I'm afraid, SNS3Guppy, that it's the so-called 'culture' of the "I want it now, I don't care how" generation.

Learn the basics so that you understand them fully.

Don't become a 'child of the magenta line' when you later use GPS! It's a wonderful device, but it doesn't know how dumb the user might be.

Charts
 

Another thing the OP may want to try is to scan local sections of the chart into a computer, and then print out ones most frequently used. If the scan is saved as a bitmap or JPEG, it can also be modified when chart data amendments are published.

I don't know about the USA, but in the UK, there are amendments every few months which include changes to published aerodrome frequencies, airspace boundaries, ATZ’s that come and go, even aerodromes that come and go, and aerodromes that move up down or sideways (as my home base has).

I can then easily print out a new version of the local charts that is up-to-date.

In my cramped glider cockpit , separate pieces of paper are much easier to manage than the very large laminated half million chart of southern England.

Chris N

Guppy,

First of all, thank you immensely for taking all that time to reply to my question post. I read every word and took it all in. I know that questions like what pencil to use are quite mundane and not exactly very stimulating, but to a student who doesn't know the answer is worth its weight.

As far as the King videos go, I, over the course of the course so to speak, developed a negative opinion of the system as well. Here's why:

1. I did not pay $365 to see advertising for the new Cessna 162 over and over and OVER again. This is supposed to be educational, not a damn commercial.

2. I did not pay $365 to see advertising for the Garmin G1000 over and over and OVER again.

3. I did not pay $365 to see advertising for DUAT, DUATS, and FLTPLAN.com over and over and OVER again.

4. In the videos, it is not necessary to act all cheery and smile constantly. No points are given out for being pleasant. If you are talking about the ultimate result of a spin on final, you are talking about a SERIOUS event, and one's tone should be therefore serious.

5. Everything works out just perfect every time, in every video. John: "Annnnnd look at that, my planning was so perfect that we're directly over the water tower" or "and look at that, we just happen to have ended up absolutely PERFECTLY on glide-slope after that maneuver, or "Wow, I just did that 360 so absolutely *perfectly* that I just passed through my own wake turbulence."

I understand that when teaching, one doesn't want to show the student the WRONG way, but let's be realistic when we teach. Show things not working out just perfectly sometimes, and show what has to be done to correct it. Flight students are not stupid people. They are smart enough to know when the wool is being pulled over their eyes. Be honest when working with them, yes even on video.

6. Martha has that awkward nervous laugh and a really bad hairdo.


What training system do you happen to like Gupp?

That is an excellent idea. I should have thought of that.

I especially want to have some sort of chart protection system in place when I am training...I might plot 5 courses on a chart in one night just for practice.

You can, of course, cover a printout with plastic film, or laminate it, and then use dry wipe markers for practice.

For use in the aircraft, something that does not rub off easily is better, such as overhead projector markers; or use a dry wipe marker, and cover it with transparent tape.

Chris N

I bet an iPad is a very useful tool in a cockpit. One strapped on like a knee board would be very cool!

Anything you don't really need is a pain in the arse to haul about, loose on the floor, bang you in the teeth in turbulence or slide behind the rudder pedals on finals. Less is more.

PM

Laminated maps
 

Although it's all down to personal choice, I'm not too sure why there's any issue with laminated maps. Use a permanent marker to scribble with then go over it with a dry-wipe board marker to clean it all off. Simple, quick, effective, and unlike a chinagraph pencil there's no chance of accidentally erasing it.

Laminated maps wear well, too.

Ask, and ye shall receive! In the US, all the VFR charts are already digitized, and are available without charge. Have a look:

Sectional Raster Aeronautical Charts
Various "electronic flight bags" (EFB's) are available, and recently approval has been given for the Ipad. Some work better than others, and some pilots have found that quite a few on the market don't do well in unpressurized cockpits; they don't cool as well, and don't last very long. I don't know how that applies to the Ipad.

I use an electronic flight bag, largely because they're permanently mounted in our airplanes. We use them for certain documents, and for approach charts. All our enroute charts are paper.

I've used other EFB's that utilize VFR and IFR charts, though frankly I always prefer paper where I can get it. I should point out that getting FAA approval for us to operate with the EFB's took about three years and thousands of hours of evaluation by hundreds of pilots, as well as the FAA, and that was using already-approved EFB's, and Jeppensen software, updates, and documents. Even so, I make it a practice to have printed copies of the charts I'll be using. (I've had two and three EFB's go dead within minutes of each other, and usually at the wrong time, though not with my current employer. On one occasion, I experienced loss of data because the EFB's failed while approaching Miami, which has about 70 procedures from which to choose, any one of which could be assigned. On that particular occasion, I was in instrument conditions, and couldn't proceed visually to a runway).

Do what works best for you, but always be conservative, and have a backup plan.

I used to do that as a student. No one ever accused me of being a rocket scientist, so I figured I could use all the help and practice I could find. I'd create tasks or problems, with various wind scenarios, and play out a trip as I did the calculations. When we drove somewhere as a kid, I'd take my E6B and spin it doing times between places, calculating speeds based on my timing, and so on. This is obviously not necessary to do to ride in a car, but still a good exercise in using the wheel. I used my E6B in high school for math, and used the wind side while doing vectors, in Physics. Again, not necessary, perhaps a tad slower, but it kept me in practice.

Interestingly, I've met them on the road before, when they were out and about in their Citation, and they're the same in person that they are in the videos.

The last ones that I looked at that I thought were good were the plain-jane Sporty's videos.

I'm not a big fan of the videos, anyway, though some people do find that enhanced graphics and a more modern approach works best for them. Personally, I like books. I like to read, I like to write notes in the margins, and highlight and underline and mark up my books. Unfortunately, I'm on the road a lot, working abroad,and I can't carry a huge printed library. I carry a laptop (from which I'm typing this). I have all FAA publications on one disc. All company publications on another. I carry some books (I get overweight bag fees when I travel because my bags are weighed down with books, and I'm fairly sure that my back problems come from hauling all that gear up and down stairs and ramps, and into the airplane each day). To me, it's worth the effort.

Each person's mileage, of course, may vary.

I wonder if the Kings are millionaires these days or if they are just "more well off than the average educated person" kinda people...

Yeah, very true, but

1) She can tell ya how a VOR works in 23 different ways. I bet you can't do that.

2) The two of them have made enough to buy an old Falcon jet. I bet you can't afford even a very used one of those.

3) I leave it to you to guess which of the two of them runs their household (and their relationship). And which of the two of them takes the dog out for a walk.

:) :)

I think the Kings were in the right place at the right time, many years ago, and did a load of self publicity. Their products work well in the FAA system where there is not much ground school structure and the exams (flying and ground) are largely competence based.

They are millionaires many times over.

I'm not sure I am reading your tone here correctly but nowhere in any of my posts did I say that I can teach better than the Kings, nor do I brag about being rich enough to buy a Falcon jet.

This would be like someone complaining about Wal-Mart brand paper towels and you telling them to try to make their own paper towel factory, but do it better, then accusing them of insinuating that they have more money than the Walton family.

I was being funny :)

I too had to suffer them over about 15 videotapes for the IR...

I tried watching one of their shows once, just out of curiosity. I only managed a few minutes of it. It drove me up the bloody wall. I can't stand 'entertainment' style presentation. Give me the facts, as succinctly as possible, with focus on the supporting diagrams/images/animations and not the talking head. I don't need to look at the talking head to hear what it's saying.

RE: Writing all over maps. I feel its much easier to have something permanent when youre in the plane as you dont want to risk rubbing off some important information. I use permanent fine pens - black for my route, green for the 10 degree lines and red for wind. I keep the blue one in the plane for any diversions / changes i need to make in the air.

To take it off just buy a cheap bottle of nail polish remover and it comes off very easily.

All the colored pens sound great until you try to view them under colored light at night in the cockpit. Then they're all gone. A pencil or a black line can still be seen, however.

Yeah. Red ink all but disappears under red lighting. Green isn't too crash hot either. Using pens on plastic forces you to carry extra stuff for erasing it (special wipes or solvent+cloth, or another marker to write over & wipe off) and probably different writing sticks for the other things you write on. A pencil only needs an eraser on the chart & your thumb on the whiz wheel. Many have them built in. Use a propelling pencil & you don't even need a sharpener.

Soft-ish pencil are cheap, last a fairly long time, are easily seen & erased, don't significantly wear out the map and can be used to write on just about anything you might need to scribble on. I have WACs that are 20+ years old that are still serviceable (not for man made obstacles, of course, but mountain ranges don't move much).

Well clearly I'm wrong, but it works for me. I have a night rating but don't really ever use it so the red light isn't an issue for me.

Interesting how you say the red writing would dissappear though. Wouldn't it just appear black under a red light? Otherwise quite a lot would dissapear off the map... like danger zones and some airspace!

I used to do a lot of black and white photography, and enjoyed mucking about in the darkroom - which of-course is pure red-light.

One day (you'd never do this twice!) I wrote all my instructions to myself in red biro. Once in the darkroom, everything set up, red light on, main light off...

... and I had a completely blank piece of paper. Totally impossible to even see that there was writing on it.


Regarding the chart/torch, it probably depends upon the chart and the torch. But you don't need to go flying to find out, try them together in a darkened room at home.

G

It does.

As Genghis noted, you need to experiment with the tools you'll be using and the light you'll be using, so you don't need to guess what will happen. When you go flying, you should already know.

If you're going to carry colored light, carrying several colors of light is usually a good idea. Especially for reading VFR charts. Make sure you have white light in there somewhere, too.