Customizing Sectionals

Here is a great link to a GIS mapping program that I found that can be used
to customize digital sectionals that are available from the FAA:

http://www.globalmapper.com/

You can download a demo version for free. This gives you 85% of the
functionality of the full package, which costs ~$250.

This program lets you open multiple sectionals and automatically pastes them
together using the graphic coordinates that are imbedded in the geo-tiff
sectional files. This is particularly useful in an area like Mpls / St.
Paul, which is at the corner of 4 sectionals. Using this program, you can
create a custom sectional that incorporates pieces of all 4 sectionals.

In addition, you can overlay the sectionals with other drawings (flight
plans, distance circles, etc.).

The main limitations of the demo version vs the paid version is:

1. You can't reopen saved workspaces.
2. You can't print to scale.
3. You can only open 4 sectionals (the full version lets you open more, but
you had better have a fast computer).

Have fun!
--
Mike Schumann

On Oct 6, 10:55 am, "Mike Schumann"
wrote:
Here is a great link to a GIS mapping program that I found that can be used
to customize digital sectionals that are available from the FAA:

http://www.globalmapper.com/

You can download a demo version for free. This gives you 85% of the
functionality of the full package, which costs ~$250.

BTW, the charts must be purchased from the FAA at:
http://www.naco.faa.gov/ecomp/Catalo...S+DIGITAL+DSEC
for $1.50 each or a DVD of half the US for $12.60.

There is also a product http://www.glideplan.com/ that is geared to
planning soaring flights. With some coaxing, maybe Matt will add some
stitching ability, and extend this product into a fully featured
electronic sectional chart system for use while flying. He is already
providing current scans for no additional charge, so it is already
legal to use in the cockpit. Note that so far, I think GlidePlan is
plent good enough to replace my paper charts, but better printing
options would turn it into a great product. Oh, there is a commercial
product available for about $100/yr that will do this as well, but it
is aimed at the airplane pilot so likely has many features most of us
would not be interested in.

Also at the FAA page is a Digital National Flight Database with all
airport inofrmation. It's not clear, but I asume all the frequency,
etc., info is there as well. It would be really cool if someone came up
with a scheme to take what is currently available at the Worldwide
Turnpoint exchange (http://soaring.aerobatics.ws/SOARING/JL/TP/) and
somehow update the airport portions of the available files with current
frequency info. Heck, I'd be willing to pay a reasonable subscription
rate to know that the comments field in my GNII database is current, as
this would be yet another reason to keep the sectional chart tucked
safely behind my elbow.

-Tom

John Liebacher has made the FAA airport database available at:

http://soaring.aerobatics.ws/TP/FAA

If you have SeeYou, you can load this database, then overlay your
turnpoints, and reject nearby duplicates. This will update the airport
data in your exiting turnpoint database, plus give you landout airports
for the whole country. You can then trim this down as much as you like.


5Z wrote:

Also at the FAA page is a Digital National Flight Database with all
airport inofrmation. It's not clear, but I asume all the frequency,
etc., info is there as well. It would be really cool if someone came up
with a scheme to take what is currently available at the Worldwide
Turnpoint exchange (http://soaring.aerobatics.ws/SOARING/JL/TP/) and
somehow update the airport portions of the available files with current
frequency info. Heck, I'd be willing to pay a reasonable subscription
rate to know that the comments field in my GNII database is current, as
this would be yet another reason to keep the sectional chart tucked
safely behind my elbow.

-Tom

Doug Haluza wrote:
John Liebacher has made the FAA airport database available at:

http://soaring.aerobatics.ws/TP/FAA

If you have SeeYou, you can load this database, then overlay your
turnpoints, and reject nearby duplicates. This will update the airport
data in your exiting turnpoint database, plus give you landout airports
for the whole country. You can then trim this down as much as you like.

You may not need SeeYou, as John may have a version for GNII. The SeeYou
version does include the frequencies, runway width, fuel availability
(for motorgliders, of course). Some formats have smaller
comment/description fields and may not have all info.

--
Eric Greenwell - Washington State, USA
Change "netto" to "net" to email me directly

"Transponders in Sailplanes" on the Soaring Safety Foundation website
www.soaringsafety.org/prevention/articles.html

"A Guide to Self-launching Sailplane Operation" at www.motorglider.org

Eric Greenwell wrote:

You may not need SeeYou, as John may have a version for GNII. The SeeYou
version does include the frequencies, runway width, fuel availability
(for motorgliders, of course). Some formats have smaller
comment/description fields and may not have all info.

I didn't see a version for GNII or for Garmin. My almost new but now
obsolete 396 does not include private fields so hope John adds a Garmin
compatible format one day.


Andy

Hi,

If you open the SeeYou version or the US Airport Database in SeeYou, or the
StrePla version in StrePla, you can then export waypoint files for use in
Glide Navigator II or transfer waypoints to a Garmin (I think). I create
Glide Navigator II files using SeeYou often. It works great.

Paul Remde

"Andy" wrote in message
ups.com...

Eric Greenwell wrote:

You may not need SeeYou, as John may have a version for GNII. The SeeYou
version does include the frequencies, runway width, fuel availability
(for motorgliders, of course). Some formats have smaller
comment/description fields and may not have all info.

I didn't see a version for GNII or for Garmin. My almost new but now
obsolete 396 does not include private fields so hope John adds a Garmin
compatible format one day.


Andy

Eric Greenwell wrote:
Doug Haluza wrote:
John Liebacher has made the FAA airport database available at:

http://soaring.aerobatics.ws/TP/FAA

If you have SeeYou, you can load this database, then overlay your
turnpoints, and reject nearby duplicates. This will update the airport
data in your exiting turnpoint database, plus give you landout airports
for the whole country. You can then trim this down as much as you like.

You may not need SeeYou, as John may have a version for GNII. The SeeYou
version does include the frequencies, runway width, fuel availability
(for motorgliders, of course). Some formats have smaller
comment/description fields and may not have all info.

I just tried exporting to a Cambridge DAT format, and the radio
frequencies are not exported, though the runway width and fuel show up
in the comments field.

--
Eric Greenwell - Washington State, USA
Change "netto" to "net" to email me directly

"Transponders in Sailplanes" on the Soaring Safety Foundation website
www.soaringsafety.org/prevention/articles.html

"A Guide to Self-launching Sailplane Operation" at www.motorglider.org

I had to edit the comments manually so the freqs, headings and runway
dimensions would all display in GNII.

One "problem" I've noted with SeeYou is that it sometimes offers to
delete nearby waypoints even when there really are two points you may
want to keep; e.g., two airports within a mile or so, or two different
sets of coordinates for the same airport caused by the FAA and
organizers' data being slightly different. That's another reason why I
went the Excel/text editor route. I assumed it was better (i.e,. easier
for me) to edit externally and then use SeeYou to export/upload in the
proper format.

Chip Bearden
ASW 24 "JB"

Hi Eric,

You are correct of course. The radio frequency data was not exported -
which is a bummer. I requested that SeeYou add the ability to select what
data is put into the export file's comment field but no luck so far. The
data is in SeeYou. I believe it is possible to get the radio frequency into
the file using some creative column copying in Excel, but I haven't tried it
yet.

Even so, it is very easy to create a waypoint file for any area of the USA
with very current airport data using SeeYou or StrePla.

Good Soaring,

Paul Remde
Cumulus Soaring, Inc.
http://www.cumulus-soaring.com

"Eric Greenwell" wrote in message
news:W90Wg.1696$WD1.1000@trndny04...
Eric Greenwell wrote:
Doug Haluza wrote:
John Liebacher has made the FAA airport database available at:

http://soaring.aerobatics.ws/TP/FAA

If you have SeeYou, you can load this database, then overlay your
turnpoints, and reject nearby duplicates. This will update the airport
data in your exiting turnpoint database, plus give you landout airports
for the whole country. You can then trim this down as much as you like.

You may not need SeeYou, as John may have a version for GNII. The SeeYou
version does include the frequencies, runway width, fuel availability
(for motorgliders, of course). Some formats have smaller
comment/description fields and may not have all info.

I just tried exporting to a Cambridge DAT format, and the radio
frequencies are not exported, though the runway width and fuel show up in
the comments field.

--
Eric Greenwell - Washington State, USA
Change "netto" to "net" to email me directly

"Transponders in Sailplanes" on the Soaring Safety Foundation website
www.soaringsafety.org/prevention/articles.html

"A Guide to Self-launching Sailplane Operation" at www.motorglider.org