Where'd you hear an AD was coming?

http://www.avidynelive.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=568&PID=13654&title=interfacing-of-mlb100-gns430w-and-ex5000#13654" rel="nofollow - http://www.avidynelive.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=568&PID=13654&title=interfacing-of-mlb100-gns430w-and-ex5000#13654

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https://www.faa.gov/aircraft/safety/programs/sups/upn/media/2016/2016_2016SW56001_UPN.pdf

https://www.navworx.com/documents/UPN%20Statement.pdf" rel="nofollow - https://www.navworx.com/documents/UPN%20Statement.pdf

https://www.regulations.gov/contentStreamer?documentId=FAA-2016-9226-0016&attachmentNumber=1&disposition=attachment&contentType=pdf" rel="nofollow - https://www.regulations.gov/contentStreamer?documentId=FAA-2016-9226-0016&attachmentNumber=1&disposition=attachment&contentType=pdf

https://www.faa.gov/nextgen/programs/adsb/media/TIS-B_service_change_summary_final_508_5-13-15-webV2.pdf" rel="nofollow - https://www.faa.gov/nextgen/programs/adsb/media/TIS-B_service_change_summary_final_508_5-13-15-webV2.pdf

Navworx certified an ADS-B box that uses your existing transponder several years ago. It does not have an approved nav GPS, because that level of accuracy is not required for traffic, per the regs.

The FAA refused, per Navworx, to grant them approved GPS status despite their demonstration of the equipment meeting that capability.

The FAA later changed the traffic output on the server-side of ADS-B to only show traffic targets to devices with approved GPS units.

That means that the STC'd Navworx box no longer receives traffic.

Navworx informed the FAA that they were going to push a software update to change their ADS-B box to report as an approved GPS. The FAA told them not to. Navworx did it anyway. The FAA, in what must be a record in terms of timely government action, submitted a proposed AD within two days that recommends forcing Navworx owners to pull the devices from their airplanes.

.... Navworx had already brought in legal counsel with the intention of fighting the FAA in court if this happened.

I have documented, along with at least two others with different equipment, a failure of Garmin's ADS-B transponder (GTX 345) that is actually worthy of an AD. At least myself and one other person have reported it to the FAA safety hotline over a month ago and have gotten zero response from the FAA.

Depending on how that Garmin transponder is connected to other devices, it will get itself into a crash/reboot loop cycle on a magnetic heading of 360. Therefore, it cannot be safe to fly an approach in a northerly direction with that Garmin transponder, because the aircraft would lose transponder output entirely if runway orientation or wind correction leaves the airplane aligned on a magnetic heading of 360.

Meanwhile the FAA managed to go from UPN to AD proposal inside of a week on this Navworx dispute.

It seems that they are more concerned with who is selling ADS-B boxes than whether the boxes actually work or not.

I understand that Navworx is an Avidyne supplier so I assume you guys have some interest in this situation between Navworx and the FAA.

If my documentation of preferential treatment of Garmin can be of any assistance let me know, I would be happy to help in any way I can.

I think there is a major difference between intentionally defying FAA safety standards, and unintentionally screwing up an apparently compliant design. A design screw-up requires some study to find out whether it's real or due to operator error, and how prevalent it is.  From your description, the Garmin may well get an AD issued in due time (emergency ADs are pretty rare), although people really holler when the FAA gets ADs wrong for whatever reason.  With the Garmin box, the FAA has to be pretty sure what's wrong before they issue an AD.

But the Navworks thing is a whole different situation.  By FAA's pre-determined standards, every affected Navworks box is defective by design and does not meet minimum standards of safety - and Navworks told the FAA they were going forward anyway.  It's a no brainer to issue the AD.  That sets the situation back to where it should be: the box doesn't go on the market as an ADS-B mandate solution until the FAA agrees to waive its standards, or Navworks agrees to comply with them.  Navworks doesn't get to waive itself.

http://navworx.com/