CAA NZ ATPL Theory - Flight Navigation General study guide
CAA NZ ATPL Theory - Flight Navigation General · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
Flight Navigation General is one of the knowledge-test subjects a candidate must pass to hold an Airline Transport Pilot Licence in New Zealand, and it is examined to the standard set by the Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand under the Part 61 pilot licensing rules. It is written for pilots who already hold a commercial licence and are moving to the ATPL, or for experienced pilots returning to study after years of line flying. The CAA NZ ATPL Theory - Flight Navigation General study guide has 10 sections and about 3,408 words.
01Dead Reckoning and Flight Planning
Dead reckoning (DR) is position derived from a known fix plus heading, TAS, wind and elapsed time. The exam tests whether you can build and read a navigation log leg by leg, move correctly between IAS, TAS and groundspeed, and judge how quickly a DR position degrades.
363 words, about 2 min02The Triangle of Velocities and Wind Problems
Every wind problem closes three vectors: heading and TAS (the air vector), the wind vector, and track and groundspeed (the ground vector). Two of the three must be known to solve the third.
345 words, about 2 min03Radio Navigation Aids: VOR, DME, NDB/ADF, ILS, GNSS
VOR: 108.0 to 117.95 MHz, line of sight. It provides the magnetic radial FROM the station; the CDI and OBS show course deviation and TO/FROM sense.
309 words, about 2 min04Area Navigation and RNAV/PBN
Area navigation allows flight on any desired path rather than toward or away from ground aids. Performance-Based Navigation (PBN) is the umbrella: the navigation specification defines the required accuracy, integrity, continuity and functionality.
342 words, about 2 min05Magnetic and True Bearings: Variation and Deviation
True direction is measured from true north; magnetic direction from magnetic north; compass direction from the aircraft's own compass. Variation is the angle between true and magnetic north at your position, shown by isogonals on the chart, with the agonic line joining points of zero variation.
323 words, about 2 min06Heading and Track Conversions in Practice
Track is the path over the ground; heading is where the nose points. The difference is drift, produced by the crosswind component, and the heading always points into wind to make good the required track.
361 words, about 2 min07Time, Longitude, Latitude and Solar/Local Time
The Earth turns 360 degrees in 24 hours: 15 degrees per hour, 1 degree per 4 minutes, 1 minute of arc per 4 seconds of time. Longitude east is later, west is earlier.
337 words, about 2 min08Meteorological Navigation: Wind, Temperature and Altimetry
Upper winds, jet streams and mountain wave change groundspeed and drift between the planning stage and the flight. Wind at altitude is stronger than surface wind, and the jet stream core can add or remove 100 kt or more on a long leg.
352 words, about 2 min09Long-Range and Oceanic Navigation
A great circle is the shortest path between two points; its initial and final tracks differ, and the highest latitude reached is the vertex. A rhumb line has constant track but is longer.
329 words, about 2 min10Navigation Instruments and Systems
Direct-reading magnetic compass: simple and independent, but suffers turning and acceleration errors and dip at high latitude. Gyro-magnetic system: a flux valve or magnetometer slaved to a directional gyro, giving a stable magnetic heading and feeding the HSI and flight director.
347 words, about 2 min