Cockpit Organization Tips for XC

[uwochris]

Hey guys,

I'd like to know if anyone has some tips on how to stay organized while you are on XC solo.

Normally, I feel very "sloppy" while I fly on XC, particularly when I do my groundspeed checks. I often drift off course a few degrees, lose altitude, and lose my CDI. I feel as though I am fumbling when I use my e6B and when I write down the times.

Last week, I did my dual night XC with my CFI to Toronto. I actually felt a little comfortable with my CFI there, because he would help me out a little. He suggested to always use the autopilot when you are doing speed checks. I'm just wondering if any CFIs out there teach this technique to their students?

When I'm solo, I try to use the seat next to me for the flight bag and keep my books and E6b beside me. I also try to use the side pockets, but I still feel too cramped a lot of the time. I try to keep my map on my lap with my nav log underneath it. I feel as though I constantly have to sift through all the papers (ie. write down times, check frequencis, check map, etc)

I'm just curious as to how you guys go about staying organized on your XC for the checks and how you CFIs out there teach your students.

TIA.

 

[Vladimir Lenin]

Try taking less shizzle with you, and at least attempt to do some of the calculations in yer head. Leave the cloud gauge and the holding pattern computer for the old folks

 

[bobbysamd]

Less is more

You might have too much junk with you up front. Try paring it down to the essentials.

Try spreading your sectional on your lap and setting up your navlog on a good old-fashioned clipboard underneath. Try using a pocket E-6B for your cross-countries instead of the full-sized version, and keep it in your shirt pocket. You really don't need to have your flight bag next to you. The side pocket is a good place to store your flashlight.

Use the instrument panel clock to time between the checkpoints. Of course, if you are a watch geek like me you can use a chronograph to time between checkpoints, but it really isn't worth the trouble.

One tip I learned from my Riddle students was to take a regular No. 2 pencil and using a pocketknife to slice in cuts 10 nm apart. That eliminates a plotter adding to the clutter. You can keep your plotter inside your flight bag. You can use the pencil for its usual function along with measuring off distances. If you need to determine a mag course, line up the pencil between your points A and B, hold its position and bring it up to a VOR compass rose. Read off your mag course from that.

I never was in airplanes that had autopilots, and I was glad. That way I didn't have to tell my students not to fiddle with the autopilot. A mark of airmanship is the ability to hold heading and altitude while spinning around your whizwheel with your free hand.

Hope these ideas help. Good luck with your cross-countries.

 

[generaltso]

A mark of airmanship is the ability to hold heading and altitude while spinning around your whizwheel with your free hand

You are a sick man.

 

[Simon Says]

WOW.........I forgot how difficult it was making cross country trips as a student. Nav Logs/ Timing between Checkpoints /E6B /Whizwheels.

UWOChris,

You are doing some of your toughest flying right now. Enjoy yourself!

 

[DJS]

Yow. The dreaded whizwheel.

I've still got my E6b in my father-in-law's old flight bag. (He is a retired NWA captain; when I got my PPL, he gave me his flight bag, complete with 747 manual and plates from all over...I keep my old flying stuff in there now, too, alongside his stuff...perhaps someday I'll have the chance to pass it on to someone who can appreciate it like I have.)

Anyways, on my private checkride I so thoroughly screwed up using the E6B it it was incredible. I actually ended up with approximately the correct answer even though, as far as I recall, I mixed in density altitude, C to F conversion and Fuel consumption into a simple time/distance calculation. I never really did understand how the screwy thing worked so I never ingrained the methods for using it. I just turned the wheels until I got somewhere near what I thought the answer should be.

But I held my altitude and course (i.e. actually flew the plane) while, er, um, spinning my whiz wheel. The DE just chuckled and said, "Ok, so, how else could we figure out how long it's going to take?" I said, "Well, its about 15 miles, we're doing about 100, so we should see the airport in about 9 or 10 minutes, give or take the wind." Apparently that was good enough for her.

I did buy one of those Sporty's electronic E6B thingies for my instrument written test. It came in very handy (really!). I will take it along with me on my instrument checkride, even though my CFII assures me I won't need it. Bits and bytes in a computer with clearly labeled buttons I understand. Little logarithmic, geometric and exponential scales on spinning wheels of cardboard are beyond my comprehension.

...Dave

 

[DJS]

Ok, real advice

Ok, some real advice.

I tried them all. Tri-fold leg strap kneeboards (things flap around too much for writing all that "time at waypoint X" stuff), large sized holds-a-sectional-nicely tri-fold leg strap knee boards (flap invariably gets in the way of the yoke), metal only knee boards (bad slices into your fingers on the edges at inopportune moments...really!), etc.

For PPL x-country training, here's what I suggest:

- Get a $0.99 legal sized clipboard (bigger than letter sized) from your local Office Depot (or wherever). -
- Get some 3 inch wide velcro tape. Tape the loop section to the back of the clipboard (the plastic stuff, not the fuzzy stuff). This prevents sliding as the clipboard sits on your lap.
- Get some smaller velcro tape. Tape a small chunk of the loop section to the right side of the clipboard. Wrap a small chunk of the fuzzy section around a pen. This secures the pen to the clipboard. (use a binder clip to clip a backup pen on the other side of the clipboard).

The clipboard sits across your lap, clip on the left. Clip your folded sectional/terminal chart on 1/2 the clipboard (left side). Your e6b whizwheel is also secured under the chart. Use a binder clip to clip your navlog on the right side of the clipboard. If you've got one of those 8.5x11 navlog forms, trash it and get a smaller 5x8 one that will fit on 1/2 the clipboard (or create your own on the computer).

The main downside to this arrangement (and one reason I have removed it from my instrument training) is that it doesn't fit in your flightbag. But it is fantastic at providing a stable, non-slip table (complete with velcro attachment for your pen) for all the paperwork you need for x-country training.

Just my $0.02. I look forward to anyone's refinements.

...Dave

P.S. For instrument training, I really like the Jepp tri-fold kneeboard, with the 3 rings for holding alternate plates, computer-reduced copies of relevant portions of VFR charts, etc. Plus, it fits in my flight bag

 

[ArcherB]

I think all the above suggestions are great, however I think depending on your size and other factors you will have to determine what the best method is. Try a couple different methods. I find with students that are short a kneeboard from sportys will work well but with a taller student the clipboard from office max is perferct (what i would use) .
The other thing is that while on the cross country you need to prioritize and realize that the most important factor is to fly the airplane, altitude, heading, etc..... Don't get so wrapped up in filling in blanks on your flight plan that you forget the fly the plane and look outside. As time goes on you will be better at altitude management if you hand fly the airplane, none of our school airplanes have an autopilot. I would frown upon use of the autopilot before the private pilot checkride, it is a gret tool but first get solid skills. Good luck.

 

[Huck]

OK here's my story- my PP instructor (the great Ed M. in Bessemer, AL) was super but also real retentive about cross-country techniques - we never went anywhere without three independent sources of navigation (pilotage, VOR, and dead reckoning, usually). I had huge nav logs. I got weather updates on the way from flightwatch, even if we were going from Montgomery to Birmingham. I sweated one or two degrees of error. It was hard and, I thought, a huge waste of time.

Got my license, and decided to show off to my girlfriend with a night flight from Auburn to Marietta, GA. Threw all that planning and nav log crap away and just went VOR to VOR.

You guessed it - got lost. Ended up doing a panicky triangulation by VOR followed by a call to ATC for help. Looked like a dork. And the next flight, I went back to Ed's old clunky methods.

Now when I fly part 91, I have an old "Gorilla Clip" with a sectional, an IFR enroute chart, a NOS bound approach plate book, an Airport Facility Directory, and a small custom-made nav form. On the back of the nav form are all my emergency checklists, as well as memory items like position report format and METAR decoding. It's all the size of a cigar box and easy to carry around.

And never never never go without a working flashlight. I wear mine in a holster on my belt, at work and part 91, always.

 

[scubabri]

Here is what you need in the cockpit, sectionals/enroutes if you are IFR, E6B (if you don't have a wiz bang gps), F/D, flight ruler, pencils, scratch paper, and a watch.

I've really found that a good aviation GPS such as the Garmin stuff really elminates the need for an E6B. It's good to have it as a backup and know how to use it, but get a GPS and leave the e6b in your bag. This is just my opinion, it works well for me, but you'll have to do what works for you, some instructors frown on using GPS in the cockpit, which in my opinion is just nuts.. As a pilot, you should use every tool you have or can afford to make your flight as safe as possible. A good aviation GPS will increase situation awareness and suppliment ground based navigation. And the key word here is "suppliment". Don't totally rely on any one navigation source, use them all and use each of them to back the others up. This way, if any one system fails.. you are already using the others and you shouldn't even miss a step. Personally, I don't fly without one.

Before you go out on your xc, make yourself a good flight log, what I like to do is use a yellow highlighter and highlight all of your check points, that way they are easy to see. Fold it in such a way that you can see the check points/waypoints and your expected ETA and headings, if you are using JEPP flight logs, a 3 part fold over works... Put this route in your GPS if you have one (read above) this now becomes your flight log.. only real time, take great care putting the entries in.

Next, if you are using multiple charts, use a pink highlighter to highlight your routes and a green or yellow highlighter to to highlight your waypoints. Fold all of your sectionals so it shows your route plus about 4 inches of sectional either side of your route so it's easy to see. If you are solo, put this in the right seat in the order of need, if your route switches sides of a sectional, then use 2 of the same sectional. You'll find that when you are flying IFR, in the clouds, the last thing you want to be doing is refolding sectionals.

What I like to do, is write right on the sectional.. so put your ETA's right at the waypoints and highlight them, make yourself a little box in yellow that you can put your ATA in it. Also, you can put any other information that you need here, such as frequencies and headings. This way you only have to look one place for stuff. You are probably asking, "If I have this stuff in my GPS, why write it on the sectional". The answer to that... Have you ever seen a sectionals batteries run out?? Use your flight log to back yourself up during the idle times enroute, when you aren't doing anything. Always have multiple sources for navigation.. If it's in the cockpit.. use it.. which includes passengers.

About 15 minutes before my next waypoint if I need it, I grab the next sectional in the stack and familarize myself with the next two waypoints and headings and then put it underneath the sectional or enroute that I am using... when I pass the waypoint, I throw the used sectional in the back.. because I am done with it, I don't want it to be in the way.

For the F/D, get yourself some yellow stickies or some page markers and tab the pages in the F/D that you need, or better yet... take the pages out and put them in your sectional stack.. The reason for this.. you don't want to be thumbing through a F/D when you are trying to deal with traffic, sick pax, birds.. UFO's (it could happen).

another thing that helps is get yourself a watch or clock that you can put right on your knee board, but honestly, to much stuff gets in the way. Your watch and GPS should suffice for this.

Sectionals are cheap and if you use pencil and fly the same routes over and over again, I find you get about 3-4 times before the chart gets messy.. go buy another... flying is expensive, but the charts when you think about it only add a couple bux to the time.

I can't stress enough how important a handheld gps is. It's independant of any cockpit based navigational system and if all your electrical fails.. this may save your bacon.

So, the only thing you should have on your lap... a sectional..

Party on!!

Brian