Includes Flight Director, New XM Weather Products, More

Avidyne Corporation and AirShares Elite announced Friday that AirShares Elite will implement the newly introduced Release 6 upgrade to Avidyne Entegra Integrated Flight Decks on its fleet of 42 Cirrus Design SR20 and SR22 aircraft. The software upgrade provides common fleet features including Flight Director, XM WX weather, approach chart display and dozens of other enhancements for safe and enjoyable flying.

"Release 6.0 shows our dedication to giving our owners the most advanced avionics features without any of the usual ownership hassles," said David Lee, CEO of AirShares Elite. "The built-in upgradeability of the Avidyne Entegra system means we can update an entire fleet of aircraft quickly and efficiently without the usual downtime and panel teardowns for traditional avionics enhancements. Fleet commonality adds convenience for owner-pilots and simplifies training and maintenance."

For the EXP5000 Primary Flight Display (PFD), Release 6.0 adds features like Flight Director, selectable "Wedge" or "flying W" aircraft symbol, V-Speed labels on the airspeed indicator, Heading Tick Marks on the artificial horizon and enhanced autopilot mode annunciations on the PFD.

For the EX5000 Multi-Function Display (MFD), Release 6.0 expands the list of XM WX datalink weather products to include Terminal Area Forecasts (TAFs), Winds Aloft, Freezing Levels, NEXRAD Cell Movement, and Hail Alerts. Release 6.0 also enables AirShares Elite fleet managers to quickly update aircraft Jeppesen NavData and CMax Chart databases using compatible USB Flash Drives and download EMax Engine Log data from the EX5000.

"AirShares Elite's immediate adoption of the new Release 6.0 upgrade demonstrates unequivocally the huge value of the upgrade path designed into the Entegra system," said Mark Sandeen, Avidyne vice president of sales and marketing. "AirShares Elite pilots are ensured of continuous improvements and the latest features throughout their ownership experience."

The Entegra Flight Director displays command bars on the EXP5000 attitude indicator and is driven by the aircraft's STEC55X autopilot, which automatically computes flight path profiles based on the autopilot mode. If the pilot chooses to hand fly the aircraft, the Flight Director Command Bars give the pilot visual cues to fly specific altitudes, descents, climbs, headings, routes, or approaches with increased precision. With the Entegra Flight Director, the pilot maneuvers the plane to align the aircraft symbol with the command bars as directed. When coupled with the autopilot, it allows the pilot to visually monitor the progress of a coupled approach. The Flight Director is especially useful during instrument landing system (ILS) approaches and missed approaches.

V-Speed labels on the EXP5000's Airspeed Indicator for Vx -- Best Angle of Climb, Vy -- Best Rate of Climb, and Vg -- Best Glide, are designed to take the guesswork out of flying precise airspeeds during critical phases of flight. The addition of heading tick marks across the EXP5000's horizon improves the pilot's ability to anticipate heading intercepts while reducing the pilot's scan area. Release 6.0 also adds advanced logic to remove the low-airspeed warning indications on the airspeed tape prior to departure and after landing.

"I became an AirShares Elite owner-pilot because of the national access to the most capable and well-equipped general aviation aircraft today," said Avidyne President Dan Schwinn. "I fly from multiple locations and can really appreciate the commonality of features across the AirShares Elite fleet. Release 6.0 demonstrates Avidyne's commitment to continuous improvements in the Entegra system."

AirShares Elite says it will begin the Release 6.0 fleet upgrade in November.

FMI: www.AirSharesElite.com, www.avidyne.com