Today my ipad3 overheated and shutdown mid flight whilst running in navigation mode. The iPad was mounted on my knee in portrait mode and shutdown approx 50 minutes into a return flight from Abberville in France to the UK. Although the cockpit temperature was not uncomfortable, the device was in direct sunlight under the perspex canopy of a DA40. I was wondering if the IPad app is rather processor hungry whilst operating in GPS mode? I intend to reduce the brightness of the display and turn off the 3g funtionality on the next flight to see if that aids the problem.

The iPad cannot be made to overheat by software, no matter how processor hungry (SkyDemon isn't particularly so). Leaving them on the dash in full sun has resulted in this happening in the past, though, they are known for it somewhat.