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From: doug@terak.UUCP (Doug Pardee)
Newsgroups: net.aviation
Subject: Re: aviation calculators
Message-ID: <208@terak.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 3-Dec-84 14:08:46 EST
Article-I.D.: terak.208
Posted: Mon Dec  3 14:08:46 1984
Date-Received: Thu, 6-Dec-84 05:44:54 EST
References: <128@anwar.UUCP>
Distribution: net.general
Organization: Terak Corporation, Scottsdale, AZ, USA
Lines: 30

[I'm being the Devil's Advocate -- been on retainer for some time]]

My view is not to be confused with the popular view... I know of few
pilots who agree with me... but...

I say buy a cheapie all-plastic circular slide rule type, and then
throw it out after you pass your flight test.  Aviation calculators
only multiply, divide, and do wind triangles.  Any 10-buck calculator
can do multiplication and division plus a bunch of other neat stuff
like addition, subtraction, etc.  Besides, anyone that is smart
enough to figure out how to run a calculator can figure out all of
the normal piloty stuff in his head (I'm being serious).  All
except wind triangles, which are of no use unless you know what
the wind direction and speed are.  And if you think that the
Weather Service knows what the winds aloft are, I've got some
land in Southern Arizona that I'd like to sell you.

The only aviation calculator that I've seen that would have
been worthwhile was made by Heathkit a number of years ago.  It
included a clock, and would accept up to 9 checkpoints and
a flight plan.  As you passed over each checkpoint, you punched
a button and the calculator would figure out how long the preceding
leg took.  This information, combined with the heading that you
had to hold to get where you were going, allowed the calculator
to figure out what the wind must have been, and then would
extrapolate the following legs of the flight plan based on that
wind.  Then it could give you neat info like ETA at each
checkpoint, groundspeed, fuel remaining, etc.

Doug Pardee -- Terak Corp. -- !{hao,ihnp4,decvax}!noao!terak!doug