• READ MORE: Geeky Pilot Product Review: Sporty‘s PJ2 Handheld Radio

Seamless Backup

If you’re building a modern panel, you’ve likely thought about panel accessories like power ports—including a single-plug LEMO headset interface for at least the pilot and copilot audio jacks. The LEMO interface is convenient because it not only reduces the headset audio cable from two to one but also provides ship’s power input for an ANR headset.

Bose and Lightspeed, to name two manufacturers, offer LEMO options for their headsets, and the single-plug power and audio cable makes for a cleaner interface and eliminates the batteries in the headset. LEMO has become a popular configuration over the years both for OEM and aftermarket applications.

Priced at $279, the L6 is tightly designed around the decent-performing PJ2+ rig, which is priced the same and is still in the Sporty’s radio lineup. In our long-term testing we’ve found the PJ2+, with its 6-watt transmitter and noise-limited circuit, to be a good value and a good choice for emergency backup. Connect the radio to an external antenna and you’ll communicate with similar performance as a panel radio. But you won’t plug a twin-plug GA headset into the L6. It caters strictly to the LEMO interface and powers the ANR headset through the single-plug LEMO connector, which plugs in at the top of the radio’s chassis.

The L6 also has an onboard USB-C connector for plugging in a 2.4-amp power supply. This USB port can bypass the batteries, but for power supplies that output less than 2.4 amps, the radio won’t transmit—only receive. The L6 requires six AA alkaline batteries when not plugged in to external power.

Worth mentioning is the independent volume and squelch controls on the new L6, replacing the single stalk control that’s on the PJ2+. We found the dual controls much easier to deal with.

Performance, Features

We tried the new L6 side by side with the PJ2+ radio and found nearly identical receiver and transmitter performance. It has the same 1.5- by 1.63-inch LCD display and an auto-lit keypad, plus it sits in the exact same chassis as the PJ2+. Like the PJ2+, the L6 has a 3.5-mm earbud jack that disables the radio’s internal microphone and speaker. It also has 20-frequency storage and scanning, a dedicated 121.5 key, active/standby frequency flip-flop and a NOAA weather radio band.

Sporty’s says battery endurance will vary depending on how much you transmit, but for powering a LEMO-equipped headset and using the radio for normal transmitting and receiving, you can plan on between 5 and 10 hours of battery life. We used the L6 with a new Bose A30 (and older A20) and a couple of Lightspeed models, including the new Delta Zulu. But there’s a caveat.

Sporty’s said that there might be some interference issues when transmitting when connected to a Lightspeed Delta Zulu (and some other non-TSO models without shielded cables). What can happen is the cabling acts as a transmitter—perhaps only happening on certain frequencies. We didn’t experience any issues in our evaluation, but Sporty’s provides ferrite grounding beads for users who do have a problem. Simply position the ferrite bead near the LEMO plug, or absent a bead, you can wrap the headset audio cable around the radio’s rubber antenna for better grounding.

The first ever portable radio with a direct plug-in LEMO headset interface, we think Sporty’s has another smart product in the L6.

Visit www.sportys.com for more information.

This article first appeared on KITPLANES.com.

The post Sporty’s L6 COM Radio Review appeared first on Plane & Pilot Magazine.

Now, I was an early adopter of GPS. I had a portable unit about the size of brick, with a grayscale map display. Waypoints needed to be put in one at a time; I think it would hold 99 of them. Some of my stored spots were VOR stations, used for departures and arrivals. It was fascinating to watch the little airplane symbol crawl across the screen. But we always had the VOR’s course deviation indicator ready for guidance or orientation.

So, what’s wrong with relying solely on GPS? Our gee-whiz navigators provide groundspeed, track, distance, time to go, vertical profile, and nearest-airport options, and probably the phone number of a pizza restaurant that delivers. The magic boxes work great, if I can remember how to click and twist through the pages of utilities. I jump in and out of several airplanes in the course of a month, each equipped differently, which can be a real test of recall.

VOR receivers, on the other hand, all work the same. Select the frequency, turn the omni-bearing selector knob to center the CDI, and you’re oriented with a path to or from the station. If that facility is down for maintenance, tune in another one. They won’t all be out of service at the same time. Simple, easy to remember, no menu to scan through.

GPS, on the other hand, relies on a minuscule amount of signal strength processed by sophisticated microcircuits, emanating from a constellation of fragile satellites susceptible to solar flares, jamming signals, and the whims of enemies or our own military. The FAA, while eager to shift airways traffic onto direct routing, recognizes that a backup navigation system needs to be maintained in case of a GPS disruption, so the plan is to maintain a Minimum Operational Network (MON) of VOR stations to provide alternate navigation capability above 5,000 feet agl. An airport with an ILS or VOR approach should always be available within 100 miles. 

But the MON VORs aren’t going to do us any good if we take the old nav/comm sets out of our panel. Who knows? I might need to borrow your airplane one of these days, and I’m probably not up to speed on your customized installation. Give me a VOR receiver and I’ll always find my way home.

The post Why We Need VORs in the Age of GPS appeared first on Plane & Pilot Magazine.