Groundtrack vs wind drift correction on ND

[captainklm 1]

Hello folks,

this is a quick question that applies to all Boeing aircraft. I have noticed that some airlines have their Navigation Display to show the groundtrack and the wind drift correction with a white tick over the top of the heading indicator, while some only show the heading the aircraft's nose is pointed at without the groundtrack. My question is, is it an airline selected option or can it be switched on and off with a switch somewhere in the cockpit or fmc?

Many thanks.

[scandinavian13 5,192]

 

 

My question is, is it an airline selected option or can it be switched on and off with a switch somewhere in the cockpit or fmc?

 

The former.

[captainklm 1]

The former.

The former?

[scandinavian13 5,192]

The former?

 

It's a formal way of saying "the first option you listed."

 

So, using your sentence, it would be "my question is, is it an airline selected option or can it be switched on and off with a switch somewhere in the cockpit or fmc?

 

Former

Latter

 

 

Basically, I was saying that it's an airline selected option, and to my knowledge, not something that can be changed on the flight deck.  Sorry for the confusion!

[captainklm 1]

Haha, I should have known better

Thanks for your reply! Was interested in knowing!

[scandinavian13 5,192]

 

 

Thanks for your reply! Was interested in knowing!

 

Welcome!  Glad you actually wanted to know.  I know there are several here who would be rolling their eyes and saying "just answer my question."  My past experience as a trainer shows through in more information than you ever wanted...haha

[captainklm 1]

Welcome! Glad you actually wanted to know. I know there are several here who would be rolling their eyes and saying "just answer my question." My past experience as a trainer shows through in more information than you ever wanted...haha

Honestly its their loss, and its the reason why I would be crossing my fingers that you would be on the case of answering my tech questions! The detail is not only interesting but certainly would benefit me for persuing a career in aviation, and understanding in depth what I'm working with!

Kudos to you my friend

[captainklm 1]

Welcome!  Glad you actually wanted to know.  I know there are several here who would be rolling their eyes and saying "just answer my question."  My past experience as a trainer shows through in more information than you ever wanted...haha

I hate to question you even further with this but I recently started flying with the groundtrack corrections off and only having it display the heading and one of the challenges I have is following the ILS with crosswinds when manually flying. Normally you would just fly the runway's magnetic heading with the corrections but this is a bit more of a challenge. Is it just a case of trial and error or is there actually a mental mathematical equation that pilots use to correct and fly a certain true heading? 

[scandinavian13 5,192]

 

 

I hate to question you even further with this but I recently started flying with the groundtrack corrections off and only having it display the heading and one of the challenges I have is following the ILS with crosswinds when manually flying.

 

haha - you're starting to sound like me.  I flew a G1000 C172 with SVT a few weeks ago with another pilot friend of mine, and we spent the entire approach (with me under the hood) whining about how stupidly easy it was.  All I needed to do was stare at the screen, and put the FPV on the runway.  We both said next time is going to be all steam for the challenge.

 

In any case, don't feel bad for asking more questions.

 

 

 

Normally you would just fly the runway's magnetic heading with the corrections but this is a bit more of a challenge. Is it just a case of trial and error or is there actually a mental mathematical equation that pilots use to correct and fly a certain true heading?

 

It's more of a constant adjustment, really.  There was some sort of mental math for tracking ADFs in wind, but even then, it's still a constant correct.

 

Make change

Monitor

Evaluate need for new change

Make change if necessary - repeat

 

Despite what a lot of aviation comes across as (a lot of calculation and numbers being thrown at you), a good portion of aviation is tactical.  You make the change as you see it coming.  Wind varies, and isn't always what the station reports it as.  That's why there's an actual column on flight plans.

 

Sure, you can run a wind calculation on an E6B (or EFB) to get the appropriate wind correction angle, but that's not going to be perfect, and it's going to change as you progress on the approach.  Heck, a whole bunch of VFR cross country flight planning involves calculating those angles, and then in the air, you have to verify them by evaluating how you cross your checkpoints (and in your older, non-GPS aircraft, you're normally off by at least a little because the wind isn't exactly as forecast/reported).

 

Granted, the following video shows issues mostly due to gusts, and it may not be too obvious in the video (there's probably a better one of mine to show it, but this is the first one I found), but as soon as you clear the tree line, the wind dies significantly.  You can actually see that I decrabbed right as I cleared the line (around 0:30).  The only wind data I had was on the AWOS, which was below the tree line.  So, even with mental math, it would've been off.