Easa PPL Exams and EFB's
 

Hi guys,

I'm just doing my PPL exams and really am not getting along with this blooming wiz wheel... the crappy 5!

I have seen the alternative suggestion is to use an EFB such as the E6-B Flight computer... are these aloud in EASA PPL exams?

Thanks for your help and I wish you a happy new year!

Jools

No, it will only be the manual version for the exams.

What are you not getting on with? It's a pretty simple and intuitive device.

It was a simple slide rule the engineers used to go supersonic, and took us to the moon.

In 1964, I got my PPL using a Dalton computer for the Nav. calculations. I let it lapse, but got it revalidated in 1987. I had bought a state-of-the-art Navigation computer - the "whizzwheel" - but hadn't used it for years.
I did the Nav. exam using a non-programmable scientific electronic calculator, and basic trigonometry, which I was current with. If you're familiar with that, ask about using it.

YouTube is your friend :)

Get some ground study booked with a school for some practical use of the CRP, also there must be some decent YT videos out there as well? There is only a few things you need to do on the CRP for the PPL syllabus but it helps to use it for a lot more.

CRP-5 = E6B = whizz-wheel = flight computer = Dalton Computer.

They are all basically the same thing, and not the same as an Electronic Flight Bag, although EFBs will generally also include the functionality somewhere.

And as already mentioned there are loads of YouTube videos and online guides. It isn't complicated, just a bit alien to people too young to have ever used a slide rule - which let's face it, is most people nowadays.

G

The E-6B was developed in the United States by Naval Lt. Philip Dalton (1903–1941) in the late 1930s. The name comes from its original part number for the U.S Army Air Corps, before its reorganisation in June 1941. An aluminium version was made by the London Name Plate Mfg. Co. Ltd. of London and Brighton and was marked "Computer Dead Reckoning Mk. 4A Ref. No. 6B/2645" followed by the arrowhead of UK military stores. The later miniature version being a 5A.

In the case of the CRP5, the "P" stands for "Pooleys" who make it.
So as Genghis said, they are all basically the same Dalton computer with small variations depending upon the manufacturer.

Similarly, a Douglas Protractor may not be quite the same as many of the square protractors that have copied it. Look at the inner ring of numbers; in a "Douglas" protractor they go anticlockwise from North, in some copies (Pooleys and AFE) they go clockwise from South! Most pilots never notice.

Use of a circular slide rule is not mandatory for PPL / LAPL exams. But it's really a very simple device.

However, an assessed understanding of the triangle of velocities certainly is required!

When the next iteration of the UK PPL exams is released, you can expect clarification of practical requirements for aspirant PPL / LAPL pilots.

jools - on the assumption that it is the wind calcs you are not liking, rather than the distance/time, lbs to galls etc - are you being taught to put the wind mark above or below the centre mark?

The 'wind up' versus 'wind down' method debate is not one to argue here, but one way is simpler than the other. I certainly struggled with one way and found the other more intuitive

A bit of debate here if you are interested:

CRP5 "wind up/down" - ATP Forum

The other way to make it easier is to buy the E6B USA aluminium version which has the instructions written on it ! you don't need to remember anything, just follow the rules.

You won't have to use one in anger in a written exam, but being comfortable with it for pre-flight planning is useful. Being able to use one in flight to calculate drift on a diversion is also something you might want to consider rehearsing, but in reality, using the 'clock/max drift' mental maths for drift is much easier

Max Drift = Wind X 60/airspeed
E.g Wind 10 Knots, Airspeed 120kts

Max Drift = 10 X 60/120 = 5 Degrees

Once you have max drift, consider if it is at >60 degrees, 45 degrees 30 degrees or head/tail on.

If >60 degrees, use all of the max drift as a heading correction
If at 45 deg use 3/4 max drift (memory aid remember 45 min is 3/4 of a hour)
30 deg - use half max drift
On the nose / tail - no correction

Hope that helps?

See a lot of replies from UK in this thread already so my part of EASA land is not really relevant for you but we don't need that thing during PPL exams.


And everything I remember from training with that thing is that there are two speed scales for side wind component calc. :)