As a key milestone within the D328eco aircraft development program, Deutsche Aircraft has selected the Garmin G5000 avionic suite to equip the Companion flight deck.

Deutsche Aircraft says it is driving innovation in the overall flight deck design for commercial aircraft and that the decision represents the first time a new flight deck will have been fitted into a below 50-seat regional aircraft since the beginning of the 21st century.

Through the D328eco program, Garmin is opening a new chapter by introducing for the first time an avionics flight deck into a Part 25 air transport, scheduled commercial operation aircraft.

We are honored to work with the Deutsche Aircraft team to help achieve their mission of providing the D328eco aircraft as a disruptive new entrant into the regional air transportation market,” says Creighton Scarpone, Garmin director of airline and business aviation sales. “The G5000 integrated flight deck, optimised specifically for the D328eco, brings an established solution into the segment, and offers a scalable platform to meet both current and forward-looking needs of operators around the world.”

As main design goals, the new Companion flight deck is being developed to offer a cognitive and intuitive operation, with reduced workload, enhanced ergonomics, safety and improved maintainability. To achieve these main design goals, some features and characteristics are being implemented like touchscreen control for avionics and aircraft systems, flight path-based guidance, enhanced synthetic vision, active electronic checklists, increased system automation and integration, single lever engine control and paperless operations capability.

The implementation of the Garmin avionics into the Companion flight deck is one key enabling system towards future Single Pilot Operation capability.

To enhance safety, an important focus and attention has been given to human factors, increased situational awareness and features like envelope protection, automatic emergency descent mode and runway awareness and alerting. Offering a flexible and configurable maintenance computer, highly integrated built-in testing and diagnostic functions with quick and easy upload and download of data, the Companion flight deck will offer unprecedented maintainability.

“The new Companion flight deck has been designed whilst keeping in mind all requirements and expectations of the market allowing a total control of how we have designed it. Its functionalities really make Deutsche Aircraft's innovative vision a reality,” says Dave Jackson, Managing Director of Deutsche Aircraft. “The new D328eco Companion flight deck features a significant leap in enabling pilots to successfully complete their mission, whether it is flying commercial passengers or special operations.”

The Deutsche Aircraft program, currently in preliminary design review phase, is focused on the maturity of new systems and materials required to support the aircraft design targets and industrialisation. The regional aircraft program continues to be led out of Oberpfaffenhofen airport near Munich and planning work has commenced to establish the final assembly line at Leipzig Halle Airport.