Tutor Platform
Study note

Get a short, cited explanation of this element written from the FAA handbooks: the core idea, the numbers that matter, common test traps, and a quick self-check.

Sign in to generate a study note

From the FAA library

  • Glossary › Pilot’s Operating Handbook/Airplane Flight Manual

    system (DGPS) that improves the accuracy of the system by determining position error from the GPS satellites, then transmitting the error, or corrective factors, to the airborne GPS receiver. Wind correction angle (WCA). The angle between the desired track ... keep the aircraft tracking over the desired track. Wind direction indicators. Indicators that include a wind sock, wind tee, or tetrahedron. Visual reference will determine wind direction and runway in use. Zone of confusion…

  • Chapter 14: Airport Operations › Wind Direction Indicators

    Wind Direction Indicators It is important for a pilot to know the direction of the wind. At facilities with an operating control tower, this information is provided by ATC. Information may also be provided ... receive and broadcast on this frequency. When none of these services is available, it is possible to determine wind direction and runway in use by visual wind indicators. A pilot should check these wind indicators even…

  • Chapter 12: Night Operations › Night Flight

    when flying at night depend on outside conditions. Flying on a bright, clear, moonlit evening when the visibility is good, and the wind is calm is not much different from flying during the day. However, if flying ... event of an emergency, as it is more difficult to find a place to land and determine wind direction and speed. At night, rely more heavily on the aircraft systems, such as lights, flight instruments, and navigation equipment…

  • Chapter 13: Effective Aeronautical Decision-Making › Single-Pilot Resource Management

    access to a current wind report, should that pilot pick an approach path based on the direction of wind information received from an earlier weather brief? Making an approach into a confined area with a tailwind ... resources such a smoke, trees, and water on a pond to help him or her accurately determine which direction the winds are coming from. Pilots should never leave flying up to chance and hope for the best. Many…

  • Chapter 10: Advanced Flight Maneuvers › Confined Area Operations

    Confined Area Operations A confined area is an area where the flight of the helicopter is limited in some direction by terrain or the presence of obstructions, natural or manmade. For example, a clearing in the woods, a city ... takeoffs and landings should be made into the wind to obtain maximum airspeed with minimum groundspeed. The pilot should begin with as nearly accurate an altimeter setting as possible to determine the altitude…

  • LANDING AREA RECONNAISSANCE AND PLANNING

    judgments about the safety and suitability of the landing area, evaluate the characteristics of the water surface, determine wind direction and speed, and choose a landing direction. It is rare for active airport runways to be used…