Leave your pen and paper apart and save some time on your planification work by using this POH aircraft performance app available for iOS, Android, or Browser and for multiple planes/models (Baron, Bonanza; TBM and Cessna).
This useful totally free app allows easy and rapid flight planning performance computation for several models of Cessna: 172S, 172R, 172P, 172N,172M, 172I and 172H
I've been using it for a long time and when I discovered this app, I continued to calculate my plane performances by hand and then compared my figures with the ones calculated by the software just to make sure of its accuracy. After dozen of comparisons, I started to use exclusively this app: a real time saver!
For each plane, a bunch of models are available and therefore the owner of the last Hot Start TBM900 for X-Plane 11 for instance, will enjoy this app too because it is part of the numerous models proposed for the TBM. And so is for the Baron and Bonanza so that you will most likely be able to find the model you use in your favorite flight sim.
Start to create a plane in the "Aircraft" menu and give it a registration number and select the correct model. If you know the exact empty weight and empty weight arm of the plane you're flying, then modify the default values (if you fly a REP plane for instance, you can easily access those values in the weight & balance page).
Then from the "Quick Setup" menu, you can enter the departure and destination airports; cruise altitude; flight rule intended to be flown and all weight and balance figures such as pilot/pax weights; baggage; fuel...etc
From the "Weight & Balance" menu, the actual C.G for take-off and landing will magically appear. You will just have to check that it is well between the envelope and if it's not too forward or aft for your taste.
From the "Departure" menu, you will find a summary of the weather conditions (automatically downloaded). The app proposes you the best runway for take-off but you can select another one. Based on the current weight of the plane and the weather conditions, the various take-off performances will be computed (e.g. short field take-off roll; 50ft obstacle; TORA; head/tail & cross wind components...).
In the "Enroute" menu, useful information regarding the fuel to destination needed; fuel at destination; minimum fuel reserve; climb fuel burn; range...etc are displayed according to the cruise power you will set. The app takes into account the average wind component based on a direct route from the departure to destination airports.
in the "Destination" menu, similar data to what is computed in the "Departure" menu can be found.
What is really convenient when preparing IFR flights is the "Departure Procedure" and "Approach Procedure" menus. Quite often, when flying a departure procedure (either a Standard Instrument Departure or an Obstacle Departure Procedure), a minimum climb gradient needs to be reached otherwise, it cannot be flown. Same for the missed approach procedure. Using these menus, several data related to climb performances are shown including the take-off gradient and average climb gradient until the Minimum Enroute Altitude that you will have to enter in the first place in order to get this latter value.
Finally, other menus propose nice features such as the "Hold Entry" that will easily give you the type of entry you need to execute depending on the holding leg inbound track and the route to reach the entry in the holding pattern.
The "Glide Distance" menu speaks by itself and very useful to pull out during an in-flight engine failure.
The "Risk" menu will evaluate whether or not you can safely execute the flight based on the current weather conditions; some human factors (illness, fatigue)...etc
You can easily access the browser version via the link below:
https://pohperformance.com/
The Cessna 172 Performance app can be found here:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.pohperformance.C172
TIPAH
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