Your Foreflight flight prep sequence

Let'sgoflying!

Let'sgoflying!

Touchdown! Greaser!
Joined
Feb 23, 2005
Messages
20,771
Location
west Texas
Display Name
Display name:
Dave Taylor
Every now and then I get a little anal and this is probably one of those times. I was thinking about all the steps I take to prepare FF for a trip, in fact I wrote each step down during my last flight.
Maybe I am unaware of shortcuts because it seems lengthy to me.
Tell me how your procedure is more simplified.

MIne:

I usually open the app, then More/Downloads/wait for a while and see if the download button lights up to indicate downloads are waiting (and take any that appear). I click on "USA" to see if the states I want are checkmarked, and the chart types are correct.
Then File & Brief, enter my plan info - the Copy function is nice; alter as needed, then
Brief; assuming it is within an hour of departure. Pretend to read the 4 hours and 300 pages of text and charting provided.
Then I send the plan to Map, and click the three dash-dots icon to check the ETE, then go back and put that into the flight plan. File, if needed, or can do later. The 'flight notifications' are sometimes helpful.. (or overwhelming!) and the expected route with option to insert into plan is nice.
Back to maps, same 3 dash-dots icon and now we have to "pack". (Weather, fuel prices, notams).
Close that and I usually chose a map, review the route with Flight Cat or Ceilings/Vis or Sat or Winds aloft on, then I like to run the flight with radar, lightning and tfrs on.
Now to Plates to select the departure and destination plates and put them into a Binder which I name.
Airports next; I delete all unrelated airports (mine has trouble if I get more than 10 in the left hand column) and put in order, from departure to destination all the ones I want weather on. I do all this while on wifi as I don't have a data plan and it is more reliable than the Stratus to ensure I get all the data. I review all those, then clear a new scratchpad and shut all the apps down to conserve battery and get a 'fresh' opening of the FF app (occasionally if FF is open for hours, it will lock up so this avoids that)
What did I miss? How to streamline it?
 
Uuummmm, for a VFR flight I usually I power up the tablet and look to see if the airports are green or red. Then the radar overlay. Then a quick check with the nice lady on the weather channel as a back up. OK, so far so good. I do a quick TFR/NOTAM check to stay clear of scumbag politicians out grubbing for money, glance at the estimated the time enroute. Then I go to the airport, gas up the old hulk for the trip, and go fly. The FF is mostly to keep me from blundering into controlled airspace and in case I can't seem to see the airport when I get there.
I'm pretty nonchalant about the whole thing. And yes I do go more than 50 miles from home. FF is used mostly as the replacement for a paper chart.
 
Usually start with map (with radar and TFR's on). Put in the planned trip at the top. Pack, then Brief and File. Ready to go. I do usually check a different radar map for good measure. Is several steps, but can usually get through it in 10 min or less. I've usually (for big trips) been watching the weather for a few days already though. It seems that if you watch weather more than about 2 or 3 days before the trip, it causes useless stress sometimes.
 
I load the route, send it to brief/file get latest data look through imagery for wx etc.

I'll get an official briefing off lockmart site, then use ff to file etc.
 
I'm fortunate enough to have a 128G iPad so I just downloaded everything for every state and airport. I did folders for the plates and populated every plate for every airport I may frequent, but I tend to just look them up from the airport when in the air. (seems faster)
I also make sure my plane is set up properly and select the altitude on route because it populates the wind based on the weather during the flight.
I'm still at that stage where I go through every single page of the flight brief,but I do focus on the departure airport portion of the flight brief for NOTAMs and military type stuff (MOA's etc.)
You might also want to check out Aerovie for pre-flight weather reporting. The vertical weather profile is insanely helpful for planning.
 
Seems like FF is very powerful, but there are some usability problems which cause people to bypass these neat features, and resort to only the more simple components.
IOW, if it was easier, more could be yielded.
I will post some potential wish list items soon. Let me know if you think they are worthy as suggestions for the company. I can think of some really uncomplicated ways this could be streamlined for pilots.
 
VFR, I turn it on. IFR, I load the clearance. Don't use it for flight planning, weather, etc. I've gone back to human/phone for weather, NOTAMS, filing, etc. Quicker, less hassle, fewer keystrokes.
 
I'm a mix of you and Dr. O. Main difference is I start on the map page and lay out a course, mostly because I'm still flying a lot of /U or /A stuff and I like using the VORs as backup, so have to pin down the route first. Then instead of sending from file and brief to the map, I go the other direction.

If I'm doing it away from the airplane I'll save the route as a "favorite" or make sure it's in file and brief so I can pop it back into the map easily later. Same works for unexpected crashes that wipe the route. Not hard to fix in flight, but one click to put it all back is easier than that, even.

I don't get the comment about voice being "faster" for filing or briefings though. I can have all of that done in five minutes on the iPad especially filing. That's a single button click.

Oh and hit "pack" at the end when route is happy.
 
Friday at lunch: open app, go up to top right hand box, type in KBFL CCR O69 8500ft 3:45p 105kts Look at winds aloft to see how bad Mother Nature wants to treat me.

2:45: reopen foreflight. Look for red circles of doom, both TFR's and flight conditions. Verify weather. Drive to preschool, pick up kid.

3:20: preflight airplane, a little more in depth than 6PC, take kid in to pee, triple confirm WX.

3:40: wait for wife to leave work. Drink two bottles of water left on the red carpet before they get warm, try not to die of heat exposure, accidentally leave iPad on the dash, remedy by putting in FBO fridge for a few minutes.

4:08: wife calls, at FBO gate, can't find line guys so I grab the kid, hop on the tug and open gate for her.

4:23: wife and kid have reached the bathroom. Clear prop. Oh crap, the iPad is still in the fridge.

4:28: clear prop, decided to pee because of the two bottles of water. Open FF, follow magenta line.

Pretty much every Friday this time of year.
 
If it's IFR, enter the origin and destination on the map and lookup preferred/recent routes, otherwise build my own. Set ETD. Use the wind advisor to help select cruise altitude. Send to File & Brief, and then run the briefing. The new briefing format is great, particularly the ability to see the relevant times on TAFs along route of flight with estimated station passage time. Check departure/destination NOTAMS, weather and TFRs. File, fly.

If weather is marginal, I usually end up in the skew-t charts on rucsoundings.noaa.gov for bases, tops and temps.

Can't imagine doing that and then going somewhere else for a brief, FF does everything I need from a briefing standpoint.
 
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