18 AUSTRALIAN AVIATION
Gear for Australian aviators
Good kit
BOSE A
RRP: $1,295 bose.comA
n aviation headset is a
substantial investment for
any pilot and consideration
should be given to the cost
vs benefit of each headset. Are
you a professional pilot? Are you
buying a spare headset for your
passengers? Do you fly longer
sectors or short hops? Are you
in a noisy cockpit environment?
There are a number of factors
that will influence your decision
as a headset can cost anywhere
between $150 and $1,500.
In this issue we’ll be looking
at what many consider is the
benchmark for professional or
career pilots, the Bose A20.
What’s the big deal about Bose?
Bose Corporation was founded
in 1964, with one of its earliest
tasks developing power-regulatingsystems for US military jets.
The company says it started
development of noise-cancellation
after founder Dr Amar Bose went
on a 1978 flight to Europe and
while using a set of headphones
supplied by the airline complained
about an inability to enjoy in the
inflight entertainment due to the
loud background noise.
In 1986, Bose applied its noise-
cancellation technology to develop
headphones to protect the hearing
of pilots participating in the first
un-refuelled non-stop around-
the-world flight in Burt Rutan’s
Voyager.
Interestingly the development
of ANR, or active noise reduction
technology, was a two horse race
between Bose and Sennheiser, with
Sennheiser bowing out of the pilot
headset market in 2016.
The Bose A20 headset is
popular for the simple reason it
strikes the right balance betweencomfort, clarity and usability. It’s
comfortable enough to wear all day
and it’s quiet enough for almost
any type of aircraft.
Let’s face it, if it’s good enough
to wear flying nonstop around the
world, it’s probably OK for the rest
of us!
It’s not the cheapest headset on
the market, however the price is
commensurate with the quality of
the standard of manufacture and
the day-to-day experience.
We tested the A20 in a
Cessna 182Q on one of our “rusty
pilot” flights from Maitland in
NSW to the Sunshine Coast and
back again, total flight time 14.
hours, and both pilots wore an A
headset.
For this pilot the experience was
flawless. At no point during the
flight were the effects of clamping
apparent, no requirement to
change the batteries, the ability to
turn down the intercom to tuneThe A20 strikes the right balance
between comfort, clarity and usability.
BOSE