At the 11th hour, after being pre approved for our loan, getting our appraisal done ($650), we are told in order to fund the loan an ADSB Out must be installed.....
What?
Yup, on an E-LSA, Zenith CH701 flown in rural montana. Class G nowhere land Backcountry.
Closest class c is 240 miles away.
I have no issue with the ADSB technology, what I have is a problem landing this on you so late in the game and mandating it where it is not even required by the FAA here. This is through an AOPA lender.
I'm a 25yr PP/ASEL/INST who has decided to just exercise Sport Pilot Privileges.
Would I want an ADSB In/Out? Of course, but let me budget for it on my own!
Anyway, Off the Soap Box.....
What upgradable ADSB Out is the most reasonable turn key install (max $3500 installed) for this aircraft? Note: mode c not installed.
Many Thanks!

Whatever you do, don't buy a tailbeacon. I wish I hadn't.

…

StillLearning: second year on uavionix tail beacon on our 56 182 and working fine around Denver Bravo and all over the NW. What am I missing? Not being sarcastic; really want to know.
Thanks
Jack

Wow that is some Grade A horse crap on the part of the lender.

I installed a Stratus ESGi in my Citabria. ADS-B in and out. It is a complete transponder with some nice features (like displaying your pressure altitude). If your plane is potentially in need of a transponder replacement I would not hesitate to do it again. Does not need a second transponder antenna. You just hook it up to the one you already have. I think I paid $3100 for the kit, and installed it myself under the supervision of an avionics shop.

If you already have a decent Garmin transponder (like a 327), the GDL -82 adds ADS-B out and does not occupy panel space. I believe it does not require an extra transponder antenna either. Last I saw, the GDL-82 was around $1500

Most of the part 135 fleet where I work have tail beacons. Just over half of those actually work, which might answer your question.

For my experimental build I purchased the Echo UAT with Skybeacon. It coordinates with my Sandia STX-165R. Nothing on the panel. The interface is on the PFD/MFD. I was a bit annoyed to find out I needed a second transponder antenna, which must be at least 3' from the first one. This solution was just under $1000. Potential downside is that it's made by the same people who make the tail beacon.

flyingjack wrote:StillLearning: second year on uavionix tail beacon on our 56 182 and working fine around Denver Bravo and all over the NW. What am I missing? Not being sarcastic; really want to know.
Thanks
Jack

Ditto for me, I'm coming up on 4 years running the Tailbeacon.
Took a little (very little) dialing in, but otherwise super easy installation.
I get a PAPR report every 3 or 4 months & it continues to work just fine.

Montana~Dan wrote:At the 11th hour, after being pre approved for our loan, getting our appraisal done ($650), we are told in order to fund the loan an ADSB Out must be installed.....
What?
Yup, on an E-LSA, Zenith CH701 flown in rural montana. Class G nowhere land Backcountry.
Closest class c is 240 miles away.
I have no issue with the ADSB technology, what I have is a problem landing this on you so late in the game and mandating it where it is not even required by the FAA here. This is through an AOPA lender.
I'm a 25yr PP/ASEL/INST who has decided to just exercise Sport Pilot Privileges.
Would I want an ADSB In/Out? Of course, but let me budget for it on my own!
Anyway, Off the Soap Box.....
What upgradable ADSB Out is the most reasonable turn key install (max $3500 installed) for this aircraft? Note: mode c not installed.
Many Thanks!

In this day and age, especially if you’re flying backcountry, I’d highly recommend something with a true anonymous mode

https://backcountrypilot.org/forum/ads-b-privacy-23944

I’d also read the fine print on that loan and wonder WHY they want the tracker installed, do they ban backcountry flying?

I put in a tail beacon in 2020, spring of 2021 I got a nasty gram from the FAA, as in a certified letter. It said my ads-b was consistently NOT working properly, and I had x amount of time to fix it or I would be put on the no services list. I spent 6 months going back and forth with the FAA, and Uavionix.
Uavionix made me jump through hoops for several months, customer service was horrid. First it was that I had to use the butt splices supplied with the kit, handshake connectors were not good. I changed that, went and flew and got a failed report. Then they said it was the ground, that I could not ground it to the tail cone, but that I had to put it to a dedicated airframe ground, so I drilled a NEW hole in a 67 year old airframe, went and flew it and got another failed report. Along the line, I was told that much of the area that I was flying did not have the ability to get a passing report, so I flew it down to GJT and stayed in radar contact doing laps for a while, wow, I got a successful report. I flew it home and got another failed report when I got back. So, the problem is on the governement's side right? Wrong, it wasn't working properly all the time. Next, Uavionix said I must have a bad power supply or wiring. So, I replaced the breaker and the wiring from the breaker to the beacon and went and flew it, yet another failed report. Then, my transponder crapped out, AHA, that must have been it all along, right? Nope. I purchased a brand new sandia transponder to replace the narco 150. Should all be good now right, nope. Still getting failed reports and now I'm getting emails and phone calls from the FAA giving me ultimatums on when it has to be fixed. I find a guy at Uavionix customer service that really seems to know his stuff, now I am going to get this figured out. He has me trouble shoot it while on the phone, pull it outside turn it on, check the programming, says if its in anonymous mode that I will never get a passing report!??? WTF? I set it up non-anonymous and go fly it, yep, another failed report. I get him on the phone again several days later, we go through all the trouble shooting we can over the phone, he finally says that the unit is bad! This is only 5 months and all this bullshit later! Fine, send me a new unit, problem solved right? Nope, they won't send me a new unit until AFTER I send them the old one. Finally they agree to send me one after I show them proof that I shipped the old one back, so its only a few days without a tail light.
The new unit has worked, or at least I haven't gotten any more nasty grams from the FAA. I have requested a few reports and they still look like failures to me.
I was out flying one day about a year ago, I'm listening to tower at EGE and I know there is a Cirrus coming my direction. I'm watching and monitoring all the appropriate frequencies, and I get a call from the Cirrus. By tail number, they are calling me by my tail number to ask what my intentions are. They don't know me, tower referred to me as an unknown target. I get back to the airport and try to get into the setup page for the tailbeacon, it will not connect to my phone. After numerous tries, it finally connects long enough for me to verify that it is in anonymous mode. But, it is clearly not anonymous. I have been called by tower at GJT by tail number while flying outside their airspace, only monitoring tower.

I was getting some other avionics work done at a pretty big shop, I asked them what my options were for adsb if I get rid of the beacon. During that conversation, they informed me that they will NOT install beacons, because "every one of them will fail".

I know of 3 others based at my former home field that have failed as well.

I have more money and a whole bunch of aggravation and time than if I had done an adsb transponder in the first place.

I am not in the mood to change or add any avionics right now, but I think I should so I can sell the beacon before it quits working, and it still has some value.

Maybe they fixed their problem with the newer units, but the customer service was so bad that I will never buy a Uavionix product again.

Installed a Tailbeacon in my C175b when they first got approved, has been working perfectly ever since. Purchased a Light Sport Skyarrow two years ago and it needed ADSB out, installed a GDL 82 with a GTX 327 and they have been working perfectly. Am restoring a C170a and haven't decided on the ADSB out, but wouldn't turn down a new Skybeacon. Guess I'm just lucky.
Dave

49' Stinson w tail beacon and has been working since late 2020, zero issues. Airplane is hangared.

Per the tail beacon, tour company I worked for on the side, VERY busy tour company, flying under and around VERY busy airspace, had tailbeacons on 90% of their aircraft, all worked as advertised

I think we have replaced more beacons than installed.

Find a new lender?
If not, a GDL 88 if you have a working transponder currently for adsb out only.
The Garmin GTX345 is the full blown out/in adsb transponder, perhaps for resale?

I'm selling a brand new SkyBeacon if you want it, and I'm including the green LED/Strobe/NAV light for the other side. I installed it just to be able to fly my plane home because I needed the NAV light but it's never been registered or used as an ADSB. I don't need it but it came with the plane I just bought, I don't even have a transponder.

It's on marketplace and I could post a link but I don't know if that ok with the forum rules. Either way contact me if you need it, it's your cheapest option bar none.