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June 22, 1992 ROUTENAV Ver. 1.2 VFR FLIGHT PLANNER ╔════════════════╗ ║ INTRODUCTION ║ ╚════════════════╝ Routenav is a very flexible graphics-based VFR flight planning program for private pilots and computer pilots. Listed below are only a few of the many features: NOTE: When this manual refers to a navaid, it is referring to an airport, VOR, NDB, or any combination of these. A waypoint is a navaid that has been selected as part of your route. * Flight Plans: You may create manual flight plans (select every waypoint along the route), or automatic flight plans (select starting and ending airports (and an optional waypoint to overfly), and the computer will select the waypoints along the way). The flight planning process is very flexible in that the computer displays all of the navaids along the route and, in automatic mode, selects the waypoints. If you want to change the route, a navaid may be selected or deselected while viewing the route. Specific information about a navaid (latitude, longitude, frequencies, runways, and distances from/to the previous/next waypoint,etc.) can also be displayed by selecting the navaid. Once you are satisfied with the route, you then enter wind and altitude information for the route. The program uses that information to calculate magnetic heading, distance, time, fuel, groundspeed, and descent information for the route. You may then save the route to be recalled later, print it, and/or save it to disk as an ASCII file. * PREVIOUS ROUTES: Previously saved routes may be easily recalled, viewed, or deleted. When a route is recalled, the actual route is displayed along with the other navaids along the route. You may edit the route by selecting or deselecting routes as previously described. * NAVAID SELECTION: Finding the navaid you want is very easy. If you know the name, or id of the navaid, you may enter it directly and the computer will search the database for it. Selection may also be made by entering the two letter postal code for the state. In this case, you would select the navaid from a list of all navaids from that state. Selecting the navaid from a list of the entire database is another option for selection. * NAVAID DATABASE: ROUTENAV allows new navaids to be added, and existing to be edited or deleted. The navaid to be edited or deleted can be selected by name, id, state, or from the entire database. The size of the database (number of navaids) is limited only by the amount of disk space available. * AIRCRAFT DATABASE: Aircraft information used during flight planning may be added, edited, or deleted in the same manner as the navaids. Again, with this database, the size (number of aircraft) is limited only by disk space. * WEIGHT AND BALANCE: Weight and Balance may be calculated for any aircraft in the database. * CONVERSIONS: A calculator is provided to convert fuel or distance. Fuel may be converted between US Gallons, Imperial Gallons, and Liters. Distance conversions may be done between Nautical Miles, Statute Miles, and Kilometers. This calculator is provided only as a convenience, however. ROUTENAV does not require you to manually convert anything, for it will automatically convert fuel and distance during the flight plan calculations utilizing the method of measurement you selected from the SETUP screen. * FLIGHT SIMULATOR (tm) SELECTION ROUTENAV can be used just as easily for computer pilots as for private pilots. When "Flight Simulator (tm) Only" is selected from the SETUP screen, when ROUTENAV searches the navaid database, it will select only navaids that have a scenery defined. By doing this, you do not have to sift through ALL of the navaids to find the ones available in Flight Simulator. ╔════════════════╗ ║ REQUIREMENTS ║ ╚════════════════╝ CPU: IBM 286 or better Monitor: EGA or VGA Monitor with graphics card. Hard Drive: The amount of disk space required depends the amount of memory you have available. If you have 2 MBs od memory you will need approximately 2 MB's of disk space Mouse: A mouse is not required, but is recommended. Memory: The program will make use of extended memory if it is available. If the program runs out of conventional or extended memory, it will use disk space to store data (this is why a Hard Drive is recommended). ╔════════════════╗ ║ INSTALLATION ║ ╚════════════════╝ To install ROUTENAV, simply go to the directory you want to use as the ROUTENAV directory and UNZIP the ROUTENAV.ZIP file. For example, if ROUTENAV.ZIP is on drive A: and you wanted ROUTENAV in C:\ROUTENAV, you would go to the C:\ROUTENAV directory and type PKUNZIP A:ROUTENAV (assuming PKUNZIP.EXE is in the path). The ROUTENAV files will then be uncompressed in the C:\ROUTENAV directory. Type ROUTENAV to run the program. The first thing you should do when you run the program is select SETUP from the main screen to enter your preferences. ╔═════════════╗ ║ OPERATION ║ ╚═════════════╝ MAIN SCREEN: To move the cursor around the main screen, move the mouse or press the arrow keys. Pressing SHIFT and the arrow keys allows you to move in smaller increments. To select a menu, move the cursor to the menu block, and press the left mouse button or the ENTER key. To exit the program, move the cursor to the EXIT button, and press ENTER or the left mouse button. SETUP: When the SETUP menu is selected, the SETUP screen is displayed. Press the TAB key to move among the entry items (fields). The fields may also be selected by moving the mouse cursor to the entry item, and pressing the left mouse button. Enter your name, the path for the main ROUTENAV files, and the path for the database files. If a drive letter is not entered, the current drive is assumed. Various Distance and Fuel measurements may also be selected from this screen. If "FLIGHT SIMULATOR (tm) ONLY" is enabled, then only Flight Simulator Navaids will be selected for flight planning. AIRCRAFT DATABASE: The aircraft database menu allows you to add, edit, or delete aircraft. ADD: To add an aircraft to the database, first select the AIRCRAFT button, then select ADD AIRCRAFT. You will be presented with the Aircraft Input screen. Pressing the TAB key will scroll you through the various entry fields. To enter the Cruise IAS for the aircraft, select the CRUISE IAS button by clicking on it with the mouse, or moving the cursor (using the arrow keys) to the button and pressing HOME. The Cruise IAS input screen will be shown. Enter the IAS at different altitudes for the Aircraft. For example, if the IAS up to 5,000 ft. is 115 Kts., the IAS at 5,000 ft. is 120 Kts., and the IAS at 10,000 ft. is 135 Kts., then you would enter 1000 for the altitude and 115 for the IAS, 5000 and 120, and 10000 and 135. ROUTENAV will make the cruise ias 115 KTS/MPH from 1000 to 5000 ft., 120 KTS/MPH from 5,000 to 9,000 ft., and 135 KTS/MPH from 10,000 ft. and above. Select CONTINUE when you are finished. AIRCRAFT ENTRY FIELDS: N Number: The N Number of the aircraft Description: A description (make and model) of the aircraft (20 characters maximum) Climb Rate: The takeoff climb rate in FPM Descent Rate: The rate of descent in FPM KTS/MPH: The speed measurement you wish to use Takeoff IAS: The takeoff IAS in KTS or MPH (whichever you selected above) Descent IAS: The descent IAS (when landing) for the aircraft Cruise IAS: The IAS at various altitudes Fuel Capacity: The amount of useable fuel (using the fuel measure you selected from the SETUP screen) Startup Fuel: The amount of fuel burned during startup of the aircraft Takeoff Fuel: The amount of fuel burned during takeoff Cruise Fuel: The amount of fuel burned (per hour) during normal cruise flight Empty Weight: The empty weight of the aircraft Max Weight: The maximum fully loaded weight for the aircraft Aircraft Moment: The moment of the aircraft Forward Limit: The forward center of gravity (CG) limit (INCH/MM) for the aircraft Aft Limit: The aft CG limit for the aircraft INCH/MM: Selects whether the Weight and Balance Arms are in inches or millimeters Row 1 Arm: The distance aft of the DATUM (INCH/MM) for the first row of seats Row 2 Arm: The distance aft of the DATUM (INCH/MM) for the second row of seats Row 3 Arm: The distance aft of the DATUM (INCH/MM) for the third row of seats Row 4 Arm: The distance aft of the DATUM (INCH/MM) for the fourth row of seats Forward Arm: The distance aft of the DATUM (INCH/MM) for the forward baggage compartment Aft Arm: The distance aft of the DATUM (INCH/MM) for the aft baggage compartment Fuel Arm: The distance aft of the DATUM (INCH/MM) for the fuel Required Aircraft Inputs: Weight and Balance: Empty Weight, Maximum Takeoff Weight, Aircraft Moment, Row 1 Arm, and Fuel Arm. Flight Planning: N Number and/or Description, all airspeeds, all FPM rates, and Fuel inputs (for fuel calculations). Edit: To edit an aircraft record, select EDIT from the aircraft menu. What happens next depends upon how many aircraft records already exist. If there are no aircraft to edit, a message will be displayed informing you of this. If there is only one aircraft in the database, you will be asked if you want to edit it. If so, then you enter the Aircraft Edit screen to begin editing. If you click the mouse button (or move the cursor and press home) on "NO", then you will exit back out to the Aircraft Database selection menu. If the Aircraft Database contains more than one aircraft, you will be shown a list containing the N-Number and description of each aircraft and may then select one to edit by clicking on it, or select "CANCEL" to exit. When in the Aircraft Edit screen, you may change any or all information for the aircraft as you would when entering a new aircraft. NOTE: A mouse may be used to select the entry fields by moving the mouse cursor to the entry field and pressing the left mouse button. Delete: To delete an aircraft, you simply select "DELETE" from the Aircraft Database select menu. Options for selecting the aircraft are the same as for editing. Once you select an aircraft to delete, you will be asked to confirm the deletion. If you select "YES", the aircraft will be deleted (if "NO", then you will exit back to the Aircraft Database select menu). NAVAID DATABASE: Add: To add a navaid to the Navaid Database, you first select the NAVAID button. The Navaid Database select menu will then be shown. Select ADD to add a navaid to the database. NOTE: The program does not check to see if a duplicate navaid exists, so a suggestion would be to select EDIT, then DATABASE to see a list of all navaids in the database. You can then search the list for the navaid you want to add. Select CANCEL from the selection list to return to the NAVAID DATABASE select menu. If you DO add a duplicate navaid, then every time you search for the navaid for flight planning or editing, you will have to select the one you wish to use. Once you decide you want to add a navaid to the database, select ADD from the Navaid Database select menu to enter the Navaid ADD screen. You can select the various entry fields on the screen by pressing the TAB key. NAVAID ENTRY FIELDS: * ID: A three letter/number combination to identify the navaid. * Name: The name of the navaid (30 characters max). * State: The two letter state postal identifier. Elevation: The elevation (in ft. MSL) of the navaid. Mag. Var.: The magnetic variation of the navaid. If you do not enter a magnetic variation, 0E is assumed. If you are using Flight Simulator (tm), and are not sure of the magnetic variation, then you should use the offset number shown on each chart (the North and East coordinates are canted clockwise or counterclockwise to compensate for orthagonal coordinate grid overlaid on Lambert conformal conic projection). If the number is positive, then the direction is West. If it is negative then the direction is East. For example, the offset for the default scenery for NY is +13. This indicates 13W.Type:The type of navaid. The program uses the following codes for the navaids: * = VOR and Airport or NDB and Airport V = VOR Only N = NDB Only A = Airport Only Description: The description of the navaid (VOR/Airprt, NDB/Airprt, VOR, NDB, Airport). You may enter any description you wish (10 characters max). Scenery: If you intend to use this navaid for Flight Simulator (tm), you must enter the scenery description (Disk number, file name, etc.). When the program is configured for Flight Simulator Only, it will look for this field when searching the database to determine whether the navaid is a FS navaid or not. * Latitude: The Latitude in degrees and minutes for the navaid. * Longitude: The Longitude in degrees and minutes for the navaid. NOTE: If you know the North and East coordinates, then you should use a program such as COORDS.EXE to convert North and East to Latitude and Longitude. Comments: Here you may add any comments you wish about the navaid. Frequencies: Select the FREQUENCIES button to enter the frequencies for the navaid. A suggested ILS frequency sequence is Runway Number/Runway Direction/Frequency (ex. 24/243/109.2). Runways: Select RUNWAYS to enter the runway numbers for the navaid. A suggested sequence is Runway Number/Runway Length (Ex. 10L-28R/9500 X 150). NOTE: The Navaid Database does not contain frequencies (except VOR's) and runway numbers for most NON Flight Simulator (tm) airports. OK: Select OK to save the navaid information and exit. EXIT: Selecting EXIT will abort the procedure and exit without saving. NOTE: A mouse may be used to select the entry fields by moving the mouse cursor to the entry field and pressing the left mouse button. THIS WORKS ON THE MAIN ENTRY SCREEN ONLY! IF YOU SELECT "FREQUENCIES" OR "RUNWAYS" AND USE THE MOUSE TO SELECT THE FIELDS, THE PROGRAM WILL CRASH. THIS BUG WILL BE FIXED IN A LATER VERSION. CONVERSION: The conversion section allows you to convert fuel and distance. As previously stated, this utility is NOT needed for flight planning. The flight planning part of the program will accept and calculate distance and fuel in any of the following three forms: Distance: Nautical Miles, Statute Miles, or Kilometers Fuel: U.S. Gallons, Imperial Gallons, or Liters. To convert Distance or Fuel from one form of measurement to another, first select CONVERSION from the main screen. You will be presented with the CONVERSION utility screen. Converting Distances: To select the measure of distance you want to enter, select the NAME of the distance measure. For example to convert from Statute Miles, you would move the cursor to STATUTE MILES. STATUTE MILES will change to white letters to show which distance measure is selected. Selecting the numbered buttons will enter the number into the distance you selected. When you are finished entering the number, select CALCULATE to calculate the other distances. If you make a mistake while entering the number, select CLR to clear the entry and try again. Converting Fuel: To convert fuel, you must first select the FUEL button. Distance selections will be replaced with Fuel selections. The conversion process is the same for Distance. Exiting: To exit the Conversion screen, select the small bar in the upper left corner of the screen. At this point, if you select EXIT, you will exit the Conversion utility. You may resume conversions by clicking the mouse outside the EXIT box. WEIGHT AND BALANCE: As with the Edit Aircraft Database Screen, the program checks for Aircraft in the database before you begin. If none are found, you will be informed and return to the Main Screen. If one is found, you will be asked if you want to use that aircraft for the weight and balance calculations. If more than one exist, you are presented with a list from which to choose the aircraft you wish to use. To perform Weight and Balance calculations on an aircraft, first enter the Weight and Balance Forward and Aft limits, weight, arm, and moment information for the aircraft using the Aircraft Database screen. If this information does not exist for the aircraft, you will be informed, and return to the Main Screen. Once you select the aircraft, the Weight And Balance screen will be displayed. At this point, you enter the weight information for the various rows of seats in the aircraft. First, choose whether the weight information will be in pounds or kilograms. If your aircraft has less than four rows of seats, simply leave the excess rows at zero. When you enter the fuel, it should be in the fuel measure you selected from the SETUP Screen. Once all of the weight data is entered, select CALC to calculate the center of gravity. If the center of gravity is within limits, a white dot will be displayed inside the borders of the weight and balance graph. If the dot appears to the left or right of the borders (in the red), the Center of Gravity is outside of the range for the aircraft. If the dot appears above the graph, the weight is over the limits for the aircraft. Select EXIT to return to the Main Screen. FLIGHT PLANNING: The flight planner is the heart of ROUTENAV. As you will see, it is extremely versatile and informative. The first step to creating a flight plan is to select the aircraft you will be flying. When you select NAVIGATE from the Main Screen, you will be asked to choose the aircraft. If no aircraft exist (or the program cannot find any) then either there are no aircraft entered in the Aircraft Database, or the directory defined on the SETUP screen is not where the "AIRCRAFT.DAT" file is located. If only one aircraft is defined, you will be asked if this is the aircraft you will be flying. If more than one is found, you will be given a list of the aircraft from which to choose. Next, you are asked what type of flight plan you would like to generate. The selections are explained below. AUTOMATIC: Automatic Flight Planning allows you to select the starting airport, ending airport, and an optional waypoint (Airport, VOR, or NDB) to fly over. Once you have selected these two (or three), then the computer will find ALL of the navaids along your route. It will also select waypoints from these navaids for you to fly over. When you select AUTOMATIC ROUTE, the next option is whether you want the computer to select all possible navaids for the route, or only VORs. MANUAL: In MANUAL flight planning, you select the starting airport and all other waypoints for your route. ROUTENAV will then evaluates your route and select ALL of the navaids along the route. The only waypoints that will be selected for your route are the ones you selected. Once you have selected AUTOMATIC or MANUAL flight planning, you will be asked to select the waypoints for your route. There are four ways to select the waypoints: NAME: If you know the EXACT name of the navaid (Case does not matter), you may select NAME, enter the name (and state if you know it), and the computer will search the database for the name. If you enter the "NAME, STATE", the computer will search for NAME in STATE. If more than one navaid is found, you will be given a list from which to choose. Pressing CANCEL will return you to the Navaid Selection menu.ID:If you select ID, you are asked for the 3-characters of the ID. The characters can be letters, numbers, or a combination. When you press ENTER, the computer will search for the ID. If more than one is found, you will be given a list from which to choose. Pressing CANCEL will return you to the Navaid Selection menu. STATE: Selecting STATE allows you to search the database for all navaids found within a certain state. When you select STATE, you are asked to enter the 2-letter postal code for the state. If you select CANCEL, you will return to the Navaid Selection Menu. If you enter the 2 letter code, the program will search the database for all navaids in the state you selected. You will be given a list from which to select the navaid. To select the navaid, move the cursor to the navaid on the list and press the left mouse button (or the ENTER key). If you decide not to select one of the navaids, selecting CANCEL will cancel the operation and return you to the Navaid Selection Screen. DATABASE: The DATABASE selection will give a list (after the program generates the list) of all navaids in the database. The list could never be long enough to display all of the navaids at once, so the first fifteen or so will be displayed. Along the side of the list is a bar. Selecting the UP or DOWN arrow on the bar will scroll the list up or down. You can manually (and quickly) move through the list by selecting and holding the small box between the arrows, and moving it (using the mouse or arrow keys) up or down. When you release the box, the list will display the navaids for that section of the list. To select the navaid, move the cursor to the navaid on the list and press the left mouse button (or the ENTER key). If you decide not to select one of the navaids, selecting CANCEL will cancel the operation and return you to the Navaid Selection Screen. Once you are finished selecting the navaids, select FINISHED from the menu to continue with the flight planning. PREVIOUS: The PREVIOUS option allows you to work with previously saved routes. If no routes have been saved, a message will appear stating this. From the Previous Route Screen, you may select: NEXT: To see the next page of routes, if it exists (four are displayed per page). PREV: To see the previous page of routes, if it exists. EXIT: To return to the Main Screen. For each saved routes, you may: DELETE: Delete a saved route. You will be asked to confirm this. VIEW: To view the waypoints for the route. RECALL: To recall a saved route for flight planning. After you either select FINISHED from the Navaid Selection Menu or have recalled a saved route, the Flight Planning module is loaded. NOTE: The Screen will go blank while the Flight Planning module is loading. THIS IS NORMAL. After the Flight Planning module is loaded, the screen will clear, and the navaid selection begins. The program searches the database (in alphabetical order) to find all the navaids along you route. You will be shown which waypoints the program is searching between and which navaids are found. When all of the navaids have been found, the screen will again blank and the Route Selection Screen will be shown. This screen shows all of the navaids that were found along your route. If you have selected an automatic flight plan, the waypoints for the route will be automatically selected. If you have selected a manual flight plan, the only waypoints selected will be the ones you selected. If you have recalled a previously saved route, the selected waypoints will be those that were selected when the route was saved. The colors of the navaids will tell you what type of navaid it is. Blue is a Navaid (VOR or NDB) with an Airport, Green is a VOR only, Yellow is an Airport only, and Red is an NDB only. The three character ID of the navaid is shown in white. If you move the cursor to ANY navaid on the screen, you will be shown the ID, Name, and State of the navaid. SELECTING A NAVAID FOR THE ROUTE: If a navaid is not selected as part of the route, you may include it in the route by moving the cursor to it and pressing the left mouse button (or pressing HOME). If you press the left button again, the navaid will be de-selected. NAVAID INFORMATION: Getting information about any navaid on the screen is quite easy. You simply move the cursor to the navaid and press the RIGHT mouse button (or PG UP key). The information you are given depends on the type of navaid it is. If the navaid contains an airport, you will be shown information (ID, Name, State, Elevation, Latitude, Longitude, etc.) about the airport. There will also be two buttons shown. Select the FREQUENCIES button to get the frequency information about the airport. Select the RUNWAYS button to see the runways for the airport. If the Navaid is a VOR or NDB only, you will be shown only the navaid information (ID, Name, State, Elevation, Latitude, Longitude, etc.) and the frequency. Additionally, if the navaid you have selected is a waypoint (part of the route), you will be shown the distance and true course to/from the next/previous waypoint. To return to the Route Selection Screen, select the OK button. When you are satisfied with the route, select the CONTINUE button to continue the flight planning process. If you want to abort the flight plan and return to the Main Screen, select EXIT. The next step for flight planning is entering the altitude and wind information: VFR Flight: If you are flying a VFR Flight, the altitude you fly is determined by the direction you are flying. If your direction is between 000 and 179 degrees, you must fly an ODD altitude + 500 ft. If the direction is between 180 and 359 degrees, the altitude must be an EVEN altitude + 500 ft. If you select this item, then the computer will automatically change the altitude if you change directions. For example: Your true course is 200 degrees, and you select an altitude of 4,500 degrees. Along the route, your true course becomes 165 degrees. The computer will change your altitude to 5,500 ft.. If your course then changes to 195 degrees, the computer will change the altitude back to 4,500 ft. ALTITUDE: This is where you enter the altitude you wish to fly. NOTE: If you select VFR Flight, the computer will NOT check to ensure you enter a proper altitude. WIND: If you selected a Waypoint to Overfly from the Main Screen, this waypoint will be the VIA waypoint. If not, the VIA waypoint will be the one closest to the middle of your route. Enter the Wind Direction and speed for the Starting, Ending, and VIA navaids. The computer will calculate the wind correction angle for each leg of the flight. DESCENT: Select this to descend to pattern altitude (800 ft. MSL) for the Ending airport. DESCENT Input: If you do not select a pattern altitude descent, you will need to enter the altitude you wish to descend to. ROUTENAV will calculate when you should start to descend based upon this altitude. CONTINUE: Select CONTINUE to display the Flight Plan. EXIT: Select EXIT to abort the flight plan and return to the Main Screen. When you select CONTINUE, the flight plan will be displayed. In the upper left corner of the screen you will see your name, the three main waypoints (Starting, Ending, and VIA), and the Totals (Distance, Time, and Fuel). The upper right portion of the screen displays the aircraft and its parameters. The lower left portion of the screen displays descent information for the destination airport. The lower right portion of the screen provides the various button selections. The actual flight plan is displayed in the center of the screen. Full descriptions are given for the Starting and Ending airports (Runways, Frequencies, etc.). Brief descriptions are given for each waypoint along the route (navaid specifications, frequencies, etc.) The Altitude, Distance (in the unit of measure you selected), True Course, Magnetic Heading (True Course compensated for magnetic variation and wind), Groundspeed, Indicated Airspeed (for the altitude you are flying), Estimated Time Enroute (ETE), and Fuel consumption are also given for each leg of the route. MENU SELECTIONS: The following menu selections are available from the Flight Plan Screen: NEXT: Display the next page of the route (if available). PREV: Display the previous page of the route (If available). SAVE: Saves the route for later recall. NOTE: The program allows up to 999 routes to be saved. The routes are stored as ROUTE.XXX files, where XXX is a consecutive number from 001 to 999. The directory will be the DATA DIRECTORY you defined in SETUP. A message will be displayed to tell you the flight plan was saved. OUTPUT: The OUTPUT selection provides the following selections: PRINT: prints the flight plan (if the printer is connected and on-line). FILE: Saves the flight plan to an ASCII file. The file will be labeled FLITEPLN.XXX where XXX is a consecutive number from 001 to 999. The file will be saved to the DATA DIRECTORY you defined in SETUP. A message will be shown to tell you the file was saved. BOTH: The flight plan will be printed and saved to an ASCII file. CANCEL: Selecting CANCEL will abort the OUTPUT selection. EXIT: Select EXIT to return to the Main Screen. DISCLAIMER: The author is not liable for any damage or injury resulting from the use of this product. You, as pilot, should always double check the resultant flight plan against your charts for accuracy. ROUTENAV will not account for minimum heights along your route. CREDITS: Flight Simulator (tm) is a product of Microsoft Corporation. Help or Information: Registered users may call (716) 647-2643 and get help or information on any questions concerning ROUTENAV. If I am not available to answer the call, leave a message and I will call you back.