PLT OF SMA ENTERS TFR NEAR ACT DUE TO RELIANCE ON UNFAMILIAR HAND-HELD GPS.

Narrative

MY ACFT WAS ON AUTOPLT TRACKING TO ACT. THE PANEL MOUNTED GPS/COM WAS IN MAP MODE TO VERIFY THE PROPER TRACK WAS BEING FLOWN. I WAS USING A NEW HAND-HELD GPS FOR SITUATIONAL AWARENESS. I BROUGHT UP THE WACO COM PAGE TO SET IN WACO APCH FREQ IN ORDER TO CONTACT WACO APCH FOR A DISCRETE CODE; FLT CLRNC; AND FLT FOLLOWING THROUGH THE WACO AREA AND THE TFR IN EFFECT. I HIT A KEY TO REMOVE THE COM FREQ PAGE AND THE UNIT REVERTED BACK TO MAP. I THOUGHT IT WAS STILL ON ACT; IN FACT IT WAS NOT! I WAS MONITORING APCH AND HEARD THEM TALK TO ANOTHER ACFT. I CALLED THEM TO MAKE WHAT I THOUGHT WAS EARLY CONTACT TO GET XPONDER CODE AND CLRNC. THE CTLR ASKED FOR MY POSITION. I READ THE DISTANCE OFF THE HAND-HELD GPS AS 130 MILES I THINK (CHK TAPE). THE CTLR SAID TO CONTACT HIM IN 45 MILES. MY GUT TOLD ME SOMETHING WAS WRONG. I KNEW THAT I COULD NOT BE THAT FAR FROM ACT. I BEGAN TO INVESTIGATE WHAT WAS WRONG. I CHANGED THE PANEL MOUNTED GPS/COM; WHICH WAS TRACKING TO ACT; TO A DIFFERENT PAGE TO READ DISTANCE TO ACT. TO MY SHOCK I WAS 25 MILES FROM ACT. I CALLED WACO APCH AND TOLD THEM I WAS LOOKING AT THE WRONG GPS AND THAT I WAS NOW 22 MILES FROM ACT. THEY GAVE ME A XPONDER CODE AND GOT RADAR CONTACT WITH ME. LATER; THEY INFORMED ME OF THE TFR INCURSION AND GAVE ME A PHONE NUMBER TO CONTACT THEM. LATER; THEY ASKED ME TO LAND AT ACT IN THE NAME OF NATIONAL SECURITY. OF COURSE; I AGREED AND TURNED AROUND AND LANDED BACK AT ACT; AND WAS DEBRIEFED BY THE LOCAL TWR CHIEF AND LATER BY THE SECRET SERVICE. IN MY MIND; I HAD TRIED TO CONTACT THEM OVER 100 MILES OUT. BUT BECAUSE OF MY ERROR ON THE NEW HAND-HELD GPS; I FAILED TO CONTACT THEM BEFORE THE 30 MILE ARC. NOTE: I LEFT HOME FOR THE ARPT WITHOUT THE HAND-HELD; BUT RETURNED HOME TO GRAB THE NEW GPS. IF I HAD LEFT IT AT HOME; THIS INCIDENT WOULD NOT HAVE HAPPENED. FLYING INTO A TFR; I SHOULD HAVE ONLY USED THE PANEL MOUNTED UNIT THAT I WAS TOTALLY PROFICIENT WITH.