Squawk Ident
What cockpit tool do you consider a must have? It can be software or hardware. Please explain why you like/need it so much.
Garmin traffic display page is a must. The Garmin Pilot app display of traffic is clean, simple but detailed, and extraordinarily beneficial. The detailed traffic knowledge provided increases crew situational awareness of traffic threats within dozens of miles. The traffic display is part of the Garmin Pilot app presented to crew via a yoke-mounted iPad mini.
Marty Rollinger
ATP. Falcon 2000LX
Captain
LECO
Granger IN
iPad with ForeFlight and Collins ARINCDirect is what works best for me in the cockpit.
James Carroll
ATP. Dassault Falcon 7X
Captain
JAFS
Newington NH
Every commercial jet I’ve ever flown — Learjets, DC-9, Boeing 737/757/767, Embraer 190, and Airbus A320 — has contained a “fix” or “progress” page within the FMC (flight management computer). At any moment, this allows the pilot to see his position relative to any fix or navaid in the world. This is essential for position awareness. Unfortunately, the Honeywell ACE suite I am currently piloting in the Pilatus PC-24 has no such function. There is a “Get Info” function that is 3 layers deep, and not dynamic. It’s a 1-time snapshot.
James Sgueglia.
ATP. Pilatus PC-24
Air Ambulance Pilot
Airshare
Charlotte NC
ForeFlight is as close to a one-stop iPad/iPhone flight assistant as one can get. It provides it all–charts, performance, up-to-date weather, and many other features.
J Bohrer
ATP. Citation Sovereign/CJ3+
Pilot & Training Captain
Thrive Aviation
Henderson NV
ADS-B that provides real-time weather is excellent for our operations. It keeps me advised on rapidly changing weather conditions.
James Dahlquist
ATP. Learjet 45
Pilot
Moyle Petroleum
Rapid City SD
SiriusXM weather is my favorite one. I find it to be a great safety feature, including graphics, especially in air weather. It might be an even bigger safety upgrade than GPS.
Bob Schroeder
ATP/Helo/CFII. King Air 300 & Beech Baron
Owner
Ultra-Flight
Kaukauna WI
I’m very pleased having EFIS, FMS, TCAS, all backed up by ForeFlight on my iPad. The ForeFlight Checklist is a must!
Tom Greene
ATP/CFII. Citation Excel
Contract Pilot
Spencer NC
Tablets or smartphones, paired with onboard Internet, have become necessary tools for the cockpit. Since they hold all charts and manuals, and can depict overlays of weather and traffic, they make for a great situational awareness tool. Also, being connected to the Internet gives added communication. Rather than using the flight phone, crew and pax can make a phone call over the Internet connection whenever it’s needed. A quick call to our mechanic for minor issues, or an e-mail to the FBO relaying arrival details, comes in pretty handy.
Ryan Johnson
ATP. Challenger 604
Captain
KMR Aviation
Modesto CA
Access to Starlink in the cockpit is a must-have. Internet, Wi-Fi calling, text, and up-to-the-minute weather data is invaluable in the cockpit for safe and efficient aircraft operations.
Ryan McFarland
ATP/CFII. Citation Encore+
Captain
McFly Holdings
Haslet TX
EFB with ForeFlight and a Jeppesen subscription is my selected tool in the cockpit. There is so much information available to make a timely decision with Wi-Fi. I certainly do not miss Jepp updates. Us “old” guys know what I mean!
Roi Nieto
ATP. Falcon 2000
Captain
Clay Lacy Aviation
Temecula CA
Garmin G5000 is a life-changer for the professional pilot. It provides the aviator with information seamlessly and intuitively. Pilot inputs with the Garmin G5000 interface are so easy, and the amount of pilot-friendly information is so straightforward. Pilot workload is better managed, and visual and aural outputs keep you in check. At this point in my career, I can’t begin to imagine flying safely without Garmin G5000 in my flightdeck. It is an absolute must-have.
Dave Kobus
ATP. Citation Sovereign+
Chief Pilot
CP Air
Kensington CT
HUD (head-up display) and EVS are very valuable for my operations. Flying helicopters in a challenging environment, and many hours per year, it’s mandatory for situational awareness.
Marco Cimo
ATP. Leonardo AW139
Chief Flight Ops & Captain
Prada
Milan, Italy
An EFB (electronic flight bag) with automated regular updates, EFIS, FMS, IRS with GPS update, AHRS, SVS (synthetic vision system), autopilot, and autoland are obvious tools in today’s professional cockpits. Although I love to fly an airplane with simple basic analog attitude instruments and VOR/DME/ADF navigation, I believe those tools mentioned are very helpful in
the cockpit.
Bruno Fraccaroli
ATP. Boeing 737 Max 8/737-800
Senior Line Captain
Neos Airline
Zevio, Italy
Apple iPad, coupled with ForeFlight and our QRH (quick reference handbook), is my preferred cockpit tool. It eliminates carrying around 20 lb of documents, and it comes with the links to emergency procedures. It’s just fantastic!
Kevin Molloy
ATP/Helo. Gulfstream G550
Pilot
Fiserv
Lagrangeville NY
iPad is the ideal tool. I have dual Garmin GTN 750. However, the iPad running ForeFlight makes it so much easier to get the aviation info I need in a timely fashion.
Andrew Erdle
ATP/CFI/A&P. Citation CJ2 & Bell 505
Contract Pilot
True Rock
Monroe NC
Coffee and iPad with ForeFlight are essential in my cockpit. Coffee to maintain sanity, and iPad for the necessary charts.
David Brown
ATP/CFII/A&P. Global 7500, Learjet 75/45, Citation 650 & King Air 350
Contract Pilot
142 CMO
Saginaw TX
Have been a professional aviator for 58 years. As a result, I’ve seen many changes in the cockpit. The new advances we see in TA cockpits are more than niceties, and this is especially true in single-pilot high-performance aircraft. The moving map takes the prize because of its situational awareness factor.
John Pulis
ATP/Helo/CFII/A&P. King Air 200
Flight Dept Mgr & Chief Pilot
Airtime
Willis TX
Ichoose ForeFlight coupled with ADS-B In. It remains my number 1 resource to supplement, not replace, my situational awareness.
Frank Fisher
ATP. Citation CJ4/VII/III & King Air 350/200/90
Owner
F3 Aviation
San Diego CA
I believe the iPad has become a must-have flight item, and, when paired with Wi-Fi, a safety enhancer. I can set aside the fast and current up-to-date charts, and I can get current weather, radar, Notams, TFR, traffic, and some basic taxi warnings. If FAA and ATC could get on board, we could get clearances, taxi instructions, EDCTs (expect departure clearance times), and ATIS digitally. Can you imagine how much radio traffic we could cut down?
Bill Wille
ATP. Global Express
Captain
Cirrus
Nashville TN
ForeFlight on my iPad is a must-have. It contains all our planning tools, plus weather, and when paired with a GPS antenna is a great backup navigation tool.
Al Law
ATP. Gulfstream GVII & Citation Sovereign
Dir of Aviation
Principal Financial Group
Des Moines IA
An iPad is a necessary tool in the cockpit. It makes it easier to get the required information while putting almost everything in one place or device. Charts, OFPs (operational flight plans), documents, and performance tools can all be available. It’s a great tool – one which I can live without, but would prefer not to.
Dion Daley
ATP. Boeing 777/737 & de Havilland DHC-8
First Officer
Emirates
Toronto ON, Canada
The iPad, connected to a source for location and ADS-B In data, running FltPlan Go, ForeFlight, or a similar application, are essential, in my opinion. An incredible amount of useful information can be carried in a compact unit, and important information, such as weather and traffic, is updated continuously. Through experience, I’ve learned to monitor the brightness and location of the display on warm and sunny days, lest the iPad overheats and does an automatic shutdown, and all the amazing information is lost until the unit cools.
Michael Downey
ATP/CFI. Mooney M20E & Piper Seneca
PC-12NG Instructor
FlightSafety Intl
Dacono CO
Garmin GDL 52 is my chosen one. It provides weather radar, METARs, and forecasts, as well as XM radio. My iPad is also a valuable tool. It connects via Bluetooth and receives the data from the GDL 52.
Harvey Meharry
ATP. Citation XLS+
Chief Pilot & Flight Dept Mgr
SMI
Rusk TX