In the spirit of the song “Give the people what they want,” this week I take a look at five apps that AOPA members swear by. They do everything from providing timely information on fixed-base operators to helping with navigation tasks. These are not endorsements of any app.
Holding Pattern Trainer ($3.99 in iTunes)—Evgeny Brusilovsky is a big fan of this app optimized for the iPhone 5, which lets users work on instrument holding patterns using their own mobile devices. It includes drills on the best hold entries, and has a hold calculator and a tutorial that allows users to choose the best hold entry.
AirNavFBO (free in iTunes, but subscription required)—Dan Reiland likes this iPhone/iPad app because it lets him look up things including airport information and fuel prices at U.S. domestic airports.
XCSoar (free in Google Play)—Andrew Fox highly recommends this tactical glide computer for glider pilots, paragliders, and hang gliders. He notes that it performs the same functions as expensive embedded devices. “I have flown many flights with it and absolutely love it.”
FLY Is FUN Aviation Navigation (free on Google Play)—Malte Höltken calls this navigation app "very thoughtfully designed." He likes the app’s intuitive usage, many updates, and quick implementation of user-submitted ideas to improve the product.
Flight List Plus (free in Google Play)—Mark Slater likes this checklist app because it comes with a pre-defined list of procedures under each checklist, but users can customize it to their aircraft. This makes it easy to track which list you're on and check them off as you go.
This week’s column included three Google Play apps, so keep sending those suggestions here. I’m always happy to hear from my Windows users, and please feel free to share your own favorite aviation apps. You can see a complete list of the apps highlighted here.
