Small Radios now Available for Ultralights and Light
Aircraft
By ANN Correspondent Jon Thornburgh
According to FAR Part
103, ultralights can only be flown in rural areas. Therefore, most
ultralight pilots do not need a radio when they fly, since they
rarely go into general aviation airports. When a pilot does want to
use a radio, he normally carries a hand-held one, such as the ICOM
A-22.
The FAA maintains that one of the advantages of the proposed
Sport Pilot initiative is that ultralights will be transformed into
"Light Sport Aircraft," and thereafter will be allowed to fly into
congested areas, including city airports that have a control tower
(Class "D" airspace.)
When flying into Class D airspace, radio communication is
required. Handheld radios often pick up engine static or are not
powerful enough for communication in a sophisticated general
aviation environment. However, many ultralights are so small that
they do not have enough instrument panel space to mount a general
aviation radio.
Ultralights, such as the open-air tube and fabric Quicksilver
Sprint, have no fuselage to accommodate even the relatively small
Micro Air radio. Although the Micro Air has a control head only 2
1/2 inches in diameter, its length is 7 1/2 inches-too long for a
small instrument pod. The inexpensive Van Com 760 transceiver is
even longer at 12.5 inches.
Becker Avionics has come up with the solution to fitting a radio
(or "transceiver," as it's called in aviation) into an instrument
panel with limited space, or a small instrument pod that's bolted
to the frame of an ultralight. The answer is to separate the
control head, which changes the frequencies, from the "body" of the
transceiver, which actually processes the electronic radio waves.
In other words, the transceiver comes in two parts-the control head
and the remote transceiver.
The Becker RT 3209 transceiver may be mounted anywhere on or in
the airplane, and is connected with the CU 5209 control head by a
serial RS 422 cable. The RT 3209 transceiver weighs 2.6 pounds. The
dimensions are 5.4 inches by two inches by 10 inches long. The size
of the transceiver is fairly standard, but the uniqueness of the
Becker system is the control head, which may be mounted as far as
30 feet away from the transceiver.
The CU 5209 control head is smaller than a pack of cigarettes,
approximately 2.5 inches in all dimensions (length, width, and
height.) When the 15-pin RS 422 male connector is attached to the
back of the CU 5209 the total length is 4.2 inches, a full three
inches shorter than the Micro Air. The small size of the control
head allows it to be mounted practically anywhere, no matter how
small the available instrument space.
The Becker radio provides for 20 different memory channels. It has
an adjustable squelch and a backlight. It also has an intercom
feature.
I instruct in a two-seat tandem Quicksilver GT-500. The airplane
came equipped with a Terra radio mounted in the instrument panel in
front of the forward seat. Since all my instruction is done from
the rear seat, it was impossible for me to change frequencies,
adjust the squelch, etc., with the Terra out of reach in the front.
I was always prompting the front-seat student to change
frequencies, and adjust the volume or the squelch. It was very
difficult to give introductory flights with first-time fliers who
didn't know how aircraft radios work.
I desperately wanted to have a radio which I could use in the
back seat. But no conventional radio would fit in the small space
between the back of the front seat and the rear seat control
column. I was thrilled to discover that the remotely mounted Becker
control head would fit into the small space available to the rear
pilot.
I first saw the Becker radio at their booth at Sun 'n Fun 2003.
The sales representative, Ralph Schneider, was kind enough to take
the display radio to the Quicksilver tent in the ultralight area to
be certain that it would fit in the Quicksilver GT-500. When we
determined that it would fit, I purchased the radio from Aircraft
Spruce and Specialty Company at Sun 'n Fun.
The radio was installed by the Aircraft Spruce Avionics shop at
Chino Airport in California. I told the avionics technician, Craig
Johnson, that not only would I like to have a Becker installed in
the rear seat, but I would also like to be able to shift control of
the radios from the rear seat to the front seat. That way an
experienced student could operate the radio in the front, but if he
became confused or encountered problems I would be able to take
control in the back.
The idea of being able to shift control turned out to be quite a
challenge. We learned that it would not be possible to shift
control between the Becker radio in the back and the Terra radio in
the front. However, I would be able to shift control between two
Becker radios.
So Craig removed the Terra radio in the front and replaced it
with a Becker. Since the front instrument panel was large enough to
accept a normal general aviation radio, I installed a Becker AN
4201, rather than the RT 3209. The AN 4201 has both the transceiver
and the control as a single unit, instead of a separate control
head. Then Craig installed a toggle switch that allows me to switch
the "active" radio from the rear to the front or vice versa. Both
pilots have a push-to-talk switch, so either pilot can transmit
whether the front seat or the rear seat has control of the
radio.
Since the old Terra previously controlled the airplane intercom,
Craig installed a new SPA-400 Sigtronics intercom, compatible with
the Becker radios. The intercom has a "hot" or "cold" feature,
which allows the pilots to choose between voice activation or
push-to-talk communication between each other.
New antenna wiring was installed, with the front
radio going to the upper antenna and the rear radio to the lower
antenna. Craig and the other technicians at Aircraft Spruce
Avionics spent many hours designing and installing the new
configuration. The total cost was $2,900. I owe them a debt of
gratitude for their patience and expertise.
Becker Avionics also sells a transponder, a VOR/ILS navigation
system, and even an ADF that can be installed in two parts-a small
control head and a remote transceiver. The transponder receiver is
called the ATC 5401. The associated 2 1/4 inch control head is the
CU 5401. The ADF transceiver is the RA 3502. The ADF control head
is the CU 5502.
The VOR/ILS can be sold with or without a glide slope. The
VOR/LOC (without glide slope) is the RN 3330. The RN 3320 contains
both the VOR and a localizer with a glide slope. The same CU 5301
control head is used with both the RN 3330 and the RN 3320.
Naturally, the RN 3320 costs several hundred dollars more than the
RN 3330.
Thanks to Becker Avionics, a light sport aircraft, even with
limited panel space, can be equipped with radio communication, an
intercom, a transponder, a VOR navigation system and even an
ADF.