PPL Navigation Exam

[fmardani]

Hi,
I will be doing the PPL Navigation exam soon.
Is there anyone who has done this exam recently?
What did you use for revision and what are the questions like?
Thanks

[Evo7]

I've done it recently. Take a look at some of the recent threads in Private Flying - in fact we've probably been moved there already....

Evo

[tomcs]

I think its a simple question of knowing how to use the whizz wheel, and how to plot accurately on da map! Also know about ure radio nav aids. The only question I got wrong was to do with the relative bearing to the ADF due to drift!! It is nothing to worry about even though most people (including me before I took it) feel that it is one of the harder ones! Oh and the PPL Confuser helps if you have it!!

Tom

[CAT3C AUTOLAND]

Be a Whizz Wheel Wizard

Make sure you know the old whizz wheel inside out and you will be fine. Know how to work out map scales (if you have a 1:500,000 chart how many miles does 15 inches represent?), be competent with the 1 in 60 rule and be comfortable with UK 1:500,000 charts, symbols etc.

Get the triangle of velocities fixed firmly in the brain and the wind problems will be a piece of cake.

Hope this helps

[Evo7]

As we're still here... (no we're not)

To pass, you just have to

• Understand the Whizz-wheel - this is the important one. Any mistake can potentially lead to two or three wrong answers
• Draw a line on a chart and measure distance and track
• Remember the 1-in-60 rule
• Read - you have to answer a couple of questions based on excerpts from Pooleys. You have to answer a couple of questions by reading the Chart. Finally some of the other questions are answered by information that is printed on the chart anyway (although they don't tell you that in the question), so it's always worth taking a look.
• Remember some extremely basic Radio Nav. information
• Remember a few navigation facts - some obscure, some trivial.

The last bit doesn't matter so much - get the rest right you'll pass, so it doesn't matter if you get an obscure question. Most of the time it is fairly basic anyway. The important one is understanding Whizz-wheel well enough to use it without making errors....

Good luck - it's a fairly easy exam once you understand the bl**dy Whizz-wheel...

Scroggs! WWW! You're slacking off again... (no he isn't)

[D 129]

PPL Confuser

Hi,

Suggest you get a copy of the PPL Confuser by Neung Sornying. It got loads of practice questions on 6 of the exams including Nav - testing your whizzy wheel skills etc.

A large part of the PPL Nav paper is plotting a route on your chart and then answering questions about it. It is straightforward, but I had a panic for a few minutes because I couldn't find the start point ! - It was just a question of Latitude and Longditude - But I was reading 000 00 01 as 1 minute of longditude when it was actually 1 second (or something like that).

So make sure you are well grounded in the basics as well as a good all round knowledge - Trevor Thom Book 3 is excellent.

Best of luck,

D 129

[GRP]

Can't remember whether this happened with the PPL Nav exam, but I fell for a change in wind vector between legs on the IMC test. set up the whizz wheel with the wind for the first leg and then left it there. Lost me a couple of questions through plain stupidity :-)

[essouira]

Does anyone know why this got moved to the "wannabees" ? If you read the thread on "what is wannabees for ?" - you would get better answers from the "instructors" of "private flying". Maybe I've lost the plot here !

[Evo7]

It was first posted on Wannabes and then moved here

[essouira]

Whoops - I thought I was losing it and now I know I already have ..........

[AdamUK]

Sat and passed Nav Paper earlier today - 80% (4 wrong)

My advice:

1. make sure you can use whiz wheel fullly

2. read up on radio navigation:

- relative bearing in relation to a flight from / to a NDB
- operation of CDI (course deviation indicator), using the TO / FROM flag


Good luck !

[AdamUK]

whoooooops ! 5 wrong