VFR Beacon Hopping?
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Joined: Feb 2000
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From: UK
Quite possibly.
And if they didn't have a CDI or GPS to play with, the same pilot would probably spend their life carefully inspecting the chart and still not looking out of the window.
G
And if they didn't have a CDI or GPS to play with, the same pilot would probably spend their life carefully inspecting the chart and still not looking out of the window.
G
The Original Whirly
Joined: Feb 1999
Aviation Qualifications: CPL
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From: Belper, Derbyshire, UK
I use everything I've got that I think I need.
If it's a nice day, with good vis, and I have a route with good visual features, I draw a line and fly it. I also use dead reckoning; it's amazing how many pilots forget about that. This means you're looking out of the window most of the time; you don't need to be constantly studying your map if you know some town is due to come up in five minutes; you just look out for it at the right time. If there's a VOR in the vicinity, and the aircraft has one, I might use that too. And I might put the route in the GPS, though I won't waste the batteries switching it on unless I think I need it.
If it's marginal vis, near controlled airspace, and/or across miles and miles of featureless countryside, I'll look for a VOR, switch on the GPS...but I'll still draw that line on the map. And actually, I've yet to find any totally featureless terrain - except crossing the sea. But OK, I haven't flown in Africa or the Australian outback...yet.
I believe in a belt and braces approach. After all, GPS batteries can die...ever tried to change them when flying solo in turbulent conditions? VORs can decide to pick that day for a test. Maps can fall down the back of the seat...that happened with my AIC with all the pictures on my way to last year's PFA Rally, luckily I'd memorised the route. So why not use everything you have?
One thing though. "Use it or lose it" applies to navigation to a huge extent. Visual nav is only easy if you practise it. If you don't use VORs regularly, when the workload increases you can start doing stupid things like setting them for reciprocal headings or forgetting they're not heading sensitive...I haven't done that, but as a new PPL someone with a lot more experience than me tried to fly me in a circle round a VOR. If you don't use your GPS for a while, you forget how to programme it; I do anyway.
So personally I think we should get rid of all this primary and secondary stuff, stop saying one way of nav is better than any other per se, and just use the lot!
If it's a nice day, with good vis, and I have a route with good visual features, I draw a line and fly it. I also use dead reckoning; it's amazing how many pilots forget about that. This means you're looking out of the window most of the time; you don't need to be constantly studying your map if you know some town is due to come up in five minutes; you just look out for it at the right time. If there's a VOR in the vicinity, and the aircraft has one, I might use that too. And I might put the route in the GPS, though I won't waste the batteries switching it on unless I think I need it.
If it's marginal vis, near controlled airspace, and/or across miles and miles of featureless countryside, I'll look for a VOR, switch on the GPS...but I'll still draw that line on the map. And actually, I've yet to find any totally featureless terrain - except crossing the sea. But OK, I haven't flown in Africa or the Australian outback...yet.
I believe in a belt and braces approach. After all, GPS batteries can die...ever tried to change them when flying solo in turbulent conditions? VORs can decide to pick that day for a test. Maps can fall down the back of the seat...that happened with my AIC with all the pictures on my way to last year's PFA Rally, luckily I'd memorised the route. So why not use everything you have?
One thing though. "Use it or lose it" applies to navigation to a huge extent. Visual nav is only easy if you practise it. If you don't use VORs regularly, when the workload increases you can start doing stupid things like setting them for reciprocal headings or forgetting they're not heading sensitive...I haven't done that, but as a new PPL someone with a lot more experience than me tried to fly me in a circle round a VOR. If you don't use your GPS for a while, you forget how to programme it; I do anyway.
So personally I think we should get rid of all this primary and secondary stuff, stop saying one way of nav is better than any other per se, and just use the lot!
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Surely the point of flying Beacon-to-beacon (or any other "follow the needle" navaid) is that it allows you to minimise the mental effort involved in navigation and thus can spend more time looking out!
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From: UK
So personally I think we should get rid of all this primary and secondary stuff, stop saying one way of nav is better than any other per se, and just use the lot!
Depending upon circumstances, it is not unusual that one method of nav is better than another - there are parts of the UK where we have magnetic mountains and DR would be a poor choice, there are plenty of places (water crossings for example, but parts of East Anglia at times) where you can't rely upon landscape, occasionally VORs can mislead due to landscape and suchlike. Around CBs, ADF is a waste of time as anything but a stormscope.
Plus, different types of route lend themselves to different navigation techniques. Let's say I want to fly from Bembridge to Shoreham - my primary will be visual since I'm following a clear line feature. On the other hand Lydd to Le Touquet I really want to plan by reference to whatever electronic navaid I have available. No navaids, but the destination is on a major river - DR is almost certainly the best tool.
My point about primary was that this is the tool, on the day, that suits that route best and is the basis for your planning. Secondary is that which you use to check it.
So there may often be a "best" navigational tool, but it is not the same on different routes, in different aeroplanes, or with different conditions. The pilot who has the biggest toolbox of navigational methods, is best equipped to pick the tool for the job.
My problem with "using the lot", is that I may fly an aeroplane with (for example), RNAV, VOR, ADF, GPS, Compass+DI, backup GPS (actually I've just described my 1/17th of a PA28). Using all of those simultaneously is just going to swamp me with unnecessary and excessive workload - I prefer 1 primary method and two backup, that's quite enough.
G
The Original Whirly
Joined: Feb 1999
Aviation Qualifications: CPL
Posts: 4,327
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From: Belper, Derbyshire, UK
Genghis,
I agree entirely; I just put it a different way...at least that's how it seemed to me. The one thing I hadn't thought of was having TOO MANY ways of navigating; I've never flown an aircraft with enough navaids to give me that problem!
I agree entirely; I just put it a different way...at least that's how it seemed to me. The one thing I hadn't thought of was having TOO MANY ways of navigating; I've never flown an aircraft with enough navaids to give me that problem!
Avoid imitations
Joined: Nov 2000
Aviation Qualifications: ATPL
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From: Wandering the FIR and cyberspace often at highly unsociable times
"I am far more likely to spot the "traffic" when looking occasionally at the CDI than staring at a map on my knees!!!"
True, that's why the military teach pilots to hold the map up to the coaming when taking a look at it and definitely NOT rest it on your knees.
The real danger is at the turning point. If you are looking in at the CDI or VOR needle in order to judge your turn, just remember that the guy coming the other way or from your right is likely to be doing just the same thing....
Having said that, the more VFR aircraft there are going over the beacon, the safer for me because I won't be.
True, that's why the military teach pilots to hold the map up to the coaming when taking a look at it and definitely NOT rest it on your knees.
The real danger is at the turning point. If you are looking in at the CDI or VOR needle in order to judge your turn, just remember that the guy coming the other way or from your right is likely to be doing just the same thing....
Having said that, the more VFR aircraft there are going over the beacon, the safer for me because I won't be.
