Garmin is continuing to make significant investments in and add enhancements to the G5000 integrated flight deck upgrade in the Citation Excel and Citation XLS. New software-enabled features include stabilised approach monitoring, steep approach certification and reactive windshear detection, as well as optional takeoff and landing data (TOLD) calculations. New hardware approvals for these aircraft include the Garmin attitude and heading reference system (AHRS), the GRA 5500 radar altimeter and the GTS 8000, which all address third-party product obsolescence for these aircraft.

“Given the tremendous success and demand of the G5000 integrated flight deck upgrade in the Citation Excel and Citation XLS, we're excited to introduce new features that will add significant capability to this upgrade,” says Carl Wolf, vice president of aviation sales and marketing. “With the G5000, owners and operators receive zero-time avionics that yield a lower cost of operation, along with situational awareness tools that streamline cockpit operations, all of which make the G5000 upgrade in these popular aircraft an absolute must.”

Vital takeoff and landing performance data within the G5000 on the Citation Excel/XLS streamline flight deck operations and simplify pre-flight calculations. The optional TOLD function calculates required V-speeds, runway lengths and power settings. Data entry is simplified as the G5000 integrated flight deck automatically populates airport and runway information from the flight plan, as well as winds, temperatures and barometric pressure information. In the event takeoff or landing parameters are exceeded, a warning is populated on the primary flight display (PFD). Additionally, a TOLD consistency monitor within the G5000 routinely monitors aircraft configuration, such as flap setting, to ensure the crew is operating within the parameters selected.

Additionally, the optional TOLD feature for the Citation Excel/XLS includes a load emergency return function. In the event the aircraft requires an immediate return to the departure airport, pilots have the option to select load emergency return on the touchscreen controller to automatically load landing data. Optional SurfaceWatch complements TOLD calculations, by providing visual and aural notifications that are designed to help prevent pilots from taking off or landing on the wrong runway, on a runway that is too short or on a taxiway.

An additional layer of redundancy and protection is provided with the stabilised approach function. While on approach, the G5000 monitors the aircraft to ensure it's operated in a stabilised manner. Annunciations such as, “speed”, “course”, “glidepath” and “sink rate” notify the flight crew if the aircraft is exceeding predetermined speed, course or vertical descent rates while on approach to the runway.