Navigation and planning charts.

A friend of mine has quite a large collection of USAF Nav/ Planning charts , he has kindly given one of these charts to me, as he knows of my interest in all things aero... The only thing is ,is I have no idea who would have used them and in what capacity :confused: Anyone with any information it would be greatly appreciated .... The map I have is of N Africa,Mediteranean, Greece... and says is current through 8th February 1966... I'm clueless... Thanks PC.

Pilots creed - Plan well

... then when airborne Aviate - Communicate - Navigate in that order

All pilots whether civil or military will consult Aeronautical Charts prior to flight - indeed it is a requirement that this is done and up to date charts are available and carried.

Depending on the mission/flight prior to flight the pilot will need to work out:-

Compass Headings to fly to reach destination - These will be measured with a protractor on the chart and written into a flight "plan" log.

If navigating by ground based Radio Aids (eg VOR, NDB) the tracks to and from these will be plotted. (Look for compass roses and identifiers eg BGT 116.5 or MVC 353.5 etc)

Prior to flight pilots must have a clear idea of the location of high ground/obstacles on their planned route in order to calculate Safety Altitude - the latitude below which they MUST NOT descend unless under positive Air Traffic Control, On An Instrument Approach or in Visual Conditions - Look for Sector Safety Altitudes - eg 3.8 7.2 1.4

Frequencies - Just because you plan to fly to airfield X - it's possible that things could go wrong and a diversion may become necessary - Locations of airfields and ATC frequencies will be marked. Possible diversion Airfields are always considered at the planning stage. (Look for airfields and frequencies eg Divertville App 123.45)

Avoiding Getting Shot Down! - Your maps are dated circa 1968 - Europe was in the grips of a cold war - straying just a wing tip over an international border could land you quite a shock and possibly provoke World War 3 - Prior to flight pilots would need a clear idea of the proximity of the proposed flight to international boundaries. Things happen fast at 500 kts. (Look for some of these international boundaries)

Other Airspace - Imagine how popular you would be if you fly through someones busy airport or airspace without a clearance! - or wander through an army firing range or over a nuclear power station. Prior to flight pilots would need a clear idea of any airspace restrictions on their route.

Etc etc... Pre Flight planning is to do with situational awareness in flight.

So why not photocopy a section of one your charts and draw a line (track) between two airfields of your choice - then draw parallel lines 5 miles either side of your track - then use the chart legend to identify the meaning of every single thing that appears on the space that you have marked out - Remember every single dot and symbol on that chart will have a significant meaning. It will keep you amused for hours.

Cheers
Dave

Dave, thanks very much, not ever being in the service and not having much technical knowledge, the information you passed on is excellent. I will definately have a go at the plotting, It has opened my eyes a lot wider as to what actually goes on as regards preparation, planning. I once saw a documentary on the Red Arrows and they had a large map of I think , Wales , they were plotting round o/head cables,flightpaths etc... is this a similar sort of thing????????Thanks once again PC.

Took these at the museum at CFB Goose Bay the quality is not to good and I do not recall seeing an explanation of what the numbers and dots etc were but they look like plots of aircraft movements.

I know we have some ATC folks on here so hopefully an explanation will be forthcoming.

Just a guess; something to do with 9/11?

quite possible, a lot a traffic into Goose, Stephenville, torbay and of course Gander. I really should pay more attention when I take pictures

They could be to do with 9/11. I beleive Goose took a couple of flights but as has been said most went to St Johns and Gander. A couple of weeks after 9/11 a Virgin flight did divert to Goose for some reason. We had a TWA 747 divert in to Goose when I was there, followed a few days later by an Aeroflot IL 86.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Yellow_Ribbon

Some interesting numbers