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Golf Hotel Whiskey: for pilots and aviation enthusiasts

Software

e-Book readers: The Kindle and the Nook

e-Book readers are becoming increasingly popular with JP Morgan estimating that some 10 million Americans alone either own a Kindle e-book reader or plan to get one soon. In fact, the Kindle and other e-Book readers may soon become the iPods of the book world.

The Kindle

Given their increasing popularity and potential uses in every day life, Max Trescott has recently written a post about the Kindle noting that he has read about the potential aviation uses for the device. Hence, he invites readers to take a short survey intended for pilots to see whether they currently own a Kindle and he also invites readers to post comments about any aviation experiences they may have already had with the device.   

The Nook

Meanwhile, Glenn Calvin, the blogger behind the Rant Air blog, has posted a detailed review of the Nook e-reader which is available through Barnes and Noble. Although his review does not cover any potential uses for the Nook in the cockpit, he does make the general observation that:

Picking up the Nook is just simply not the same as picking up a well-worn used book and smelling an untold number of owners’ perfumes or pipe tobaccos and wondering about the history of that volume. And being able to lend a book you’ve greatly enjoyed to a friend or coworker whom you know will enjoy it as much just isn’t doable (though there is a somewhat restrictive “sharing” feature built into the Nook).

However, he does recommend the Nook – although he is clear to say that it will never replace the physical books in his collection but it will definitely save him some weight and space in his travel bags…

Nook

Day Ten: Books and DVDs for pilots

Some friends and I have been running a series of gift ideas across our blogs. I already proposed a Breitling Navitimer watch and now it’s my turn again. This time, I’d like to suggest some books and a DVD that any pilot will love.

image One Six Right. If you want a single film that captures the joy, romance, history and excitement of flying, this is it. It is a documentary about Van Nuys Airport in LA; but that’s like saying Citizen Kane is a film about a sled. Check out this clip on YouTube.

image Backroom Boys. This is a charming little history of the British boffins who tried to take the UK to the stars on a shoestring and almost succeeded. Read a longer review on my writing site.

Boyd book cover Boyd. The biography of John Boyd, a US fighter pilot who revolutionised aerial warfare, instigated the F16 fighter and inspired the winning strategy of the first Gulf War. Read a longer review.

image Carrying the Fire. Michael Collins’s book is the best of the Apollo astronaut biographies and, I suspect, the only that is not ghost-written. Read a longer review.

image Project Orion. Imagine if you could reach Mars in a few weeks in a 4,000 tonne space cruiser powered by nuclear bombs. This is the history of the nuclear scientists who designed such a craft in the 50s. Read a longer review.

image Absolute Altitude. The story of a British journalist who decided to try to blag his way around the world in the cockpits of different aircraft. Sadly, I don’t think it would be possible today because of 9/11. So it is also a testament to a more innocent era. Read a longer review.

Previous gifts are:

The Pocket Flight Management Assistant (PFMA)

Wind Calculation With the development and popularity of the iPhone, a number of useful applications have appeared specifically geared for pilots or the aviation community in general. One of these applications, The Pocket Flight Management Assistant (PFMA), was recently reviewed by John Ewing who has posted a detailed review about it on Aviation Mentor.

According to John, what is great about the PFMA as opposed to many other iPhone applications and hence worth repeating is that this one has the ability to calculate winds while flying. In fact and although there is no user manual with the application, John was able to figure out how to calculate winds aloft in under 20 seconds. In addition, the application’s WIND screen can also determine landing crosswind components as well plus perform a number of other useful calculations ranging from fuel calculations to meteorological conversions.

John concludes that the PFMA is a nice aviation calculator that strikes a good balance between frequently-used features and simplicity while having a user interface that resembles a flight management system. However, he also states that someone new to aviation who might still need a hand by having a product with explicitly-named functions and features might not be well served by the PFMA. Otherwise, experienced pilots will find the US$4 application a very good value and something worth having.

Jeppesen FlightStar and JeppView

I use FlightStar and JeppView to plan my trips. The software is easy to learn, although there are some power user features that take more time and parts of the interface are idiosyncratic. With the optional weather downloads and JeppView software, you can set up an aircraft, plan a route and print out a complete trip kit with approach plates, enroute charts and pilot log.

It can display Jeppesen-style VFR charts and airways. You can also view VFR plates for airports and IFR approach plates. These charts are updated automatically over the internet. It’s powerful stuff and good enough for a corporate flight department. The only downside is the price. For the IFR version with European charts, it costs me around €1700 a year.

Cheaper (possibly free) alternatives include Autoplan IFR for planning airways trips and Tony Griffiths’s Cross-wind, which is a comprehensive VFR flight planning program.

Jeppesen FlightStar VFR chart

Jeppesen FlightStar airways

Jeppesen approach plate for Ostend Bruges

Choosing a poor man’s electronic flight bag (EFB)

An Electronic Flight Bag (EFB) is a handy electronic information management device that helps pilots and flight crews be more efficient and can literally replace just about all of the paper-based reference materials such as the Aircraft Operating Manual and the navigational charts found in a pilot’s flight bag. However, Mini9 EFBchoosing such a device, let alone one that is affordable and light weight, can be a challenge. Hence, John Ewing of Aviation Mentor has posted a comprehensive post about finding a low-cost method to store and display aviation charts.

John begins by acquiring a small notebook computer (a Dell Mini 0 to be exact) and then he tested various online services that provide electronic charts and procedures. What readers will like about John’s post is the fact that not only does he provide links to some of these services but he also includes graphics showing what you will get with some of these services.

However, it is important to remember that if you intend to use any electronic device to store or view charts during an actual flight, be sure to always have the printed charts handy as backup because you never know when a battery or something else will fail. After all, the Dell Mini that John uses has a 3 hour plus battery life but only if it is left closed and in sleep mode when not in use. However, John points out that he can also buy a cigarette-lighter power adapter for US$15 as an added measure to ensure longer life.

The total cost for John’s poor man’s electronic flight bag? US$300. Not a bad alternative worth considering.

Cool tools: goFLYING

Sliderule Trip Computer

goFLYING has a couple of useful features.  The first is a mashup that lets you plan flights using Google maps and then input wind direction and speed, fuel burn and so on to generate a navigation log.  It will save these out in A4 or kneeboard format for use in-flight.  Thanks to Google’s satellite maps, it’s very easy to pick out waypoints and the database seems to have all the airports in it, so you can just search for, say, Denham, and it’ll make it a waypoint.

This is likely to be most useful for VFR pilots, helicopter pilots trying to find landing spots and for familiarising yourself before a flight.  However, it is very easy to use and could be a good substitute for commercial VFR flight planning software. It is, after all, free.

You can also import your GPS track file and see your actual flight track superimposed on the map.

The second is a tool that calculates sunset and sunrise in different places at different times of year.  This is very handy for working out official night.