In article ,
-b- wrote:

In article ,
says...


-b- writes:

No time is spent teaching pilots "clever ways to estimate distances"
as this would be inconsistent with safety.

How else do they determine distances?

By instruments. That's what they're there for.
But this is news to many non-pilots, who in the face of all evidence fail
to comprehend simple realities.

Funny, I've determined distance many times in planes with no
distance-determining instruments. An eye is fine for estimating, or a
map plus landmarks for larger distances. (My index finger is about 4
nautical miles wide on a sectional.) Although I was never really
explicitly taught any of these techniques, just picking them up by
immersion.

I have a GPS unit with my on most of my flights lately, but I don't
trust it, and make sure that I can still safely fly (which requires
determining distances!) should it fail.

--
Mike Ash
Radio Free Earth
Broadcasting from our climate-controlled studios deep inside the Moon