Finally! An EFB that actually makes flying easier and fun again.
Finally! An EFB that actually makes flying easier and fun again.
The FAA has left the decision to the discretion of the pilot-in-command under FAA AC-91-78, 6-b:
The in-flight use of an EFB/ECD in lieu of paper reference material is the decision of the aircraft operator and the pilot in command.
Any Type A or Type B EFB application, as defined in AC 120-76A may be substituted for the paper equivalent.
It requires no formal operational approval as long as the guidelines of this AC are followed.
Our system is designed to run on any Windows platform running Windows XP or newer, while the new iOS app will work on recent iOS releases. Windows XP (with latest service packs) or Windows 7 is recommended. The minimum operating requirements are listed here.
No, many tablet PCs offer touch-screen capabilities and the ability to rotate or turn the screen, but Chartflier will function with a normal laptop or netbook. A Tablet is recommended for in-flight operations.
Although we recommend a computer with a built in SSD, it is not required if the operation of the system is below 10,000' density altitude. The issue is that hard drives use a cushion of air to keep the heads off the internal spinning disk. The higher the altitude the less air cushion there is. HDD makers publish a 10,000' limit to most hard drives. SSD drives do not have this limitation, plus they are generally faster and more reliable. Chances are if your not wearing an O2 mask the HDD is okay. If you wear O2 masks regularly you should purchase a system with a SSD.
That depends. For the most cost effective solution, Netbook tablets are available. We tested the ASUS T91MT, Lenovo S10T, Samsung Q1, Fujitsu Lifebook Series and CTL toGoPad - any of these produce good solutions. There are also hundreds of others that will work that are available on the refurbished market. Because the application can run on any Windows platform with minimal resources, you can get great deals on older tablets or purchase a state-of-the-art tablet with sunlight readable displays. If you fly an RV-8, for instance, you'll definitely need a tablet with a bright display that is readable in full sunlight. If you fly a typical Cessna, Piper, Mooney, or Bonanza, you can purchase a system with a regular screen. We have tested the Samsung Q1, Lenovo X41 Tablet, Fujistu T-2010, ASUS T91MT, and Lenovo S10T with very solid results.
Nearly all General Aviation pilots and aircraft have one of these systems either permanently or temporarily mounted in them. We designed Chartflier to augment the equipment a pilot already has and not duplicate their function. Simply put, Chartflier replaces your paper charts.
Yes, your license grants you the ability to install on a home or office computer as well as one tablet/notebook type computer. Since the chart materials are licensed on a per-user basis, installing on more than 2 computers will incur an additional license cost.
Yes, within the first 30 days from your purchase date, you can return the product without cost by simply contacting us. After 30 days there are no refunds and any credit card chargeback fees become the responsibility of the purchaser.
Any Bluetooth GPS should work fine, but with any technology your mileage may vary. We tested the GlobalSat BT-359 extensively and found it to be very cost effective and reliable. We will work with customers to assist with basic GPS-related issues, and will do our best to test with GPS units you may run across that don't work.
This is often a simple port issue and presents with an error such as "System IO.IO Exception: The port 'com 3' does not exist" when you try to connect to the GPS.
The GPS communicates on a numbered COM port and Chartflier has to know what port the GPS is using. Usually it's COM2, but not always. You can try COM1, COM2, COM3, and so on, until it connects, or you can find out definitively from the bluetooth device properties dialog in Windows. To do so, look for the Bluetooth icon in your Windows system tray (the area at the bottom-right hand side of your screen), right-click it and choose open, and then right-click and look at the properties for your GPS device.
Chartflier usually finds the COM port automatically, but if you have to manually specify it, Chartflier remembers and reuses the port going forward so you won't have to do it again unless you get a new GPS.
Visual GPS offers a freeware program that will read your GPS (not ADS-B receiver) and produce a report on the GPS and satellite information
Very soon! We are currently testing the iOS version of Chartflier here at the EFT lab, and we look forward to offering it for sale this fall! We're looking at adding an Android version after the launch of the iPad Chartflier app is available.
The short answer is, not at this time. Our software will work but the charts are not available to us yet in a cost-effective manner. We are monitoring the costs and availability. We are currently evaluating adding Canadian Charts. We plan to start evaluating European Charts in the next 12 months or so.