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Compass

Aviation Companion fareCompass course

Compass Rose - Aircraft Compass Swing

Compass Rose - A small circle graduated in 360 increments, to show direction expressed in degrees.

 


Compasses and Navigation, II
To navigate properly using a compass it is necessary to understand how they work.

Compass turns are the exception to the rule in most aircraft today, and are generally only performed in an aircraft when other directional instruments, such as the directional gyro, have failed.

Compass Directions

In navigation and surveying all measurement of direction is performed by using the numbers of a compass. A compass is a 360° circle where 0/360° is North, 90° is East, 180° is South, and 270° is West.

compass - A device used to discover geographic direction, usually having a magnetic needle(s) that is horizontally mounted or suspended and free to pivot until aligned with the magnetic field of the earth.

COMPASS COURSE - A bearing as indicated by the horizontal angle between the compass needle and the centerline of the aircraft. A Compass Course is equal to a True Course ± variation and deviation; also equal to a Magnetic Course ± deviation.

Compass Calibration Pad: An airport facility for calibrating an aircraft compass.
Conical Surface: A surface extending from the periphery of the horizontal surface outward and upward at a slope of 20:1 as prescribed by FAR Part 77.

Compass Course. The angle between the: longitudinal axis of an aeroplane and the compass needle, measured clockwise from the compass needle between 0 degrees and 360 degrees.

COMPASS LOCATOR- A low power, low or medium frequency (L/MF) radio beacon installed at the site of the outer or middle marker of an instrument landing system (ILS).

4. Compass card - This is the most common card to missing from airplanes, Experimental or Certified. You need to have a compass deviation card in the airplane, displayed on or near the compass.

LOM
compass locator at outer marker.
LONG
Lateral Navigation (GLS)
LONGITUDE
Position on earth, east or west of the prime meridian; Symbols: lambda; Typical Units: rad, deg; ...

CH - compass heading.

Check 'A' - a thorough pre flight inspection the first of the day.

with your compass Moreover, the railway is good in case you involved in a fog or mist for a time.

Magnetic Compass
All forms of aeronautical navigation can be traced back to the magnetic compass.

Vector - Compass heading instructions issued by ATC in providing navigational guidance by radar.

Then move your hand to a compass rose that is not on the airway, and read off the heading. Finally, look back at the airway and see what the “official” heading of the airway is.

Radio compass giving a relative bearing to a NDB.
ADI: Attitude Deviation Indicator. Enhanced artificial horizon with pitch and roll information. It is part of a flight director system.
ADT: Approved Departure Time ...

For instance, when flying a Robinson helicopter, the magnetic compass is mounted on the windshield in front of the pilot, and this can be referenced to the horizon to provide very accurate pitch information.

Being the ever-alert pilot, you need to multitask: establishing the proper climb attitude, exiting the traffic pattern, turning to the compass heading you've selected, ...

In some versions, as mentioned earlier, the compass heading can be set directly in the Editor; in others (later versions) you must turn the aircraft (if on the ground) or SLEW to the stated heading.

If an aircraft is traveling a course anywhere from 0 to 179 degrees on the compass dial, then that aircraft is required to be at an elevation beginning with an odd number, like 31,000ft.

Directional Gyro (DG) A compass that uses a gyro rather than the Earth's magnetic field. It is much more reliable in turns and rough air than a magnetic compass.

DG: Directional Gyro; a gyroscopic compass that's better than the 'real' magnetic one for several reasons I'm not going to get into here. Unfortunately, it tends to drift with time, so it must be regularly be reset to match the magnetic one.

It may seem to be a bit of a shocker for some to note that both an airspeed indicator and a compass were options for the J-2. Now that's "seat of the pants" flying! ...

The pilot will usually navigate by using electronic navigation equipment, compass headings assigned by Air Traffic Control, or in some cases compass bearings corrected for forecast winds.

Bearing (BRG).
Direction on a compass; Synonyms: direction; Symbols: B; Typical Units: rad, deg;
Bessel 1841.
A standard model for computing earth data ...

standard rate turn
A turn of three degrees compass heading per second
TAS
True AirSpeed. The airspeed of an aircraft relative to undisturbed air ...

It is recommended that the BRL encompass the runway protection zones, the runway visibility zone, areas required for airport traffic control tower clear lines of sight, ...

Air Data Dead Reckoning: Dead reckoning navigation based on simple instruments as source (barometric altimeter, magnetic compass, airspeed indicator, known wind conditions); sometimes called dead reckoning.

EFIS panels integrate all kinds of instrumentation into one easy-scan display: flight instruments (airspeed and altitude, etc.), engine readouts (rpm, CHT and EGT, etc.), magnetic compass, slip/skid ball and even GPS, clock/timer, ...

Cockpit instruments also improved, with better altimeters, airspeed indicators, rate-of-climb indicators, compasses and the introduction of artificial horizon, ...

See also: Flight, Aircraft, Pilot, Direct, Navigation