How does Foreflight work?

Unit74

Unit74

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Unit74
I downloaded foreflight to my iPad and was curious what it will really do for me. I messed with making a flight plan a little bit but that's about it.

How does it get inflight weather? Do I have to have a cell service plan? Anyone have a basic once over of how it works and what it will do?

One question I have is if it is considered an EFB or do I have to carry my bag of plates as well.

I'm from the ol school steam gauges and am now just looking at GPS and electronic goodies, so it is all new to me.


Thanks
 
Unit74 said:
I downloaded foreflight to my iPad and was curious what it will really do for me. I messed with making a flight plan a little bit but that's about it.



How does it get inflight weather? Do I have to have a cell service plan? Anyone have a basic once over of how it works and what it will do?



One question I have is if it is considered an EFB or do I have to carry my bag of plates as well.



I'm from the ol school steam gauges and am now just looking at GPS and electronic goodies, so it is all new to me.





Thanks
Click to expand...


Unit - ForeFlight has nice videos on YouTube that can go into the details.

As a former paper carrying pilot, the EFB is the way to go. I prefer to carry a backup device (second iPad in my case). If you buy the Pro version, you will get the plates. And they will be geo-referenced, meaning that with an GPS signal from the iPad or external device, you will see your plane's position on the chart.

As for inflight weather, you will need the Stratus external antennae. It will give you weather information including a delayed radar picture and METARS/TAFS. Also you will receive limited traffic.

Play around with it. If you have questions, I'm sure me or my esteemed colleagues will answer them.

Sent using Tapatalk
 
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Marauder said:
As a former paper carrying pilot, the EFB is the way to go. I prefer to carry a backup device (second iPad in my case). If you buy the Pro version, you will get the plates. And they will be geo-referenced, meaning that with an GPS signal from the iPad or external device, you will see your plane's position on the chart.
Click to expand...
Nitpick (but a possible point of confusion) - you get the plates even in the standard version too, they're just not geo-referenced unless you go with Pro.
 
It works very well.

In addition to the Youtube videos mentioned above, go to the documents section and download the Pilot's Information Manual, aka the documentation.

Between that and the information you can find on the Sporty's iPad newsletter, you can get a very good overview of what it does.

Soon you will see that that having an EFB is the way to go (whether you use FF, WX, GP, or any other)
 
Did we ever get answered definitively, "Does a FF briefing constitute an FAA-approved briefing?"
 
Unit74 said:
How does it get inflight weather? Do I have to have a cell service plan? Anyone have a basic once over of how it works and what it will do?
Click to expand...
No, you don't need a cell service plan. The Stratus box receives the ADS-B weather data. The box is its own wi-fi hotspot. Your iPhone or iPad connects to it just like ground-based wi-fi, only it doesn't connect you to the internet, just the ADS-B data. In fact, you can have any number of iGadgets on board connected to it at once. It also sends GPS data to your device. It's usually within 2 or 3 meter accuracy, as opposed to 10 or so with the iPad's internal GPS antenna.

In my experience the Stratus wi-fi connection works very reliably.

Let'sgoflying! said:
Did we ever get answered definitively, "Does a FF briefing constitute an FAA-approved briefing?"
Click to expand...
Why would it be any different from any other DUATS briefing?
 
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If you have a smartphone you can set it up as a mobile hotspot and then connect (wirelessly) the iPad to the phone and get on-board weather anywhere you have a data connection on your phone.

You need an external GPS receiver to use it as a moving map GPS.
 
Weather is broadcast from towers across the united States. If your plane is sending out an ADS-B signal, those same towers will also feed you information on nearby planes (I think 15NM and +/- 3,000'). To receive that signal with Foreflight you need to buy one of the Stratus devices.

Beware though: there are a few competing apps like Foreflight, and if you decide you prefer Garmin Pilot or Wing-X then they are *not* compatible with the Stratus. You should play with all three applications and then buy the hardware required by your choice.
 
AggieMike88 said:
It works very well.

In addition to the Youtube videos mentioned above, go to the documents section and download the Pilot's Information Manual, aka the documentation.

Between that and the information you can find on the Sporty's iPad newsletter, you can get a very good overview of what it does.

Soon you will see that that having an EFB is the way to go (whether you use FF, WX, GP, or any other)
Click to expand...
yup, reading the manual is a good place to start.
 
Unit74 said:
I downloaded foreflight to my iPad and was curious what it will really do for me. I messed with making a flight plan a little bit but that's about it.

How does it get inflight weather? Do I have to have a cell service plan? Anyone have a basic once over of how it works and what it will do?

One question I have is if it is considered an EFB or do I have to carry my bag of plates as well.

I'm from the ol school steam gauges and am now just looking at GPS and electronic goodies, so it is all new to me.


Thanks
Click to expand...

I have cell service, but you don't need it. I use Stratus. Mine has an internal GPS, but I like Stratus for the additional options it gives me.

I carry paper (just in case) but have never had to use it. I'm somewhat of a chicken.

I love using FF and stratus.
 
Unit74 said:
I downloaded foreflight to my iPad and was curious what it will really do for me.

Thanks
Click to expand...

What it will do for you? It will:

-Give you instant access to anything you want to know about any airport you want to fly to
-Provide CURRENT charts (IFR & VFR) to assist you in planning a route
-Give you CURRENT weather for all those airports
-Help you optimize your flight with current winds aloft data and interpolation for multiple altitudes based on your route of flight
-Perform a full weather briefing and download it to your iPad nicely organized into categories for quick access to METARS, Area Forecasts, NOTAMs, etc.
-File your flight plan for you and provide confirmation it was filed. You can also amend or cancel your flight plan.
-Provide you en route guidance (with either the internal GPS of a cell-capable iPad, or external GPS for wifi only iPad)
-Provide real-time weather and traffic en route when coupled with a Stratus (which is also a WAAS GPS for any iPad.)

Other than that, it doesn't do much at all! :)
 
AggieMike88 said:
It works very well.

In addition to the Youtube videos mentioned above, go to the documents section and download the Pilot's Information Manual, aka the documentation.

Between that and the information you can find on the Sporty's iPad newsletter, you can get a very good overview of what it does.

Soon you will see that that having an EFB is the way to go (whether you use FF, WX, GP, or any other)
Click to expand...

well played, sir!
 
AggieMike88 said:
It works very well.

In addition to the Youtube videos mentioned above, go to the documents section and download the Pilot's Information Manual, aka the documentation.

Between that and the information you can find on the Sporty's iPad newsletter, you can get a very good overview of what it does.

Soon you will see that that having an EFB is the way to go (whether you use FF, WX, GP, or any other)
Click to expand...

I snickered:)
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
Did we ever get answered definitively, "Does a FF briefing constitute an FAA-approved briefing?"
Click to expand...


Yes. When you use DUATS within FF it will track your weather briefing session.


Sent using Tapatalk
 
Clark1961 said:
RTFM? what? If I can't groke it then it was poorly designed and will be a waste of my time!
Click to expand...

I think we just found out your copy of "Stranger in a Strange Land" was a bootleg copy.
 
Some of us use it in lieu of a panel mount GPS for VFR navigation. It works at least as well.
 
Thanks to those who gave me the real answer instead of the go read the book answer. Real wold use is what I was looking for.

Thanks Jonesy
 
Unit74 said:
Thanks to those who gave me the real answer instead of the go read the book answer. Real wold use is what I was looking for.

Thanks Jonesy
Click to expand...

Jonesy....the "real world" answers only explain what people do with the software, not how to use Foreflight. You're still gonna have to read the relevant parts of the manual, or at least watch the videos.
 
AggieMike88 said:
I think we just found out your copy of "Stranger in a Strange Land" was a bootleg copy.
Click to expand...
Ha!

Generally, FF has allowed me to operate IFR in a paperless cockpit... And added a lot of other stuff. I use an iPhone to back it up. FF Pro lets you run 2 copies.

Seriously, RTFM. There's an awful lot of truly useful stuff in the product but it requires some reading and research to fully exploit. I still can't easily use the I
Phone to do much of what I do on the iPad, but i'm practicing.

Mounting the iPad can be extremely helpful.
 
murphey said:
Jonesy....the "real world" answers only explain what people do with the software, not how to use Foreflight. You're still gonna have to read the relevant parts of the manual, or at least watch the videos.
Click to expand...

His question was "what it will do for me"....not "how do I use it". I figured a quick overview of its real- world capabilities would pique his interest. He'll figure out how to use it. We all did....with very few trips to TFM. :yes:
 
Yes. When you use DUATS within FF it will track your weather briefing session.
Click to expand...

Thank you.

You said Yes first.

But then you added the statement about how it is done; did you mean to say that the Yes is conditional upon something?
That is, the briefing is considered adequate by the FAA only if you do something with DUATs.
Or are all briefings acquired through FF adequate?
Clarification much appreciated.
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
Thank you.



You said Yes first.



But then you added the statement about how it is done; did you mean to say that the Yes is conditional upon something?

That is, the briefing is considered adequate by the FAA only if you do something with DUATs.

Or are all briefings acquired through FF adequate?

Clarification much appreciated.
Click to expand...


When you are in ForeFlight you can setup your DUATS access with CSC to obtain an FAA briefing. In ForeFlight, when you set up your flight plan route, you can obtain a briefing for this route that includes your plane's N number. In addition, you can create and file a VFR or IFR flight plan. Give me a couple of minutes and I will show you screen shots.
 
Ok, here you go. Planned flight from KILG to KRIC by IFR. Set up on "MAP" page. Once you got your route set up, hit the "File and Brief" button.

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When you hit this, you will go to the flight plan area. Here you can complete the flight plan and file it with your expected departure time. You can also hit the "Brief" button and down load the weather for route. This is an acceptable FAA briefing. I would however double check TFRs closely.

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A briefing

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Departure weather

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What's the little orange symbol in the lower right corner of those screen shots? I haven't seen that before.
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
Thank you.

You said Yes first.

But then you added the statement about how it is done; did you mean to say that the Yes is conditional upon something?
That is, the briefing is considered adequate by the FAA only if you do something with DUATs.
Or are all briefings acquired through FF adequate?
Clarification much appreciated.
Click to expand...

He said yes and then explained why it was yes.

When a user sets up Foreflight, they enter their DUATS login data. Foreflight then uses that DUATS account to obtain a briefing when the user tells Foreflight to get a briefing under the file & Brief tab. The briefing is a DUATS briefing just like you'd get if you logged onto DUATS yourself so it qualifies as "adequate" by the FAA.

I hope that explains it.
 
Thanks!
I checked mine and it says More>Accounts>Account Logins>Foreflight (which has my email and password) and it also has CSC Duats: Sign In
When I go to Sign In, there is no access code nor a pw so I suspect my briefings are not FAA-legal yet. I must set up the CSC Duats.

So it looks like it is possible to receive "non-FAA-acceptable" briefings like I am from FF.

Unless someone can point out something missed.
Glad to finally get an answer to this.
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
Thanks!

I checked mine and it says More>Accounts>Account Logins>Foreflight (which has my email and password) and it also has CSC Duats: Sign In

When I go to Sign In, there is no access code nor a pw so I suspect my briefings are not FAA-legal yet. I must set up the CSC Duats.



So it looks like it is possible to receive "non-FAA-acceptable" briefings like I am from FF.



Unless someone can point out something missed.

Glad to finally get an answer to this.
Click to expand...


Do you have a CSC DUATS log-in? You can obtain this from the CSC site (http://www.duats.com) and registering. You need a valid medical and your pilot certificate information to register. Once you have this, put this information into ForeFlight.

Once it is entered, the stuff I posted above will get you a legal briefing. I have no clue what your statement "So it looks like it is possible to receive "non-FAA-acceptable" briefings like I am from FF" means.


Sent using Tapatalk
 
After you file an IFR flight plan, FF will also give you an alert when an expected clearance is received from ATC. When it arrives, FF will prompt you and ask if you want to load it into your map page as the route. It must be the same data as that printed on the progress strip in the tower because I have yet to receive a clearance from clearance delivery that differs from the FF alert.
 
asgcpa said:
I have cell service, but you don't need it. I use Stratus. Mine has an internal GPS, but I like Stratus for the additional options it gives me.

I carry paper (just in case) but have never had to use it. I'm somewhat of a chicken.

I love using FF and stratus.
Click to expand...


You must wear a belt AND suspenders too. What a dork. You must be a CPA. :D: :wink:

(I carry paper too.)
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
Thanks!
I checked mine and it says More>Accounts>Account Logins>Foreflight (which has my email and password) and it also has CSC Duats: Sign In
When I go to Sign In, there is no access code nor a pw so I suspect my briefings are not FAA-legal yet. I must set up the CSC Duats.

So it looks like it is possible to receive "non-FAA-acceptable" briefings like I am from FF.

Unless someone can point out something missed.
Glad to finally get an answer to this.
Click to expand...

Since the FAA got rid of the Qualified Internet Communications Provider program, there is really only one question about whether you got an FAA Standard Briefing - evidence that you did if the question comes up. That's the function of adding a CSC DUAT account - to track that you got the briefing.
 
DrMack said:
After you file an IFR flight plan, FF will also give you an alert when an expected clearance is received from ATC. When it arrives, FF will prompt you and ask if you want to load it into your map page as the route. It must be the same data as that printed on the progress strip in the tower because I have yet to receive a clearance from clearance delivery that differs from the FF alert.
Click to expand...

Me too.
 
midlifeflyer said:
Me too.
Click to expand...
Then I'll be the dissenting voice. ;) Typically, when flying from the Flint area back to home base (VLL) at night, I'll file and receive RV PISTN as the expected route. But as often as not, when I call up, I'll get RV direct or even just direct.
 
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