© Flytec USA, 2003
9
A The Basics
A1
Analog
Vario
The most important instrument for any kind of glider flying, after the pilot’s brain, is the vario. The 5030 displays
vertical speed in fpm or m/sec. and informs the pilot whether he/she is climbing or sinking. It is by using the vario,
and its accompanying sounds, that pilots can discover the most efficient climb, or recognize when they are in rapidly
descending air. Starting with firmware v2.21 the 5030 utilizes Real Time Operating system for the vario acoustics.
This means the vario audio is always active even in the menu mode and during heavy CPU load conditions like
drawing the real time map.
There are two possible analog vario scales on the 5030, the dial scale and the vertical bar scale shown in the figures.
The scale of either analog vario display is 200 fpm (or 1 m/s). The resolution of the digital vario is 10 fpm (0.1 m/s).
The type of scale dial or vertical can be selected in Menu>Basic Settings>variodisplay
.
A1.1 Vario speed
The first full-scale range is from +/-800 fpm (+/-4 m/s) after which the scale
automatically switches to a second range from 800 to 1600 fpm (4 to 8 m/s).
The time interval, over which the measured climb rates are averaged
(damping) for the analog display and associated sounds is factory set at 1.2
seconds. This can be changed to any value between 0.6 sec and 4 sec. in
Menu>Basic Settings>Vario>Speedresp. delay.
If the time interval is too short,
the vario is very twitchy and if it is too long, it’s rather sluggish. A lower
dampening value is preferable for smooth light conditions. A greater
dampening value may be desirable in rough turbulent conditions. Note: This
setting should not be confused with vario integration (averager) that can be set
for the digital vario display. The responsiveness of the vario audio, when
entering and exiting lift, may also be adjusted with the filter in Menu>Basic
Settings>Vario/Speedresp. delay. A value between 1-10 can be set where the
lower the value the quicker the audio will start and stop as you enter and exit lift.
If the pilot is flying too fast while thermalling and compromising climb rate the
5030 will provide a visual indication on the dial display. A radial line will appear
above the indicated climb rate. To maximize climb the pilot should reduce
his/her speed until the radial line converges with the indicated climb rate (unless
of course conditions dictate a higher thermalling speed).
A2
Altimeters
and
Air
Pressure
The 5030 tracks and can display four different altitudes and the QNH. A2, A3, FL and QNH can be displayed in the
user-selectable fields. See section A7 User-selectable fields.
A1:
Altitude above sea level (QNH).
A2:
Altitude with respect to a reference height. It can be adjusted at any time by calling up “Mod A2
↑↓
” with the
F1 key and then adjusting to the desire value with the
keys
or the
F2
key can be pressed to set A2 to 0.
A3:
The total height gained during a flight. If several pilots complete the same flight task, then the one who
climbed the least overall would have flown most efficiently.
FL (ft):
Flight-Level is based on an air pressure of 29.92 inHg (1013 hPa) at mean sea level and it cannot be
adjusted by the user.
QNH:
Is the barometric pressure at sea level.
Altimeter A1 should be adjusted to display the actual height above sea level (QNH). The QNH is originally set at the
factory to a sea level pressure of 29.92 inHg (1013hPa). Since it is seldom the case that you are taking off from sea
level and the air pressure is also 29.92 inHg, the correct altitude should be set before starting each flight. When you
first switch on the 5030 the
Information Display
will show “Mod Alt1
↑↓
” and the
keys can be used to set the
desired altitude. If the elevation of launch is unknown A1 can be set to GPS altitude by pressing the F2 key (provided
0
Bat.
3.57V
12h
4
3
2
1
m/s
1
2
3
4
70
60
50
40
30
m
+
