The Comair crash reminds me...

Jim Macklin wrote:

Actual runway details are on the instrument approach charts,
including direction to the degree and elevation and slope.

Yep, I am aware of that. I was curious whether it is common for pilots to
pull out their instrument charts after learning of or deciding upon what
runway is in use/to use at an unfamiliar airport. It seems to me that with
the workload of pre-taxi, taxi, and pre-takeoff checklists, this item is
probably not a task many pilots perform. Or do they?

In my case I have a slaved HSI in my Bonanza, so I had been quickly
comparing the HSI heading to the runway number to see if it is within ten
or so degrees of the runway number as part of the "lights, camera, action"
taking-the-runway mnemonic.

--
Peter