E6b Flight Computer Exercises -
Whether you are a student pilot prepping for your written exam or a seasoned aviator looking to brush up on dead reckoning skills, mastering the E6B flight computer is a rite of passage. While electronic apps are convenient, the manual "whiz wheel" never runs out of batteries and provides a tactile understanding of flight physics.
Use the circular scales. The outer scale (A) is for distance/fuel/speed. The inner scale (B) is for time. 1. Time, Speed, and Distance e6b flight computer exercises
- Align 15 (Outer) with 10 (Inner) – which acts as the index for multiplication.
- Find 30 (Inner) which represents 3.
- Look at the Outer scale. The number is roughly 45.
- Logic Check: The E6B gives you "45". It does not tell you if it is 4.5, 45, or 450. You must know that $15 \times 3$ cannot be 4.5 or 450. Therefore, the answer is 45.
The Exercise (Using the outer & inner scales): Whether you are a student pilot prepping for
Setup: Align the "Fuel Lbs" arrow on the outer scale with the "U.S. Gal" arrow on the inner scale. Find 40 on the "Gallons" scale. Result: Read 240 lbs on the outer scale. Phase 3: The Wind Side (Back) Align 15 (Outer) with 10 (Inner) – which
| Exercise | Given | Required | Answer |
|----------|-------|----------|--------|
| 4 | Burn 9.5 GPH, fly 3.5 hr | Fuel used | 33.25 gal |
| 5 | 42 gal usable, 11.2 GPH | Endurance (hr:min) | 3:45 hr |
| 6 | Trip 210 NM @ 115 kts, fuel 8.7 GPH, reserve 45 min | Total fuel needed | 17.8 gal (trip 15.9 + reserve 1.9) |
It doesn't overheat. It doesn't dim in sunlight. And most importantly, when you accidentally type 145 instead of 154 into a calculator, you won't notice. On a mechanical E6B, if your TAS and GS are off by 30 knots, the slide rule looks wrong to your eye.