Svein,
I have used portables in the Europa with only the rubber duckie antenna
and find ranges of 15-20 miles without a problem. I use the plug in
adapters for my headsets in the radio to improve hearing and
communicating... This makes listening to the main and standby radio
difficult with a speaker in the plane near your head. The handheld will
pick up the EM from the speaker and it drives the squelch to an annoying
level. I will use the hand held with one headphone off if I need to use
two radios. My experience in the military with only one radio makes
listening to the handheld or com 2 a pain. I guess I am just a one
thing at a time guy and not a multi-tasker.
Increase your range by installing an antenna such as the Advanced
Aircraft Electronics (AAE) brand which have a built in ground plane.
Run a coax wire from the antenna into the passenger headrest and it
works pretty good. Transmitting through the engine with the duckie
antenna is a problem in the pattern so figure the guy pulling out on the
runway with you on final, may not hear you well.
Choose a handheld with a 5 watt power output and it works very well with
the AAE brand antenna as a backup for radio failure. Using it for a
trip will require aircraft power. Glider pilots have been using them
for com for quite some time with the stick on the canopy optional
antennas sold by most handheld manufacturers.
Bud Yerly
Europa Tech Support
----- Original Message -----
From: Sidsel & Svein Johnsen<mailto:sidsel.svein@oslo.online.no>
To: europa-list@matronics.com<mailto:europa-list@matronics.com>
Sent: Sunday, September 23, 2012 12:27 PM
Subject: Europa-List: Handheld comm radio
Does anyone have experience (good or bad) with a handheld VHF comm
radio used in the aircraft? I am interested in this option as a second
radio on board, both in case the installed radio should fail and
-primarily - as a means of listening to VFR traffic close to non-towered
airports and air-to-air communication (fairly close range) while still
listening to the traffic controllers on radio no. 1.
Info on radio, connection to external antenna if any, connection to
headset, etc., appreciated.
Regards
Svein
LN-SKJ
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