How do you use GOOGLE EARTH as a reconnaisence tool for a flight ?

[Memphis_bell]

Hi guys;

I'm new to this whole google earth thing - but keep hearing that using google earth is a good tool to inspect a flight for features etc etc of a flight i am currently planning. Can anybody give me some instructions on how to do so,

Many thanks people :-)

[BackPacker]

Plot the route on your chart as always. Now put the plog aside, fire up Google Earth, locate your start point using the search bar (it accepts ICAO airfield identifiers), set the zoom level to a reasonable scale (there is an 'eye altitude' number which should initially be around 5-10.000' or so) and see if you can find your route by referencing the chart and cross-checking it with GE. Zoom in and out as required. Take particular care to identify all the waypoints that you planned to pass.

This way you know what the route looks like from the air, what waypoints on your chart are easily identifyable and what waypoints are not. And you might find a few other prominent features that you can use as a cross-check, but which are not marked on the chart.

More advanced use would be to put the route into an electronic mapping program (Your GPS, or something tablet/PC based), exporting the route, converting it to KML and importing it in Google Earth. You can then see your route overlaid on the terrain.

(This is something I occasionally do post-flight: Take the track log from the GPS, convert to KML, import in GE, set a zoom level so that everything fits on the screen, make a screenshot, crop it and mail it to my passengers. Nice memory together with the photos.)

[Whopity]

Google Earth or Google Maps gives you a selection of Aerial photographs taken at about 5000 ft of the ground so may include things that are not on your map. It is really of more use for finding or identifying specific features than planning a route. It can be useful to tell if an airfield marked on a map can actually be seen as an airfield

In some areas where the aerial photos have not been completed, you see an old out of date Landsat image that's not much use for anything.

It does have a feature to simulate flying the route. That's more of a game than any practical use. Go to Tools then Enter Flight Simulator.

[Halfbaked_Boy]

I find GE a fantastic tool when used prior to flying an unfamiliar route, or to an unfamiliar aerodrome.

Obviously, for all 'legal' reasons in aviation, it should NEVER be a sole source of reference (had to say it!), but there are some really good benefits.

Just beware - depending on whether the photos that form the landscape were taken in Summer or Winter (or somewhere in between), if you take yourself to a theoretical 3D point, say, the point at which on your real flight you will be looking to find the aerodrome of arrival (obviously so you can accustom yourself with 'what the picture will look like'), 'the picture' can and does look very, very different!

I find the best use for GE is to have the aerodrome I'm going to be landing at on the computer screen in front of me, and the bog standard ground chart on the desk next to me.

If you're new to it, check out MapOfStrange.com - Strange things in Google Maps to see some cool and weird things in the world!

[rmcb]

This site has some useful .kml files useful for the GA community; make sure you turn them off when done... GE loads very slowly if not.

SBS-1 Utilities - Reference

[Intercepted]

Plan your flight in Skydemon Light and save as a gpx-file. Open the gpx in Google Earth.

[dublinpilot]

If you use PocketFMS for your flight planning/gps then you can:

1. Plan your flight in PFMS, then from within PFMS, select the "Views" button and then the "Google Earth-Plan" report.

This will cause Google Earth to open up with your flight plan shown.

2. Any point on the PocketFMS map that interests you can be quickly seen in Google Earth by simply right click the point on the map in PocketFMS and selecting "View this location in Google Earth".

There are also reports for looking at your breadcrumb file (where you actually flew) in Google Earth after your flight, and indeed this can be shown along side your planned route to see how close you came.

If you are learning to navigate by dead recknoning, then this is a good way of seeing where things started to wrong in your navigation, if they did

dp

[Ultra long hauler]

Where I live, there are hundreds of little airstrips.
Some registered, the majority is not.

So I have a list of the registered ones and people tell me about others in certain areas!
That is where GE comes in handy, sometimes.

I do a check, and if the place happens to be in the clear side of the country (half of Ecuador is still overcast on GE!!??) I will do a search before getting into the car to check them out personally. (I save some places up and do a few in 1 day; loud music in the car--> love my little road trips).
With the I-phone for GPS; I end up in real rural areas sometimes!!

I have quite a list of personally "approved" airstrips already…….just waiting for my holidays to go there by air!

Great, Google Earth!

###Ultra Long Hauler###

[rich_g85]

I picked up some brownie points from my PPL examiner for checking out the small village he'd selected as a turning point on my nav route, on Google Earth. He said he'd have been very disappointed if I hadn't!

[zondaracer]

Tools > Options > Terrain quality > check show terrain, terrain exaggeration on 2

It gives you a really good idea of what the terrain looks like. Really good if you are flying somewhere hilly / mountainous.

Also, if you are flying in the US, you can easy use Chartgeek or these free Aeronautical chart overlays for google earth. Combine it with the 3d terrain and 3d airspace, and it is really cool. They have IFR charts, Terminal Area charts, Aeronautical Sectionals, 3D airspace, and more.

Index of /maps/Sectionals
Google Earth: The Ultimate Preflight Tool - Plane & Pilot Magazine | PlaneAndPilotMag.com
ChartGEEK Charts for Google Earth

[172driver]

A great use for GE is to pre-visualize an approach into an unknown airfield, especially if it's a small field w/o any navaids. By using the 'tilt' feature, you can position yourself on the approach and get an idea of the 'picture'. I've used this a lot when flying in Africa or Oz, where strips often totally blend into the surrounding landscape (in fact, you could say the same for small grass strips in the UK - it's just greener!).

I also use the overlay derived from my GPS data after a flight. Don't use it much for enroute flight planning, prefer the charts for that, either paper or electronic.