Andrzej Kobus wrote on 11/20/2020 5:57 PM:
On Friday, November 20, 2020 at 12:31:44 PM UTC-5, Eric Greenwell wrote:
Moshe Braner wrote on 11/19/2020 2:12 PM:
On 11/19/2020 1:21 PM, Eric Greenwell wrote:


That looks to me like you can buy a license to activate the "B" antenna. Isn't that like


I also agree with Dan that having to buy a license to activate the "B" antenna is ridiculous.
Yes it's an optional feature, but it shouldn't be. They've already developed this feature and
it's built into the device. And it is important for the safety benefit. That's different from
some of the other optional features like IGC-certified logging, which are separate from the
collision avoidance purpose, and they can make those who want that feature pay extra while
keeping the price lower (?) for the rest.

The B antenna is not required for safety in my glider. My ASH26E has two antennas in the nose
(Flarm and ADSB), producing excellent range in most directions, and sufficient range to the
rear for collision avoidance. I tried a B antenna on the belly, and it did improve the range at
which I could detect other Flarm units, especially below. Since the unit already had sufficient
range in all directions, the B antenna did not improve it's collision avoidance ability, and I
removed it after 10 or so flights.

I think my experience would apply to almost any Schleicher glider - they all use essentially
the same fuselage, starting with the ASW24, which do not have carbon in the nose. That's a lot
of gliders.
--
Eric Greenwell - Washington State, USA (change ".netto" to ".us" to email me)
- "A Guide to Self-Launching Sailplane Operation"
https://sites.google.com/site/motorg...ad-the-guide-1

Eric, you wish what you wrote to be a fact, but in reality you can not have 100% in a glider that uses carbon and has only one antenna. I used to own ASH-26E with Flarm and from experience know there are blind spots. One flight in a competition gaggle would prove it for you. You will not be seen by others all the time and you will not see others all the time on your Flarm if you and they have only 1 antenna.

The gaggles I've flown in did not expose those problems, perhaps because they have not been as
dense as the worst contest gaggles sometimes are. Did your 26E have the antennas mounted in the
nose? Where was the worst blind spot?

In general, I would expect the signal strength from nearby gliders (+/- 500'vertically, 1000'
horizontally) in a gaggle to overwhelm all but the very worst antenna placement.

--
Eric Greenwell - Washington State, USA (change ".netto" to ".us" to email me)
- "A Guide to Self-Launching Sailplane Operation"
https://sites.google.com/site/motorg...ad-the-guide-1