Talk LiveATC Radio to me & other aviation digital tools I use to enhance my flying experience!

Flying is one of my deep passions. What it gives me is the opportunity to leave the ordinary and soar into extraordinary. Few things in Life THIS exhilarating. A delicious blend of intense focus, zen, love and freedom.

For me, in learning to fly, it is about nailing the fundamentals without dependency on all fancy tech gadgets. That being said, I embrace these additional tools as secondary tools to enhance my flying experience. In this post, I'll share a few of my favorite tech digital aviation tools that I actively use.

Pilots - I'd love to hear what you are using, even if they are some of the same. It's through pilot referrals that I discovered these tools!

Foreflight - I really like using this on my iPad and iPhone, both in flying and on the ground. When on the ground, I'm often looking up FBOs I'm contemplating to visit in the near future or just poking around to view details about places I have been while familiarizing myself with the features. I use a lot of the runway details, taxi diagrams, view specs about the FBO, etc. 

This app is loaded with information! It is a great secondary reference for situational awareness, along with increasing productivity in choosing better routes (ie winds by altitude details, etc). Oh, I also like the TFR setting so you can be sure to avoid those hot spots. If don't have Foreflight yet and are interested in learning more, I included the site link above for you to peruse further.

Stratus - I have the original that works fine for me. I love the seamless integration with ForeFlight. I bought mine from Sporty's and here's their description of it, "The original Stratus is the easiest, least expensive way to get subscription-free weather on your iPad. Stratus is a totally wireless, portable receiver that streams NEXRAD radar, text weather, TFRs and GPS position to the ForeFlight app—all without a monthly subscription. Simply turn on Stratus, connect to your iPad and go flying. There are no wires, no subscriptions and no hassles." I'm a fan of it, especially for having what I feel is enhanced GPS and more current weather feeds. Click here to view this device and more details on Sport's site.

LiveATC Wow, I really dig this mobile app!! It's such a great way to listen to ATC and pilot radio talk to expose ones ears to what is conveyed. I listen to it whenever I want on my iPhone or iPad. All kinds of handy features in this bad boy like various channels worldwide (Wow!), diagrams, Wx and frequencies. Click here to read my July 2014 post about this useful app.

So, FESS UP, Pilots...What are some of the digital tools you are using to enhance your flying experience and accuracy?

Happy and Safe Flying, Always!

First WingsConnect aviation video series & Stratus First Gen review

Hello Aviators!

As I shared on my first Wings Connect YouTube video, I'm a fan of Stratus! I knew I'd get an inflight navigation aid, just was not sure where to start! There are quite a few choices. As I typically do, I asked for feedback from a few experienced aviators I know. Also, I read up on what was out there. Ultimately, I went with Startus First Gen. I purchased it through Sporty's Pilot Shop. 

Couple things I really like about it is that it would give me the in-flight aviation specific GPS and weather that I desired in a device. It also worked really well with me because I had ForeFlight on my iPad and syncs up very nicely. I like that multiple users could tap into this wireless device in the cockpit. I really like that there was no subscription to obtain once you purchase this device. It really was seamless in terms of its integration with ForeFlight and it was very easy to use. Sharing a link below to my quick first video from wingsconnect.com, giving you some of my brief comments about Stratus and my website. In addition, I'm including the Sportys pilot shop link below to direct you to the Stratus first-generation I purchased. Be sure to read through all the details, check out the images and even check out the video and webinar that they supply all to support your added insights about this particular device.

Learn more about my site www.wingsconnect.com & my brief comments on Stratus in my first Wings Connect video:

http://youtu.be/6Ej3dciXQFI

Sporty's Pilot Shop Stratus First Gen

info & product video/webinar: http://www.sportys.com/PilotShop/product/17165

Feel free to drop me a comment here or under my YouTube video on your thoughts/experience with Stratus. I love to read them!

Happy and safe flying, Always!