By Bill Forbes – Director of Avionics Sales for Elliott Aviation
When budgeting for updating your avionics, it’s important to consider some of the hidden costs of maintaining outdated avionics, specifically old CRT (tube) EFIS displays. CRT display manufacturing is becoming obsolete and will inevitably become non-existent. This means that the pricing for these units will increase substantially, and the availability will continually decrease. Let’s take King Airs as an example.
Avionics Maintenance Costs
By current market pricing, typical yearly costs just to maintain a Collins Pro Line 2 equipped King Air is about $20,000 per year. If you plan on keeping the aircraft for another five years under current market conditions and a traditional ADS-B mandate solution for about $75,000, you would be paying about $175,000 just to continue to maintain your current avionics package.
Traditional Upgrade
If you want to make additions to a Pro Line 2 avionics system, a WAAS/LPV upgrade would cost about $95,000, and RVSM would cost another $83,000. Combined with maintaining current avionics and ADS-B compliance, the total cost for five years of ownership with traditional upgrades will cost around $353,000. Not only are these costs high, but these upgrades do not add value to your aircraft.
G1000 Upgrade
While an average base install of a Garmin G1000 in a King Air costs around $375,000, it adds an average value increase to your aircraft of around $300,000. In addition, it includes all of your upgrades like WAAS/LPV, ADS-B, RVSM and is safer, lighter, more reliable, and can be completed in just 15 days.
Upgrade or Maintain
While some operators may choose to maintain their current avionics system, older avionics are becoming obsolete and will continue to increase in price and be less reliable. Your avionics system is critical to the operation and safety of your aircraft. An upgraded avionics system will ensure you are getting the most out of your aircraft.
Want to know more about our avionics solutions? You can find out more about the following here:
•G1000
•G5000
•Aftermarket Avionics
Experience Matters
At Elliott Aviation, we have installed more Garmin G1000, Garmin G1000 NXi, and Garmin G5000 systems than any other dealer. We are the leaders in turbine avionics retrofits, having installed more than 400 systems for customers worldwide. Systems like the Garmin G1000 NXi and the G5000 eliminate the need for unnecessary downtime and high replacement parts from outdated avionics systems. We provide avionics familiarization with our in-house demo units for all of our Garmin G1000 NXi and G5000 customers, so you are familiar with the system upon check out. We offer industry-leading turn times, three weeks for standalone Garmin G1000 NXi in the King Air and four weeks for the Garmin G5000 in the Citation Excel and XLS. When looking for a solution for your next upgrade, Elliott Aviation is the industry leader.
About the Author
Bill Forbes is an Avionics Sales Manager for Elliott Aviation. Bill has been with Elliott since 2018. He started his career in aviation as a crew chief in the Air Force in 1985. He has been associated with Beechcraft Aircraft and Service Centers since 1996. He has been involved in avionics sales and management since 2003 and has been involved in several STC projects with Collins, Honeywell, and Garmin before joining Elliott Aviation. You can reach him at bforbes@elliottaviation.com.