Dead Reckoning Calculator

[Wayne M.]

Mike is on the right track with being concerned about air speed vs ground speed. To fully understand and use that calculator is beyond what could be discussed on this forum. It’s quite a piece.

 

[Wayne M.]

I just checked you tube and each feature on this calculator is covered in a video. There are many videos. Gonna need some time on this one. What a complex little tool!

 

[SnoKing]

Mike is on the right track with being concerned about air speed vs ground speed. To fully understand and use that calculator is beyond what could be discussed on this forum. It’s quite a piece.

Just think Garmin, they seem to have a large share of small plane private aviation. We drive to fly ins to good at the planes. All the nice ones have Garmin dashes.

 

[mwilson]

I just checked you tube and each feature on this calculator is covered in a video. There are many videos. Gonna need some time on this one. What a complex little tool!

I’ve got my $10.00 return already..just in something new to think about!! And it does appear to be quite complex...

 

[Wayne M.]

I’ve got my $10.00 return already..just in something new to think about!! And it does appear to be quite complex...

Oh it really is. You can understand how some crashes happen when pilots wind up off course and out of fuel.

 

[BIGNASTY]

Early 747's had a Sextant installed for celestial navation LOOK IT UP!! but in todays world they were removed so YES THEY CAN AND HAVE BEEN USED IN AIRCRAFT!!

 

[BIGNASTY]

I kinda figured that might be the case, get a little bit more off course each time..

As is the case with anything the CNC machine that made my sextant could have been off just a 1/16 of a degree which doesn't sound like a lot but over the course of several thousands of miles and many more calucations adds up to an unfathonable distance OFF COURSE

 

[BIGNASTY]

Unlike land base navigation where your naviagtionall points are not all that far away as compared to celestial nav points that are HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF MILES from your positional reference point, so that being said even if your in a plane flying 500 MPH the point of refrence being further away assumes that it won't take a person LIGHT-YEARS to take readings and make the calculation, UNLESS a person needs to take off their shoes and drop their pants to be able to count to 21.

 

[BoeingDiesel]

Celestial navigation has always intrigued me...it's amazing what a sextant, with some Trig', in the right hands can decipher.
Anyone here remember the old INS system? Plug in the Lat/Long and wait. I'd like to say "Those were the days," but they weren't

 

[fest3er]

Don't forget that with celestial navigation, you also must have a fairly accurate clock (and, I think, astral position tables). You have to know what time it is, where the stars are, and where they're supposed to be at this time in order to determine your position with any accuracy (never mind reasonable precision).

Didn't WWII bombers (at least sometimes) use celestial nav to determine their position?

 

[BIGNASTY]

SHOULDN'T BE A PROBLEM FOR ANYONE ON THIS SITE

You forgot to add a PRETTY GOOD calculator to help out with some of the ciphering HA HA HA HA

http://onboardintelligence.com/CelestialNav/CelNav4.aspx?AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1

OOOP'S NEED TO START FROM THE BEGINNING Ill check back tommorow to check the progress http://onboardintelligence.com/CelestialNav/CelNav1.aspx

 

[jhenderson]

I kinda figured that might be the case, get a little bit more off course each time..

You have the benefit of altitude and large landmarks when flying. Time and distance are a little more exact also. 3 minutes late and 3 miles off course teaches one how to correct for windage errors. Jackie would have the sectional on her lap following the course line. I can hear her now. “ You’re a mile east of course. That dogleg in the lake is supposed to be right under us. “

 

[Tractorat]

I believe that military pilots at least used to use sextants. Even in the recent past I think jet pilots may have used sextants. But Ive never heard of a private pilot using a sextant. BTW, calculator being discussed is not used for what a sextant is used for.

 

[Bill Lins]

She did not know what it was nor how to even work even a slip stick. I guess the high schools don't teach students how to use one anymore.

I doubt there are any TEACHERS left who know how to use a slide rule!

 

[Tractorat]

I doubt there are any TEACHERS left who know how to use a slide rule!

I doubt if there are any who have even seen one or know what it is.

 

[Tractorat]

Its been a few decades since I did any flying so my knowledge is dated. But gps is really an upgrade from VOR. The calculator in question would be used for other useful information. Although I have to believe there is an electronic equivalent for it.

 

[AH64ID]

Its been a few decades since I did any flying so my knowledge is dated. But gps is really an upgrade from VOR. The calculator in question would be used for other useful information. Although I have to believe there is an electronic equivalent for it.

I personally haven’t used one in over 10 years but a lot of our pilots use them still, even the new guys. They don’t get used for much outside of fuel checks thou.

We were taught many of their functions in flight school but there just wasn’t a huge need for it with modern aircraft.

GPS/RNAV is great for IFR flying. Oddly enough we’re transitioning to a more modern aircraft at work and it’s not RNAV certified so back to VOR/ILS for IFR work, at least it has a TACAN too.

 

[RVTRKN]

I bought one for ground school and learned alot about it, my Dad gave me his that he used when he got his flying license, way back in 1975. I never finished getting my license due to the CTD, ya, thats right. Wife OK'ed me buying my 04.5, and when I asked for another $1000.00 for flying time, I got "we can't afford it now that we have a truck payment". She took care of all the bills at that time, and for good reason, its why I'm practicaly debt free now. But again the CTD did me in again, due to the debt I now have to pay for it. Back to flying, I have 14hrs logged in a Cessna 172. mwilson, I recommend going to ground school, even if you have no intention of getting your license, you'll learn alot about lift properties and our atmosphere, and the use of the "Dead Reckoning" tool.

 

[jhenderson]

Its been a few decades since I did any flying so my knowledge is dated. But gps is really an upgrade from VOR. The calculator in question would be used for other useful information. Although I have to believe there is an electronic equivalent for it.

Sportys pilot shop sells an electronic E6B for less than $100.

 

[SnoKing]

When using a sextant in a boat, one does not travel that far while computing a location. In an airplane one would travel a fair distance while doing the location process, which would have to be applied to the results.

On my last boat I built an integrated system with a GPS, laptop with NAV Software package, interfaced to autopilot and radar screen. I could cross a channel with current running strong and boat would say right on the rub line. Destination way point on the radar screen was a nice check feature to know the destination was a valid point on the water and not on land somewhere. Running set courses all the time that were verified to not have navigation hazards in my path, greatly reduced the chance on a grounding.

Everything was switchable. Two GPS's(one up and one down, also with charts) could be switch to feed the autopilot directly or via the laptop. Laptop drove a HP anti glare 15" display at either steering station. Creating and reviewing a course/route on the laptop was much easier than doing on the GPS directly.

And of course I had paper charts on board with parallel rules, dividers and other items to chart course the old school way. Somewhere I think I still have a certificate from the Coast Guard Auxiliary small boating class while a sea scout in 1958 or 59.

The nagging issue with GPS is it can be jammed, and is a single source system. With Loran C shutdown in 2010 we have no backup nav or timing system in place. They are working on eLoran (enhanced Loran) which has a December 2020 planned date to be operational. A robust timing system is required for all modern network, computer, phone and other systems. Today that comes for GPS, a single system.