Mastering satellite navigation
But we know that there are a lot of pilots out there who aren't comfortable with all this technology. The glass panels may appear daunting, with all their brightly colored indications and maps, and rows of buttons and knobs. Even global positioning system (GPS) navigators, many with color moving maps and, in some cases, integrated communication and navigation radios, can provoke this response.
Most of the time this apprehension is the result of inadequate--or absent--training. Especially affected are pilots who rent the aircraft they fly. Many flight schools and fixed-base operators will have several rental aircraft of a given model, but in some cases no two on the flight line will have identical instrument panels.
Hard to keep up with? You bet. And think about the flight instructor working in such an environment--he or she not only has to be able to use the variety of equipment, but must be able to teach it as well.
At many flight schools, students are being taught some of the basics of this equipment, but not the advanced functions. And some flight instructors who are extraordinarily skilled at flying the aircraft know very little about using--or teaching--the operation of the advanced avionics increasingly found in rental aircraft.
Some instructors purposely avoid teaching the use of advanced avionics. There is no specific requirement that you know how to use GPS to pass a practical test, although the examiner can test you on GPS if it is installed in the airplane. And some examiners require that applicants for a pilot certificate demonstrate the basic operation of everything installed in the aircraft.
The AOPA Air Safety Foundation has online resources that will help. Start with the GPS Technology Safety Advisor (download it). If the aircraft you're flying is equipped with at least an IFR-approved GPS navigator, a moving-map display, and an autopilot, then you're flying a technically advanced aircraft--and you'll want to read ASF's Technically Advanced Aircraft Special Report.
ASF also has links to an array of articles, online courses, manuals, and other resources about GPS and related technologies. The related technologies include the Wide Area Augmentation System, which increases GPS accuracy to allow more precise instrument approaches, and Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast, which allows aircraft to transmit their GPS-derived position to nearby aircraft and ground stations, and could eventually replace ground-based radar.
That same link will take you to a free minicourse that guides you through the basic functions of the popular Garmin GNS 430 and GNS 530 navigators. Addressed are basic visual flight rules (VFR) functions of the 430/530, including the tuning of communication and VHF navigation frequencies, selecting GPS waypoints, and nearest airport and basic moving-map functions. The course does not prepare you for advanced or complex instrument flight rules (IFR) operations, nor does it replace a more detailed manual or training course.
Even more comprehensive will be a full-featured online course on the use of GPS for VFR flying. This free interactive course, designed to encourage the safe use of GPS in VFR operations, will be available soon in the "Online Courses" section of the ASF Web site.
Why should you be interested in learning more about this equipment, especially if you don't fly IFR? Well, VFR pilots don't have to know how to fly an instrument approach. But all pilots stand to benefit from the increased situational awareness that moving-map-equipped GPS receivers provide. And knowing some of the box's other functions can make things a lot easier and safer for you.
Consider the flight plan function of your GPS. Most people only learn how to "go direct" and nothing more. But if you learn how to enter a flight plan, you can use that to comfortably guide you around temporary flight restrictions (TFRs) and Class B airspace, or through VFR flyways. And you would certainly want to know how to use the "nearest airport" function on every GPS you fly.
These information resources are brought to you by the AOPA Air Safety Foundation, which is dedicated to making flying easier--and safer--for pilots. The general aviation accident rate is down nearly 90 percent since its inception in 1950.
