The Avidyne Entegra avionics system–particularly the revolutionary left-side primary flight display (PFD)–is new territory for most piston pilots. Recently TSO’d, it’s a $26,500 option on the 310-hp Cirrus SR22. The large (10.4-inch diagonal) display shows airspeed and altitude on vertical tapes usually found in the front office of a jet. But unlike EFIS displays in most jets, the blue-on-top, brown-on-the-bottom horizon line stretches all the way across the display screen.
I got to fly an experimental-registered Entegra-equipped SR22 on February 13, the very day Cirrus received TSO approval for the Entegra system in the SR22. Deliveries to eager customers (most new buyers have selected the option) started last month.
As the owner-pilot of a 1950s-vintage Bonanza, I experienced an element of future-shock flying the Entegra-equipped Cirrus. This is a system that requires a lot more preprogramming. The rewards are a significantly reduced workload in flight, leaving time and concentration for traffic scanning, routing changes and other chores.
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