With STC in hand, Leading Edge Aviation is the first flight school in the US to offer instruction in a Garmin G500H equipped R44 helicopter. The glass cockpit installation offers higher level of safety, reliability and is a powerful tool in preparing students for success in the industry.

Leading Edge now offers instruction using traditional steam gauges as well as state of the art glass cockpit. “The response to the G500H has exceeded our expectations and students are lining up to transition into the new R44,” says Sean Graves, Director of Flight School Operations at Leading Edge. “As many commercial operators are updating their cockpits to glass, exposure to the equipment in the flight training environment is paramount in preparing a student pilot for the real world.”

As an additional bonus, the G500H eliminates the need for repetitive overhauls of the traditional spinning gyro instruments which take a beating in the flight training environment.

The capabilities of the G500H are far reaching, but the stand out feature is the Synthetic Vision Technology (HSVTâ„¢) displaying real-time 3D images from topographic databases which includes over 7,000 heliports and nearly 30,000 additional low-altitude obstacles.

About Leading Edge
Leading Edge Aviation (LEA) has been a part of the Bend community since 1989 and has 5 major business segments including helicopter charter, flight training, avionics, maintenance and Robinson Helicopter overhaul. LEA is a FAA Part 135 Air Carrier operating Robinson R22, R44, and Bell 206 helicopters. LEA is a certified Robinson Helicopter sales, service, maintenance and overhaul facility and authorized distributors for most major avionics manufacturers.