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Flight Planning

Objectives​

To understand the concepts behind pilotage, dead reckoning, radio, and GPS navigation, and effectively apply that knowledge on a cross-county flight.

Objective​

Safely plan a VFR cross-country flight, use various types of navigation to get there, and use a navigation log to compute expected distances, times, and fuel requirements. Also use ForeFlight to plan a flight and interpret its output.

Motivation​

Flying to another airport requires additional planning and multiple forms of navigation. A pilot needs to understand the information needed to accurately plan a flight and have the skills to execute that flight plan.

Timings​

  • 2 hours

Format​

Elements​

  • Selecting an airport to fly to
    • Runway lengths
    • Weather services
    • FBOs
  • Selecting a route to get there
    • Terrain and obstructions
    • MEFs
    • Airspace
    • Waypoints: Good, easy to find waypoints
  • VFR cruising altitudes
  • Altitude planning
    • Top of climb
    • Top of descent
  • Finalizing our flight plan
    • Waypoints, altitude
    • Altitudes
    • Courses: True course, magnetic course
  • NWKRAFT - (91.103)
    • NOTAMs
    • Weather
    • Known ATC delays
    • Runway lengths
    • Fuel requirements
    • Alternates available
    • Takeoff and landing distances
  • Navigation
    • Pilotage: Waypoints
    • Dead-reckoning
    • Radio navigation
    • GPS
  • Navigation log
    • Using a winds aloft forecast
    • Computing leg data
      • Course
      • Distance
      • TAS
      • Wind
      • CAS
      • True course
      • True heading
      • Magnetic heading
      • Compass heading
      • Ground speed
      • ETE
      • Fuel
  • Flight planning with ForeFlight
    • Airplane profiles: Basic vs Advanced
    • Differences between manual navlog and ForeFlight
  • Weather briefing
  • UTC time conversion
  • Flight Plan
    • Activating a flight plan
    • Closing a flight plan
    • Search and rescue
  • Flying our flight plan
    • Pilotage: Look out the window
    • Dead reckoning: Speed * time = distance
    • Radio navigation
  • Noting the times of each of our waypoints
    • Noting time off the ground
    • Top of climb time
    • Waypoint time
  • VOR and DME navigation
    • Morse code identifier
    • Limited by line-of-sight, works better the higher you go
    • Flying to a VOR:
      1. Tune the station
      2. Identify the station
      3. Center the CDI with a TO indication
      4. Turn to the course shown, bracketing for wind
  • GPS navigation
  • Lost procedures
    • Climb, Communicate, Confess, Comply
  • Diverting to an alternate

References​