Just a speculation, but could the Cirrus’ terrain warning capabilities lull a pilot into complacency? How good is it? (Not very in this case, by the looks of it.)
Reasonable speculative questions until your last statement. How do you know it was even being used or looked at?
What “terrain warning capabilities” are you referring to?
I’m no expert on the Cirrus, but I remember seeing on the Arnav display a profile of a little stick figure airplane heading toward a series of vertical bars, which I presume indicate terrain, obstructions, or both. I don’t know if the Avidyne display has the same feature. I was just wondering how well it works, and if Cirrus pilots are inclined to rely on it.
You guys take first place in the “thin-skinned” category. Sheez. I make a simple speculation, and all of a sudden you pounce.
There have been at least two Cirrus accidents that involved seemingly poor decisions about flying VFR at night. I wondered if some pilots might be placing too much confidence in the MFD’s obstruction indications or terrain warning (if that’s a feature – I don’t know).
As to whether or not that was the case this time, I made not one, but two disclaimers to avoid fussing the fragile feathers on this board:
The avidyne does NOT have such a display. The backround map is color coded to elevation similar to a sectional chart. There is a bar on the right of the screen identifying the highest obstruction.
There is no capability for terrain “warning”. The Sandel manufacturer has a system called “TAWS” which is a true terrain avoidance and warning system. Cirrus does not use TAWS in its planes.
The graph at the bottom of my arnav is the way you say. It is very accurate but you have to update the database new Obsticles get put up. I also would want to see what I am going for but I have worked with it out here in the mountins a lot and it is very handy when flying VFR. Ther are lot of times when I did not seem high enough but I was there is diferant shadings if it is red you beter get higher or go arround that is for sure. If it is dark brown it is marginal and I go up a little. But when I get there I see I could have made it. Beter to be safe than sorry. Or maybe not live to be sorry. By the way have to have the new arnav H version for this. It also tells you how far to the object in stages. From Don