Make Your Planning Count

There are as many reasons to learn to fly as there are people who have dreamed of it. Sometimes the motivation is family lore about a brave old relative who was a pilot in aviation's early days. For some, the fascination began with a childhood vacation begun on a giant airliner or a visit to an airshow. Some have loved aviation for so long that they can't remember when the excitement started.

One thing is certain: Few people begin taking flying lessons because they want to master slow flight or ground reference maneuvers. More often, prospective pilots want the freedom that comes from flying to places that are normally out of their reach. That's where the later stages of flight training-cross-country flying-come into play.

As the name implies, a cross-country flight can be anything from an epic journey between the Golden Gate Bridge and the Statue of Liberty to a 50-mile hop up the coast for lunch.

Cross-Country Requirements

For the purposes of satisfying FAA requirements to earn a pilot certificate or rating, the term cross-country applies to flights of at least 50 nautical miles from one airport to another. You cannot fly 120 miles, turn around, and return to the same airport you took off from and log that as a cross-country flight if you didn't land somewhere else in between. That en-route landing can't be made at an airport that is within 50 nm straight-line distance of your airport of departure. This is a common mistake, so be careful not to log as cross-country time any flight where your initial landing is within 50 nm of the airport you started at. If you do, you may apply for an advanced rating or certificate (instrument rating, commercial certificate, etc.) only to find that you don't really have the necessary cross-country experience despite the totals in your logbook.

If you fly to and land-a touch and go is considered a landing for logging cross-country flight experience-at an airport 50 nm or more from your departure point, you may then land at any airport that is within 50 nm of your airport of origin and count the entire flight as a cross-country. For example, if you take off and land at an airport 54 miles away, then depart and perform a touch and go at an airport that is 17 miles from home (and 37 miles from the airport you just left), the whole trip is loggable as cross-country experience. It's the first landing that really counts.

Now that we know what a cross-country flight is, we can take a look at the techniques, skills, and equipment used in the planning and flying.

Cross-Country Planning Tools

With the advent of new technology and its value in enhancing aviation safety, it is only a matter if time before all the magic whistles and bells used in large aircraft find their way into general aviation. Today, most pilots can take advantage of moving maps, electronic flight computers, loran, RNAV, and GPS technology to help them plan and navigate their cross-country flights.

At home, pilots can choose from various flight planning software that requires little more than the names or identifiers of the airports of intended landing in order to plan a route of flight.

Now, I am a believer in technology and know that aviation is ultimately safer because of scientific advances. However, putting blind faith into electronic navigation and flight planning devices and software-particularly if you do so because you do not have a firm understanding of the basic concepts and skills of navigation-is a very good way to find yourself confused, unsafe, and irredeemably lost. I am not advocating navigating solely by reference to celestial constellations-although that is still a valuable and attainable skill for any pilot. Still, you should have a firm knowledge of pilotage (navigation by landmarks), dead reckoning (navigation by plotting a course on a chart), and electronic means (navigation by radio and satellite technology). Except for flight in pure instrument meteorological conditions, almost all cross-country flights are flown and navigated using these three methods in concert.

Planning The Flight

Once you have decided which airports you would like to include in your cross-country planning, begin by calling a flight service station (FSS) at 800/ WX-BRIEF to obtain a standard weather briefing for that route of flight. Direct User Access Terminal Service (DUATS) also allows you to get a complete briefing using your computer. But it's still a good idea to speak to an FSS briefer who can clarify and explain what the weather data means. Remember to get the winds aloft, which are reported starting at 3,000 feet msl and going up in 3,000-foot increments. You will need to interpolate between the reported values to determine the wind at your planned altitude. Also, keep in mind that winds aloft are reported in true, not magnetic, directions. The closer to the actual time of the flight you get your briefing the better, as weather and other variables can change quickly.

Next, choose the most direct course possible. A straight line is still the shortest distance between two points-we won't go into great circles for now-and if terrain and airspace are free of obstacles, simply use a plotter (or any straight edge) to draw a bold line between your takeoff point and your destination. If there is an area of prohibited airspace, a 10,000-foot mountain, a raging forest fire, a Blue Angels airshow, a towering thunder cell, a busy Class B airport, or any other type of hindrance that would make this direct route unwise, simply use an intermediate landmark to dogleg around the problem, and continue with your planning. Consulting sectional and terminal charts will answer your questions about terrain and airspace, and that call to the flight service station can answer your questions about fires, airshows, and other temporary considerations. (Notices to airmen, or notams, are part of a standard weather briefing.)

Once you have drawn your true course line and noted it under TC in your flight planning log, convert it to magnetic course by adding or subtracting the magnetic variation (VAR in the flight planning log) along your route of flight on the chart by using the dashed purple isogonic lines. (Magnetic variation is the angular difference between true and magnetic north, by the way.) Subtract from your true course for eastern variation and add for western variation to obtain your magnetic course. (A good way to remember this is with the saying, "East is least and West is best.") Be sure to note this number in the MC (magnetic course) column of your flight planning log. Magnetic course is one of the most important concepts in aviation. Your navigation, hemispheric rule altitude, VOR orientation, runway headings, and traffic warnings from air traffic control are all based on your course-the path you are flying over the ground-not your heading, or the direction in which the nose of the aircraft is pointed. Further, you must use magnetic course, which accounts for local variations, rather than true course, which does not.

Now, choose an en-route altitude based on the hemispheric rule. For VFR flights that means that any time you fly at 3,000 feet above ground level (agl) or higher, you must choose an odd altitude plus 500 feet (3,500 feet, 5,500 feet, etc.) if your magnetic course is from 0 degrees through 179 degrees. Choose an even altitude plus 500 feet (4,500 feet, 6,500 feet, etc.) if your magnetic course is 180 degrees through 359 degrees. To help you remember this, use the phrase "East is odd."

Although it is possible to fly a cross-country below 3,000 feet agl and legally avoid worrying about the hemispheric rule, it is still a good idea to adhere to the scheme. When wind, weather, airspace, and other conditions make it practical, it's a good idea to fly at a higher altitude because it will improve the useful range of your communication and navigation radios, allow your engine to run leaner and use less fuel, improve radar coverage, give yourself more time to troubleshoot and pick a safe forced landing site in case of an engine failure, and have a better view of terrain and landmarks below. Keeping this in mind, note your planned cruising altitude in the ALT (altitude) column of your flight log.

Next go to your aircraft's pilot's operating handbook (POH) and, from the cruise performance charts, choose a true airspeed (TAS) by interpolating by altitude and rpm. (Your fuel burn in cruise also is available here, so note that figure under GPH, or gallons per hour, in your flight log.) Because sectional charts use nautical miles rather than statute miles like other maps, you must make sure your aircraft speeds are in knots. If they are in miles per hour, use the knots to miles per hour conversion table on your flight computer. If you don't, all of your speed and distance calculations will be about 15 percent off.

Now use the flight computer to obtain the wind correction angle, which will, in turn, give you your magnetic heading (MH) and your ground speed (GS). Again, heading is the direction in which the nose of the aircraft is pointed, and course is the path you take over the ground. In a no-wind situation, which is very rare, both heading and course are the same. Since the wind is so influential in the way an aircraft flies, we always need to know our wind correction angle or we will be off-course and/or moving much more slowly (or faster) than we believe we are. Interestingly, if we are on the agonic line (a single line that links points on the earth with no magnetic variation) and there is no wind, true course, magnetic course, true heading, and magnetic heading are all the same. Once you have your wind correction angle, ground speed, and magnetic heading, note them in the flight log.

At this point, go back to your chart and divide your flight into checkpoints roughly 20 miles apart. (In the CP column you can note the actual time over the checkpoint to get updates on ground speed en route.) These checkpoints will help you to keep on course and confirm your location. It is important to choose prominent landmarks that can be easily identified from the air. Small lakes, hills, powerlines, and water towers may be difficult to find and positively identify from several thousand feet. Try to choose landmarks on the left side and not too far laterally from your course.

Note the landmarks you select by name (Bay Bridge, Spring Lake, etc...) along the left vertical column of your flight log. Add up the distances between landmarks and that will give you the total distance of the flight. In the column marked DIS, note the total distance of the flight on the left side of the diagonal line and on the right side write the distance between your departure point and your first checkpoint. Next, subtract the distance to the first checkpoint from the total distance and write that number in the left-hand side of the second checkpoint column. On the right side, write the distance between the first checkpoint and the second, and so on. At the last column, where the destination airport is written, the number should be zero.

With most of the planning done, it's time to go back to the POH performance charts and get the last details involving rate of climb, time to climb, and total fuel needed. The information from the POH will help you decide when to make fuel stops and give you your estimated time en route (ETE). Make sure you give yourself a "fuel cushion," not only to satisfy the regulations but also to keep yourself safe. (The federal aviation regulations re-quire that you arrive at your destination with 30 minutes of fuel for daytime VFR flights and 45 minutes of fuel for nighttime VFR flights. This is a bare minimum.)

Plan to have at least a one-hour fuel reserve when you reach your destination. Round up on your fuel burn estimates and take advantage of fueling opportunities along the way. An easy trick to employ with most light aircraft is to make your fuel burn 10 gph, even if it is only seven or eight gph. That way, the math is easier and, more importantly, you will have a little extra fuel in case your estimates are slightly off or an unforecast headwind comes your way.

Among your last planning obligations is to obtain all the needed information and frequencies for the airports you will visit as well as several more along the way, in case you need to make an unscheduled landing because a plane landed gear-up at your destination. The flight log I use has vertical columns along the bottom that allow you to enter information about several airports and VORs as well as draw the runway and pattern configurations. It's a good idea to draw the runway layout with an arrow showing the direction from which you will be approaching the airport. In addition, there is space to log your times and remarks, such as "begin descent," "get ATIS," "open flight plan," etc....And, as always, a weight-and-balance computation is a must.

Finally, make sure to file, open, and close a flight plan with FSS and use radar flight following. Cross-country flying is the practical side to the adventure of flying to new and exciting destinations. Plan carefully and keep track of your progress so you can enjoy the view along the way.

Cross-Country Flight Planning

1. Get a standard weather briefing. (800/WX-BRIEF on the ground, 122.2 MHz in the air.)
2. Draw a line on the chart from departure point to destination.
3. Use the plotter to find true course (TC).
4. Find magnetic variation (VAR) on the chart.
5. Figure magnetic course (MC). (MC = TC +/- VAR)
6. Choose cruising altitude based on the hemispheric rule. (MC 180? through 359? = even thousands + 500 feet; MC 360? through 179? = odd thousands + 500 feet)
7. Interpolate true airspeed (TAS) from the POH using altitude and rpm. Note fuel burn in gph.
8. If your airplane uses miles per hour, convert to knots.
9. Figure your wind correction angle (WCA), magnetic heading (MH), and ground speed (GS) on your flight computer. (MH = MC +/- WCA). Note these in your flight log.
10. Choose checkpoints and determine total distance and leg distances. Note them in the flight log.
11. Use performance charts to determine time, distance, and fuel to climb. (Read all chart notes regarding temperature and elevation before working problems.)
12. Use a flight computer and performance charts to determine ground speed and duration of cruise portion of flight.
13. Calculate estimated time en route (ETE). (ETE = time of climb + time of cruise.) Note in flight log.
14. Figure fuel consumption using performance charts and flight computer. Allow fuel for start up, taxi, runup, and climb.
15. Get information on airports of intended landing, along with alternates, and those en route. Include runway lengths and layouts, traffic pattern altitudes, pattern directions, and pattern entries.
16. File a flight plan with FSS. (Be sure to open it before you take off and close it when you land.)