FAA awarded supplemental type certification (STC) to Garmin’s G500H, an all-glass avionics system designed specifically for the VFR Part 27 helicopter market. The STC is for the Bell 206-series and Bell 407 helicopters.
Garmin, based in Olathe, Kan., said the system includes more than 900 SafeTaxi airport diagrams, optional helicopter synthetic vision technology (HSVT), optional XM WX Satellite Weather with NEXRAD, and the option to display video from a forward looking infrared (FLIR) camera or other video sources. It is available in two versions – one with the PFD on the right, the other version with the PFD on the left. The PFD screen displays attitude, airspeed, vertical speed, altitude and course/heading information, and the MFD shows detailed moving map graphics with the helicopter’s current position in relation to terrain, chart data, navaids, and flight plan routings. The G500H includes the GDU 620 display/control unit, GRS 77H AHRS, GDC 74H digital air data computer, GMU 44 tri-axial magnetometer, and GTP 59 temp probe.