I am missing the radio gene

[Eric Janson]

I guess it really depends on what kind of flying you're doing and where you doing it.

If I'm flying across the Indian Ocean in the middle of the night - I'm glad I have the following:-

- Functioning weather radar. I've done very few flights on this route where we don't need deviation around weather.
- The ability to call up the 6 closest airports with 2 keystrokes. The page displayed gives bearing/distance and ETA. Very useful.
- The ability to request updated weather via the Datalink. A lot can change on an 11+30 flight with regards to weather.

Nice to be able to get actual weather when you have a forecast that looks like this for 6 months of the year:-

[quote][size=3]TAF AMD YPDN 120759Z 1208/1312 03010KT 9999 SCT030
  FM121400 07006KT 9999 SCT020
  FM130300 03012KT 9999 SCT030
  PROB30
  TEMPO 1215/1223 VRB20G35KT 1000 TSRA BKN010 SCT020CB
  PROB30
  TEMPO 1304/1310 VRB20G35KT 1000 TSRA BKN010 SCT020CB[/size][/quote]

Radios are useful in the areas of the world I fly as are transponders.
Lots of military activity and the political situation is deteriorating rapidly - so I want to make sure they know who we are.

[David MacRay]

Mr. Janson; That is different. You also have pressurization, a lavatory and snacks. I doubt anyone is comparing that with a light piston engined single.

Regarding pilot dress up.
I like my big watch. I don't think I would replace it with another, but I don't regret buying it at the time. It's more than two decades old. I don't have another that old that functions. It looks nice too. Someone on AvCanada bought a garmin watch that I couldn't even find a price online for,  more than one less expensive models of Garmin watches were over $600us. Um? Hope he enjoys it. I would be surprised if it was as solid as my Seiko.

My rayban aviators are even older. I finally can't use them since they don't fit over or under my prescription glasses. They are a nice artifact now.

I really love my Boeing baseball style hat. It makes me sad that Boeing and the us government is going to have to try to kill Bombardier. I know it's not personal but I can't just be as happy displaying their brand.

I do prefer my Smithsonion National Air and Space hat but it's pretty worn. I don't mind that it is kind of grey instead of blue but I fear it will not last much longer.

Regarding too much extra stuff in a plane panel.
I agree that relying on an auto pilot or too much whatever, to get me somewhere in a 172 is kind of bad but I also think tools are good in context when ever they are used properly to make things easier. If a person likes extra stuff and is not distracted. Enjoy!

I like having a radio so I can leave and return someplace like YBW, I also enjoy the part where I get to just fly, between needing to broadcast my voice to share my position/intentions.

I suppose I'd rather have an extra half gallon of fuel than a three pound piece of equipment I won't use.

Just because I enjoy using a paper VNC, does not make GPS or that iPad with your favorite app bad. I have never tried those little cockpit TVs. Maybe I'd like them, I like the anolog gauges. They are what I'm used to.

[Liquid Charlie]

Ah the infamous traffic advisory. With my young pups the first question I ask is what the fuck is the purpose of a traffic advisory. They look at me if I'm a complete moron at first and then I lay that old saying "i a tree falls ........ after they that they get it a little bit but beating the flight school out of them is difficult. I simply tell them to make a short xmit to establish if you are alone or not and then go from there. There is not much point in xmittng if there is no one to listen to. Oh -- my biggest pet peeve - doing MF calls on enroute freq and visa versa and flipping between the 2 at the seed of light so if some one does answer they block them and then several exchanges to figure out what frequency and you play chase the ace. These guys are filling SOP requirements and traffic has nothing to do with it. A good example of a flawed SOP --


One bad thing about technology it promotes "heads down" in the flight deck and excessive traffic advisories prove this. What happened to looking out the fucking window. TCAS - wonderful invention but listening to guys giving a "heads up" because they see each other on the TCAS when you are obviously not conflicting is just fucking stupid. Every time I hear "have a good one" I always wonder what that means -- like have a good shit -- LMFAOoooo - I have actually heard guys doing a 30 minute flight manage to pass more than 10 traffic advisories -- it's mind boggling --

[Colonel]

[quote]Lots of military activity[/quote]

[url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malaysia_ ... _Flight_17]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malaysia_ ... _Flight_17[/url]

Do you have ECM and chaff for surface-to-air missiles?

Are FTU's required to have that equipment on their aircraft
for IFR training now?  Are missile avoidance maneuvers
part of the IFR flight test these days?

https://defenseissues.net/2013/08/17/ev ... r-missile/

[Colonel]

I have to ask:  how many super-computers does it take to fly a 172?

[url=http://www.northeastern.edu/levelblog/2 ... ur-pocket/]http://www.northeastern.edu/levelblog/2 ... ur-pocket/[/url]

[quote]Today, the smartphone in your pocket has [b]more computing power than all of NASA[/b] when it put the first men on the moon in 1969.[/quote]

Why do you need [i]five[/i] of them to navigate?

There must be something terribly wrong with me.  I only need
[i]one[/i] super-computer in a slow, little piston/prop aircraft to
navigate.

[url=http://www.businessinsider.com/a11-bion ... pro-2017-9]http://www.businessinsider.com/a11-bion ... pro-2017-9[/url]

[quote]The chip inside the iPhone X and iPhone 8 makes them [b]more powerful than a 2017 MacBook Pro[/b][/quote]

Nobody [b]needs[/b] five laptops in their 172.  That's just bullshit.

[David MacRay]

Agreed anyone thinking they [u]need[/u] the computer is wrong. True extra stuff is just toys. True also in some cases it is just a distraction from the main toy, an airplane you are supposed to be flying. I don't think the super computer is just automatically bad though.

I certainly want a source of music in a land vehicle, I probably don't need it. Going somewhere close in a fun to drive car OK no tunes. Dragging the kids and canines several hours away, I want music for me and movies for those children.

Even I, arguably the weakest pilot here, can get a 172 from YBW to Tofino, over some Pacific Ocean, less than a mile just to look back at the Island. Washington DC USA and back with VNCs, pens/pencils, measuring ruler, E6-B and an accurate time piece. I know because I have done the route in a couple of Piper Warrior IIs.

A basic solar calculator my dad bought in Montana on the way to DC was nice. I would be willing to take most light singles with tricycle gear :( anywhere in The Americas possibly over some water.

Get me a current chart and a plane I trust I'll fly it over land almost anywhere in the world.

I bet one of those silly apps like Foreflight would be even nicer, maybe. Even a GPS that says, "Lat and long" go this heading would be nice. Navigating is enjoyable for me like flying so something giving me info is nice. I don't want something to navigate for me yet.

I also don't understand when a person owns a plane and plans to go to AirVenture. I ask, "Are you going to fly?" Answer, "No way! My plane is a Cub. That would be more painful than driving." Um? So you don't like flying. I understand if you are a person with a job and can't get enough time off I don't understand owing a plane you fly but not wanting to take it on a long trip.

[quote author=Colonel Sanders link=topic=7448.msg20525#msg20525 date=1510498724]
[quote]Lots of military activity[/quote]

Are FTU's required to have that equipment on their aircraft
for IFR training now?  Are missile avoidance maneuvers
part of the IFR flight test these days?
[/quote]

My unsolicited answer to the question you asked someone else.

Ok, I don't even want to fly in an active glider area. I definately don't want to enter an MOA or some sort of restricted air space without someone shooting stuff. More so somewhere they are.

No. We wanted a radio and a transponder. It is the opposite. We are hoping they are NOT going to shoot us because we identified ourselves as good guys, just trying to get somewhere faster.

[Colonel]

[quote]We wanted a transponder ... We are hoping they are NOT going to shoot us because we identified ourselves as good guys[/quote]

[url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran_Air_ ... Flight_655]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran_Air_ ... Flight_655[/url]

[quote]The airliner was transmitting the correct transponder "squawk" code typical of a civilian aircraft and maintained radio contact in English with appropriate air traffic control facilities.

the shipboard Aegis Combat System aboard Vincennes recorded that the Iranian airliner was climbing at the time and its radio transmitter was "squawking" on the Mode III civilian code only, rather than on military Mode II.

USS Vincennes fired two surface-to-air missiles at the airliner[/quote]

Whoops.

[David MacRay]

Fair enough. Every time you go out in public you rely on a certain amount of luck.

I have decided I don't enjoy riding in the germ tubes anymore. Partially because there are too many unknown people locked in there with me and partially because I don't know who's up front. Finally because I hate having to sit in there for that long.

[John Swallow]

"... please tell me why a phone (with external power) is inadequate for navigation of a slow, little airplane. Enlighten me.  Does it lack processing power?  Storage? Is the GPU inadequate by your standards?"



Well, if it's a Motorola Razr like I used to have, it's a good thing you've got a map.

However, if it's one of the smart phones with a flight planning app and GPS, then there's nothing wrong with that at all. It also means that you're not as minimalist as you would have us believe.  You might as well have an iPad replete with Foreflight.  (;>0) 



Having flown professionally with all the bells and whistles, I want the same capability in my private flying.  It eases the workload tremendously.  Flying a glass-equipped aircraft doesn't necessarily make you a better pilot, nor does aviating in one with steam gauges.  To each his own... 

PS  I suppose I'd get a raspberry if I said I now wish I'd have installed an auto-pilot...?  (;>0)   

[Colonel]

[quote] if it's one of the smart phones with a flight planning app and GPS[/quote]

It's fucking awesome:

[img width=281 height=500][/img]

Only thing I'm lacking is real-time wx in flight,
and with the right box and software, I think you
can do that, too.

[quote]I suppose I'd get a raspberry if I said I now wish I'd have installed an auto-pilot...? [/quote]

Nah.  For single-pilot IFR, I [i]really really[/i] like an
autopilot.  All it needs is heading and altitude.
Ok, maybe pre-select. Everyone likes that goopy
approach coupling but I prefer to hand-bomb. 

I expect I will be the last person in North America
driving a manual transmission car, too!

PS  Get a new phone.  All you need is [i]one[/i] good
handheld super-computer in the cockpit to fly a slow,
little VFR airplane.  Ok, with external battery power.

[img width=500 height=374]https://i2-prod.mirror.co.uk/incoming/a ... med-12.jpg[/img]

You know there's [i]4.3 billion[/i] gates in it's SOC?  It's
more powerful than a laptop!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_A11