Navigation strategy on a short flight

On Jun 29, 1:24*pm, "Peter Dohm" wrote:
"Stephen!" wrote in message

...



"Flaps_50!" wrote in news:936e4ca2-5f71-402d-ab98-
:

Use your compass / DI and allow for the drift expected from winds at
your altitude.

*Now do it at 1500' MSL from PGSN to PGUM *without* a GPS and you've got
the return leg of one of my student solo cross "country" flights. *57 nm
between visual checkpoints across open water. *At 1500' I was below both
the VOR and the RADAR on Guam. *All I had to keep me company was my Mag
Compass, DG, and the COM radio until I got near Rota. *The VOR was
flagged most the way back.

*An unexpected/unpredicted cloud base moved in and I had the choice of
staying below or trying to get above them. *Stopping in Saipan was *not*
an option. *I wasn't even allowed to make the standard stop for log book
signing. *Touch-and-go only due to Customs and Immigration regulations.
Still proud of my ded-reckoning on that one. *When Rota finally came into
view, it was only 2 off my port bow.

*Here are some snapshots of a time when the weather was better and I was
able to make the flight by visual checkpoints the entire way (I saw Rota
from 57 miles away):

WARNING!! These pictures are *NOT* recommended viewing for those who pee
their pants when they think of flying across open water in a single
engine aircraft!

http://imagesdesavions.com/xcntry/nmi/index.html

--
RCOS #7
IBA# 11465
http://imagesdesavions.com

It looks a lot like the Bahamas, only more grass and greener trees--perhaps
the soil is better.

BTW, I understand that it was always quite common for dual students to be
less than one mile off course when arriving at Bimini from Opa Locka. *That
was about 60nm and KOPF did have a reasonably well maintained compass rose
back when I was familiar there--and I, too, did arrive very nearly on
course. *Then again, the compass variation is small here on the east coast,
so we do have it pretty easy.

Peter

Re the Bahamas: some time ago I decided to go from Grand Bahama Island
to Nassau. While en route was told to delay my arrival time by a half
hour or 45 minutes because of thunderstorms. It was blue skies where
we were, and just to the side was an island with a dirt strip that
looked really inviting. I dragged the strip -- 500 feet, dirty, and it
looked like a great place to stop for a while. "OK" I told my pax,
"let's do that". I got back to about 900 feet, flew a downwind, base,
turned onto final, and we saw some people come out to the runway:
probably only two or three, but at the time it looked like an army
because they were all carrying long guns. I decided the message was,
this was a very private airstrip. Throttle forward, gear and flaps up,
and we got out of there pretty quickly. Then flew in circles for a
half hour.

Same trip after clearing customs in as I remember Hollywood FL, I had
finished a weather briefing and was approached by a guy who asked if I
was flying to Boston. He overheard part of the briefing. I told that
was my plan. He told me he had two hundred pounds of delicate
electronics he needed to get to Boston, and if I could hang around for
an hour he'd get them into my airplane. Then, with a wink, he said if
I took them I could keep a couple of pounds for myself.

I was wheels up very soon after that.

Electronics by the pound: interesting idea, isn't it?

"a" wrote in message
...
On Jun 29, 1:24 pm, "Peter Dohm" wrote:
Re the Bahamas: some time ago I decided to go from Grand Bahama Island
to Nassau. While en route was told to delay my arrival time by a half
hour or 45 minutes because of thunderstorms. It was blue skies where
we were, and just to the side was an island with a dirt strip that
looked really inviting. I dragged the strip -- 500 feet, dirty, and it
looked like a great place to stop for a while. "OK" I told my pax,
"let's do that". I got back to about 900 feet, flew a downwind, base,
turned onto final, and we saw some people come out to the runway:
probably only two or three, but at the time it looked like an army
because they were all carrying long guns. I decided the message was,
this was a very private airstrip. Throttle forward, gear and flaps up,
and we got out of there pretty quickly. Then flew in circles for a
half hour.

Same trip after clearing customs in as I remember Hollywood FL, I had
finished a weather briefing and was approached by a guy who asked if I
was flying to Boston. He overheard part of the briefing. I told that
was my plan. He told me he had two hundred pounds of delicate
electronics he needed to get to Boston, and if I could hang around for
an hour he'd get them into my airplane. Then, with a wink, he said if
I took them I could keep a couple of pounds for myself.

I was wheels up very soon after that.

Electronics by the pound: interesting idea, isn't it?

You know, it's really a share that I don't have the talent as a writer;
because this is one of those locations with oodles of really first rate
material for a novelist!

But, alas, I just don't have what it takes.

Peter

In rec.aviation.piloting Mxsmanic wrote:
From Phoenix to Casa Grande in a Cessna 152 in my sim:

The aircraft contains only a single VOR, without DME, and an ADF.

There are a couple of VORs nearby, including PXR at Sky Harbor, and Stanfield
about 8 miles southwest of Casa Grande (connected by V105/J92). There's also a
NDB at Chandler, about 19 miles north.

What is the most elegant way to navigate from KPHX to KCGZ?

I thought it would be good form to follow V105, so after a west departure from
Phoenix, I flew east to join the PXR 163 radial. It was hard to judge my
distance from the VOR, though, as the desert looks pretty monotonous, and
there are numerous small airfields in the area. After flying for a while, I
decided to tune the CHD NDB and try to figure out an intersection that would
place me over the field. Constant adjustment of the ADF card for this purpose
was awkward, though, and did not improve my confidence that I was going the
right way. The 152 is very pokey and I always have the impression that I've
gone further than I actually have.

Finally I got nervous and turned east to pick up the PXR148 radial. I had
flight following and Center knew my destination, and ATC asked me what I was
doing after I made the turn, since apparently I had been headed straight
towards the airport. I explained and when ATC told me where to look for the
airport, I turned that way, and after a minute or two I spotted hangars at
Casa Grande.

This does not seem very elegant to me. What is the best way to navigate this
route under these conditions?

Exclude pilotage, since this was an exercise in navigation by instruments
despite being VFR in VMC. (If I had been using pilotage, I would have simply
followed Interstate 10, which practically leads to the ramp, but I
deliberately avoided looking for the highway.)

I conducted the flight mostly at 3500 feet, although I suppose that's not very
important here.

A thorough pilot would fill out a flight planning form, fly a magnetic
heading of 145 degrees corrected for the forcast winds aloft, note the
time of passage and deviation from Gila River Memorial to correct for actual
winds, and do that again at the 1734' hill about 6 miles north of KCGZ.

The pilot then would know at all times where he was and how long to get
to the next waypoint as long as his compass and clock were working and
wouldn't be wandering around looking for radials.

The magnetic compass and the clock are valid navigational instruments.

The most elegent way would be GPS direct.

--
Jim Pennino

Remove .spam.sux to reply.

On Jun 26, 11:59*am, Mxsmanic wrote:

Finally I got nervous and turned east to pick up the PXR148 radial. I had

YOU GOT NERVOUS????????????

WHY?????????? You are simulating a flight in MSFS!!!!!!!!!

This does not seem very elegant to me. What is the best way to navigate this
route under these conditions?

YOU ARE VFR. YOU ANSWERED YOUR OWN QUESTION.

LOOK OUT THE SIMULATED WINDOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Exclude pilotage, since this was an exercise in navigation by instruments
despite being VFR in VMC

DOESN'T matter what the exercise was, YOU WERE SIMULATING A VFR FLIGHT
in MSFS. LOOK OUT YOUR SIMULATED WINDOW

Mxsmanic wrote:

What is the best way to navigate this route under these conditions?


If no GPS, no pilotage, and no dead reckoning, I would capture the 148
radial from PXR and fly it outbound until I saw the field.

Mike Adams writes:

If no GPS, no pilotage, and no dead reckoning, I would capture the 148
radial from PXR and fly it outbound until I saw the field.

OK, thanks. I guess I might have been complicating the navigation more than
necessary. Too many IFR flights, perhaps.

In rec.aviation.piloting Mxsmanic wrote:
Mike Adams writes:

If no GPS, no pilotage, and no dead reckoning, I would capture the 148
radial from PXR and fly it outbound until I saw the field.

OK, thanks. I guess I might have been complicating the navigation more than
necessary. Too many IFR flights, perhaps.

More like too much time playing the Microsoft Flight Simulator game and
zero time doing any actual flying.


--
Jim Pennino

Remove .spam.sux to reply.

writes:

More like too much time playing the Microsoft Flight Simulator game and
zero time doing any actual flying.

There's no distinction between simulation and real flight in this context. The
navigation methods are the same.

Mxsmanic wrote:
writes:

More like too much time playing the Microsoft Flight Simulator game and
zero time doing any actual flying.

There's no distinction between simulation and real flight in this context. The
navigation methods are the same.

Yep, as long as you keep pushing that button to give you a view out the
side windows.

However the point was that if you had ever done any actual flying you would
know how trivial the problem is.


--
Jim Pennino

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On Jun 27, 3:09*pm, Mxsmanic wrote:

There's no distinction between simulation and real flight in this context..

Yes there is. ATC in simulation did not act like it would in the real
world. But you wouldn't know this since you don't fly in the real
system