Piper Aircraft announced at the company’s Vero Beach headquarters that their newest flagship model, the Piper M600/SLS, has received type certification from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for its new HALO™ safety system. Deliveries are set to begin immediately, making the M600/SLS the first aircraft in the world available with the Garmin Autoland system.
“We are delighted to announce the certification of the M600/SLS with the HALO™ Safety System by the FAA”, said Simon Caldecott, Piper Aircraft President and CEO. “This is the first aircraft to be certified with one of the most significant advancements in general aviation history. As a company that has always held safety at the forefront of our culture, we are proud to be first to market with Autoland.”
“The FAA certification of Autoland is a day of celebration for the entire aviation industry as we redefine the expectations of not only the pilot, but more importantly the passenger, and what should be standard equipment on general aviation aircraft,” said Phil Straub, Garmin executive vice president and managing director of aviation. “Our congratulations to Piper for certifying this safety enhancing technology on the M600 and delivering one of the industry’s most significant innovations to our respective customers.”
The HALO™ Safety System is Piper’s branding of Garmin AUTONOMÍ™, a high-level automation system that monitors the pilot throughout the flight. If it senses that the pilot has become non-responsive, or when activated manually, it can take control of the aircraft, navigate around weather and obstacles and land at the nearest suitable airfield, coming to a full stop and shutting down the engine. Additionally, the AUTONOMÍ™ system is capable of making a controlled emergency descent in the event of cabin depressurisation, and also monitors the flight parameters, alerting the pilot to potentially unsafe flight conditions or control inputs.
The HALO™ Safety System with Garmin Autoland is standard equipment on all M600/SLS aircraft. The Safety System includes a compilation of innovative technologies unique to the M600/SLS and the Garmin G3000 avionics suite. The system includes Auto-throttle, Emergency Descent Mode, Electronic Stability and Protection, Surface Watch, Safe Taxi, Flight Stream connectivity and more. However, of greatest significance is the addition of Garmin Autoland – digital technology that safely lands the aircraft at the nearest suitable airport in the event that the pilot is incapacitated. The M600/SLS is available for purchase now through the Piper Dealer Network.