Map reading

Map Reading (Pilotage)

Pilotage is navigation by visual comparison between the ICAO chart and the real terrain. It is the most important primary navigation method in VFR flight — everything else (DR, radio nav, GNSS) supplements or checks it.

Principle

Chart-world correlation: pilot identifies prominent terrain features, matches them to the chart, deduces own position.

What makes a good landmark?

Hierarchy by uniqueness:

1. Large linear features: motorways, rivers, railway lines, coastlines, mountain ridges — well visible, hard to confuse.
2. Large areal features: lakes, reservoirs, big forests, cities.
3. Point features: chimneys (industry), transmitter towers, castles, bridges, distinctive buildings.
4. Aerodromes: known fields as waypoints.

What makes a bad landmark?

• Small villages without distinctive features → easy to confuse.
• Forests without shape → can be sprawling and have no unique edges.
• Fields, meadows → look different in reality depending on season.

Method — "Plan and Confirm"

1. Plan: identify the next expected landmark on the chart before reaching it.
2. Confirm: search visually as you approach and verify against the chart.
3. Identify multiple landmarks at once — check consistency.

Common errors

• Map lock: pilot fixates on an apparent landmark and ignores contradicting references → wrong own position.
• Look-confirm loop: looking outside first, then to the chart → consult the chart first.
• Chart not oriented: chart should be turned to flight direction (track-up) → left side of chart matches left of cockpit.
• Bright sun: in glaring sun some features are hard to identify — sunshade, alternative bearing.

Lost procedure (when position uncertain)

"5 C's" (FAA practice):

1. Climb: higher → wider view.
2. Conserve: reduce power → more time to orient.
3. Communicate: call ATC or FIS, "request position".
4. Confess: declare own position unknown.
5. Comply: follow ATC instructions.

If no radio help available:

• Take last confirmed position as starting point.
• Heading + elapsed time × GS → DR position.
• Search for distinctive new features and match to chart.
• Do not fly further into the unknown — return to safe position if necessary.

Chart preparation

• Draw route pre-flight with coloured pencil or electronically.
• Mark waypoints with distance and ETA.
• Note MEFs along the route.
• Separately highlight airspaces and NOTAMs (on scratch pad or kneeboard).
• Chart and PLOG together on the kneeboard.

Limitations

• Night: many landmarks invisible → pilotage strongly limited, alternative navigation needed (radio nav, GNSS).
• Over open water: no landmarks → DR and radio nav critical.
• Poor visibility (haze, fog, cloud): pilotage fails → observe VMC minima.
• Over uniform terrain (high moor, snow plain, desert): no identification.