P&E SAVVY MAINTENANCE Savvy Maintenance coverage sponsored by AIRCRAFT SPRUCE OPINION | How mags work S K Y D I S P L AY ® HUD M G F S K Y D I S P L AY H U D The spark plugs in most piston aircraft engines are still powered by 120-year-old technology BY MIKE BUSCH HEAD-UP | EYES OUT | SAFE i PAD MO UN T S & K NEE B O A RDS F LI GH T B A G S & L UGG A GE MIKE FIZER A RM ORG L A S ® - AN T I - GL ARE MY AIRPLANE'S PISTON ENGINES utilize a magneto ignition system. If you're flying a certificated airplane, chances are good that yours does, too. The fact that we're still stuck with these superannuated mechanical black boxes is a testament to just how hard it is to get modern technology certified by the FAA. Magneto ignition first appeared on the 1899 Daimler automobiles, and high-voltage magnetos were introduced by Bosch in 1903. Mags were largely abandoned in autos in the 1920s in favor of battery-powered ignition. Electronic ignition systems (EIS) are almost universally used on experimental amateur-built aircraft but are still quite rare on certificated airplanes thanks to FAR Part 33 ( " Airworthiness Standards: Aircraft Engines " ), which remains firmly in the Dark Ages. The S-1200 magnetos on my airplane are essentially indistinguishable from the aopa.org/pilot AOPA PILOT | 89 MYGOFLIGHT® M Y G O F L I G H T. C O M 303.364.7400 info@mygoflight.comhttp://www.aopa.org/pilot