About Us

Company Overview

What We Do

DigiFlite, LLC merges training and software expertise to produce clear, complete, convenient avionics knowledge and skill training for GA pilots. Our GA glass cockpit training courses increase pilots' FlightFluency™ – the knowledge and skills needed to optimize flight safety, performance, and fun.

Why We Do It

The FAA says it for us.

With glass cockpits becoming more commonplace in GA aircraft, the FAA in 2003 conducted a study to understand how the new avionics relate to accidents. The study focused on Technically Advanced Aircraft (TAA) – "aircraft in which the pilot interfaces with one or more computers in order to aviate, navigate, or communicate."

In August, 2003, the final report was released. The upshot: electronic gadgetry increases "available safety", but it does nothing for a pilot who doesn't know how to use it. Nothing startling here.

The report goes on to say:

  • "For pilots to access this increased available safety, they must initially undertake additional training to understand both the ways to exploit the safety opportunities inherent in TAA systems, and their inherent limitations."
  • "...traditional GA training... does not specifically include training to exploit the additional safety opportunities of new technologies or to operate within the limitations of these technologies..."
  • "...pilots new to aviation, ...and pilots who are not comfortable with computers, have special training needs that must be addressed through add-on training modules."

The report recommends that this additional training include the "mental airplane... the combination of avionics systems used for communication, navigation, surveillance and flight control. It includes that ability to utilize the key functions of each avionics system individually, and to properly utilize the key functions that rely on the integration of multiple avionics systems."

We founded DigiFlite to meet these training needs. And to help to reduce the number of GA accidents.

Our Industry Participation

DigiFlite is committed to active participation in industry associations and standards organizations. We believe that these groups are essential to the advancement of aviation training quality.

Our History

Founded in 2003, DigiFlite is headquartered in Plymouth, Massachusetts, and is a privately held, privately funded company.

Next Steps

Read the "General Aviation Technically Advanced Aircraft FAA-Industry Safety Study" report (Word file).

The conclusions of the FAA-industry TAA study are solid, especially the part about pilots benefiting from additional training using on-board equipment.

Rod Machado
AOPA Pilot
December, 2003