Quick Tip: Aeronautical Map with AutoHighlight in ForeFlight

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waynemcc999
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Quick Tip: Aeronautical Map with AutoHighlight in ForeFlight

Post by waynemcc999 »


Most all pilots began flying with a Sectional Chart, initially on paper and for most now on an EFB. Lots of info on a Sectional... maybe too much. This video is a quick introduction to what seems largely undiscovered by many ForeFlight pilots… the Aeronautical Map, including the use of the Airspace AutoHighlight feature. Have you tried the Aeronautical Map (without the Sectional overlaid)? And with AutoHighlight of airspace? Your thoughts on pros/cons versus the Sectional?
Thanks for your insight and enjoy the flight!
Wayne, GeezerGeek Pilot
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Re: Quick Tip: Aeronautical Map with AutoHighlight in ForeFlight

Post by blsewardjr »

Wayne - I've tried many times to fly with the aeronautical alone for many of the reasons you cite. However, I always seem to go back to flying with both the aeronautical and the sectional on. When I need to quickly know the pattern altitude or the AWOS frequency, I prefer zooming into the sectional versus taping on the airport, especially when I'm bouncing around, which is often the case for my flying area's nearby mountains. I also fly 100% North track with the Ipad for strategic planning while using my G530 in track up mode for tactical maneuvering so no particular downside to the section on that score. Thanks for a thoughtful video. Bernie
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waynemcc999
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Re: Quick Tip: Aeronautical Map with AutoHighlight in ForeFlight

Post by waynemcc999 »

Bernie, thanks for checking it out. (I'm also a North Up on the iPad kind of a guy). Wayne
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Re: Quick Tip: Aeronautical Map with AutoHighlight in ForeFlight

Post by CBeak »

Definitely a “North up” guy here. Which makes me wonder if that’s a product of our age and experience.
I’m a State Farm agent, and we have always and forever given away road atlases. I notice now that my older customers really want them, but younger ones couldn’t care less. For us older folks, the discussion is that we want to visualize where we are. The younger folks have just grown up with turn by turn directions. So I’m curious as to whether that holds true with older pilots orienting North Up, and younger pilots orienting Track Up.
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Re: Quick Tip: Aeronautical Map with AutoHighlight in ForeFlight

Post by waynemcc999 »

CBeak wrote: Wed Jun 10, 2020 1:27 pm Definitely a “North up” guy here. Which makes me wonder if that’s a product of our age and experience.
I’m a State Farm agent, and we have always and forever given away road atlases. I notice now that my older customers really want them, but younger ones couldn’t care less. For us older folks, the discussion is that we want to visualize where we are. The younger folks have just grown up with turn by turn directions. So I’m curious as to whether that holds true with older pilots orienting North Up, and younger pilots orienting Track Up.
Mike, I think you're on to something. I'm definitely old and 95%+ North Up. Makes sense that our "map generation" would be North Up versus the "turn by turn" generations Track Up.
Thanks for sharing that!
Wayne
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Re: Quick Tip: Aeronautical Map with AutoHighlight in ForeFlight

Post by Boatguy »

You're correct that I have not given the aeronautical chart sufficient attention. Great video, though I didn't understand the bit about changing your route to avoid the KPAO delta since your original route didn't have you entering it anyway.

What would be nice, declutter the map and highlight the information we want, is if Foreflight only showed the altitude limits of the highlighted airspaces, the ones through which our route will take us. Or at least give us a toggle to turn them off. In your example, since we're not flying through KOAK, KHWD, KPAO, KNUQ or KSJC airspace, that information is clutter through which we have to search for the bravo limits.

I've just now submitted that suggestion to Foreflight.

Separately, I'm an "older" pilot and almost exclusively use Track Up. I want the map to be oriented the same way as my eyes. If something is at 2 o'clock on the chart, then I know I should look out the canopy at 2 o'clock to see it. This is especially true for traffic.

While were on the subject of hidden features, I use the web version of Foreflight for most of pre-flight planning. I like having a 27" monitor with a big map rather than an iPad screen. Unfortunately it doesn't have all the features and I have to switch to the iPad to see the Profile view. Does anyone else use the web version?
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Re: Quick Tip: Aeronautical Map with AutoHighlight in ForeFlight

Post by waynemcc999 »

Boatguy wrote: Wed Jun 10, 2020 6:47 pm You're correct that I have not given the aeronautical chart sufficient attention. Great video, though I didn't understand the bit about changing your route to avoid the KPAO delta since your original route didn't have you entering it anyway.

What would be nice, declutter the map and highlight the information we want, is if Foreflight only showed the altitude limits of the highlighted airspaces, the ones through which our route will take us. Or at least give us a toggle to turn them off. In your example, since we're not flying through KOAK, KHWD, KPAO, KNUQ or KSJC airspace, that information is clutter through which we have to search for the bravo limits.

I've just now submitted that suggestion to Foreflight.

Separately, I'm an "older" pilot and almost exclusively use Track Up. I want the map to be oriented the same way as my eyes. If something is at 2 o'clock on the chart, then I know I should look out the canopy at 2 o'clock to see it.
Russ, thanks for watching! The "avoid the KPAO" was just a made up thing :) so I could show the autohighlight once I rubber banded the route south of KPAO.

I also like your idea of even further data filtering based on pertinent altitude limits... i.e. the non-nearby airspace BOUNDARIES are indeed dimmed (i.e. not highlighted; at 02:40 in the video) but their altitude LIMITS (e.g. 100/50) still show. Excellent catch and very glad you sent that in to ForeFlight.

Even though I'm generally a North Up guy, there are definitely times I want Track Up... on lead-in to an approach or pattern entry, traffic (although I usually flip to the Traffic page on the MFD when there are lots of targets).

Thanks!
Wayne
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Re: Quick Tip: Aeronautical Map with AutoHighlight in ForeFlight

Post by ZAV »

Nice video. Definitely some good points there. ForeFlight, like the G100, or any other software usually has many ways to do the same thing. It’s really up to the user/pilot to figure out which method works for their flow. That flow might be different for route planning vs. en route situational awareness vs. terminal procedures.

I personally like the aeronautical layer on with the VFR chart layer on as well. Get the best of both. I view those VFR charts as aviation works of art. They’re amazing and fun to use for VFR fun flying.
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Re: Quick Tip: Aeronautical Map with AutoHighlight in ForeFlight

Post by waynemcc999 »

ZAV wrote: Wed Jun 10, 2020 11:56 pm Nice video. Definitely some good points there. ForeFlight, like the G100, or any other software usually has many ways to do the same thing. It’s really up to the user/pilot to figure out which method works for their flow. That flow might be different for route planning vs. en route situational awareness vs. terminal procedures.

I personally like the aeronautical layer on with the VFR chart layer on as well. Get the best of both. I view those VFR charts as aviation works of art. They’re amazing and fun to use for VFR fun flying.
Bryan, thanks for watching and thanks for bringing up additional good points.
Fly safely and stay healthy,
Wayne
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Re: Quick Tip: Aeronautical Map with AutoHighlight in ForeFlight

Post by chili4way »

North up here, too, on FF and the MFD. Any PFD maps are HDG/TRK up. This post got me wondering why this is my preference.

Yes, I started with paper maps, and the initial moving maps didn't handle rotated maps particularly well. (My first was AnywhereMap running on a Dell Axim PDA.).

What I realized is that I like the 'North Up' on the MFD because it makes communicating position (distance/direction) easier on the radio. I can scale the map using the distance ring and direction is a snap. The track/hdg up on the PFD is good for left/right traffic advisories or perhaps upcoming turns. For some reason, my brain does better with assessing left/right relative to the way the 'ownship' is oriented on a North Up moving map vs. figuring out NSEW from a rotated HDG/TRK up map.

My MFD and iPad are usually set to 'opposite' map styles, e.g. if I'm using aeronautical on my iPad, I'll have the sectional up on the MFD. However, more generally, I have the nav map up on the MFD and the sectional up on my iPad. When I have a passenger, I switch these two because it's usually easier for a passenger to relate to a sectional.

Thanks for getting me thinking about what and why.
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