Fundamentals of Avionics

(Let’s get 100% guys! !(•̀ᴗ•́)‫)̑̑ و‬

Static Air
-The “Still Air” or “Static” air pressure outside the aircraft is sensed by “Static Ports”
-Static ports are usually flush mounted out of the main airstream
-Static ports are typically vented to BOTH sides of the fuselage.
-This reduces erroneous indications during slips and slides

Pitot Air
-The “Dynamic” or “Ram” (moving) air pressure is sensed by a PITOT TUBE
-Pitot tubes are located in a position where they can sense the maximum airflow on the
airframe
-Some aircraft employ probes which sense both PITOT and STATIC pressures
-Most M2 aircraft probes have a single pitot source, and dual static sources

Care should be taken when jacking or raising an aircraft, as pitot static sensors may be
anti-iced when the aircraft is in “AIR MODE”

INSTRUMENTS
Aircraft Clock
-Aircraft clocks are set to Greenwich Mean Time (GMT)
-Some aircraft clocks are used to provide time information to the Flight Data Recorder
(FDR)
-Many aircraft send time information from the GPS Receivers to the cockpit clocks (ie.
clocks are replaced by the GPS, which provides time)

Airspeed Indicator (ASI)

-Compares pitot and static air to determine airspeed
-Measured in knots or miles per hour
-Mach Airspeed Indicator (MASI) : measured at speed of sound

Attitude Directional Indicator (ADI), Electronic Attitude Directional Indicator

(EADI), ̑̑informally ̑̑known ̑̑as ̑̑‘Artificial ̑̑Horizon’
-Informs the pilot of the orientation of the aircraft relative to the Earth’s horizon
-Uses vertical gyro which gives pitch and roll information
-Glideslope and Localizer information may be displayed on the ADI
-Command Bars provide Flight Director indications

Altimeter
-Measures height
-Uses static air only
-Referenced at Sea level and uses ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization)
‘Standard Day’ (barometric pressure of 29.925Hg, 1013.25 millibars, Surface
temperature of 15 degrees Celsius at sea level and relative humidity of zero %)
-Static pressure applied to the instrument case causes the aneroid capsule to expand
and contract, thus moving the needles

Low Range Radio Altimeter

-Indicates aircraft height above the terrain
-Transmits radio waves down to the ground and measures the time it takes them to be
reflected back up to the aircraft
-Only limited to measuring 2500 ft

Turn Coordinator
-Measures rate of turn (yaw)
-Uses vertical gyro which gives pitch and roll information

Compass:
Radio Magnetic Indicator (RMI)
-Compass information comes from a “Horizontal Gyro”,which gives directional
information
-Needles can be used to display either VOR or ADF information
-HOW TO IDENTIFY Thin needle is #1 Thick needle is #2

Horizontal Situation Indicator (HSI)

-Compass information comes from a “Horizontal Gyro”, which gives directional
information
-Deviation bar indicates manual VOR (5degrees per dot)
and Localizer (1.25 degrees per dot)
-Glideslope is 0.35 degrees per dot
-Identified by dots (large aircraft=2 dots, general=more)
-Has warning flags that are spring loaded into view and electronically pushed out of
view. Occurs when:
-1. System is not working
-2. System is not switched on

Vertical Speed Indicator (VSI), or Instantaneous Vertical Speed Indicator (IVSI)

-Measures rate of climb
-Uses static pressure to measure rate of change
-Indicates in (thousands of) feet per minute
-An “IVSI” has an accelerator pump which prevents the needle from lagging during
altitude changes

WAVES
-All EM (electromagnetic) waves travel at a constant rate
-EM waves are classified according to their characteristic frequencies and associated
wavelength.
-The spectrum includes frequency range from sound waves to extremely high
frequencies (VHF, very high frequency, 30MHz)
-Sound waves are perceived by the human ear (approximately 20Hz to 20kHz), while
EM waves are perceived & processed by electronic equipment.
-EM waves propagate through the air at the speed of light.
-The wave is generated by a transmitter, which is then fed to the antenna for
propagation.
-The wave can be received by a receiver antenna, which captures the EM waves, which
is then fed to the receiver circuitry.
-Every EM wave has 2 components: Electric and Magnetic (etch) fields
-Magnetic & Electric fields are at right angles (90 degrees) from each other, as they are
travelling through air, after being detached from the antenna
-Electric field determines polarization : When E field is horizontal, the wave is
horizontally polarized and vice versa

Waves are modulated so that they can travel further:

Amplitude Modulation Vs. Frequency Modulation
-AM, amplitude changes / FM, frequency changes

Types of propagation
-characterized by how they behave as they travel through the earth’s atmosphere

Ground Wave
-Ground waves follows the curvature of the earth surface as they travel through the
atmosphere.
Operate in the HF (high frequency) band, which is RF (radio frequency) below 3 MHz.

Sky Wave

-Tend to travel in straight lines and do not follow the curvature of the earth.
-They also bounce-off the ionosphere (ionized layer) which is why they are also known
as skip waves. This extends the range of the wave.
-RF (radio frequency) between 3 to 30 MHz

Space Waves
-Tend to travel in straight lines and do not follow the curvature of the earth.
-They do not bounce-off the ionosphere.
-RF (radio freqency) above 30 MHz

Antenna
When electrical current travels through a conductor, a magnetic field is created around
the conductor.
When there is relative motion between a magnetic field, and a conductor, a current flow
will be induced in the conductor.

-Is a conductor, used to transmit and receive radio signals

-A transmitting antenna radiates electromagnetic energy
-A receiving antenna has a current flow induced in it when electromagnetic energy (radio
waves) pass over it
-Ideal length for an antenna is one half of the wavelength being transmitted or received
(λ /2)
-Practical length is quarter of a wavelength (λ/4)
-Maximum Power transfer between a transceiver and an antenna will occur when the
impedance of the antenna system matches the impedance of the transceiver
-Most aircraft antennas, and antenna coaxial cables have an impedance of 50 Ohms
-In order for a receiver to receive a radio signal, its antenna must be of the same
polarization orientation as the transmitting antenna
-In order to operate properly, an antenna requires a “Ground Plane”, most aircraft
antennas use the skin of the aircraft as their ground plane
-For this reason, proper electrical bonding must occur between the base of an
antenna, and the skin of the aircraft. This should be inspected whenever
removing and replacing an antenna
-The base of an aircraft antenna should be sealed with the PROPER sealant to
prevent contamination and corrosion
-Aircraft which do not have metal skin may require a special “Ground Plane
Plate” to be manufactured and installed at the base of the antenna
 Navigation
-Navigation is the process of piloting an aircraft from one geographic position to another
while monitoring one’s position as the flight progresses
-An aeronautical chart is the road map, which allows pilots to go in the right direction to
track their position

Latitude
-Lines of reference that run horizontally across the Earth
-The EQUATOR is the “0 Degree” reference for LATITUDE
-Lines of latitude are measured in degrees North and South of the equator
-The North Pole is 90 degrees North, the South Pole 90 degrees South

Longitude
-Lines of reference that run vertically across the Earth, which meet at the North and
South poles, known as meridians
-Measured east or west of the prime meridian (situated in Greenwich) which is
referenced at “0 Degrees”

Magnetization
-True & Magnetic North are NOT the same. The earth magnetic field is not uniformly
magnetized, thus not evenly spaced as per the latitude & longitude lines. True north is
not at the same location of the magnetic north.
-There are variations, creating angles between true north and magnetic north.

A compass deviation card is therefore created for each aircraft, as a result of the annual
compass swing performed on the aircraft.

The deviation from a compass deviation card compensates the magnetic course unique
to that aircraft’s compass system, which is affected by localized magnetic influencers.

Heading and Bearing

The direction which the nose of the aircraft is pointed is the HEADING
The BEARING is the direction between two objects, such as an aircraft, and a radio
beacon

Waypoints
-A waypoint is a specific reference point in physical space used for purposes of
navigation.
-Defined by Latitude and Longitude coordinates
-Waypoints can be used to confirm correct flight plan execution
-A waypoint is most often used to indicate a change in direction, speed, or altitude along
the desired path.

TRACKING
-The “DESIRED TRACK” is a straight line drawn between two waypoints
-The “TRACK” or “ACTUAL TRACK” is the path of the aircraft over the ground
-To maintain a desired track, it may be necessary for the aircraft to crab.( Crabbing
means to point the nose of the aircraft partially into the wind while keeping the plane
itself moving towards the runway. )
-The difference between the Heading and the Track is the “DRIFT ANGLE”
-The difference between the Desired Track and the Actual Track is the “Track Angle
Error”
-The DISTANCE of the aircraft from the Desired Track is the “CROSS TRACK”