Software

Portable GPS devices are arguably the most useful cockpit tool since the invention of the E6B. Or aeronautical charts. So it was no surprise when our reader survey on portable GPS generated we’ll over 1000 responses. There were comments from pilots still flying trusty, monochrome Magellans to ones using the newest Garmin aera. We saw dozens of poetic waxings about most every major supplier and surprisingly few complaints. That said, no company or product escaped with no complaints and we saw some direct conflicts: Pilot A had such a dismal time with Anywhere Map that he went to Garmin and is much happier, while Pilot B finally got so sick of Garmin troubles he bought an ATC and now flies in a state of bliss. To each his own.

With so many free resources on the web, any fee-based solution must offer serious added value. And thats exactly the rub with a critical review of the different options: One pilots added value is another pilots useless frill. All of these products do everything you need, but one might fit your style better than the others. To help you find your match, we looked closely where flight planning can really shine: optimizing a route for winds and fuel stops, accessing the most current airport information and printing a wad of information to toss into your flight bag.

The first iterations of Fltplan.com had a clunky, Web 0.5 interface, but it was fast, flight plan filing was reliable and it sported a couple of unique features, such as seeing recently-assigned ATC routing between the airports. It quickly became a favorite of corporate flight departments and freight dogs. The user interface has improved (somewhat). While it still caters somewhat to the corporate flight world, we think Fltplan.com is the best all-in-one website to create and file a flight plan and grab FAA-legal weather. To really use the website, you’ll need to create a (free) login name, and appropriate aircraft and pilot profiles. This is a quick process where you can select from a long list of existing aircraft profiles or customize your own. With that done, you can either create a quick airport-to-airport plan or enter something with custom routing. Seeing recent ATC routes is a great plus, but if youre traveling far you’ll likely see jet routes rather than Victor airways. Once youve built a quick plan, you can see headwind/tailwind factors and times at different altitudes. That data also appears in a nav log if you print one, so you can refigure times we’ll if your planned altitude doesnt work out in the real world. Additional slick features include tight integration with departure and approach charts, a Takeoff and Landing Data (TOLD) card, a system to fax the destination FBO directly and a well-organized weather page. Flight plans can also be saved in a format for upload into your G1000 or GNS 430. The site will also do flight tracking and offers some fee-based services such as eAPIS filings.

I am very surprised that the Piper Matrix is selling so well. I suppose glitz, fancy new paint and a glass panel supersede the pragmatic need for a very important element: pressurization. The Malibu is relatively slow below 10,000 feet; the wing with its high aspect ratio being designed to shine in the upper teens and flight levels. Piper should have compelled Lycoming to reconfigure its Matrix engine for LOP operations. In my TCM Malibu, I burn 6 GPH less for comparable speed (205 knots) than a Lycoming Mirage. I strongly suspect that Matrix owners, after a year or two of wistfully watching Malibu/Mirages climb above them into on-top blue skies while they bump along in the clouds sucking on the oxygen tube, may come to rue the day they rejected pressurization. Six thousand hours, including 4000 hours in a pressurized Malibu, have told me that I would rather give up flying than go back to a non-pressurized airplane.

The programs capabilities leave competitors in the dust and you can try its multiple service tiers for free before buying, a big plus.

Flight Sim has graduated from gamer status to serious IFR trainer. Its a bargain at $29.99 but requires a high-end machine to run well

Flight Sim has graduated from gamer status to serious IFR trainer. Its a bargain at $29.99 but requires a high-end machine to run well

The Big Three have closed the performance and feature gap but Destination Direct is still the best deal.

We think AeroLog offers the best value, with Logbook Pro as a close second.

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When we reviewed Comm1s radio communication training program in the March 2000 issue, we had a beef: It included only a few full-route clearance scenarios, in addition to the occasional amended clearance. Now we know why.

Far from being an oversight, the folks at Multimedia Software withheld significant clearance practice from their IFR communications training CD (which lists for $120) because they were planning to market a follow-on product called Clearances on Request.

Like the earlier product, this is a computer-based training aid of the sort thats becoming standard in the flight and even airline training realm. It has up to 10 hours of training on nothing but AT…

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Anyone affluent enough to own an airplane didnt get that way by wasting time, thus the FAAs written licensing exams are supremely galling. Populated by too many dreary, pointless questions that have little connection to real-world flying, the writtens are potholes on the road to actually learning to fly.

The GA training industry has risen to the challenge, producing self-help courses on video, computer and audio tape media sharply focused on little but a passing grade. The latest-and the most impressive-are interactive computer offerings for the instrument rating by Jeppesen and King Schools. The latter has also released a new CD-ROM-based IFR flight training system in pa…

Although the recent demise of IFT-Pro might suggest otherwise, the market for computer-based IFR training and practice software is alive and well. Hardly a week goes by without a reader phoning or e-mailing for recommendations.

And have you looked at the prices of these things lately? Capabilities that used to cost several hundred dollars are now available for around a C-note.

Last time we looked at these programs, our focus was on the sort of instrument practice programs the average pilot would find useful and affordable, which eliminated all of the bona fide PCATDs. Well do the same this time. Obviously, weve kicked out a slew of self-proclaimed flight simulators which are b…