Question : How do you prepare your VFR flights ?

[MickYoumans]

I do not fly IFR. Leave that to southwest.

Apparently they don't either!

 

[Jimmy cooper]

Ahhhhh, but look at their accident record.

 

[ethank]

I'm flying out of Southern California (KVNY) so as of right now, the NOAA reports have confirmed: we have no weather.

That being said I usually watch the METAR's and TAF's the day before the flight, and the trending of the wind movements through the previous day, just to get a sense of what direction I'll be taking off in and if any airports in the area are doing unusual patterns (i.e., ocean approaches at LAX mean the mini route might be off limits).

If it's a cross country I call the briefer. If it's not, and I'm just touring the basin, I'll use DUATS, aviationweather.gov

Before a flight I usually make a cheat sheet for the knee board. Mini route parameters, any tower freqs, etc. I put the plan for the flight in Garmin Pilot for during the flight, and charge the ADS-B receiver as well.

I'll most often call the flight school to check on squawks for the airplane I rented the night before.

 

[redtail]

The briefer is much more proficient at sifting through the encoded data,especially the NOTAMs, than I am and will likely inform me of something I may have missed. If I brief through through DUAT(S) and miss something and get violated, it's 100% on me. If I call and get a briefing and they miss something that gets me violated, I have some mitigation.

..and since I have a 30-40min drive to the airport, depending on traffic, I might as well get a briefing before I put on the Jazz. There's just something about hearing "no TFRs along your route of flight" that I find refreshing.

Yes I like the new TFR feature of WingX and I use that as a quick reference.

I fly out of the NYC area

 

[FastEddieB]

I won't even go up for staying in the pattern without checking TFR/Notams.

This is my habit as well.

1) It will tell me if Al Qaeda has launched an attack on Washington (let's say) and the National Airspace has been shut downin the short while since I last checked for TFR's.

...or...

2) Air Force 1 has diverted at the last minute to a local airport.

Paranoid? Maybe a little. But it takes maybe one minute to call FSS, and if even once in a flying career it saves a major hassle, it will have been worth it.

YMMV, of course.

 

[FastEddieB]

Yes I like the new TFR feature of WingX and I use that as a quick reference.

I wish there was a graphical interface for TFR's.

Or is there?

 

[dell30rb]

I wish there was a graphical interface for TFR's.

Or is there?

Both fore flight and garmin pilot have one


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[redtail]

I wish there was a graphical interface for TFR's.

Or is there?

You mean like this one during the VP's visit to the UN a few months ago.

 

[FastEddieB]

Do TFR's show up like that right on the chart?

Sorry if I just missed them.

I do see at least the DC and Disney ones depicted right now.

 

[nddons]

An instructor I flew with one time for an add-on rating told me that i should call a briefer every time i go up, even for pattern work. His reason was that if there's ever an accident, the report always mentions whether the pilot got a briefing. I'm not sure that's even true, but it sure seems like a pessimistic way to run your life...

My examiner suggested that on my IR check ride. Not a bad idea, though I don't do it religiously.

 

[redtail]

Do TFR's show up like that right on the chart?

Yeah, as far as I can tell.
This one showed up for the UN General Assembly and disappeared from the chart after it expired. There's an active TFR (VIP) over Wilmington, DE right now. It's showing on my WingX screen.

Also, if you tap the screen on the TFR, you'll get detailed info including active and expiration times.

 

[Marauder]

Yeah, as far as I can tell.
This one showed up for the UN General Assembly and disappeared from the chart after it expired. There's an active TFR (VIP) over Wilmington, DE right now. It's showing on my WingX screen.

Technically, the only active one at Wilmington is the one over Joe Biden's house (in red). The future TFR in yellow is active from 7:45 to 9:00 AM local time. And it will go away at 9:01 am unless it is changed.

 

[redtail]

Technically, the only active one at Wilmington is the one over Joe Biden's house (in red). The future TFR in yellow is active from 7:45 to 9:00 AM local time.

You're right, I stand corrected. WingX shows them both in red. I had to tap it to get the details.

Another reason I put my faith in only a FSS Briefer for the gospel
800-WX-BRIEF

 

[Marauder]

You're right, I stand corrected. WingX shows them both in red. I had to tap it to get the details.

Another reason I put my faith in only a FSS Briefer for the gospel
800-WX-BRIEF

Although WingX has some really nice features, these were the features I didn't like. The cool thing about these apps are the ones connected to an ADS-B antenna -- you get the updates in flight.

 

[txflyer]

VFR local I check the weather, TFRs, airmets, notams, etc. on .gov on the PC at home and then go fly.

If I'm x-country, I plan a little harder ahead. I look at dewpoint spreads, METARS, TAFs, wind forecasts, MOAs, and mid-way airports for example. I usually pick up flight following on anything over an hour.

I let the ADS-B graphics on the avionics and smartphone take care of the rest.

 

[noobJohn]

What do you say to get off the phone with FSS in 1 minute?

I tend to use them for the CYA aspect that Henning brought up but I always feel like I'm on the phone forever. Maybe because I'm ready to go fly.

If I ask for less than a "standard briefing" I may be losing some of the CYA advantage.

This is my habit as well.

1) It will tell me if Al Qaeda has launched an attack on Washington (let's say) and the National Airspace has been shut downin the short while since I last checked for TFR's.

...or...

2) Air Force 1 has diverted at the last minute to a local airport.

Paranoid? Maybe a little. But it takes maybe one minute to call FSS, and if even once in a flying career it saves a major hassle, it will have been worth it.

YMMV, of course.

 

[warthog1984]

What do you say to get off the phone with FSS in 1 minute?

"Skyhawk 12345, requests standard briefing for flight from Camarillo (CMA) to Fresno (FAT) at 8500ft, estimated time of departure 1200 local / 1900Z, ETE 2 hours".

I think my longest was 7 minutes, and I did it while Pax were in the bathroom. Otherwise, I get the briefing over my in-car Bluetooth while driving to the airport.

 

[kenjr]

www.weathermeister.com

 

[noobJohn]

I'll give that a shot. I tend to spit out the info slowly. Perhaps too slowly, because sometimes the briefer will start prompting me. I'll channel my inner New Yorker next time and see what happens. I think I average about 5 minutes, it just seems longer. The part that always gets me is the weather info because, as a noob, I like to fly when the weather is clear and the winds are light. i.e. no need to even mention the weather.

"Skyhawk 12345, requests standard briefing for flight from Camarillo (CMA) to Fresno (FAT) at 8500ft, estimated time of departure 1200 local / 1900Z, ETE 2 hours".

I think my longest was 7 minutes, and I did it while Pax were in the bathroom. Otherwise, I get the briefing over my in-car Bluetooth while driving to the airport.