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CAFP tm Computer Aided Flight Planning Aviation Software User's Manual version 3.1 Conrad Computing, Inc. 11845 Archerton Drive St. Louis, MO 63044 - i - License Statement The software (CAFP) described in this manual is copyright, 1988 - 1991 by Conrad Computing Inc. Conrad Computing grants to you a license to evaluate CAFP« NOTE THAT THIS LICENSE IS FOR EVALUATION ONLY, IT IS NOT A LICENSE TO USE CAFP FOR FLIGHT PLANNING PURPOSES. CAF╨ i≤ distributeΣ oε ß shareware basis« Thi≤ mean≤ yo⌡ ma∙ makσ copie≤ and givσ theφ t∩ other≤ s∩ lonτ a≤ thσ following condition≤ arσ followed: ¬ Copie≤ oµ CAF╨ mus⌠ bσ distributeΣ free oµ an∙ charge. ¬ Thσ entirσ system¼ includinτ documentation anΣ al∞ associateΣ file≤ mus⌠ bσ included iε an∙ cop∙ whicΦ yo⌡ givσ t∩ others. ¬ Thσ softwarσ mus⌠ no⌠ bσ modifieΣ iε an∙ way. Thi≤ i≤ ß full∙ functioninτ versioε oµ CAF╨ with onσ exception; thσ graphica∞ displa∙ oµ the routσ oµ fligh⌠ doe≤ no⌠ work« Thi≤ capability wil∞ bσ restoreΣ iε thσ versioε oµ CAF╨ whicΦ you wil∞ receivσ upoε registration« (seσ pagσ 20.) Warranty THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND. THE ENTIRE RISK AS TO USE AND RELIANCE ON THE SOFTWARE AND ITS OUTPUT IS ASSUMED BY TH┼ USER« IN NO EVENT SHALL CONRAD COMPUTING INC. OR ITS EMPLOYEES, OFFICERS, OR SHAREHOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER ARISING OUT OF THE USE OF THIS SOFTWARE. CAFP is a trademark of Conrad Computing, Inc. Copyright 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991 by Conrad Computing, Inc. - ii - Table of Contents Overview ......................................... 1 Preliminaries .................................... 2 Making a working disk .......................... 2 The files on your disk ......................... 3 The keyboard ................................... 4 Starting CAFP .................................. 4 Configure ........................................ 7 Weight and Balance ............................... 8 Weather .......................................... 9 Route ............................................ 12 Automatic route selection ...................... 12 Manual route selection ......................... 13 Combining manual and automatic route selection . 13 Flight Plan ...................................... 14 Flight Log ....................................... 17 Select Aircraft .................................. 18 Data Maintenance ................................. 19 Registration and Data Updates .................... 20 - 1 - Overview Computer Aided Flight Planning (CAFP) is a program designed to assist the pilot of single engine and light twin engine airplanes in many of the routine but time-consuming tasks of flight planning. It is not intended to replace the decision making role of the pilot in command but rather to provide assistance, much as a co-pilot might. Specifically, the program provides selection of routes; creation, storage, and retrieval of flight plans; weight and balance computations; creation of flight logs; and communication with weather services such as DUAT. These items can be printed and taken along in flight. The CAFP system comes with a data file of all VOR stations in North America. Users of CAFP are cautioned to regard the system displays and reports as advisory and/or approximate, not as fact on which to rely. As in all good flight planning, the pilot should verify CAFP information by cross reference to independent sources. These sources include, but are not limited to, pre- flight weather briefings, the Airman's Information Manual, NOTAMS, airport directories, and current charts and maps. Additionally, users must be aware of the specific requirements and capabilities of their airplane before utilizing any information provided by CAFP. - 2 - Preliminaries Making a working disk The disk you have received is called the distribution disk. You should make a copy of this disk and work with the copy ( We'll call the copy the working disk). Then, if something should go wrong with the working disk, you can make another copy from the distribution disk. So, let's begin by making a working disk. Start by "booting" your computer. The next steps to use depend on the number and type of disk drives you have. Select yours from one of the following three alternatives: I Two floppy disk drives: 1) Put your DOS system disk in drive a: 2) Put a blank disk in drive b: 3) At the system prompt ( A:> ) enter the following command: format b: 4) Remove the DOS system disk from drive a: 5) Put the distribution disk in drive a: 6) Enter the following command: copy a:*.* b: 7) Store the distribution disk in a safe place 8) Remove the working disk from drive b: and label it II One floppy disk drive: 1) Put your DOS system disk in drive a: 2) At the system prompt ( A:> ) enter the following command: format b: (follow the on-screen directions. The disk for drive a: is the DOS disk. The disk for drive b: is a blank disk.) 3) Remove the DOS system disk from drive a: 4) Put the distribution disk in drive a: 5) Enter the following command: copy a:*.* b: (again follow the on-screen directions. The disk for drive a: is the distribution disk. The disk for drive b: is the blank disk. You will exchange disks several times.) 6) Store the distribution disk in a safe place 7) Label the working disk in drive b: III One or more floppy disk drives and a hard disk (drive c:): 1) Put the distribution disk in drive a: 2) Create a subdirectory on drive c: with the following command: md c:\cafp 3) Change to the new subdirectory: cd c:\cafp 4) Copy all files from the distribution disk to the subdirectory: copy a:*.* c:\cafp 5) Remove the distribution disk from drive a: and store it in a safe place - 3 - The files on your disk The distribution disk contains several files which were copied to your working disk. The files and their contents are: CAFP.EXE - This is the main program file. CAFPCOMM.EXE - The communication program file. DATAFILE - This file contains data about all VOR stations in the North America. You may alter the contents of this file by adding data on any additional facilities (for example, airports). You can also delete data from this file. Procedures for altering the data are described in the section DATA MAINTENANCE. CONFIG.DAT - This file holds data about your airplane. One of the first things you should do with CAFP (described in the next section) is to configure the system to your airplane(s). As you supply data about your airplane the data is automatically added to this file. WEATHER.DAT - This file stores the winds aloft data. In order to compute estimates for the time enroute and ground speed, winds aloft data are needed. CAFP has a simple procedure for allowing you to enter the winds aloft data into this file. WTBAL.DAT - Similar to the CONFIG.DAT file. The data on this file reflects the particular weight and balance data for your airplane. WX.DAT - If you use the communication feature to capture weather data, the data is stored in this file. COMM.DAT - This file contains data used to establish communications with on-line weather reporting systems such as DUAT. As you use CAFP, the computer will create additional files. The names of these files will end with the letters RTE or PLN. Any file whose name ends in RTE is a route file. Route files contain data about a sequence of VOR stations or other facilities that define a route from the origin to the destination. The first eight letters of a route file name consists of the origin identifier and the destination identifier. For example, the route file name for a route from the Memphis airport to the New Orleans Airport is: MEMAMSYA.RTE MEMA = Memphis airport MSYA = New Orleans (Moisant) airport RTE = Route file - 4 - As you may have guessed from the above example, CAFP uses the three letter code for facility identification plus one additional letter chosen from the following: A = Airport V = VOR (low altitude and high altitude) T = Terminal VOR The other file type mentioned above is PLN. Any file whose name ends with PLN is a flight plan file. Flight plan files contain the same information you normally specify in creating a regular flight plan. They use the same convention for the first eight letters that the RTE files use. The keyboard In order to use CAFP there are several keys you should be familiar with. Locate on your keyboard a large key labeled with an arrow with an upward turning tail. It might be labeled with the word Enter or Return. This key (we'll call it the entry key) must be pressed after each entry you make. Also, find the four keys located near each other with an arrow pointing up, down, left and right. These keys are the cursor movement keys and are used to move around the various screens which will appear as you use CAFP. By the way, don't worry about typing errors. You can't do any damage by typing the wrong thing. If you do make a mistake, just press the entry key and type it again. You can use the Del key to delete items and the Backspace key to back up and re-enter items. Starting CAFP If you are using a computer with no hard disk drive; 1) Put the working disk in drive a: 2) You should now see the Dos prompt on the screen ( A:> ). If you see B:> , then type a: and press the entry key 3) At the DOS prompt ( A:> ) enter the command: cafp If you are using a hard disk; 1) Enter the command: cd \cafp 2) Next enter the command: cafp You will now see the opening screen. Now press any key and this screen will disappear and the Main Menu should appear. If these screens look fuzzy or difficult to read then you should exit from CAFP by pressing the Esc key. Now re-start CAFP by entering the command: cafp bw The letters bw force the display into black and white (monochrome mode). If you have a monochrome monitor and a graphics video controller you will use this bw form of the command to start CAFP. If you want to force your video controller into color/graphics mode, then start with the command: cafp co - 5 - If you have a printer attached, there is an optional parameter available which will affect how your printer is used. If you select any of the CAFP options that cause printing to occur and you get no print-out, it may be because your printer is connected to the second printer port. In that case you should start CAFP with the command: cafp lpt2 You can combine both features in one command as in: cafp bw lpt2 The second screen is called the main menu. From the main menu you may select any of the options by typing the number of your choice and pressing the entry key, or by moving the highlighted item with the up and down arrow keys and pressing the entry key. Here's a brief description of each option. Details will follow in the next sections. Route This option is used to create a route. A route is a sequence of VOR stations (and other facilities) which define how you intend to fly from the origin to the destination. You can enter the sequence of facilities yourself or you can let the computer suggest a sequence or you can use a combination of computer suggestions and your own requirements. Weather The weather option is used to enter the winds aloft. After you have obtained winds aloft data it is important to enter them with this option. The computer will automatically store the winds aloft data in a file for use in estimating ground speed and time enroute. This selection is also used to connect with on-line weather services such as DUAT. Flight Plan This option is used to create and store, or retrieve, a flight plan. The number of flight plans is limited only by the available space on your disk. Flight Log Flight logs are based on a route and contain information about each leg. Included are the VOR frequencies, distance, course, estimates for the time enroute, ground speed, heading and other items. Weight and Balance This option can be used to conveniently calculate your weight and balance. After you enter the weight and arm data, the computer will calculate your gross weight and center of gravity. Configure Used to supply data about your airplane(s). The data are stored on file and are used in many of the other calculations which CAFP performs. Also, you will supply data which appears on flight plans (such as color of airplane, type and special equipment, etc.) so that you don't have to re-enter the same data every time you create a flight plan. - 6 - Data Maintenance The DATAFILE contains data on all VOR stations in North America. If you wish to add, change, or delete data on this file then this option can be used. A common use for the Data Maintenance option is for adding airport information. You can also use Data Maintenance to delete RTE (route) and PLN (flight plan) files if your disk becomes full. Select Aircraft You may use the Configure option to enter data about more than one airplane. The Select Aircraft option allows you to choose which aircraft's data you wish to use for flight planning. Quit This option terminates the CAFP program and returns you to DOS. You can also quit by pressing the Esc key. The remaining sections describe the options in detail. You should work through these in the order presented (not in numerical order) and see how things work. After that, you will probably not need to refer to this material very often, but you should keep it handy just in case. - 7 - Configure Select the Configure option from the Main Menu. Using the cursor movement keys to move around the screen, enter values for your airplane. Remember to press the entry key after each item. If you make a mistake, press the entry key and type the item again. If you want to remove or erase a value, press the Del key. The aircraft I.D. number is the N-number of your airplane. Type/special equipment should be entered as it appears on a flight plan. The Climb Performance data is vital to the proper functioning of CAFP. There are two columns of values to enter in this area. You will need your airplane operating manual to get precise values for airspeed and climb rate at the various altitudes. It not necessary (or even possible for many airplanes) to enter values for all altitudes. Just enter values up to the maximum altitude at which you would ever operate your airplane. CAFP will reject any value for airspeed that is less than 20 knots and any value for rate that is less than 100 feet per minute. The last three items (Pilot's name & phone number, Base city and airport, and Color of aircraft) should be entered as you would want them to appear on a flight plan. When you have completed entering values press the key labeled Esc. This will cause your data to be stored on a file (CONFIG.DAT) and you will be returned to the main menu. If you later decide to change any of this data, just return to this screen and re-enter the values you want to change. If you wish to configure more than one airplane, then enter an I.D. number for each. When you press the Esc key, the data will be saved in CONFIG.DAT and in a file whose name will be the I.D. followed by the extension DAT. At the bottom of this screen (and other screens) you will see "F1 = Help". This indicates that by pressing the key with "F1" on it you will receive information on how to use the current screen. When finished reading the Help information, press the Esc key and you will return to the current screen. - 8 - Weight and Balance Selection of the Weight and Balance option will result in a screen which is used to determine gross weight and center of gravity. Using the cursor movement keys to move around the screen, enter values for your airplane. Remember to press the entry key after each item. If you make a mistake, press the entry key and type the item again. If you want to remove or erase a value and start over, press the Del key. Refer to your airplane's weight and balance data to enter values on this screen. As you enter each value, CAFP will automatically update the computations. The value in the box at the bottom of the ARM column is the location of the center of gravity. The value at the bottom of the WEIGHT column is the gross weight. You must refer to your airplane's loading data to determine if these values are within limits. The MOMENT column values are computed by multiplying the weight times the arm. Traditionally, moment values are recorded as moment divided by 1000. However, the only reason for dividing by 1000 was to simplify the arithmetic. Since the computer is doing the arithmetic, we don't have to simplify. The full value is displayed. The gross weight is the sum of the values in the WEIGHT column. Note that you can enter negative numbers such as for fuel consumed in Start, taxi and runup. For entry of the weight of the fuel, if you type the letter g after the number (for example, 80g), CAFP will interpret this to mean gallons of fuel and will multiply the entered number by 6. For example, entering 80g will result in a value of 480 (80 x 6) being recorded. The center of gravity is calculated by dividing the total MOMENT by the gross weight. If you want a printed copy of the weight and balance computations, first make sure the printer is on and ready, then press the key labeled F2. Pressing the Esc key will cause all the data on this screen to be saved on a file (WTBAL.DAT) and you will return to the main menu. The next time you use the weight and balance option, all the numbers will re-appear. To accomplish a new weight and balance computation, just enter the new values. - 9 - Weather The next screen to try out is the Weather screen. It is displayed by selecting the Weather option from the main menu. This will result in the Weather Menu being displayed. From the Weather Menu you may select option 1 to communicate with an on-line weather system such as DUAT. Before selecting option 1 be sure to review the communications settings by selecting option 2. Option 2 from the Weather Menu takes you to a screen on which you may enter any of seven different communication parameters. The parameters and their meaning are: 1. COM port The communications port value indicates where your modem is connected to your computer. The acceptable values for COM port are 1 or 2. If you don't know whether your modem is connected to port 1 or 2, then try using port 1. If nothing happens when you begin communications (option 1), then change this value to 2. 2. Bits per This is also know as "baud". It is the rate at which data second is processed by your modem and the on-line system to which you are connected. Your modem must be capable of processing data at the rate which you select. Most modems can process data at 1200 bits per second. So if you aren't sure of the proper setting, use 1200. If that doesn't work, or if you want to experiment, try a different setting. 3. Parity Parity is a scheme for checking the data to see if it was transmitted without error. Although this scheme is not perfect, it is the only one currently in use by all of the DUAT systems. The five allowable values correspond to five different parity schemes known as None, Even, Odd, Space and Mark. N is actually no parity checking. You should use E unless your on-line system instructs you differently. 4. Data bits This is the number of bits which are used to represent 1 character. It should be 7 for most applications. 5. Stop bits The number of bits which are used to signal the end of each character of data. Should be 1 for most applications. 6. Dialing The dialing method can be T if you have Tone dialing, method otherwise use P for Pulse dialing. 7. Telephone The telephone number may be constructed from the digits 0 number through 9, hyphen "-", parenthesis "(" and ")", and commas ",". The comma will cause a pause of 2 seconds and is often used if you have to dial a 9 or other digit to get to an outside line and then pause before continuing with the dialing. For example, to dial 9 then wait 4 seconds then dial 1 (800) 767-9989 you would enter the following: 9,,1 (800) 767-9989. After setting the communication values, you may select option 1 to communicate with an on-line system. Be sure to have the instructions for logging in to your system. There will be a five second delay as the program resets your modem, then it will dial the number you have entered on the previous screen. You will see five function keys defined at the bottom of the screen. F1 is the standard help key. F2 works as a switch to turn printing on - 10 - and off. F3 is also a switch. Press F3 and all data will be automatically saved to a disk file as it is received from the on-line system. You will have a choice between adding data to previously saved data (the APPEND option) or REPLACING previously saved data with new data. Press F3 a second time to stop saving data to disk. F4 may be pressed to pause the transmission of data. This is useful if your on-line system does not provide pausing as it fills the screen. F5 must be pressed after you exit the on-line system as this is what frees your phone line and returns you to the weather menu. F6 is used to send a BREAK signal to the on-line system. The effect of F6 is determined by the on-line system. Option 3 from the Weather Menu will present a screen for entry of the winds aloft data. Winds aloft data are used by CAFP in computing estimated ground speed, heading, and time enroute. The accuracy of winds aloft will directly affect the accuracy of these computations. It is important that you enter current winds aloft data when flight planning. This screen is used like many of the other screens in CAFP. Use the cursor movement keys to move around the screen. Enter values by typing numbers and the entry key. If you make a mistake, press Backspace and type the item again. If you want to remove or erase a value, press the Del key. You must enter two sets of winds aloft values. The reporting stations should be selected to be as near as possible to your departure point and your destination. The wind direction values are entered in the "from" column. Use the full number for wind direction, not the one or two digit abbreviation found in winds aloft forecasts. CAFP will reject any direction value less than zero or greater than 360. The wind velocity value is entered in the "at" column. It is not necessary to enter values for all altitudes. You must enter values up to the first altitude that is greater than or equal to the altitude you will be flying. (Subject of course to reporting limitations. Not every station will report 3,000 or 6,000 feet winds.) For example, if the highest altitude you would fly is 10,000, you should enter winds aloft for 3, 6, 9, and 12 thousand. Or to put it another way, the data should bracket the highest altitude you will fly. On short flights it may not be feasible to obtain two sets of winds aloft data. In such a case enter the data in the Departure columns and copy it to the Destination columns. The copying is done automatically if you press the key labeled F3. In no case should you leave the Destination column blank. If you do, CAFP will assume that winds are calm at all altitudes at your destination. This will cause errors in the estimates for heading, ground speed, and time enroute, unless the winds truly are calm. If you want a printed copy of the winds aloft to take with you, press the F2 key. Make sure the printer is on and ready before pressing F2. The F4 key is used to clear or erase the entire screen. Pressing F5 will cause the departure and destination data to be exchanged. This is useful for planning the return trip when you expect no significant change in winds aloft. After you have entered all the necessary winds aloft data, press the Esc key. This will cause the data to be saved on a file (WEATHER.DAT) and you will be returned to the weather menu. The next time you select winds aloft the same data will re-appear. - 11 - Option 4 from the Weather Menu will cause the weather data file (assuming you have saved data to your disk while you were on-line) to be scanned for winds aloft data. If any data are found, you may select the data and it will be automatically entered into CAFP as if you had manually entered it. Option 5 of the Weather Menu can be used to look at the weather data file. (Again, assuming you have saved data to your disk while on-line). You may use the PgUp and PgDn keys to move through the file a screen at a time. You may use the up and down arrows to move through the file on line at a time. The Home key will return you to the beginning of the weather data file. Option 6 of the Weather Menu is used to print the weather data file. (Assuming you have saved data to disk.) Finally, option 7 from the Weather Menu will return you to the Main Menu. You may also return to the Main Menu by pressing the Esc key. - 12 - Route A route consists of a sequence of facilities that includes at a minimum a departure point and a destination point. If you are navigating directly from the origin to the destination, then no more facilities are required to define the route. A facility can be any of the approximately 1000 VOR stations that are in the data file or any other point for which you know its latitude and longitude or its radial and distance from a VOR. If you are not navigating directly, then you will want to include some facilities between the origin and destination. These are typically a sequence of VOR stations. The major issue in understanding how to use the Route option lies in understanding how the sequence of facilities is determined. There are three approaches that can be used: You can let CAFP select the sequence automatically, you can specify the sequence yourself, or you can use a combination of the two. Let's now consider these three approaches. We'll start with the automatic selection. Automatic route selection For purposes of illustration, let's assume you wish to create a route from Memphis International Airport to New Orleans Moisant. Select the Route option from the main menu. After a brief pause for loading data you will see the data entry screen for the route option. The id codes which you enter for an airport can be the prefixed with a K or ended with an A. The identifier for Memphis Airport is MEM, so it can be entered as MEMA or KMEM. You can enter the id's in upper or lower case. Enter MEMA and you will receive a message that MEMA is not in the data file. To add it to the file you simply answer yes to the question by typing a y and pressing the entry key. You will then be asked for the elevation, magnetic variation, altitude and either the latitude and longitude or its distance and radial from a VOR station. When entering the latitude and longitude, give degrees and minutes separated by a colon or semicolon or hyphen. After all questions are answered, CAFP will add the answers to the data file so that if we should specify MEMA in the future all necessary data will be available. You next specify the destination code. Move the block cursor to the area after the word DESTINATION and enter the id MSYA for New Orleans Moisant Airport. As before, answer y to the question about adding it to the file. The two areas labeled Include and Exclude are used to enter id's of facilities you want included in the route or that are not to be used in constructing your route. We won't use them for now. You now have a choice of which method is to be used for constructing the route. Direct routing will cause the route to consist of the origin, any facilities you specified in the Include area , and the destination. Since you didn't specify any id codes to include, if Direct routing is selected you would have a route that consists of one leg from the origin to the destination. VOR routing will cause CAFP to search for a sequence of VOR's that will take you to your destination. Select VOR routing by pressing F3 and wait while CAFP searches for a sequence of high and low altitude VOR's. After the sequence is determined the station id's and distance between them will appear on the screen. The sequence will also be stored in a file named MEMAMSYA.RTE. - 13 - Manual route selection If you would prefer to specify all the facilities to comprise a route, then list them in the Include area. Remember that terminal class VOR's end with the letter "T". Choose Direct routing by pressing the F4 key. The route will then be created using the facilities whose id's you have entered and in the same order you entered them. Once again, the route will be stored in a file whose name consists of the origin id, the destination id, and the letters "RTE". Combining manual and automatic route selection The third method of defining a route is to combine the two previous methods. If there are some facilities you wish to fly over, specify them in the Include area. Then choose VOR routing (F3). CAFP will use all of the facilities you have specified and will fill in any gaps with VOR's of its own choosing. As before, the route is stored in a file named origin id, destination id, plus RTE. After a route is created you may create another by making any desired changes to the origin, destination, include and exclude lists and pressing either the F3 or the F4 key. If you change a route you have previously created, then the new version of the route will replace the old version. After creating a route, you may press the F7 key to create a graphic display of your route. This assumes you have a graphics monitor. *** This feature has been removed from the evaluation version. *** The F5 key is used to create more room for entry of id's in the Include and Exclude lists. - 14 - Flight Plan Selection of Flight Plan from the main menu will result in a screen like the standard flight plan form used by the FAA. The purpose of the Flight Plan option is to allow you to create and store flight plans. Then when you need to fly the same route again, the flight plan can be easily retrieved . There is an important requirement before creating a flight plan. The requirement is that you must first specify the route of flight. The Route selection is used for this purpose. The cursor will initially be positioned on the area following the word ROUTE. If a route file has been used before selection of the Flight Plan option, then the name of that route file will appear here and the route will be displayed in the area following. You may change the route file name by typing a new name in this area. If a route or flight plan has been previously created under this new name, then it will be retrieved. The flight plan form is filled in as completely as possible by CAFP using data which has been stored on the configuration file, and a route file or a flight plan file. Items which are blank will need to be filled in to complete the flight plan. 1. Type - Enter an "x" in either the VFR or IFR box. If you want to change the type, enter an "x" in the appropriate box and the other box will automatically be erased. 2. Aircraft Ident. - Copied from the configuration file. 3. Type and Special Equipment - Copied from the configuration file. 4. True Airspeed - Enter the cruising true airspeed in knots. 5. Depart. Point - Copied from the route file. 6. Depart Time - You may enter the time in standard format for universal coordinated time (zulu), or enter the local time and follow it with letters corresponding to your time zone. The second method will result in the time being automatically converted to zulu. For example, enter 1000cd (for 10 am central daylight) and the resulting value is 1500. 7. Cruising Altitude - Enter the cruising altitude in feet. - 15 - 8. Route of flight from - The route of flight will be selected from a previously created route by entering the route name. A route name consists of a four letter origin code and four letter destination code. For example, entering "memamsya" would cause CAFP to look for a route file for a route from the Memphis airport to the New Orleans airport. If the file doesn't exist then your entry will be ignored. The route of flight can also be selected from a previously stored flight plan. In this case all the flight plan data will appear on the screen. Note there is blank space between each facility listed in the route area of the flight plan. If you are creating a flight plan for the first time, then you will need to enter either airway names (for example, V-9) or the letters "dir" if there is no airway and you are flying direct between facilities. 9. Destination - Copied from the route file. 10. Est. Time Enroute - This value is automatically computed and entered as soon as you have entered True Airspeed, and Cruising Altitude. 11. Remarks - Anything can be entered in this area. 12. Fuel on Board - Enter the hours and minutes of fuel on board. 13. Alternate Airport(s) - Enter one or two id's for alternates. 14. Pilot's Name etc. - Copied from the configuration file. 15. Number Aboard - Enter the number. 16. Color of Aircraft - Copied from the configuration file. CLOSE WITH - Enter the name of the station - 16 - You can experiment with different altitudes to see the affect on time enroute by simply entering different altitude values in the Cruising Altitude box. Time enroute will be automatically recalculated. Selection of a cruising altitude will involve considerations other than time enroute. CAFP does not know the suitability of a particular altitude for conducting a flight. You will have to incorporate your knowledge of terrain, weather, controlled and restricted airspace, navaid availability, air traffic control procedures, airplane performance and other considerations to select an altitude for conducting your flight. Time enroute will also be automatically recalculated when you enter different values for true airspeed. After you have completed the flight plan, press the Esc key. CAFP will examine the route of flight and perform a "compression" if necessary. Compression means the deletion of unnecessary legs on the flight plan. For example if you had V-99 ABCV V-99 DEFV V-99 XYZV for the route, then compression would result in V-99 XYZV. Next, the flight plan will be stored in a flight plan file whose name consists of the the four letter departure point id, the four letter destination id, and the letters "PLN". In summary, to retrieve a previously saved flight plan, enter the name in the area following the word ROUTE. The name of a flight plan consists of the four letter origin id and the four letter destination id. To create a new flight plan enter a route file name after the word ROUTE. Then complete the entry of the remaining items on the flight plan. When you press the Esc key the flight plan will saved on a file and you will return to the main menu. - 17 - Flight Log A flight log is a report which lists each leg of a route and gives useful information for flying the route. Included in flight logs are the frequency of navaids, elevation of airports, the course (degrees), heading, distance, and estimates of time and ground speed for each leg. All flight logs are based on a route. So, before you can use the Flight Log option, you must first create a route file with the Route option. When you select the Flight Log option, you should first enter the name of the route. If you have previously used a route name (in either the Route option or the Flight Plan option) it will appear here automatically. If the name is correct, you do not need to re-type it. If the name is not correct, then enter the route name using the usual convention of the four letter origin name followed by the four letter destination name. In order for CAFP to complete the flight log, it must know your altitude and true airspeed. As before, if you have already specified an altitude and/or true airspeed, these values will appear automatically. If you wish to change the values then enter a different value. After entry of all three values, the flight log will be displayed. Note that the total time may not be exactly the same as the total of the individual leg times. This is because the leg times are rounded to the nearest minute, but the total time does not have this rounding error. So don't be alarmed if the total is different by a few minutes. You may, at your option, have lattitude and longitude of all waypoints be printed on the flight log. Start CAFP with the command: cafp l - 18 - Select Aircraft The Configure option will allow you to enter data about different aircraft. Each set of configuration data is stored in a file whose name is formed from the aircraft I.D. (N-number). However, at any given time CAFP is using only one set of data. The Select Aircraft option will allow you to specify the I.D. or N-number of the aircraft you wish to use. This will cause CAFP to load the configuration data for that aircraft. The Main Menu will always display the I.D. or N-number of the aircraft that is currently selected. The N-number also appears on the Flight Log screen. - 19 - Data Maintenance The Data Maintenance option allows you to make changes to the primary data file and to delete the files that are created when you create routes and flight plans. Selection of this option results in a menu. The first three items allow you to display, delete , and add data to the primary data file. Item 4 is used to delete route files and flight plan files. Item 5 will return you to the main menu, as will pressing the Esc key. The primary data file as it is delivered contains information about VOR stations in North America. You may display information about any of these facilities or any others that you add to the file by selecting item 1. Selection of item 2 will allow you to delete data in the primary data file. In addition to the over 1000 VOR stations, there is room in this file for about 700 additional facilities. If you have added data and you decide to remove it, then you can use item 2. Item 3 is used to add data to the file. To add a new facility you will need to supply its name, frequency or elevation, latitude, longitude, and magnetic variation. Frequency should be specified for a navigation facility, elevation for an airport. Item 4 allows you to delete route files and/or flight plan files. - 20 - After your evaluation of CAFP(tm), if you decide to continue using it, you should register your copy with Conrad Computing. On receipt of your registration, Conrad Computing will send you the latest version of the software and will begin your one year subscription to the data updates. You will receive, at 55 day intervals, a disk which contains changes to the primary datafile of VOR data. Registration costs $79.95. Registered users will recieve the latest version of CAFP, a one-year subscription to the data updates, and support for use of the software. Payment may be made by check or money order. Charge card payments are not available. Conrad Computing, Inc. 11845 Archerton Drive St. Louis, MO 63044 An update service is available to registered users of CAFP(tm), after your original subscription expires. At 55 day intervals you will receive a disk which contains changes to the datafile of VOR data. These changes are incorporated into your file with the entry of a single, simple command. A one year subscription to the update service costs $50.00 Make checks or money orders payable to Conrad Computing, Inc. Mail to the above address.