For $299, Garmin sells map data to convert ûthe 196 into a ground navigator.

For most pilots, getting lost on the ground is a given. You battle ice, survive thunderstorms and sail down the glideslope with centered needles only to spend 40 minutes blundering around the tules because you took the wrong freeway exit on the way to your business appointment.

Since Hindi is the native tongue of the average gas station attendant, seeking directions is no longer just a renouncement of manhood, it’s not even an option.

Garmin tried to address this a couple of years ago when it tacked on a ground navigation package to its new color portable aviation GPS, the 295. We were underwhelmed. (See the June 2000 Aviation Consumer.) The add-on…