When I learned to fly (When Pontius was a pilate!!) actually in the mid 1960's, our initial instrument training was with an ADF and NDB beacons. This was quite a challenge at first but very pleasurable when mastered. Moving up to VOR especially when combined with DME was a god send, it was so easy providing you could understand TO and FROM and a 360 deg. compass rose. My first privately owned aircraft was a Grumman AA5B and I had it fitted with a King KNS80 which allowed you to move a VOR to almost any location, fantastic at the time. I recall also being able to make my first instrument approach using a VOR DME. However after a 40 year flying career and having used just about every navigation system available both military and civil, my favorite is still the mark I eyeball and a chart. A little difficult when crossing the Atlantic of course, there aren't too many waves on the chart!! But is extremely important to understand the limitations of any system and paramount to keep a mental picture of your current position should any system fail.
I feel like the youngsters watching this are missing out on just how revolutionary this low-tech navigation tool was. If you grew up in the 80s or 90s, all you knew of the world in Microsoft Flight simulator was doing loops around Meigs Field. Maybe you'd do a short hop from there to Chicago O'Hare if you were feeling adventurous. But learning VOR was like earning your flight simulation black belt: it was the moment you dug the manual back out, found the map of VOR transmitters and frequencies, and realized you could theoretically go anywhere. Now nearly everything in the game comes with a simulated Garmin, and flying a simulated plane between airports is only slightly more complicated than using your phone to navigate your car to an airport's departures terminal in real life.
What's crazy is that once you get a grasp of VOR it's just as efficient as GPS. The only problem is getting a good grasp of it because it is extremely confusing. But once you get a hold of it, it's okay. I'm like 70% of the way through of understanding them.
@@kraudavid5975 I don't necessarily know about "just as efficient" since you're still tethered to particular transmitting stations which are located at fixed points on land rather than an orbiting network of satellites that can help you chart a direct line between any two points on the globe. But it's still amazingly flexible--I recently spent an entire day in the simulator taking a Cessna 152 from Seattle to San Diego using VOR just to prove to myself that I still remember how to do it.
@@kraudavid5975as for everything, we need practice. Am trying to learn as I just know where to go with a garmin g1000 but I feel like analog planes are more fun. But as we as used to VOR and that, the more able we are to understand and locate so we can navegate more efficiently
Man, as an IRL student pilot this is awesome! I was looking for a tutorial on VORs so I could simulate them in MSFS2020, and I made a 200nm trip with ease using only VORs! Thanks for the guide, you deserve more views!!
Every time I see one of Kip's tutorials I think, "I've done this many times already, how can I possibly learn more than I already know?" And yet each time I learn a ton. Like the others, I'm sure I'll be re-watching this a few times. Kip's clarity of thought and language allows him to thoroughly present complicated topics with stark simplicity. Keep 'em coming please!
Thank you! Brilliant tutorial. I was watching another tutorial on this from someone else and I had absolutely zero clue what they were talking about the entire time - but watching this one you made everything super clear and I understood perfectly well what I need to do. Appreciate it!
Heading and course aren’t the same thing and it’s a really important distinction to keep straight, especially for instrument flying. And when the flag says “TO,” that doesn’t mean you’re flying to the VOR. You could be flying away from it. The “TO” flag indicates that in order to fly TO the station, if the needle is centered, fly a course of what you’ve dialed in. This is a really hard concept for students to grasp and we’ve got to be precise as to not mess them up.
Kip, my aviation journey has only just begun. I'd never even heard of VOR before encountering this video. Thank you for providing such a phenomenal explanation of this topic. You have tremendous talent in the realm of communicating ideas. 🤯 Mind = blown 🤯
I have to say. Even thought I know this vid is a little old now, I found it so informative and never knew a thing about aviation at all. Thanks man. Will check out your new video now.
When I was working on my private pilot's license my instructor said VOR navigation is easy if you remember "Tune, Twist and Turn." "Tune" to the frequency. "Twist" the knob to either "To" or "From" "Turn" the plane to the proper heading to bring the needle to center. Never had a problem again. I love flying VOR to VOR.
This is by far the best demonstration I've seen on RU-vid on how to use vor navigation . i get very frustrated trying to understand vor navigation . Thanks a lot for this . keep up the excellent teaching
Not a bad tutorial. As a pilot/ex-flight instructor myself VOR's were always the hardest thing to teach students. I would do everything from teaching them how to fly reverse sensing to, "Hey, you're right here, what do you do to intercept a radial?" I have a few tips and tricks that weren't covered in this video if anyone wants more in-depth tips too. In fact, I may make a video on my own tips here in the future. Great video and a great start to getting started with VORs!
Fantastic video! I knew nothing about VOR before this video, and now I feel like I really grasp the concept. I am going to watch your newer video, too, then mess around with it in MSFS202. Cheers!
Hey man. I just found your stuff and these two VOR vids gained you a new subscriber. Great content and very well done. You're a very effective instructor.
I cannot thank you enough. Sharing knowledge is one of the most altruist things a human being can do. I just want to make sure you understand how grateful I am for you to take the time to record this. Kind regards from the other side of the Americas, Brazil!
Thank you Kip. You have demystified something for me, and I did not want to even think about a pilots license if learning VOR nav was going to be like quantum physics. What a great natural teacher you are! Can’t wait to crank up MS FS 2020 this morning!
Here's a ramification of the VOR logic: If you want to just fly from your present position toward a VOR station, just tune in the frequency, adjust the OBS until the CDI needle is centered with the "TO" flag displayed, and then fly the heading indicated on top of the CDI. Or, more succinctly, *_center the CDI with TO flag and fly the heading shown on top._*
Yep. You dunnit right and proper. I been listening to these Aholes who start out on the topic and then completely veer off on an all together subject. Ya wanna tell people how to replace a green dash led then don't explain how to remove and fix the speedometer. Completely understood from beginning to end. Great job!
You make the best MSFS tutorials ever. So straight forward and easy to understand! I really look forward to more tutorials from you, especially the G1000 NXi!
This video was awesome. Super informative, educational, and concise. I would love to see something like "Ground School for MSFS." Thanks for making this video! I now know how VOR navigation works and how to apply it. Great job!
Kip, great video, your voice is soothing and full of knowledge. I believe every word that drops from your yapper. If we understand the lesson on the ground, then it will work in the sky. Thanks...SUBSCRIBED!
Thank you! Trying to learn the systems in this Cessna before moving onto another plane with more systems. I was gonna buy a flight textbook or something. This helped a bunch!
Thanks this helps. Haven’t used VOR for navigation since FS9 and it never hurts to develop your skillset. Even though in Europe VOR stations are almost completely gone and in my country VOR facilities are used only for approach navigation and there’s no more VOR Airways.
After YEARS i've finally understood how to fly VOR, Captain Joe made a video but that was way too confusing for me. Thank you so much! I'm excited to fly on the sim now.
A little heads up, a better course of action would have been, after departing San Louis Obispo airport fly direct to the Guadalupe VOR, which is in the direction of the destination airport instead of Morro Bay, a VOR opposite your direction of flight. Another option if you wanted to use the Morro Bay VOR. Turn to a heading of 150 degrees after departing San Louis Obispo airport to intercept the 126 degree radial out of Morro Bay. Selecting the 126 degree radial out of the Morro Bay VOR would have provided positive steering information given its position to San Louis Obispo airport. Planes are not cheap to rent or own and plays a big roll in the course to be flown.
