Will paper charts dissaper as EFB's take over?

Profile climb

Profile climb

Filing Flight Plan
Joined
Apr 9, 2017
Messages
6
Display Name
Display name:
Profile climb
I love EFB's and I think that paper is so out dated and much slower and more awkward to get information from and it's not good to have you're head down in the cockpit too long.
 
I don't think they will disappear entirely but if they do it will still take a while. The process is already happening.
 
They disappeared from my life a few years ago. I think we have an old one around, use mainly to block the sun in the windshield still.
 
For practical purposes, they have disappeared for me. I can't get them at the local FBO anymore, I have to buy them on-line. The ForeFlight subscription is less expensive over all and works well. And it also works well on commercial planes.
 
Every flight school at my airport still sells them. I always keep one in the plane.
 
don't miss lugging around 30lbs of iaps.
I think I heard the forest issue a sigh of relief, too
 
Horses and sailboats are outdated too, but that doesn't mean they have gone away. People were predicting that desktop computers were going away too, but that hasn't happened either. There's a difference between no longer being dominant and disappearing.
 
Last edited:
I haven't used paper in years, and don't miss it a bit.
 
Having to look further afield to find something to start the woodstove each winter.
 
Don't think I'll ever get rid of paper as a backup. Paper charts can't crash on you, nor do they run out of battery life.
 
Haven't used paper since getting my IFR ticket.

It's a small chance that the Perspective / G1000, iPad, and iPhone all fail at the same time.
 
ATC_av8er said:
Don't think I'll ever get rid of paper as a backup. Paper charts can't crash on you, nor do they run out of battery life.
Click to expand...
Even that is likely on its way out. Unless you're a one-sectional VFR guy, you can pay for a backup device in 10-15 cycles worth of paper, much less if you travel farther. And if you have a smartphone, you already have a backup device. Battery life is a non-issue with even a bit of planning.
 
So, how long have these threads been going on? The prediction has been made by people in no position to make it since I've been flying. Six years so far, but I can still pick up a sectional at every FBO.

I wouldn't hold my breath if I were you.
 
With my EFB devices, I have trouble seeing the display in the cockpit on a sunny day.
 
455 Bravo Uniform said:
I like paper for big-picture planning and dreaming.
Click to expand...
That. While I like my EFB and use it a lot, sometimes I just prefer to plan my route with a map. Just like a road Atlas - ya Google Maps will get you there - eventually- but not always the best route or shortest distance.
 
Larry in TN said:
But we're making up for it in ACARS paper!

Soon the requirement at the start of a flight will be "iPad change >67% and at least two spare rolls of ACARS paper."
Click to expand...
LOL And I have been told that printer paper isn't exactly cheap.
 
Eh I don't think it'll disappear completely any time soon. Paper use will just asymptotically decline. It'll probably get to the point at which few FBOs will stock them, and you're stuck ordering online. I'm not sure why they would ever go away completely; the hard work of creating the chart still needs to be done, and printing even small runs is easy. I bet there will always be a (small) market.
 
There are guys still out there with no radio. So expecting them to get a "new fangled" iPad or Samsung tablet is probably too much to expect. The higher up the food chain you get in aviation the more sophisticated the panel and off-panel tools are desired and appreciated.
 
ATC_av8er said:
Don't think I'll ever get rid of paper as a backup. Paper charts can't crash on you, nor do they run out of battery life.
Click to expand...

Between the iPad and iPhone, I have two devices that display the charts. Of course, both could fail on the same flight, but it ain't likely.
 
The question I always had was how many people that refuse to fly with an EFB (perfectly fine as it's your choice). How many have backup paper? They can rip, coffee spills, lost, etc... When I was in flight school my CFI was wholeheartedly against Ipad/Foreflight. I learned with paper charts. They are large and a pain in the ass trying to fold them over. Flying with a G1000, and Ipad, and an Iphone (like someone else posted). I have very little chance of losing charts. If I go with a single paper chart I have no back-up. Is it likely I'd spill coffee on it? No, not really but my point is I go up there well prepared and I think a single piece of paper in itself should have a backup.
 
Paper is getting ready to make a comeback. It's more flexible than EFBs and I predict it'll replace them in 2-3 years.
 
I only fly VFR and I don't have a tablet. All the planes I fly have moving map GPS and I have been primarily flying G1000 planes lately. I always carry paper charts as a backup but I never end up touching them during the flight. My Android phone has a 5.5" screen and I suppose I could subscribe to Garmin Pilot or something, but I'm too cheap.
 
"They'll pry my Jepps from my cold dead hands".....:D

Kidding aside.. I have been a paper Luddite for a while and have been making the transition to the new fangled iPad/computer stuff. AMOF, did my first IFR flight using just the iPad and the Garmin 430W... and it worked pretty well for me.

But, I did have the paper chart and the approaches printed from AirNav in the flight bag along with Forflight on my iPone just in-case.
 
Interesting discussions about EFB vs. Paper charts etc. My instructor is of the opinion that I should "know how to do it all manually without hesitation, but also know how to use the modern technology since that is what you will use going forward". So, in my case I planned my last two XCs using AOPA's online flight planner, filed online using that, printed the navlog from that. And ALSO plotted on a paper chart, and created and calculated (with instructor there, no cheating) the paper navlog, paper W&B, and called FSS for a weather briefing (even though I had the online briefing and printed it).

Frankly, being in IT as a profession - but also being 48 years old, I see both sides and WANT to be proficient in both. I think the analogy to paper maps in a car, vs. my phone with google maps or a Garmin GPS is a great comparison. I grew up reading maps, planning trips, etc with paper. I still prefer to do the "overall plan" view on paper. But, I use my phone/gps far more and really never pull out the paper when on a trip.

The difference/issue is - I feel - in that planning/overview stage. When I go on vacation and get in the rental car, and just slap "hotel xyz" in my google phone gps, and it takes me there, I'm really relying on that tech to work right. AND make a lot of decisions for me. As opposed to say, deciding to drive 2hours to some attraction the next day, where I will almost always view a paper map or online equivalent ahead of time, and plan a route. Then let google and gps help me there (or more likely just track me as we go).

I personally view flying the same way. I LIKE my paper map for planning purposes. I like the level of detail it offers for VFR flights as well. The GPS/EFB is great for confirming I'm on course, and great for other things (calculations) too. But I still like having that paper around. Guess it's just the almost-old-fart in me. (Or I'm just a student still and will out grow it).
 
GPS has taken the fun of pilotage and ded reckoning aspects out of flying...yes, it has also relieved me of sphincter muscle strain when wondering if that next landmark will be there like it should. But low risk = low reward.
 
jbrinker said:
I LIKE my paper map for planning purposes.
Click to expand...

Check out www.skyvector.com if you havn't already (free). The sectionals are exactly the same and realtime current (you can view weather/sigmets/airmets graphically overlaid on the sectionals). You can carry Avare in the plane on a cell phone if you want to both track yourself (don't have a glass panel) and view your flight plan, also free.
 
jbrinker said:
The difference/issue is - I feel - in that planning/overview stage. When I go on vacation and get in the rental car, and just slap "hotel xyz" in my google phone gps, and it takes me there, I'm really relying on that tech to work right. AND make a lot of decisions for me. As opposed to say, deciding to drive 2hours to some attraction the next day, where I will almost always view a paper map or online equivalent ahead of time, and plan a route. Then let google and gps help me there (or more likely just track me as we go).
Click to expand...

Funny you bring up the car GPS discussion.. I have purchased the Garmin Drive Assist... and will not go back to the old Thomas Guides... I dive a lot in Los Angeles/Southern CA and the Bay Area... having traffic alerts and rerouting is huge time saver for me... well worth the price of admission. I can just punch in the place I want to go and go... and I am hands free as well...
 
I actually purchased iFlyGPS for my android tablet, and have become pretty proficient in using it. I also tried the 30 day free trial of Garmin. I've seen foreflight and whatever my instructor has (something else) as well. They all seem to have their plusses and minuses. And skyvector - yes, I really like that for planning as well. Clearly this is the way of the future, but as a low time pilot/student just getting familiar with solo navigation, I like having all the options.

Also, like I said- the detail on the traditional paper maps is very good. I find that most of the EFB apps don't have the same detail of terrain objects/railways/roads/tiny lakes, etc. (Keep in mind I have not used them all, nor that much). iFly actually uses the actual VFR charts, but the downside is you can't turn layers on and off like some of the others.
 
Paper charts are limited by their very nature. Being able to turn layers on and off, having notes from the margins appear at a touch, data on a TFR, Sigmet, the ability to zoom in to read better... All of these features (and more) just make digital charts better than paper, without argument. That doesn't mean that you can't use paper. It's every pilot's personal choice. don't think it's a good choice, but that's me.

Will paper charts disappear? Production-wise, yes. It's already becoming harder to find FBOs that carrying any charts beyond their own region, and maybe a few neighbors. They probably will not disappear in our lifetimes, but eventually they will. Same as vinyl records and cassette tapes. It will just take a few generations.

What I want to see is for the current digital charts to let-go of their paper origins, and embrace a more three-dimensional approach. Vector-based charts are nice, but they are still two-dimensional.

We are simply not applying technology correctly in GA. We could do so much more, and make it so much safer. But, we have the FAA.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top