Lesson 4 — EFIS and the Glass Cockpit
EFIS and the Glass Cockpit
Lesduur is: 120 minOnderdelen in deze les
EFIS and the Glass Cockpit
Open with the contrast between older cockpits full of separate dials and modern cockpits with integrated screens. The lesson thread is how sensor information becomes useful flight information for the pilot.
Learning goal
I can explain how EFIS uses sensors, computers and displays to give the pilot flight information, and describe its advantages and disadvantages.
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What words come to mind when you hear 'glass cockpit'?
Use this to surface prior knowledge and misconceptions such as screens, computers, modern, easier, sensors or fewer dials.
From dials to screens
Older cockpits used many separate mechanical instruments
Modern glass cockpits use fewer electronic displays
Information is grouped together on screens
The change is not just visual: the way information is processed has changed too
Use familiar examples such as an altimeter, airspeed indicator and artificial horizon in a traditional panel, then compare with a modern display layout.
What EFIS means
EFIS stands for Electronic Flight Instrument System.
It is a system that takes information from the aircraft, processes it electronically, and shows it on cockpit displays.
Keep the exact term consistent throughout the lesson: Electronic Flight Instrument System.
Why integrated displays are useful
When information is integrated, the pilot can see several important flight details in one place instead of scanning many separate instruments.
This can make the cockpit easier to read and can support faster understanding.
Avoid claiming that integrated displays are always safer; later slides balance this with disadvantages.
The basic EFIS pathway
Aircraft sensors → Computers → Displays → Pilot
Sensors collect raw information. Computers process it. Displays present it in a form the pilot can use.
This pathway is the backbone of the lesson. Revisit it when covering ADC, AHRS, PFD and MFD.
Sensors start the process
Sensors detect conditions in and around the aircraft
Some sensors provide pressure information
Other sensors help measure attitude and heading
The raw signals are sent to onboard computers for processing
Do not overcomplicate with sensor types unless needed. The key point is that displays do not create information by themselves; they depend on sensor inputs.
What does EFIS do with aircraft information?
Stores fuel data
Paints cockpit screens
Processes and displays it
Measures engine thrust
Checks the core idea from slides 3 to 6: EFIS takes aircraft information, processes it electronically and shows it on displays.
Complete the EFIS pathway
In a glass cockpit, aircraft sensors collect raw information. Computers process it and displays present it for the pilot to use.
Answers follow the pathway taught on slide 5: sensors, computers, displays.
Why can integrated displays help a pilot?
Expected elements: integrated information in one place, less scanning of many separate dials, clearer picture, quicker understanding for the pilot.
What an ADC does
ADC means Air Data Computer.
It receives pressure-related information from the aircraft systems and turns it into processed flight data.
Link back to pitot-static style inputs without going beyond the lesson's stated content.
ADC outputs
An ADC commonly provides:
Airspeed
Altitude
Vertical speed
These are all examples of air data.
Make clear that attitude is not usually an ADC output; that belongs with AHRS.
What type of information is air data?
Air data is information based on the aircraft's pressure systems and related measurements.
Examples in this lesson are airspeed, altitude and vertical speed.
Students may confuse air data with all flight data. Keep the category narrow and specific.
ADC in the information chain
Sensors → Pressure information → ADC → Processed flight data → Display → Pilot
The ADC changes raw inputs into usable data for the cockpit displays.
Emphasise the processing stage: the pilot reads computed outputs, not raw pressure values.
What an AHRS does
AHRS means Attitude and Heading Reference System
It uses sensors and processing
It provides attitude information
It provides heading information
If useful, remind students that attitude means the aircraft's orientation, such as nose up, nose down or banked.
AHRS in the information chain
Sensors → Processing → Attitude and heading information → Display
Like the ADC, the AHRS takes inputs, processes them, and provides information for the pilot.
Students often notice that both ADC and AHRS process sensor information. That overlap is important and leads to integrated displays.
ADC and AHRS compared
ADC: airspeed, altitude, vertical speed
AHRS: attitude, heading
Both use sensor inputs
Both process information before it is displayed
A useful quick check is to ask which system would provide attitude; students often misplace it under air data.
Why processing helps
Processing can combine, organise and prepare information before it reaches the screen.
This helps the pilot read important flight information more clearly than from raw sensor outputs alone.
Keep this conceptual rather than technical. The point is clarity and usefulness to the pilot.
Which item is usually output from an ADC?
Heading
Attitude
Altitude
Bank angle
Altitude is air data. Heading and attitude belong with AHRS, and bank angle is part of attitude.
ADC and AHRS
The ADC uses pressure-related information to provide airspeed, altitude and vertical speed. The AHRS uses sensors and processing to provide attitude and heading information.
Reinforces the distinction between air data and attitude/heading after slides 7 to 14.
Why is processing useful before display?
It charges the battery
It organises the data
It adds fuel
It cleans the sensors
Links directly to slide 14: processing helps combine, organise and prepare information so it is clearer for the pilot.
What a PFD is
A PFD is a Primary Flight Display.
It shows the main flight information the pilot needs during flight.
Use the exact acronym expansion students will need later for recall.
What a PFD can show
A typical PFD can include:
Airspeed
Altitude
Attitude
Heading
Vertical speed
Flight guidance information
This is the core content students need for later sorting between PFD and MFD.
Why the PFD matters
The PFD brings the pilot's key flight information together on one main display.
Instead of checking many separate instruments, the pilot can monitor the primary flight picture in one place.
Connect this back to the 'then and now' comparison from the start of the lesson.
Reading a PFD
When a pilot reads a PFD, they look for the aircraft's:
Airspeed
Altitude
Attitude
Heading
Vertical speed
These values are presented electronically rather than on separate round dials.
If you have a sample PFD image available in class, use it here, but the slide itself stays generic.
What an MFD is
MFD means Multi-Function Display
It shows additional information beyond the main flight display
It supports the pilot with a wider picture of the flight
Stress the distinction: PFD for primary flight information, MFD for additional or supporting information.
What an MFD can show
An MFD can provide additional information such as:
Navigation
Route information
Weather or radar information, where fitted
System information
Keep 'where fitted' for weather/radar because not every aircraft has the same equipment.
PFD and MFD compared
PFD: main flight information
MFD: additional and supporting information
Some information can appear on more than one display
The displays work together in an integrated cockpit
The overlap point matters because modern systems can be flexible, but students should still know the main role of each display.
The full information journey
Aircraft sensors → Computers → PFD or MFD → Pilot
The glass cockpit turns aircraft data into organised information that can be read quickly and clearly.
This is the lesson's main summary chain before evaluating pros and cons.
Matching old instruments to new displays
Traditional instruments such as the altimeter, ASI, artificial horizon and DI can appear as electronic information on modern displays.
The function remains important, but the presentation changes from separate dials to integrated screens.
DI here refers to directional indicator. Keep the comparison simple and functional.
Slide heading
Slide text
Use this visual pause to reinforce what a modern integrated cockpit looks like without adding extra text.
Which item would you expect on a PFD?
Weather radar
Route map
Attitude
System page
Attitude is a main flight item shown on the PFD. The others are more typical of an MFD.
PFD and MFD roles
A PFD shows the pilot's main flight information, such as airspeed and altitude. An MFD shows additional information such as navigation and system information.
Echoes the wording from slides 19 to 22 and keeps the distinction simple.
Which display sounds most useful for route information?
PFD
MFD
Both equally
Not sure
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Advantages of EFIS
Possible advantages include:
Information can be presented together
Displays can be easier to interpret
Several types of information can be integrated
The pilot can build a quicker overall picture
Keep claims cautious: 'can' is better than 'always'.
Why integration can help pilots
Integration means more information is available together on the displays.
This can reduce the need to scan many separate instruments and may help the pilot understand the aircraft's situation more efficiently.
This slide supports longer written answers about one advantage of EFIS.
Disadvantages of EFIS
Possible disadvantages include:
A common failure could affect several functions
Greater system complexity
Dependence on electrical power
Dependence on software and data
Do not suggest the aircraft cannot use sensors; that was a distractor in the activity material, not correct content.
Why integration can also be a risk
If several functions depend on linked computers and displays, one fault may affect more than one type of information.
A system can be efficient in normal use but more vulnerable to shared failures.
This is the key evaluative idea: integration is both a strength and a weakness.
When information goes wrong
A problem in the chain can begin with:
Sensors
Data-processing computers
Displays
Electrical power
Any of these can affect what the pilot sees.
Useful setup for fault scenarios. Emphasise that the pilot sees the final displayed result, so faults earlier in the chain may appear as missing or incorrect indications.
Faults in the information chain
Sensor fault → Incorrect input → Incorrect processed data → Incorrect display
Computer fault → Several functions affected at once
Power fault → Display information lost
Use the arrows here because the chain itself is the teaching point.
Sorting the information
Air data: airspeed, altitude, vertical speed
Attitude and heading: attitude, heading
Navigation and other: route, navigation, weather or radar, system information
Tie each group back to the systems already taught: ADC, AHRS, PFD and MFD.
Which is a possible advantage of EFIS?
No need for power
More data together
No sensor faults
No software used
Tests the advantage set from slides 25 and 26. The distractors are common overclaims that the lesson warns against.
Advantages and risks
EFIS can help because information is integrated and easier to read together. However, a common failure can affect several functions, and the system depends on electrical power and data.
Brings together the balanced evaluation from slides 25 to 31.
How can integration be both help and risk?
Expected elements: integration helps by grouping information and reducing scanning; integration can be a risk because one shared fault may affect several functions or displays.
What is one thing you will remember from today?
Reflection only. Invite short personal responses about key learning from the lesson.
What part of this lesson helped you most?
Reflection only. Students might mention the pathway, the ADC/AHRS comparison, or the PFD/MFD contrast.
Which part still feels hardest to understand?
Reflection only. Useful for spotting misconceptions or parts to reteach, such as ADC vs AHRS or advantages vs disadvantages.
Key terms
EFIS - Electronic Flight Instrument System
ADC - Air Data Computer
AHRS - Attitude and Heading Reference System
PFD - Primary Flight Display
MFD - Multi-Function Display
Glass cockpit - a cockpit with integrated electronic displays instead of many separate mechanical instruments
Air data - flight information such as airspeed, altitude and vertical speed
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Key terms
Airspeed - how fast the aircraft is moving through the air
Altitude - the aircraft's height
Vertical speed - how quickly the aircraft is climbing or descending
Attitude - the aircraft's orientation in pitch and bank
Heading - the direction the aircraft is pointing
Flight guidance information - display information that helps guide the aircraft
System information - information about aircraft systems shown to the pilot
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