david viewing
3rd May 2011, 13:15
(I've already posted this on Flyer. Apologies, but anyone planning a US trip ought to know about this).
I'm off to a meeting in LA with a bit of touring tacked on (maybe up to Montana subject wx) and thought just out of curiosity I'd check the Runway Finder (http://runwayfinder.com/) homepage.
To my joy and amazement, ITS BACK!
Nothing said on the blog or anywhere else I've found, but there is a credit to FlightPrep, the mischevious patentee who caused outrage by closing the site down last year. Presumably an accomodation has been made.
For those who don't know it, Runway Finder is IMHO the best ever VFR preflight planning tool and is entirely web based and joy of joys, works on iPad! You can even use it in UK to get headings and distances on a topographical map (it knows ICAO codes) but there's no aviation chart available outside the US.
In my opinion, this type of Google maps mash up is what we should have in UK to progress from the excellent but PC based NATs initiative.
But to me right now, with the prospect of planning 2000+ miles of US aviation 'on the hoof' in May's weather conditions and the Pacific NW topography, the surprise return of Runway Finder just caps off a week of unrelenting good news with a perfect aviation ending.
P.S. To use it, click the link (http://runwayfinder.com/) and type into the Location bar a route like EGBW;EGNC. Click the Terrain button.
I'm off to a meeting in LA with a bit of touring tacked on (maybe up to Montana subject wx) and thought just out of curiosity I'd check the Runway Finder (http://runwayfinder.com/) homepage.
To my joy and amazement, ITS BACK!
Nothing said on the blog or anywhere else I've found, but there is a credit to FlightPrep, the mischevious patentee who caused outrage by closing the site down last year. Presumably an accomodation has been made.
For those who don't know it, Runway Finder is IMHO the best ever VFR preflight planning tool and is entirely web based and joy of joys, works on iPad! You can even use it in UK to get headings and distances on a topographical map (it knows ICAO codes) but there's no aviation chart available outside the US.
In my opinion, this type of Google maps mash up is what we should have in UK to progress from the excellent but PC based NATs initiative.
But to me right now, with the prospect of planning 2000+ miles of US aviation 'on the hoof' in May's weather conditions and the Pacific NW topography, the surprise return of Runway Finder just caps off a week of unrelenting good news with a perfect aviation ending.
P.S. To use it, click the link (http://runwayfinder.com/) and type into the Location bar a route like EGBW;EGNC. Click the Terrain button.