BendixKing’s xVue Touch integrated flight deck has been selected for Pipistrel’s Alpha training aircraft that’s expected to begin deliveries later this year, the Honeywell subsidiary announced this week at EAA AirVenture. Pipistrel trainers equipped with xVue will be known as Alpha King.

“We want to ensure that students and instructors can take advantage of all the advancements afforded by new technology, which makes the Alpha King an ideal solution for flight schools,” Pipistrel founder and president Ivo Boscarol said. “We recognize the unmatched value in BendixKing avionics, which enables us to offer a cost-effective and affordable new generation of training aircraft and build upon our existing, ongoing relationship with Honeywell as a whole.”

The avionics package is expected to cut student pilots’ training time because if its touchscreen primary flight display that with its streamlined, simple software menus make all its functions accessible within two to four touches of the touchscreen, according to BendixKing. Other xVue features include Honeywell’s SmartView synthetic vision system that displays the aircraft flight path over terrain and ADS-B weather display.

“Aspiring pilots can train using sophisticated technology that’s easy to use, enabling them to get their pilot licenses in significantly less time,” said BendixKing president Gregg Cohen. “Plus, our advanced flight deck is simple to maintain and lightweight, saving flight schools money in the long run.”