One of the things the FAA has done right in recent years involves charting. First, instead of standing by while the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration office responsible for aeronautical charts shut down its printing presses, the FAA established a new office to handle the work and took on the responsibility. Second, as electronic distribution became the norm, not the exception, the FAA made many of its products-including the all-important instrument approach procedure charts-available free of charge. The agency still has a long way to go (see the sidebar on page 10), but were all familiar with how it could be doing much, much worse. 288
Electronic Charting
One of the things the FAA has done right in recent years involves charting. First, instead of standing by while the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration office responsible for aeronautical charts shut down its printing presses, the FAA established a new office to handle the work and took on the responsibility. Second, as electronic distribution became the norm, not the exception, the FAA made many of its products-including the all-important instrument approach procedure charts-available free of charge. The agency still has a long way to go (see the sidebar on page 10), but were all familiar with how it could be doing much, much worse. Of course, if youre flying one of the new-generation glass panels with built-in electronic charting, all this may seem like old news. And, depending on what youre flying and how, you may not have a requirement for en route charts or terminal procedures in your cockpit. Its likely you still need some kind of paper references, even if your glass panel is the latest and greatest, and even if all its costly databases are kept current. The rest of us are on the look for a simple, cost-effective solution allowing IAPs and en route charts to be displayed electronically. Sectionals, too, perhaps. The degree to which any or all of this is possible depends on how much money youre willing to throw at the problem, and with how many downsides youre willing to deal. Lets take a look why.
Key Takeaways:
- The FAA has improved charting by making many electronic products, especially instrument approach procedures, available for free, prompting a shift towards digital solutions for pilots.
- Commercial electronic charting systems, whether panel-mounted or portable, offer integrated and geo-referenced displays but typically involve significant acquisition, installation, and database update costs.
- Consumer devices like handhelds, tablets, and e-readers present notable drawbacks for cockpit use, including inadequate screen size/visibility, performance issues with large chart files, lack of integrated GPS, and durability concerns for aviation environments.
- Despite advancements in electronic options, paper charts remain a reliable, inexpensive, and often necessary medium due to the limitations, costs, and potential failures of current digital charting solutions.
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