Piper PA-32 Cherokee 6

Aircraft Information
> Aircraft Make: Piper Model: PA-32. Nickname: Cherokee 6
> Aircraft Mil Civ Description: Airplane Single Engine (SE) Piston
> FAA Category and Class: Airplane Single Engine Land
> Engine Description: single piston

Aircraft Experience
> As of: 11/4/2024
> Number of Hours Flown: 2
> Number of Times Flown: 1
> Other Aircraft Models Associated: none

First Flown Information
> Sequence First Flown: 133
> Date First Flown: 11/6/2002
> Location First Flown: Mid-continent airport, Wichita, KS (KICT)
> Who and/or What Organization First Flown With: Garmin, Phil Straub

Recollections: This flight was with Garmin International, the makers of excellent Avionics for MANY uses (boating, hiking, and aviation).  The aviation avionics development group was located in Olathe, KS but they flew this test airplane down to Wichita for this particular flight.  I always enjoyed working with Garmin, including this flight with Phil Straub, who would later go on to become a leader within Garmin.

The project involved a test of a relatively new systems called “Traffic Information Service-Broadcast” (TIS-B)…..a system which used approach radars (located near most major/large airports to detect aircraft flying (including their transponder information) and broadcasting this information out to be used by any airplane with the proper equipment.  If you’re familiar with “TCAS”, this is an alternative.  The system worked well, with a few issues that got ironed out over the years by the very diligent engineers and testers at Garmin.

I always enjoyed working w/Garmin, they were professional, always tried to make their products better (beyond the “minimum level of safety”) and–after I retired from the FAA–I started consulting with their facility in Salem, Oregon. I don’t know the details, but Garmin’s market share from the early 2000’s to present day increased significantly.