Anywhere Map with XM weather

In article ne.com,
Andrew Gideon wrote:
TheÂ*abilityÂ*toÂ*haveÂ*allÂ*ofÂ*theÂ*NACOÂ*IAPsÂ* atÂ*your
fingertips is another capability that may be useful.

How well do these work? Inside the outer marker isn't where I want to be
scrolling around on a PDA?

There are larger devices which can display an entire plate, but they start
to look cumbersome to me (unless mounted into the panel, of course).


I don't have the plates, but have friends who do, so I've seen them.

My feeling is that they would be impractical unless you could take the
time to brief the approach while someone else flies the plane (another
pilot or autopilot). I usually fly with my wife, who is also an
instrument pilot, and have the approach briefed and the important
numbers noted on a note pad prior to initiation. One pilot flies while
the other navigates. In this scenario, the plates would probably work
well. We are still thinking of purchasing them, because that will
eliminate the chance that we will need a plate when we don't have a
printed copy. Current info that you have to scroll to see is better
than no info when you need it.

One thing you can do from the Pocket Plates software on the PC is print
the plates that you think you'll use, so you're just using the iPaq for
situational awareness on the approach. The plates can be
geo-referenced, so you will actually see your airplane follow the
approach. I know that you can also print the plates from the NACO web
site, but if you find yourself diverting somewhere at the last minute,
you may end up somewhere that you don't anticipate and suddenly don't
have the plate to get into the only airport within range that isn't
below minimums (personal experience speaking here, but thankfully I had
the plate).

There's no question that a Tablet PC is a more idea solution for the
plates, the moving map, the weather, etc. But it's also more expensive,
and much more difficult to accommodate in a small cabin.


JKG