An understanding of cross-country navigation is essential for every pilot. If you want to know how to become a pilot in Australia, the basics of cross-country navigation should be at the top of your learning list. An ideal pilot plans every step of the flight and puts other things later on the priority list. The pilot should be fully responsible for every single second spent in the aircraft.
Why is Cross-Country Navigation So Important?
Being a pilot involves huge responsibilities, as you cannot afford to make even the smallest mistakes. Navigation minimises the chances of a pilot making a mistake. Navigation helps you travel from one place to another without deviating from your way.
Aircraft navigation is unlike your regular ground navigation, where you can stop anywhere or check out Google Maps for nearby gas stations. Pilots must work with limited amounts of fuel and especially Qantas pilots, who travel at very high speeds. Navigation, especially cross-country, ensures that you are on the correct route while following airspace rules and not putting any life in danger, including yours.
The Basics
● Take Off: Always take off with maximum take-off weight, ensure that legible atmospheric conditions exist and that your runway has no slope. You can always reduce your demand for distance by using the notch of flaps.
● Balanced Field: A level field is a legal requirement in most countries. Making sure you have enough field to take off or stop the aircraft in an emergency is an essential practice, one of the key points to learn if you want to know how to become a pilot in Australia.
● Density Altitude: The density altitude factor is crucial. If your aircraft is underpowered, it wouldn’t even climb off the runway. If you do not have specific manuals to check what suits your situation, you can always refer to the Koch chart, which provides you with general rule-of-thumb approximations.
Navigation Techniques:
The navigation techniques may differ depending on the ruleset followed by the aircraft. VFR (Visual flight rules) and IFR (Instrument flight rules) are the most common rulesets followed widely. IFR pilots generally rely on equipment like GPS and satellite radars.
Dead Reckoning (DR) Navigation: The DR technique calculates all the possible course plots after factoring in the wind, density and aircraft weight. DR navigation mathematically creates and predicts the path and its challenges after considering the previously known position and factors. It is an old technique taught to every Qantas pilot as a basic, as it only depends on basic instruments like Bearing Distance Heading Indicator (BDHI), a clock and an Airspeed indicator.
Electronic Navigation (ER): This technique allows pilots to rely on modern equipment and provides accurate results. ER consists of many different pieces of equipment depending on the situation. Automatic direction finder (ADF), VOR or VHR, Instrument landing system (ILS), GPS and Inertial navigation system (INS) are some of the few examples of modern devices used nowadays.
Conclusion
Becoming a pilot is a dream job for millions. It is just as important to be very careful and responsible. Before taking the flight, you should prepare yourself for every tiny detail. Always take a deep breath, stick to the plan, and be confident with the decision you make during the flight.
