Student here, following debate with interest but I don't understand the
issue at disagreement. Considering "bearing" as distinct from "relative
bearing", is not the bearing the clockwise angular direction with respect
to the meridian over its origin of a line drawn from one point to another?
And since the 0 radial of the VOR station is aligned to the magnetic
meridian, each VOR radial indicates directly the magnetic bearing from the
VOR station to an object that lies somewhere along it. To get one's bearing
from the VOR station, than, can you not just rotate the OBS until the needle
is centred? If the "from" flag is up then the OBS ring reads out directly
the magnetic bearing to the aircraft as viewed from the VOR station, and if
the "to" flag is up, the OBS is showing the reciprocal. So don't you know
you're somewhere along that line? Of course, neither indication gives the
actual aircraft position without using some other additional means to
establish distance from the station - DME, triangulation on another station,
etc. Same principle with a movable card ADF set to or slaved to one's
compass heading, except that its needle is always indicating the bearing to
whatever station that's tuned so one needs to convert that reading into the
radial bearing from the station of interest to the plane (I know that the
conversion assumes the magnetic variation at the plane's position is not
different from that at the station's position, if you want to get precise).

"Dan Luke" wrote in message
...
"Casey Wilson" wrote:
In which case the VOR did NOT give you your position. The
calculation
required additional instruments: A timer and some device (compass
or DG) to
fly perpendicular to a radial, not to mention the use of the ASI,
and so
forth.

Silly hair splitting. You also said the VOR will give you bearing from
the station: how will it do that without the use of other equipment?


--
Dan
C172RG at BFM