"DTK up" on Garmin 430/530(W)?

[RussR]

Broke out the Garmin 430/530W simulator tonight to refresh on a few of the more arcane topics in preparation for a lesson tomorrow (my client asks a lot of in-depth questions and I like to be prepared).

I know most people use either "Map Up" or "Track Up". But tonight I "found" a third option on the 430/530(W) series that I'd either forgotten about or never tried - Desired Track (DTK) Up.

Does anybody use this? I tested it on the simulator and it seemed like it might have some useful aspects but I'm not clear on what they might be. However, the instant change in map orientation at a course change was somewhat distracting. Anybody have any experience or even prefer this presentation?

 

[Hank S]

I use Track Up. The DTK field on the CDI screen is nice; I keep it in the center, right above TRK to help me stay on course.

Never heard of putting "DTK" on the map . . . Although it could be handy if you're deviating around weather and want to get back on your original course instead of going direct from wherever you end up.

 

[txflyer]

I like to run 'North Up' on mine because it's easy to see if I'm on coarse but when I'm in unfamiliar territory I like to know with a glance exactly where I'm approaching from.

"Podunk field, Cessna xxx 10 miles Southeast at 3000 inbound"

It's personal choice. Believe it or not, we used to have to read these huge paper maps back in the stone age to figure out where we were. The hardest part was re-folding them.

 

[Hank S]

I like to run 'North Up' on mine because it's easy to see if I'm on coarse but when I'm in unfamiliar territory I like to know with a glance exactly where I'm approaching from.

"Podunk field, Cessna xxx 10 miles Southeast at 3000 inbound"

It's personal choice. Believe it or not, we used to have to read these huge paper maps back in the stone age to figure out where we were. The hardest part was re-folding them.

I like my paper sectionals. They're handy for telling where I am and looking for things as I pass by, or for deviations enroute. It's easy to look far away, which is just a cluttered mess or an outline of state borders on the 430. Funny, I can't see those dotted lines out the window.

To tell which way I'm approaching an unfamiliar field from, I just look at the bottom of the DG. Is that visible on the big TV screens used now? The top of the DG is the way I'm going, the bottom is where I'm coming from.

DTK on the 430 is the way I'm supposed to go, which varies from the DG by the crosswind correction factor. Thus the handy TRK field that should match DTK right above it. I put them in the middle, right below where the CDI indicator should be, matching the needle on OBS #1.

 

[jaybee]

North up VFR
Track up IFR (if you keep the track in the center of the screen then your wind correction is right on)
Desired track up.... can't really think of a reason I would want to use it.

 

[Unit74]

I like to run 'North Up' on mine because it's easy to see if I'm on coarse but when I'm in unfamiliar territory I like to know with a glance exactly where I'm approaching from.

"Podunk field, Cessna xxx 10 miles Southeast at 3000 inbound"

It's personal choice. Believe it or not, we used to have to read these huge paper maps back in the stone age to figure out where we were. The hardest part was re-folding them.

Your compass doesn't work? Just invert your heading, or if you have a vertical card compass, look at the bottom. Or, as long as you DG is correct, look at the bottom of it.

 

[Sundancer]

Always north up for me; don't know why, just feels right. . .