Garmin 696 Electric Power Administration

I have been working with a Garmin 696 ever since that they first became available and really like it. One of the best characteristics is the screen in comparison with other Garmin aviation handheld GPS navigation products. For anyone who is changing up from any of the various other portables with lesser displays, much like the Garmin 396 or even 496, you will discover several significant distinctions. One of them is the initial boot monitor, and that's just what ensnared a friend of my own not long ago coming back to FNL out of Kansas. He had been familiar with the 496, but had not used a 696.

When booting up, the 496 will present to you the battery level and whether it is charging. The 696 doesn't. So, this individual had been motoring along westbound when the 696 monitor went dark. He tapped the power control and it came back to life, merely to go out again after a few minutes. In a number of fumbling around (who takes the user handbook when flying? ), he finally located the page which showed the power to be nearly dead. I thought this was a bit interesting given it had been inserted into the cigarette lighter socket in the plane. It turns out that the connection was poor and removing and inserting the connector solved the issue.

And so the following are a couple of methods for battery power administration. First, whenever you initially start the 696 (or any other GPS), head to the battery monitor and be sure to have a good charge. For the 696, on the map page, rotate the FMS joystick clockwise until you get to the INFO page. The charge level is below the GPS Level data. If you have it connected to airplane electric power, make sure it's charging. Whether or not it truly is charging, there will be a lightning bolt through the battery image. The cigar lighter connector in our Baron will be sufficiently flaky that we ordinarily check the charge status every so often on long flights.

Afterwards, switch on the power loss notice. For the 696, that is in the system set up screen. Touch MENU twice with the primary menu. Move the FMS joystick to System Setup, then push ENT. Twist the joystick to emphasize Electric power and touch ENT. Twist the joystick to select ON and just push ENT. (page 27 in the 696 Owner's Manual).

And finally, add to your before takeoff check list a step to check out that the 696 is charging. It truly is far better to troubleshoot an issue prior to deciding to go flying.

From an interview with Bill Standerfer of Avionics Specialists LLC. Bill is an experienced pilot and mountain flying instructor. Read more of Bill's aviation articles at AvSpec Avionics and Avionics Specialists LLC.

The easy to use application, Phone Beagle, lets you track or monitor a mobile phone. Perfect for keeping tabs on kids to help keep them safe.

Try Out Phone Beagle Today