Jonathan,

IFR during the approach to an airport with surrounding terrain seems
like a pretty good use of terrain avoidance. VFR during the approach to
an airport in the summer when the visibility may be reduced in haze
seems like a pretty good use of terrain avoidance.

I agree. But in both cases, it is "nice to have", not something you'd bet
on. For IFR, if you adhere to the procedure as published, you won't be near
the terrain anyway. IN the VFR case, if you really can't see the terrain
(and imagine it from the chart), you have no business being there.

The scenario mentioned by the poster was "fly away from an indicated
obstacle only to fly into non-indicated terrain". That is a scenario that
should never happen, with or without GPS. And the terrain-capable GPS,
certified or not, is clearly not capable of nor meant to be saving your
bacon in that case.


This nonsense that I've been reading here and on other message boards
suggesting that a situational awareness tool is useless or almost
useless because it isn't "certified" is sheer lunacy, in my opinion.

I didn't mean to say that. In fact, I agree with you.


--
Thomas Borchert (EDDH)