ADS-B rebate. If you can, wait until suckers like me get the bugs worked out first. I feel like I am doing Lynx's debugging job for them. I guess that's the price of being an early adopter. Lynx really ought to compensate early adopters by unlocking eTAWS/TerrainVision and ATAS. This is no cost to them and doesn't hurt their market since no way Cherokee owners are gonna shell out $3,500 to unlock eTAWS.
Given my experience, I looked into L3's reputation a little more. Check this out:
L3 Technologies agreed to pay $25.6 million to settle a lawsuit with the U.S. Government. L3 was accused of knowingly providing the U.S. military with optics that failed in extreme temperatures and humid weather conditions. These sights were provided to infantry and special operations forces operating in Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as civilians and law enforcement. The lawsuit alleged L3 officials have known since 2006 that the holographic sights being sent to Iraq and Afghanistan failed to perform as advertised in extreme temperature ranges. The lawsuit alleges that the FBI independently discovered the thermal drift defect in March 2015 and presented EOTech with "the very same findings that the company had documented internally for years.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L3_Technologies
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L3_Technologies
I guess old habits are hard to break.
View attachment SL-326_NGT9000_NGT1000-2000-2500_GPS_NIC-NAC.pdf
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