Activate approach question
Printed From: Avidyne
Category: Avidyne General
Forum Name: IFD 5 Series & IFD 4 Series Touch Screen GPS/NAV/COM
Forum Description: Topics on Avidyne's IFD 5 Series and IFD 4 Series Touch Screen GPS/NAV/COM
URL: http://forums.avidyne.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=657
Printed Date: 30 Apr 2025 at 1:47am
Software Version: Web Wiz Forums 12.01 - http://www.webwizforums.com
Topic: Activate approach question
Posted By: Jrlumpp
Subject: Activate approach question
Date Posted: 30 Apr 2015 at 5:50pm
| I'm trying to understand the logic of the IFD 540 when imputing a flight plan with a GPS approach at the conclusion. The initial portion of the FMS gives the option to "activate flight plan".. Which causes the final arrival to switch from the destination airport to the approach fix for that airport. Is there any reason to hold off activating the approach ? Perhaps it makes it simpler to wait until ATC gives the final assigned approach for that airport which could be a different runway from what was initially planned. This is all new to me, I know others will have a good explanation. |
Replies:
Posted By: Gring
Date Posted: 30 Apr 2015 at 8:35pm
| I'll give it a go. When you select an approach, you choose either an IAF or vectors to final and it gets added to your flight plan. I only activate the approach when cleared for the approach at the selected IAF or when assigned a heading and being vectors to the final approach course. There are a number of other scenarios that exist where you may or may not have to press the activate approach LSK but I don't think you are asking about those...yet. |
Posted By: oskrypuch
Date Posted: 30 Apr 2015 at 9:23pm
|
Yes, it is really just a planning/operational choice. You may wish to have the approach loaded for review, but not yet execute it until cleared, as Gring notes. It just gives you more flexibility. Note that if you are not currently direct the destination, the procedure will be placed before the destination point in logical sequence, with a GAP between the chosen IAF and the last waypoint of the fltplan you entered. You can then either activate the procedure to go direct the IAF, or you can close the GAP, and have it sequence into the approach from your other entered fltplan points. If you are direct the destination, then it is the active waypoint, so then the procedure is placed after the destination, with another instance of the destination tacked on. If you then hit activate approach, you are executed direct the IAF, and then the destination. The "duplicated" destination point disappears from the strip.
* Orest |
Posted By: Jrlumpp
Date Posted: 30 Apr 2015 at 9:42pm
| Thanks, your feedback and the simulator really lets me see how this plays out. Great unit, well worth the wait. |
Posted By: oskrypuch
Date Posted: 30 Apr 2015 at 10:31pm
You betcha! * Orest |
Jrlumpp wrote:Posted By: Kentucky Captain
Date Posted: 30 Jul 2015 at 1:09am
|
Before departing off of my home airport I entered the destination airport since it is only 13 miles away. I entered the procedure, the RNAV 29, WOBIL intersection. My intent was to get all of that entered before departure and activate it after airborne. My reason for not activating the approach on the ground is that I would have to re-enter direct to WOBIL once airborne because the course line would no longer be valid. After I was airborne, the activate button was no longer there. I pressed the direct button and activated direct to the IAF of WOBIL but is that is the same as activating the approach? I did the same scenario on the IFD simulator and the Activate Approach button stayed alive no matter how long I waited to activate it. My question, What is the proper procedure here? Should the Activate Approach button disappear like that? During approaches to this airport last week I did the RNAV LPV approach to each runway. I never got a vertical deviation indicator for either approach on the Aspen EFD 1000. Back at my home airport I did the RNAV LPV and did get the vertical indicator. Any reason for that? I did a LOC approach to another airport. Shouldn't I be getting a DME on the Aspen? |
Posted By: teeth6
Date Posted: 30 Jul 2015 at 7:16am
|
The activate Flt Plan is available while you are on the ground to give you the option to activate before departure. Once you reach a certain speed on the takeoff roll, the unit activates your flight plan automatically and the "activate" button disapppears. I hope this answers your question. |
Posted By: BobsV35B
Date Posted: 31 Jul 2015 at 5:58pm
|
To Kentucky Captain, You said: "I did a LOC approach to another airport. Shouldn't I be getting a DME on the Aspen?" Do you expect the distance via your DME receiver or the GPS? Which DME distance do you expect? If there is a DME distance associated with the Approach it is generally near the localizer transmitter shack. If there is another localizer approach in the opposite direction, it may well use the same DME transmitter. The distances shown on the chart will be the ones from the location of the DME transceiver, not necessarily either end of the runway. Minneapolis is another odd one. The DME transmitter is located near the glide slope antenna for the northwest runway. When landing to the northwest, the distance will be to that spot. When landing to the southeast, they still use the DME distance to the glide path shack for the other runway. I see no practical way to show a DME distance via GPS for any localizer approach. If there are step downs based on a DME distance, it should show the name of the fix and that will certainly be accurate via GPS regardless of the distance to the DME transceiver site. There are a few localizer associated DME distances that are based on a close by VOR/DME, but that will be shown on the individual chart. Any help at all? Happy Skies, Old Bob ------------- Old Bob, Ancient Aviator |
Posted By: Kentucky Captain
Date Posted: 13 Aug 2015 at 1:48am
Sorry it took so long to revisit this question of mine. As to the vertical guidance not displaying on the LPV approaches at the satellite airport, my brain read LPV on the chart when in reality it read LP. This airport has LP approaches to both ends. Now I know the difference and won't be looking for a glideslope on a "Localizer Precision" approach. My other question about the DME. I don't have a DME in the airplane but I thought that the Aspen would display DME from the IFD. On this particular approach, the LOC RWY 5 at KEKX, I had activated the approach and never saw any DME display on the Aspen. With the GPS approaches, you see the DME to the next waypoint on the approach. Am I doing something wrong or expecting something that won't be there? I did see the waypoints on the map underlay but had no DME displaying anywhere. |
Posted By: PA20Pacer
Date Posted: 13 Aug 2015 at 7:50am
|
Hello Kentucky Captain- The localizer DME waypoints are in the IFD540 database as Ixyz, where xyz is the localizer identifier. However, I do not believe the distance to these waypoints is displayed on either the Aspen or the IFD540 during a localizer approach activated on the IFD540. The IFD540 will display the distance to the MAP, but when IFD540 is in VLOC mode, no distance information is displayed on the Aspen, as near as I can tell. Regards, Bob ------------- Bob Siegfried, II Brookeridge Airpark (LL22) Downers Grove, IL |
Posted By: Gring
Date Posted: 13 Aug 2015 at 8:49am
| On the IFD540, if you set up a datablock to show the current waypoint information you will see the GPS distance (can be used as DME distance) to the waypoint. |