About six months ago a passenger in my 1977 Arrow accidentally kicked and broke one of my floor mounted air vents. Searching for a solution, I went to our online vendor directory at piperowner.org/ business-directory and discovered Obvious Innovations, the creator of new and modern replacement air vents. I noticed that theirs are industrial strength nylon rather than the brittle plastic that the original vents are made of. They are also a lower profile design that make them more difficult to kick and damage than the old ones. They are FAA-PMA’d and have a patent pending for their novel design.
Needless to say, I ordered a set and replaced the broken vent in my Arrow. I have to say that the design is every bit as good as the advertisement says. I’m pleased and recommend them highly! I also noticed that they come in two colors, black and gray and they’re Made in the USA. While I have black in my plane, I could really have used the new space gray since I’ve recently reupholstered my plane in gray and blue. They are near the floor, however, so hopefully no one will notice!
After six months of use and a fair amount of being kicked by my grand-daughter they show no signs of wear. Of course, being made of nylon instead of plastic I didn’t expect any wear. It’s actually a shame that Piper doesn’t use these on new aircraft! Perhaps they will in the future.
You can purchase just one or a set of four at a discounted price. These are fairly economical in airplane dollars. Please note that if you use discount code 3584IRA you will get a Piper Owner Society 15% discount! One final comment – these are an excellent product and you won’t be disappointed!
