Autopilot Operation
8-8
SkyView Pilot’s User Guide - Revision M
An altitude value in blue denotes that the pitch axis is holding that altitude as shown in Figure
131. Note that the AP text and roll arrow are present indicating that the pitch axis is engaged.
Figure 131–Pitch Axis Example: Altitude mode, engaged and holding 1500
VS Mode
When the autopilot is changing altitude, the Top Bar denotes that the active mode is VS (blue
text) and the target is the value of the altitude bug (white text). The arrow between VS and ALT
denotes a sequence. All of this information is illustrated in Figure 132.
Figure 132–Pitch Axis Example: Vertical Speed mode, engaged and changing altitude to match altitude bug
Once the autopilot reaches the target altitude, the mode is automatically switched over to ALT
and the Top Bar will be similar to Figure 131.
Pitch Trim Indicator
When the autopilot is flying the aircraft in ALT mode, a Pitch Trim Indicator can appear in the
Top Bar. This indicator alerts you when the pitch servo detects excessive load on the elevator
which would result in a large pitch excursion when the autopilot is disengaged. If trim is
needed, the altitude target value or future state will be replaced by
and then alternate
between the word TRIM and either an up or down symbol (i.e.,
or
). To eliminate
the excessive trim forces that the autopilot is trying to overcome, trim the nose of the aircraft
in the direction the arrow indicates. Adjust the trim in small increments and wait a few seconds
between adjustments to see whether the adjustment is sufficient to remove the out-of-trim
indication.
During turbulence and small bumps the trim indicator may flash on and off. Do not
take action based on the trim indicator until it remains on for several seconds.
The Pitch Trim Indicator is designed to detect SIGNIFICANT out of trim conditions
that are causing the autopilot to use more than minimal force to control the
aircraft. It is not designed to keep the aircraft perfectly in trim, as you would when
hand-flying the aircraft. The lack of a Pitch Trim Indicator should not be interpreted
to mean that the aircraft is perfectly in trim. Therefore, when the autopilot is
disconnected, the aircraft may not be in perfect trim, even when a Pitch Trim
Indicator was not being displayed while the autopilot was flying the aircraft. You
should always assume positive physical control of the aircraft when disengaging the
autopilot.
