Being limited to VFR is also not a good option. You could be stuck for weeks.
In Greece? IMC for weeks? I have never seen that. And you can almost always get up to Germany if you circumnavigate the Alps and fly along the Danube river. If I could do it VFR with the Warrior for 20 years, then I can certainly do it with the Cirrus without the PFD and or MFD with Skydemon and the backup instruments.
Peter wrote:
The G1000 is normally reliable, and they have multiple planes.
If I’m not mistaken G500 is build on the same components (save the display unit, of course). But they need some plan. Do they intend to fly it VFR to Diamond in Austria? Pack it up into a container and ship it? 
Their maintenance shop could be able to deal with it. What about a G1000 (or G500/ 600) equipped Pilatus PC-6 flying in the middle of nowhere? Landing on some strip in the mountains with solid en-route IMC forecasted for the foreseeable future only to find out issue with the system when preparing to head back. What is their plan?
That referred to the installation itself, not service. Even if there is a G1000/ GFC700 retrofit available, there will in all probability be only the one. Take it or leave it.
@achimha I agree. Did they plan on compatibility with other “solutions” or on requiring a Garmin system (G1000 or possibly G500/ 600 with Garmin GPS+radio)? If they were to require G1000 I would think the retrofit would be too expensive for older planes.
Martin wrote:
But they need some plan. Do they intend to fly it VFR to Diamond in Austria? Pack it up into a container and ship it?
My maintenance shop would dispatch an engineer to where ever my plane ends up AOG. That is part of the general service they provide to customers. It’s tedious and not profitable for them but they do it and their customers know they can rely on it. I think that is rather standard.
G1000 is a very robust system. Unless you somehow choose to do a software reload in the jungle (reloads are a bit flaky) it is not just going to completely go out on you. Yes a PFD can fail but there is a reversionary mode on the MFD which means you have a combined MFD and PFD.
achimha wrote:
My maintenance shop would dispatch an engineer to where ever my plane ends up AOG.
Exactly as I would expect. Either it can be done by me or local mechanic/ maintenance shop (if there is one) and all I need are parts (good stock + express shipping). Or they send the personnel with the parts. If I can’t make it, for whatever reason, to suitable facility. That’s why Peter’s argument seems a bit funny to me. Greece isn’t middle-of-nowhere in Indonesia. I would be more worried about wing damage or prop strike, just as two examples. If someone designs an avionics package so no one can work on it they better offer solid AOG service.
@JasonC I agree. But if your installation of G1000 has only one AHRS (Diamond springs to mind) or ADC and you lose it, reversionary mode won’t help you. And with G500/ 600, you would need two. What if one AHRS fails (of two) when you’re in say Australia in an EASA-reg plane? Long way from home. Would you risk it?
Martin wrote:
@JasonC I agree. But if your installation of G1000 has only one AHRS (Diamond springs to mind) or ADC and you lose it, reversionary mode won’t help you. And with G500/ 600, you would need two.
I agree but it is not like AHRS or ADCs are beset by failures. In a piston aircraft I think you are at far greater risk of a mechanical malfunction than a glass cockpit failure.
My maintenance shop would dispatch an engineer to where ever my plane ends up AOG
That sort of service is unbelievably expensive.
Somebody must be paying for it. If it’s not you then they must be billing to somebody else’s account, literally or de facto.
Peter wrote:
That sort of service is unbelievably expensive.Somebody must be paying for it. If it’s not you then they must be billing to somebody else’s account, literally or de facto.
Why? You pay travel expenses and a reasonable daily rate, like 400-500 €. Of course it’s not profitable for them but it’s part of the service. If I’m stuck somewhere with a problem that I cannot solve and the only local maintenance looks dodgy, I happily pay the money to have a trustworthy mechanic fly out.
I had one case where I asked them to come and they agreed but after a bit of discussion they realized I should be capable to fix it myself and we talked 3x per day on the phone while I performed the maintenance and they eventually approved it via telephone. We agreed if either side was unsure, they would come out. You can do so much by sending photos and movies via WhatsApp…
I have a late update to post #19 in this thread, from a US based installer:
I wonder whether a European G500 owner would be able to get the unlock card? It would seem to be an essential insurance policy.
