FAQ - Aviation
Descent
3 Degree Glide Slope Descent Rate Add a zero to your
indicated speed, divide by two. This should keep you
stabilized on the approach. Ex: 150 knots on the GS. 150(0)
/ 2 = 750fpm descent. 120(0) / 2 =600fpm descent, etc.
3 Degree Glide Slope To maintain a 3 degree glideslope (eg:
ILS) multiply the groundspeed you are achieving by 5. The
resulting number is the rate of descent to fly. Ex.
Groundspeed = 110 Kts x 5 = 550fpm rate of descent to
maintain 3 degree glideslope.
Double the DME for a 1000' ft per minute drop rate at 200
kts IAS. That would tell you how far out you should start
the descent. Ex. I'm at FL230, cruising at 200 KIAS. I know I
want to be down to what ever the IAF alt is (say 4000')
before I get there, maybe 3-5 miles. Based on 1000 ft/min
descent rate, if I start the descent when I am FL alt minus
the alt of the IAF that gives me 19k to loose. This means if
I start with 38 DME and add a fudge factor of about 6-8 then
I will hit a point before the IAF at the alt I need. This is
not an Exact science as under FL180 you have to change to
the local alt setting. But, it does work and it usually has
you down with plenty of time to spare
The distance to descend at 500 ft per minute. Equals 2 times
the ground speed in miles-per-minute times the altitude to
lose in thousands of feet. Ex. If ground speed in the descent
is 155kts/180mph(3 miles-per-minute) and you must descend
8000ft, you must begin you descent 48 miles from the point
at which you must be at the lower altitude. 2 times your 3
miles per minute ground speed equals 6 times 8 (your
altitude to be lost in thousands) equals 48 miles.
Distance To Descend 1. Take your altitude and multiply it by
3. That equals your distance in miles to begin your descent.
2. Now take half your ground speed. This is your rate of
descent in hundreds of feet. Ex. If you are flying at 12000ft
at a ground speed of 150kts and you need to descend to
2000ft, the difference is 10000ft. Multiply 10*3=30 miles
out you must begin your descent. Half your ground speed is
75, add a zero, and 750 ft per minute is your rate of
descent.

Ground Speed
High Speed Aircraft - Ground Speed For relatively high speed
aircraft- say 250 kts or better the quickest way of
calculating Ground Speed using the DME (without G/S readout)
is to note the distance traveled in 36 seconds. 36 seconds
= 1% of one hour Thus if you travel 3.25 nm your Ground
Speed is 325 Kts- voila!!
Ground Speed 1. To find ground speed note the time required
to fly a published distance. 2. Pick a number that when
multiplied by the flight time yields approximately 60. 3. To
get that ground speed, multiply that number by the distance.
Ex.15 minutes is required to fly 30nm (15*4=60)Ground speed
equals 120kts. (4*30=120)

Wind Components/Correction
Wind Correction Angle 1. To determine the wind correction
angle you must know the crosswind component at that
altitude. 2. Divide the crosswind component by your True
Airspeed in miles per minute, which will yield the wind
correction angle. Ex. If the crosswind component is 14kts
and the True Airspeed is 2 miles per minute (120kts),the
wind correction angle is 7 degrees (14/2=7 degrees)
Wind Components 1. The 45 degree multiplier is 0.7 for
headwind, tailwind & crosswind components. 2. And, for every
15 degree variation in wind direction from the 45 degree
position, the 0.7 multiplier is adjusted by 0.2 Ex. Your
heading is 090 and the wind is 165 degrees at 14kts. The
wind is 75 degrees off the nose. (165-90=75) The headwind
multiplier is 0.3, So your Headwind Component is 4kts
(14*0.3=4kts) The crosswind multiplier is 1.0, So
your Crosswind Component is 14 kts (14*1.0=14kts)

Bank Angles
Leading a Heading 1/2 Standard Rate = 1/3 your bank angle
Standard Rate = 1/2 your bank angle
Bank Angle for standard rate turns 1. If indicated airspeed
is in MPH, divide airspeed by 10 and add 5 for standard rate
turn. Ex. IAS is 110mph, divide by 10 equals 11, plus 5
equals 16 degrees (110/10=11+5=16 degrees) bank angle for a
standard rate turn. 2. If indicated airspeed is in knots,
divide airspeed by 10 and add 50% of that value. Ex. IAS is
100kts divided by 10 equals 10 plus 5 (50% of 10) equals 15
degrees (100/10=10+5 (50% of 10) =15 degrees) bank angle for
a standard rate turn.

True Airspeeds
True Airspeed Calculation Divide your indicated altitude by
1000, multiply this figure by 5, and add this number to your
indicated airspeed. Ex: 30000/1000= 30*5= 150+280= 430 is
your TAS.
True Airspeed (TAS) To find True Airspeed increase your
indicated airspeed by 2% per thousand feet of altitude.
Ex. If your indicated airspeed at 8000ft is 120kts, add 16%
(2*8=16%) to your indicated airspeed. Your True Airspeed is
139kts

Fuel Flow/Management
Pounds of Fuel vs. Gallons For every 100 pounds of fuel
there is 15 gal. Ex. So if you need 1000 pounds of fuel that
equates into 150 gallons.
Simple and Fast Way To Determine Fuel Burn: 1. Set the indEx
of the rotating bezel (or a marker on the planes clock) of
that fancy pilot watch you bought to the minute hand at
takeoff. 2. Figure out how many gallons you burn in a unit
of time. Example: my old Stinson burns a gallon every five
minutes. 3. Now just count off the units. The bezel on my
watch is graduated in 5 minute increments. 15 minutes would
be 3 units and three gallons. Simple, just count off from
the indEx one, two three...three gallons! You'll always know
how much fuel you've burned and consequently how much is
left. Try it! Fast and easy.
Convert Pounds of Fuel to Gallons Take the amount of pounds
needed, drop the last zero, divide that new number by 2 and
add it to the new number. That is the same amount in
gallons!! Ex. Say 400 pounds is needed. Drop the last zero =
40. Then divide by 2 which = 20. Add 40 and 20 to get 60
gallons of fuel
Fuel Flow If your airplane has a fuel flow gauge multiply
that number by 3 to get gallons per hour. Ex. If your fuel
flow is 2.3 per engine. Then, you are burning 69 gallons per
hour per engine. (2.3*3=69 gals)

Horsepower
Horse-Power At Altitude For Turbo-Prop To find out what
amount of horse-power you are producing at certain
altitudes, use this formula. HP=RPM times Torque times
.00019 Ex. Assume 1900 on the rpm and 9's on the torque. Hp
will equal 325. (1900*900*.00019=325)

Pressure Altitude
Pressure Altitude For Performance Charts To find pressure
altitude for use on performance charts take standard
pressure (29.92), subtract the current pressure setting ,
multiply that number by 1000, and add the elevation and to
equal your pressure altitude. Ex. Current pressure altitude
is 28.92 and the elevation is 1200ft msl. 29.92 (Standard
pressure) - 28.92 (current pressure) = 1.00 * 1000 + 1200 =
2200 This is your new pressure altitude.

Temperature Conversions
Temperature Conversion Number 2 Another alternative to the
above temperature conversion is to 1) Double the number 2)
Deduct 10% and 3) Add 32 to get the Fahrenheit figure.
Ex. We
have a current temperature of 35 degrees Celsius. Double it
which equals 70, deduct 10% (7) equaling 63, and add 32,
which equals 95 degrees Fahrenheit
Temperature Conversion To convert Celsius to Fahrenheit, you
must multiply the current temperature by 9, divide that
number by 5, and add 32. Ex. We have a current temperature of
35 degrees Celsius. Multiplied by 9 it equals 315, divided b
y 5 equals 63, and add 32, which equals 95 degrees
Fahrenheit

Climb Gradient/Climb Rate
Convert Climb Gradient To Climb Rate To convert the climb
gradient to the climb rate in hundreds of feet, divide your
current ground speed by 60 and multiply by climb gradient.
Ex. If you are required to gain 200 ft per nautical mile and
you have a 150kt ground speed, your rate of climb in
hundreds of feet is 500. (150/60=2.5*200=500)

Instrument Flight
Reciprocal Heading If known heading is 0 -180, add 200 and
subtract 20. If known heading is 181 - 360, subtract 200
and add 20. This is easier and quicker than trying to add or
subtract 180. Ex: Reciprocal of 120 is 120 + 200 = 320, 320
- 20 =300. Ex: Reciprocal of 210 is 210 - 200 = 10, 10 + 20
= 30.
Northerly Turning Error: Another easy way to remember this
compass tendency is: ANDS. Accelerate - North, Decelerate -
South.
VOR orientation When using a second VOR for cross radials,
"Same side, not yet arrived" Ex., If the CDI is on same side
of VOR head as the VOR is from your course, you have not yet
arrived at the cross radial fix. Conversely, if the VOR is
say, to the left of your course, and the needle is to the
right, you have passed the fix
Partial Panel Remember that if doing partial panel , that
you have the other instruments, such as the obs on NAV 1 to
help you visualize your position or heading. If every
30degress takes 10 seconds, then anytime you have the big
numbers on the DG, such as 030, 060, 090, the time in
between each will be 10 seconds. In order to also help you,
if you think that you have to turn to a heading that is
LOWER usually turn LEFT. I know that this does not work if
you are on a NW heading and have to go to a north east
heading, but use common sense.
Instrument Landing Check C ompass L ights I dentify
F laps F uel Use this on my procedure turn outbound in lieu with of
the gump check. Check heading, runway lights, landing
lights, frequency, approach flaps, check fullest tank.
IFR approach or hold. Time, turn, throttles, twist, track,
talk Time: start timing as required Turn: start turning to
the desired course Throttles: set as applicable, precision
approach, holding, etc Twist: re-set the HSI inbound course
window if required Track: fly the airplane and track the
inbound course Talk: tell the controller if you need to.
Calculating VDP VDP - A point along a straight-in approach
at which a 3 degree slope to the runway can not be
maintained resulting in a, missed approach, circle to
land, or unsafe maneuver. VDP’s are for straight in
approaches and are simply used for a reference. it will
indicate to you that a 3 degree descent path to the runway
will not be obtainable from that position without an evasive
maneuver There are three ways to calculate VDP: 1. They are
published on the approach plate. 2. By DME - 300ft per
nautical mile (from end of the runway) Ex. Say the MDA = 600
and the runway is 1 DME from the fix VOR, LOC, NDB, ETC)
Your VDP = 3 DME 600/300 = 2 DME plus the 1 DME = 3 DME 3.
Take 10% HAT off your time. Ex. Say the published HAT is
800ft and the time for that approach is 5:20 Your VDP will
be at 4:00 along the approach. 10% of 800 = 80 seconds,
subtract that from 5:20 and you get 4:00
Drift Correction 300 divided by TAS) X (Crosswind divided by
5) = correction in degrees Ex. TAS 150, Crosswind=10
300/150=2 Times (10x5) 50 =100...drop the “0” 10 degrees
correction
Altitude Deviation Correction 2 X deviation in feet = VSI
indication back to altitude
Partial Panel Compass Flying "OSUN" used for partial panel
compass flying. O vershoot S outh U ndershoot
N orth
Remember that the magnetic compass lags from the North and
leads to the south. How much you over or under shoot your
desired heading depends on the degrees latitude that you are
flying. Overshoot the South heading by the required degrees
and Undershoot the North heading by the required degrees.
Ex.1 Suppose you are flying in Kansas (approximately 30
degrees latitude) and your heading is 090 degrees and you
want to turn to a North heading. Because of the lags to the
North you should roll out of your turn when your com pass
reads 330 (360- 30=330 degrees) if your turn is to the right
and 030 (360+30=030 degrees) if your turn is to the left.
Ex.2 Suppose you are still flying in Kansas and your heading
is still 090 and you want to make a turn to a south heading.
Because the compass leads to the South you should roll out
of your turn when your compass reads 210 (180+30=210
degrees) if the turn is to the right and 150 (180-30=150
degrees) if your turn is to the left
Cue Words To Remember Reporting Points Harry Maintains
That
Little Cats Don't Ever Vacuum Willows H. holding entry
M.
missed approaches T. TAS changes by 5% or 10 knots L. loss
of navigation equipment, VOR / DME etc. C. compulsory
reporting points D. deviating for weather E. ETA changes V.
vacating altitude W. when unable to climb or descend 500
feet per minute
Items Needed For Instrument Flight According to FAR 91.205.
GRAB CARD Generator Radio Attitude indicator
Ball Clock
Altimeter with pressure window Rate of turn Direction
indicator

Airworthiness
Items Needed for Day/Night VFR Flights Day VFR A FAST MOOSE;
MAT A- airspeed indicator F- fuel gauges A- altimeter
S-
seat belt/shoulder harness T- tachometer M- magnetic compass
O- oil pressure gauge O- oil temp gauge S- safety gear (flares, flotation
device) E- ELT MAT M- manifold pressure A- anti-collision
lights T- transition light NIGHT VFR: ASLAP A- anti-collision
lights S- spares fuses (3) L- Landing light when for hire
A-
adequate source of electrical power P- position lighting

Miscellaneous Rules of Thumb
The Nautical Thumb For the average person, the distance from
the tip of your thumb to your knuckle is equal to
approximately 10 nautical miles on the Sectional Chart
scale. This makes it fast and easy to estimate distances on
the sectional chart, especially during diversions to an
alternate airport. To "calibrate" your thumb, just bend your
thumb and place it on a standard 10nm class C airspace on
your sectional chart. It should fit almost perfectly between
the center of the airport to the 10nm ring!
Course Reversal Add 2 subtract 2 or subtract 2 add 2 for
course reversal. Ex: If you are on a heading of 060 you +2 &
-2 = 240 Ex: If you are on a heading of 340 you -2 & +2 =
160 A little common sense and it always works.
Gumps For Low-Wing Aircraft: BCGUMPS B oost pump on
C arb
heat off G as on fullest tank (no both position in a PIPER)
U ndercarriage - Gear down and locked M ixture - Rich
P rops
- High RPM S eat Belts Fastened
ATC Speed Reductions In a turboprop a/c a quick rule of
thumb for a speed reduction is take the airspeed subtract
100 from it divided by two and add five. that will give you
your torque setting in percent. Ex: 180 kias. 180-100=80
80/2=40 add 5= 45% torque 210 kias. 210-100+110 110/2=55 add
5= 60% torque
1 In 60 Rule For every 1 degree displacement equals 1 nm in
60 nm. Ex.If heading is altered 5 degrees to the left: In 60
nm you will be 5 nm left of track. In 30 nm you will be 2.5
nm left of track.
Shut Down Checklist "Remememember to shut everything down"
(R-e-m-m-m ber) R - adios E - lectrical M - ixture
M - aster
M - ags
Diversion-Figuring out time to new destination. A quick way
to figure out how long it will take to get back on course or
to a new destination when diverting is: Ex. Take 2/3 and
multiply it by the distance to be traveled. 2 - X 15(miles)
= 2 X 15 = 30/3 = 10 minutes. 3 This would work with the
slow airplanes like a 150 or Cherokee 140.For faster
aircraft all you would have to do is work out a different
factor.
Quick Shutdown Checklist S - Switches (all electrics)
L -
Lean I - Ignition (magnetos) M - Master Switch
Weather Radar Normal Operating Weather Radar should be able
to ground paint (Dist.) : Square root of your AGL Altitude
Anatomy of a Radio Call: Who they are, Who you are, Where
you are, and What you want
Weight & Balance WAM: W eight x A rm = M oment
Estimating Cloud Bases: Temp. minus dew point divided by 4
and multiply by 1000' Ex. 72-52=20 20/4=5 5x1,000=5,000'
bases = 5,000' agl during instability and warmer part of day
Compass errors on an east-west heading ANDS: Accelerate
North error Decelerate South
Pre-landing Check GUMPS: Gas - Fuel to 'BOTH'
Undercarriage
- Gear down and locked Mixture - Full RICH Props - High RPM
Safety - Seatbelts & Shoulder harnesses
Course Heading True Virgins Make Dull Company for figuring
course Heading (True course +/- variation = magnetic, +/-
deviation= Course heading.) Ex. 240 + 7 degrees equals 247
magnetic + 3 degrees deviation = 250 for a course heading