Says It Is Being NOT Drummed Out, Despite G1000's Popularity

It's certainly a question many in the general aviation game have pondered, since Cirrus Design made the surprising announcement last week it will now offer a Garmin G1000-based avionics suite as an option for its high-end SR22 G3 aircraft: are Avidyne's days numbered as a Cirrus OEM supplier?

It's a fair question. As ANN reported, the Cirrus 'Perspective' suite (shown above) includes many noteworthy features -- including synthetic vision, and a fully-integrated autopilot -- not available at this time on Avidyne's own Entegra glass panel, which has been the go-to avionics package for all Cirrus aircraft since 2003.

Despite the apparent implications of Cirrus' announcement, Avidyne maintains it is not being "kicked off" the Cirrus OEM.

"Cirrus is still a strong OEM partner of Avidyne’s," the company said recently. "Cirrus CEO Alan Klapmeier stated during the EBACE press conference announcing the availability of the Garmin Perspective that Avidyne is still considered the "standard" on Cirrus planes.

"As have several other airframe manufacturers, Cirrus, too, has broadened its avionics options for its customers," the company continues. "Avidyne will continue to aggressively promote and market to Cirrus prospects to buy Entegra-equipped Cirrus planes."

Avidyne says its Entegra system (shown above in an SR22 G3) still features some definite advantages over the Garmin package. Many pilots consider the less-button-intensive Entegra easier to use than the G1000; Avidyne also notes selecting the "Perspective" option subtracts 42 lbs from the useful load of an SR22 G3, negating much of the 50-lbs weight advantage Cirrus was able to extract through the G3's new, lighter wing design.

Perhaps most importantly, an Entegra-equipped SR22 can be had for $48,000 LESS than a Garmin-equipped model. Even at the $500K pricepoint for a fully-equipped Cirrus SR22, that's a substanital savings.

As for existing Cirrus owners, Avidyne stresses it will continue working with current Entegra owners. "Avidyne remains very dedicated to working with the owners and operators of all 4000+ Cirrus/Entegra airplanes worldwide and helping them maintain their value," the company said.

Avidyne also stressed the Cirrus decision won't result in a significant negative financial impact for the company -- noting it still maintains ongoing relationships with "several additional OEM partners." The pioneering avionics maker also cited its "incredibly strong and growing aftermarket business" as a sign of its continued good financial health.

"Avidyne commends Garmin for its ability to gain a portion of the Cirrus market," the company stated. "At the same time, Avidyne is very confident that pilots will continue to select their avionics packages based on core value propositions such as price, ease of use, interoperability, performance and future upgradeability. Avidyne remains very confident that our current technology and any future releases will maintain and expand our position as the 'avionics provider of choice.'"

Despite those reassurances, however... it's hard to ignore the decreasing number of other OEMs offering Avidyne's glass panel; besides Cirrus, the only other big name manufacturer still touting Entegra is Piper Aircraft, which announced last year it will offer the G1000 as an option on the Saratoga II TC and 6X. The status of another Avidyne OEM -- Adam Aircraft -- is currently in limbo as that company reorganizes under new ownership.

Another big-name manufacturer, the now-defunct Columbia Aircraft, began the switch from Avidyne to Garmin avionics for its planes ahead of the company's 2007 bankruptcy, and subsequent buyout by Cessna. Speaking of Cessna, the G1000 comes as standard equipment in all Cessna single-engine-piston aircraft currently flying (including the now-renamed Cessna 350 and 400) as well as the company's Caravan single-engine turboprop and the Citation Mustang light jet.

The G1000 is also standard in the Diamond DA40 and DA42, and all Mooney aircraft... as well as the Quest Aircraft Kodiak and all Beechcraft piston offerings. Embraer's upcoming Phenom 100 VLJ and Phenom 300 light jet will fly with a proprietary glass panel system heavily based on the G1000.

It also appears Garmin isn't the only company vying for Cirrus' business, either. Last year, Cirrus announced L-3 Communications' SmartDeck glass panel will fly in the company's prototype "the jet." The company also evaluated the SmartDeck on the SR22, and the panel was recently TSO'd as a retrofit option on the pre-April 2007 G2 model Cirrus'.

As mentioned earlier, Avidyne has also looked increasingly towards the aftermarket, most notably with its Entegra-based 'Envision' glass panel system, which is offered for retrofit for a variety of older piston engine aircraft, as well as several King Air models.

FMI: www.avidyne.com