Includes Google Earth Interfaces, Routing Displays Fuel
Prices
The folks at Seattle Avionics tell
ANN they have taken the wraps off the latest iteration of its
highly popular Voyager flight planning software. Voyager 3.6 is
chocked full of new, pilot-pleasing features... including
integration with Google Maps and Google Earth.
"Although not quite as highly anticipated as Apple's iPhone, new
Voyager 3.6 is sure to make news with pilots," says Seattle
Avionics CEO Steve Podradchik. "It has more than 50 very useful and
exciting new features."
Listen To Steve Podradchik's Interview About Voyager 3.6 Here
At the top of the list of features is the integration with
Google Maps, which allows Voyager to show an actual satellite image
of the airport you're flying to... invaluable for unfamiliar
airports. You may also "fly" your entire route, aided by actual
Google Earth images of terrain -- which should be a boon to VFR
flyers, in particular.
Voyager 3.6 also builds on the ability, first introduced on
Voyager 3.5, to download true FAA scanned Charts. A new download
manager on 3.6 allows pilots to download multiple charts, and the
system queues them up automatically -- saving time, and memory
space. You may also use the Monitor section to select which Charts
you want Voyager to keep track of... and when they expire,
automatically download current versions.
Additionally, by clicking on an airport on the chart -- or
entering its identifier, name, or closest city -- Voyager shows you
the most important flight information in one convenient screen.
That includes runway diagrams, with markers for right-pattern
approaches, a detailed airport diagram downloaded from the FAA, and
Comm and Nav frequencies.
Voyager's autorouter now takes fuel prices into account when
selecting stops... and Voyager even takes the additional fuel used
to fly to cheap fuel airports into account when determining which
airport is best. That is, it doesn't necessarily find the lowest
fuel price, per se, it finds the best way to lower your total fuel
cost. You can tell Voyager to only stop at airports with known fuel
prices or stop at any airport that the AF/D says has fuel while
giving preferences to airports with known fuel prices.
And speaking of fuel prices... they are everywhere in Voyager
3.6. Current prices -- downloaded from 100LL.com -- are listed
visually on the charts, in the autorouter, in GlassView, and in
printouts. Clicking on the price will also display cheaper prices
in the same general area, if available.
Podradchik also tells ANN the company will host a free two-hour
"webinar" this Friday, June 29, at 1200 PDT to cover everything
that's new in Voyager 3.6. You may sign up here.