Pilot Products

Pilots upgrading to more advanced aircraft or those looking for a refresher and resource have a new option in Max Trescott’s GPS and WAAS Instrument Flying Handbook. The training book starts at the beginning, explaining the well-known functions of direct-to and flight plans, and progresses through advanced knobology in the Bendix/King KLN94 and Garmin series of GPS units.

Topics such as the suspend mode, the various WAAS minimums, how to fly the approach with the GPS, and many more are covered. Each GPS unit is explained in detail, and with each procedure is a discussion of both why and how.

Also new from Trescott is a series of iPhone GPS training aids developed with Hilton Software. Part checklist and part training aid, the application covers each function for the full line of Garmin handhelds, with additional units expected to be added in the future. More than a bare-bones checklist, the application explains the functionality of the unit, including screen shots of what the pilot should be seeing. It’s a unique application that is easier to use and more informative than the manual.

Price: $39.95 for the book; $29.95 for the iPhone GPS guide
Contact: www.glasscockpitbooks.com; 800-247-6553

DVD training tips from legendary pilots

Two new training DVDs have entered the market from separate companies, but both feature tips from legendary pilots.

Decision Making With Dick Rutan contains a story you may not have heard in detail about Rutan’s record-setting nonstop flight around the world with Jeana Yeager. He relates how he hallucinated near the end of the trip, mistaking a death spiral for someone physically moving the moon across the sky as a prank. A discussion by a college professor explains how decision-making works. Excellent in-cockpit video shows Rutan offering tips for coming home safely, and relating a scary story about his poor decision to intentionally ice up a Cessna 152.

Price: $59.95
Contact: www.flyrightfilms.com

Close Calls:

Lessons to Live By has star power, too. Bob Hoover and Wayne Handley relate their own scary stories and explain how they did, or in some cases didn’t, get out of trouble. But they survived even the crashes by having a plan in their mind—a what-if strategy developed on a great flying day when there were no problems. In Handley’s case, he fought his emotional side (impending death) to apply logic and experience during the crash of his Oracle Raven in California. Incidents are restaged and videotaped.

Price: $24.95 plus shipping
Contact: www.closecallsflying.com —Alton K. Marsh

GloveLite

There’s something about aviation lights that brings out creativity in pilot/inventors. We’ve had lights you can wear around your neck, on your hat, on your head, and all over the cockpit. A newcomer to the market is betting the best place for a cockpit light is on your hand. GloveLite is a neoprene glove covering the thumb and forefinger with a small light of red, green, or white on the finger. Directing the light is easy—just point. The glove is light, sturdy, and inarguably convenient.

Price: $24.95
Contact: www.glovelite.com; 207-945-6588

ReadyProcs

Last month we covered the breadth of mobile approach plates available now on the market ( see “Pilot Products: Approach Plates for the Kindle DX,”). For those looking for a PC-based approach plate program, ReadyProcs is an incredibly user-friendly new option.

Between easy navigation, obvious flags for expired charts, quick updates, and quick tab viewing, ReadyProcs allows users to quickly and easily retrieve approach plates for printing or to be stored on the computer. You can save favorites, look at a history, or find new plates in literally about three seconds. For an inexpensive, user-friendly way to manage approach plates, check out ReadyProcs.

Price: $70 a year
Contact: www.readyprocs.com; 307-413-0840

Unless otherwise stated, products listed have not been evaluated by AOPA Pilot editors. AOPA assumes no responsibility for products or services listed or for claims or actions by manufacturers or vendors. However, members unable to get satisfaction regarding products listed should advise AOPA. To submit products for evaluation, contact: New Products Editor, AOPA Pilot, 421 Aviation Way, Frederick, Maryland 21701; telephone 301-695-2350.