Technology and Aviation

A frequent topic for discussion in class would be that of technology. Many would argue that aviation is lacking in technology when they observe a cockpit of some commercial, yet this isn't the case. Indeed some of the instruments in an MD-80 look out-dated, but they still preform their job.

Garmin, a leading company in aircraft instrumentation, has been making a new line of MFDs (Multi-Functional Displays) for aviation. As seen in the picture above, the new MFD glossy screens replace a lot of analog instrumentation with that of digital readouts. However, these displays aren't limited to military aviation. As seen in the PC-12 cockpit (below), these new displays are making their way into the civilian market.

The reason why I bring up technology in aviation is because technology has made great strides over the last decade. Furthermore, technology allows people to connect in new ways such as text messaging. It's interesting to note that the technological strides which connect people on the ground don't necessarily connect people in the air. What I mean by this is that ever since the dawn of aviation, pilots and ground crews established all the connection they would ever need to coordinate a safe takeoff, flight, and landing, and technological advances only make this process easier. I'd like to finish with an interesting video, which utilizes civilian technology with aviation: