Better get it out of your system now, TRACOM Boy.
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Do you use an iPad in the cockpit? Would you?
- Thread starter Purdue
- Start date
Better get it out of your system now, TRACOM Boy.
I'm hoping the instrument suite in the t6 is reliable enough that I won't need to carry a Bluetooth GPS around "just in case" every other nav aid (with known bad gripes written) shits the bed in the goo. P3? Notsomuch.
I'm sure the instrument suite is fine and dandy.
The tires, on the other hand...
Goddamn websan!
Just got back from my first trip with the Ipad. I am still not swift with it, but have some observations. For an airline that must have volumes of paper on the aircraft in the form of performance manuals, operationing manuals, MEL, CDL, ESL, or otherwise carried by the crew, any electronic format is an improvement. That is a lot of weight savings that will improve fuel burn and injured backs. Getting used to those e-manuals is taking a little time. My airline requires Goodreader to be installed because that is what was approved by the FAA. But, we can use any other reader we chose. As recommended above, I looked for readers that would make annotation, highlighting and note taking easier than Goodreader. As it turns out, it makes no real difference. Every note or highlight I would make would be essentially erased when I downloaded a revision to the manual as a whole new file overwrites the old. That is perhaps the most distressing change. I will not be able to transfer my notes, or make enduring new ones.
The approach plates are a Jepp product read on a proprietary Jepp app. It works real slick. This I like better. It allows you to organize an entire flights charts in the order you will use them so you just swipe one page to the next. Company departure notes, Taxi instructions, airport chart, departure, briefed emergency return approach, area chart, departure alternate arrival procedure, arrival alternate, approach, taxi procedures, airport chart, company gate/station arrival notes. Super slick. Just swipe one page ofter another. That saves tons of page turning in a Jepps binder, even switching binders. I should think it is just as useful, maybe more, with the bound NOS charts used by DOD. Separate the ability to organize for a trip with the Jepps app, it is very easy and quick to move to another chart or procedure that may not be saved for that particular trip. Expanding a page to enlarge the print is very useful. Some charts are just too busy. The lighting in my aircraft is notoriously poor. Having the chart self lighting is huge!
I am told there is not much cost savings going from paper to electronic Jepps. All the rest of the mananuals are self published and printed by contractors with the subsequent cost of revision and distro. There are likely large savings there. Don't know how that would translate to the Navy. Updates are easily done through the airline web site. We get an email telling us an update or revision is ready and just go to the web and get it done. Takes less than 5 minutes. Clearly DOD could set up a similar arrangment for all services aviators
All in all, a workable solution to the cost and weight of paper. I will miss my notes. But it is offset by safety and organizational improvements in other areas.
The approach plates are a Jepp product read on a proprietary Jepp app. It works real slick. This I like better. It allows you to organize an entire flights charts in the order you will use them so you just swipe one page to the next. Company departure notes, Taxi instructions, airport chart, departure, briefed emergency return approach, area chart, departure alternate arrival procedure, arrival alternate, approach, taxi procedures, airport chart, company gate/station arrival notes. Super slick. Just swipe one page ofter another. That saves tons of page turning in a Jepps binder, even switching binders. I should think it is just as useful, maybe more, with the bound NOS charts used by DOD. Separate the ability to organize for a trip with the Jepps app, it is very easy and quick to move to another chart or procedure that may not be saved for that particular trip. Expanding a page to enlarge the print is very useful. Some charts are just too busy. The lighting in my aircraft is notoriously poor. Having the chart self lighting is huge!
I am told there is not much cost savings going from paper to electronic Jepps. All the rest of the mananuals are self published and printed by contractors with the subsequent cost of revision and distro. There are likely large savings there. Don't know how that would translate to the Navy. Updates are easily done through the airline web site. We get an email telling us an update or revision is ready and just go to the web and get it done. Takes less than 5 minutes. Clearly DOD could set up a similar arrangment for all services aviators
All in all, a workable solution to the cost and weight of paper. I will miss my notes. But it is offset by safety and organizational improvements in other areas.
Some hinge select with a 10 year old computer science degree will write a program for the price of free ninety nine and we will use that one instead of a Jep based system.
I've been using the Garmin Pilot software on my Android tablet for a few months now and I've been very happy with it. Since we don't have an IFC for my tab I'm still required to carry and use all my paper pubs (that's what 3Ps are for though) for my primary NATOPS and navigation. I've used the Garmin app for flight planning, as well as following along inflight, and the fact that it provides me with a stitched together high chart of the whole country is awesome. I can pinch zoom and move it around, overlay my route, winds aloft, weather, and a number of other things. Since I fly all over CONUS on a regular basis this is huge for me. I can also easily switch between HI, LO, WAC and sectional charts. It's essentially skyvector on steroids. Most of the weather data is only accurate/ available on the ground since it draws from an internet database, but the flight pubs themselves are all kept up to date on my SD card. If I could use this to legally navigate and shoot approaches all the time, I definitely would.
As far as NATOPS is concerned, I still prefer a paper book to the electronic version for the reasons Wink mentioned, but given the fact that our NATOPS is over 2000 pages this definitely makes for a handier reference in the pilot seat. It's also nice to have a copy of every NATO/FAA/AF pub we use available to reference when I'm on the road and the need arises.
As far as NATOPS is concerned, I still prefer a paper book to the electronic version for the reasons Wink mentioned, but given the fact that our NATOPS is over 2000 pages this definitely makes for a handier reference in the pilot seat. It's also nice to have a copy of every NATO/FAA/AF pub we use available to reference when I'm on the road and the need arises.
To be fair, my company has been looking at this for better than 2 years. While some of that was undoubtly FAA driven, it did take them a long time. But it appears they got it right and I think we are leading the industry in EFBs.
About 10 years ago, DAPS tried to mandate that they would not print NATOPS manuals anymore. The "staff" there tried to argue that there is not a need for hard copy pubs so they would just issue the NFM on CDs
They we showed them page 2 of the H-60 NFM which states "a copy of this manual shall be carried in the aircraft". We asked how we could use the CD in flight...
After their heads exploded, "they" decided that they would not produce hard copy pubs as a cost savings measure. So the squadrons were forced to bring the CD back to the local DAPS (or Kinkos) to get pubs published. So the publisher saved money and passed the expenses on to the customer!
If only there was a process to delete those eleven words, thus solving the "problem."
We never carried a copy in TACAIR. Just carried the pocket checklist. Certainly there is room for it on any USN/USMC helo, but is that reason enough to have to carry it, because there is space? Does carrying the NATOPS make the helo community that much safer than TACAIR?If only there was a process to delete those eleven words, thus solving the "problem."
Never carried it in the Phrog (not required) or -57 (not required, and would probably put the bird over max gross anyway
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