Over the course of your flying career you’ll likely experience several technological advances that will change the way you fly. In the early years of aviation, these came in the form of new airframe design and propulsion innovations, such as the transition from tailwheel to tricycle landing gear and turbojet engines. Next came the development of sophisticated avionics, providing pilots with the HSI, loran and RNAV direct-to navigation. The biggest leap in this category took place in the mid-1990s, when GPS was opened up for civilian use, unlocking the modern form of navigation that we all depend on today.
Pilot’s Discretion: Taxi at Large Airports Like a Pro
Key Takeaways:
- The iPad and its aviation apps are considered the most significant technological advance for pilot safety and situational awareness in the last two decades.
- A primary, often overlooked, benefit of these apps is the substantial improvement in ground operations, particularly taxiing, by providing geo-referenced airport diagrams that show real-time aircraft position.
- Modern aviation apps enhance surface situational awareness through features like integrated NOTAMs, digital annotation, auto-display of taxi diagrams, runway verification tools (e.g., extended centerlines), and audible runway alerts to minimize risks like runway incursions.
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