Newbie VOR question

On Mon, 4 Apr 2005 13:03:03 +0000 (UTC),
(Paul Tomblin) wrote:

In a previous article, "Bruce W.1" said:
It sounds like you guys that still use VOR's fly to/from them and maybe
make course corrections when you hit a radial from another VOR. Just
seems like a zig-zag way to get around, but the easiest way (without GPS).

Some people have rho-theta RNAV systems which to the calculations for you,
so you can say "I want to fly to a point that's 23DME on the 186 radial
from that VOR", and it will give you a CDI just as if you were flying
directly to the VOR.

The plane that I flew up here to where I'm currently weathered in has a
KNS-80 that can supposedly do that, but I've never found the need. In IFR
you pretty much are on the airways or going direct to a VOR, and in VFR I
just use the GPS and go direct to the destination.

I used to fly a plane equipped with a KNS-80. The way I used it to
straighten out my course was to dial in the radial and distance to the
(n+1)th VOR in my flight plan as soon as I came in range of the nth
VOR in my plan. This also allows you to avoid overflying the VORs
with their higher traffic density. But give me GPS any day!

Klein