Customer Reviews

Pilot's rules of thumb: Rules of thumb, easy aviation math, handy formulas, quick tips

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Pilot's rules of thumb, is a collection of aviation formulas explained in plain english.
It's easy to read and understand.
For example: "Abort the takeoff if 70% of takeoff speed is not reached within 50% of the available runway."
It's pocket size format is easy to consult while flying and does not take any space on your flight bag.
A must have for every flight bag.

This and the Pilot's Pocket Handbook stay in my flight bag. Can you figure headwind and crosswind components in your head? This books shows you how to do it to the first decimal place, along with a ton of other need to know (save your behind) and cool to know "rules of thumb." Great gift for pilots at all stages of general aviation.

I can only review from a Student Pilot point of view. This guide has all the common calculations in it. Great, small, handy reference and well organized.

This is a small, 2.5" x 4" spiral with about 20 pages. There are a couple of rewordings of the same shortcuts. Not all encompassing. No background, or explanation. If it were for a student, then it should be 6x8 with explanations. If it were for a cockpit, it should be better formatted for quick access.

Unfortunately, there's not a single all-encompassing tome, so this is on the edge of being worthy of its cost; however, if you have a laser printer, and some time, you can find the same info online, and the act of collecting and formatting the info will help you learn it better.

As a check captain for a major airline this little book is a constant companion in my flight bag. There is something for everyone from piston to jet drivers there are handy little rules of thumb and calculations that will make your job easier as well as giving a quick ball park answer for operational oriented questions.

I would have given it 5 stars but the layout and type are a little cumbersome and no index. But my little book is highlighted now so I can go to the little formulas I use most.

If you fly jet's the best book is Fly the Wing by Jim Web. It is lodaed with rules of thumb and hard earned wisdom that applies to jet operations.

I am planning on attending ATP school next year and I find this book to be very informative when I am studying or using the flight simulator. I have used it extensively. needs to have a sturdier binding!

The book does contain many of the generalized ways of quickly working some of the problems confronted by an aviator. I was disappointed in the quality of print and paper.

Not as advertized. No index so you waste time fishing for the info. If you remember square root in your head or tanget angles then this is help full. lots of useless information. only 49 pages at 3.5 by 5.5 inches.

This little book fits in your shirt pocket (unless you wear polo shirts), small enough to be handy and available. It is a compilations of simple rules of thumb for various piloting and pilotage problems that come up on cross-country flights. You probably know that barometric pressure varies about 1 inch per 1,000 ft altitude change, but did you know that you can set your altimeter to 29.92 and read the pressure altitude? You may know that true airspeed increases 2% over IAS (indicated airspeed) for each 1,000 ft, but did you know that the maneuvering speed Va is about 1.7 of Vsi? Even if you know half the rules of thumb already, and even if you find your GPS takes care of 60% of these rules, wouldn't it be smart to have the others handy when the battery on the GPS dies, or when you need to know the point when it will take equal time in a given headwind to continue or to return? The quick rules are broken down by topic, starting with temp./altitude/airspeed questions via fuel burn rules, take-off and climb data and end with approaches and landings and other aviation calculations. From me, as a relatively new taildragger pilot and also learning gliders, just reading the book re-inforces the learning I did for the checkride and the learning that follows the checkride. It's a heck of a lot easier to look up something here than trying to find the right page of the Flying Handbook on your lap as you approach IMC (Instrument Meteorological Conditions).

I recommend this in every flight bag for those of us who dont get to fly every day. This will help you a lot. has all your formulas and calculations you will ever want. plus some good checklists.