iPad approach

bugsiegel

bugsiegel

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Bugsiegel
If in an emergency you had to rely on your iPad to fly an approach which screen or program would you use?
 
Not legal, but ff with geopositioning on plates (and synthetic vision) is fairly idiot proof
 
bugsiegel said:
If in an emergency you had to rely on your iPad to fly an approach which screen or program would you use?
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If it is an RNAV approach and cannot be retrieved from the database of an IFR RNAV navigator using a geo-referenced iPad chart is dicey at best.
 
I did a practice rnav yesterday using foreflight pro..in vmc. Worked out perfect. If I had to use it in an emergency I have no doubt it would put me where I need to be.
 
Well if it hits the fan you got to do what you got to do.

I'd have use FF with my geo ref plate on one side and the SV with HSI on the other side, keeping a eye on the accuracy indicator.

I'd say the chance of enough failure with onboard equipment that you would be put in this situation, well I'd be buying a lotto ticket after I landed.
 
Or you could request a surveillance approach if there's an approach control servicing that airport.
 
mscard88 said:
Or you could request a surveillance approach if there's an approach control servicing that airport.
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Most approach controls are no longer trained or qualified in ASR approaches. There still are a few.
 
Recent NASA report had an incident where the lost comm pilot called approach on the cell phone to get vectors. I'd do that and make sure I was well out out of options before relying on foreflight.
 
Because of iPads... ;)

Just kidding, I have no idea.
 
mscard88 said:
No kidding? Why is that?
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Training and maintaining proficiency. Also, the cost of an annual flight inspection. And, AeroNav has to do a periodic review of the TERPs areas for the ASR protected area.
 
bugsiegel said:
If in an emergency you had to rely on your iPad to fly an approach which screen or program would you use?
Click to expand...
I would absolutely use my iPad to fly an approach in an emergency. I am taking "emergency" to mean I am in clouds, nothing else works, and heading to somewhere that had visual weather was not a viable option.

I'm not sure exactly what you mean by "which screen or program." The program would be the EFB app I use normally.

In terms of which screen, I guess it depends on the nature of the emergency and the EFB program. Assuming an failure consisting of no navs, no comms, no AI, no DG, and no ASI I'd be using the features that showed me the approach, my position, my altitude, my ground speed, and my attitude.
 
aterpster said:
Training and maintaining proficiency. Also, the cost of an annual flight inspection. And, AeroNav has to do a periodic review of the TERPs areas for the ASR protected area.
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How about that. Really surprises me as that was a nice option for someone in trouble. Especially if they're no gyro.
 
Sporty's 400 here. Just posted about it the other day, flew an ILS with it with an instructor last week with a hand held. Was surprisingly accurate, if a localizer/ILS was an option, that would be my vote.
 
I have fore flight but I don't see a page that's going to give CDI. Are you guys referring to the GPS feature and the little plane over the approach plate?
 
bugsiegel said:
I have fore flight but I don't see a page that's going to give CDI. Are you guys referring to the GPS feature and the little plane over the approach plate?
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The synthetic vision option gives you a glass panel that includes an HSI. it's the reason I ordered it even before I had a Stratus II.

BTW, I wonder how many people know it is available without a Stratus. It works with a regular GPS feed although without a pitch and band display.
 
All of the CFII's that I know have our students fly multiple Ipad only approaches during their training with excellent results. In an emergency the book goes out the window and you do what you have to do. You can talk about legality once you're safe on the ground.
We usually do this on a training flight where we're playing center or approach.
we just stop giving direction or answering simulated radio calls.
After a mew minutes they realize what's going on. That's when we start talking about scenarios and what their options are.
We do not brief this before the flight it's much more effective if you just spring in on them
We also make sure they all have telephone numbers that go directly to our local tower, Approach control, and Center. These are direct numbers that go directly to the supervisors desks. It's just another good bit of information for them to have.
 
I use FF as primary enroute; I have geo referenced plates in FF, but the scaling isn't as good as the panel mount, so FF isn't nearly as precise as the panel mount in locating you on the approach phase.

But yeah, it'd serve plenty well enough in a pinch.
 
bugsiegel said:
If in an emergency you had to rely on your iPad to fly an approach which screen or program would you use?
Click to expand...


Foreflight.

As far as which approach type foes, whichever one is published for no vertical guidance necessary, in the direction of the highest possible bases around.

And I'd declare and get help finding that place, if I didn't already know where that "out" was (and I should already know). If I hadn't already.

Better yet, head for VMC if possible.

It's take a number of mental mistakes and/or a massive unforecast weather change, also a number of instrument failures to get to that point, so yeah... a real emergency.

A last ditch effort with an iPad is better than slowing to mush down through it, keeping the ball centered with rudder and the mag compass on a heading, hoping to break out before I hit something.

Your scenario requires multiple gyro failures both vaccuum and electrical and an absolutely botched weather plan in my aircraft. The number of mistakes and problems needed to reach that point is non-trivial.

Whatever works at that point.
 
Another option if you're by a large body of water with a known elevation, is to descend over the water to a safe margin and see if you can break out.
 
I'd go for the ForeFlight app. I've tried it at my home field and it worked quite well. Plus there is nothing to hit on the way down at that field. So if the accuracy goes to crap I won't run into anything.

I've also tested the default map app and level on my phone if it really hits the fan. Like the others said, "screw the rules I'm trying to stay alive".
 
ARFlyer said:
I'd go for the ForeFlight app. I've tried it at my home field and it worked quite well. Plus there is nothing to hit on the way down at that field. So if the accuracy goes to crap I won't run into anything.

I've also tested the default map app and level on my phone if it really hits the fan. Like the others said, "screw the rules I'm trying to stay alive".
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No need to "screw the rules." The "rules" themselves say you can do what you need to stay alive. No civil disobedience required.
 
FF for sure. Syn Vis and HSI. Does FF give you a "glideslope" indicator on that page? Possibly if you have the plate displayed on the map? I've never looked. Even if it doesn't, I can 'see' the runway and aim for it.

If the scenario is that everything else, including altimeter, is TU then I'll just fly synthetic visual approach using SV down to the runway.
 
The scenario we practice is a simulated total electrical failure. You still have your instruments. Just no way to communicate or navigate. It makes them think. If they happen to have a Stratus we let them use that for weather and have them divert accordingly. But some times even with that the weather changes en-route. They hate it when we do that.
 
petrolero said:
FF for sure. Syn Vis and HSI. Does FF give you a "glideslope" indicator on that page? Possibly if you have the plate displayed on the map? I've never looked. Even if it doesn't, I can 'see' the runway and aim for it.

If the scenario is that everything else, including altimeter, is TU then I'll just fly synthetic visual approach using SV down to the runway.
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I'm "fairly certain" that it does not give you a glideslope, but I could be wrong. I use an app(forget the name) to stream information to my ipad via my wireless network so I can use FSX and foreflight together and I do not recall a glideslope. SV might change that, I don't have SV.

For those of you saying it's dicey using the ipad and FF, would your opinion change if the aircraft was Stratus equipped? It's a WAAS capable GPS receiver...
 
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