CAA NZ CPL Flight Navigation General study plan
CAA NZ CPL Flight Navigation General · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 7 hours per week
Flight planning and fuel management
Compute a full manual navigation flight plan for a two-leg VFR cross-country (fuel burn, reserves, and contingency fuel) without reference notes, and state the CAA NZ fixed and variable reserve requirements you applied.
Convert between TAS, groundspeed, and fuel flow to derive endurance and safe diversion range for three worked scenarios with differing headwind and tailwind components.
Build a personal one-page fuel planning checklist that lists every quantity you must record before departure, including taxi, climb, cruise, descent, approach, holding, and final reserve.
Solve five fuel-management problems where the planned destination must be changed in flight, recalculating required fuel and the latest point of no return.
Your checkpoint
A completed two-leg flight plan with all fuel figures reconciled to within 2 minutes of endurance, plus a marked-up fuel checklist.
Dead reckoning and in-flight navigation
Calculate heading, groundspeed, and drift for a triangular and a reciprocal diversion using the wind triangle, showing each step of the calculation.
Derive a heading to steer and time to the next waypoint from a fix taken off-track, using the 1-in-60 rule and track-error correction.
Explain and apply the principles of the point of no return and the point of equal time, and compute each for two sample routes.
Produce a worked example of a dead-reckoning leg with a 20-knot crosswind, showing the difference between track made good and desired track.
Your checkpoint
A set of five fully worked wind-triangle and diversion problems with answers checked against a second method.
Dead reckoning and in-flight navigation & Mass and balance, performance and navigation logs
Complete three timed navigation-log exercises from blank logs, recording every leg, ETA revision, and fuel state.
Recompute mass and balance for a light twin with a forward and an aft loading scenario, and state whether each is inside the envelope.
Apply performance data to determine take-off and landing distances for given pressure altitude, temperature, and wind, and identify the limiting factor in each case.
Explain how a change in mass affects climb gradient, cruise TAS, and fuel burn, and quantify the effect for one aircraft type.
Your checkpoint
Three completed navigation logs plus two mass-and-balance calculations with envelope checks and a one-page summary of performance limiting factors.
Radio navigation aids and systems
Describe the operating principle, indications, and failure modes of VOR, DME, NDB/ADF, ILS, and radar services in enough detail to answer written questions without notes.
Interpret a VOR radial crossing and a DME arc entry, and sketch the cockpit indications for each.
Explain the limitations of each aid, including line-of-sight, terrain, and interference effects, and state how each limitation changes your navigation plan.
Define the terms associated with each aid (radial, bearing, course, deviation, glidepath) and use them correctly in written answers.
Your checkpoint
A one-page reference sheet per aid with principle, indications, limitations, and a worked example, plus 30 self-written recall questions with answers.
Radio navigation aids and systems & GNSS and area navigation (RNAV/PBN)
Explain the components of GNSS and the sources of error, including ionospheric, multipath, and receiver errors, and state how each is mitigated.
Describe RNAV and PBN concepts: RNAV 5, RNAV 1, RNP, and the meaning of on-board performance monitoring and alerting.
Interpret a GNSS approach procedure and explain the role of RAIM prediction and the actions to take when RAIM is unavailable.
Compare GNSS navigation with ground-based aids and identify the operational situations where each is preferred.
Your checkpoint
A written comparison of GNSS, RNAV, and RNP with a table of error sources and mitigations, plus a short explanation of RAIM prediction for a sample flight.
Meteorology for navigation
Interpret METAR, TAF, and SIGMET for a planned route and extract the wind, visibility, cloud, and hazard information relevant to navigation.
Explain how pressure systems, fronts, and jet streams affect wind and temperature along a route, and adjust a flight plan accordingly.
Identify the meteorological hazards that change a navigation plan (icing, turbulence, thunderstorms, low cloud) and state the decision each triggers.
Read and use upper-wind and temperature forecast charts to update cruise TAS and groundspeed estimates.
Your checkpoint
A weather briefing summary for a sample two-leg flight with the resulting changes to route, altitude, and fuel plan documented.
Charts, publications and airspace & Flight planning and fuel management
Read and interpret the symbols, airspace classes, and reporting requirements on New Zealand aeronautical charts without reference to a legend.
Locate and use the relevant AIP New Zealand and NOTAM information for a planned flight, and state where each publication is found.
Explain the differences between controlled, uncontrolled, and special-use airspace, and the navigation implications of each.
Revisit fuel planning and recalculate reserves for a route that crosses controlled and uncontrolled airspace.
Your checkpoint
A chart-reading exercise with 20 annotated features and a one-page guide to AIP New Zealand publications and airspace classes.
New Zealand and international flight operations & Flight planning and fuel management & Dead reckoning and in-flight navigation
Summarise the New Zealand and international flight-operation requirements relevant to navigation, including flight-plan filing and position reporting.
Complete a full timed mock examination covering all eight domains, and record the score by domain.
Review every missed question and write a corrected explanation for each.
Re-run the two weakest domains under timed conditions and confirm improvement.
Your checkpoint
A full mock exam result sheet with per-domain scores and a corrected-answer log for every missed question.
Milestones
Week 2: Correctly solve 8 of 10 untimed wind-triangle and diversion problems without notes.
Week 4: Score at least 75% on a self-made 40-question test covering domains 1, 2, 3, and 7.
Week 6: Produce a complete weather-adjusted flight plan and correctly answer 10 of 12 questions on GNSS and radio navigation.
Week 8: Score at least 80% overall on the timed mock exam, with no domain below 70%.