Page 13 - Volume 11 Number 3

feature on electronic en route maps or approach plates knows the situational awareness advantage it provides. Obviously, the software being used for electronic charts must incorporate own- aircraft capabilities, along with some sort of present-position navigational source input (and appropriate certification, when/where required). With those tools in place, the new scaled format of Jepp’s SID/STAR charts is just the sort of safety enhancement that pilots crave. As with approach plates, there are situations that preclude scale depictions of some portions of the chart. In such cases, the non-scaled portion(s) will be outlined with a dashed-line and labeled “NOT TO SCALE.”
Consolidating Textual Data
When looking at a paper SID/STAR chart, at
least in most cases, the entirety of the chart
is in front of the pilot when referenced. When
using electronic means of chart viewing, that
is not always the case. Many tablets and EFBs
allow easy zooming, panning, and pinching of the chart for easier viewing of one area versus another (a feature that many pilots with aging eyesight appreciate). The problem this can create is that critical textual data, restrictions, and/or limitations are often moved out of view and forgotten. Or, to be referenced, the pilot must pan and swipe while searching for
the pertinent information which
may be distributed around the
edges, corners, or in otherwise
uncluttered areas of the chart. To
alleviate this problem, Jepp’s new
format declutters the plan view by
consolidating as much of the textual
data as feasible into a single panel
at the edge of the chart, most often
on the chart’s right side. This allows
quicker location of the information
initially and eliminates the need
to search in multiple locations
to gather all the data. While the
“briefing strip” that Jepp users are
already familiar with remains, even
it has been enhanced by always
being aligned with the orientation
of the procedure itself, which was
not always the case in the past
(Figure 2).
Jepp’s Top Ten List
Jeppesen’s press releases and online training resources point out that the new format was gener- ated through an Operational Risk Assessment (ORA), pilot research, customer feedback and human fac- tors testing to “improve situation
MARCH 2017
Figure 2: The NTHNS4 RNAV Departure for New York’s La Guardia Airport (KLGA) is one of the current examples utilizing the new standard format of consolidating the textual data along the chart’s right side. Also of note on this chart is the obvious division of the MSA circle into two quadrants, separated by the 010o/190o Bearing
to the LGA VOR.
KING AIR MAGAZINE • 11