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Trevor Kenchington wrote:
>
> The line from point of departure to intended destination is the TRACK,
> not the "course".
>
> The direction to be steered (which amounts to the intended path through
> water -- or air) is the COURSE, not the "heading". It differs from the
> track by the effects of wind and current.


I think you were incorrect to contradict John LeRoy. His message was
obviously in the context of flying. Aviators (at least in the U.S.)
don't use the Bowditch meaning for some of those navigational words.

In aviation, "course" means the intended direction of flight over the
ground. That's clearly implied in this example from Part 91 of the
Federal Aviation Regulations:

"91.181 COURSE TO BE FLOWN
Unless otherwise authorized by ATC, no person may operate an aircraft
within controlled airspace under IFR except as follows:
(a) On a Federal airway, along the centerline of that airway.
(b) On any other route, along the direct course between the
navigational aids or fixes defining that route..."


On a less official note, the Jeppesen Private Pilot Manual summarizes
the terminology and the steps in planning a dead reckoning leg as
follows:

"In all cases you begin with the true course and end with the compass
heading. A course is always the line drawn on the chart. The true
course is measured from true north, and if the correction for
variation is applied at this point, the result is expressed as
magnetic course. A heading is always a direction measured with respect
to the longitudinal axis of the airplane, or in other words, the
direction in which the airplane is pointed. True course corrected for
wind gives a true heading, while magnetic course corrected for wind
gives a magnetic heading. The compass heading is always found by
correcting the magnetic heading for compass deviation."

As for "track", the FAA's Aeronautical Information Manual says:

"TRACK - The actual flight path of an aircraft over the surface of the
earth."

--


paulhirose@earthlink.net (Paul Hirose)

   

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