by Bill Cummings » Sat Apr 16, 2016 11:35 am
reluctantsparrow,
Elsewhere on the US Hawks I posted a thread that went something like this: [I can't catch that left handed pilot!"]
No one wanted to respond to that aspect due probably to fear of Political Correctness is my best guess.
As PC would like us to believe we are all equal. So no need to explore in that direction. (If we do - just keep it to ourselves.)
As to optical enhancement I also have a post elsewhere on the US Hawks over at the SW Texas Club on the subject of detecting thermals. My response was to doing it with eye (Sun) glasses.
At the OZ Report I was trying years ago to encourage the tech, Uber Geeks to come up with voice command instruments. I was fed a line that the voice recognition was all done, "In the Cloud." I knew better but just gave up.
With your idea of optical enhancement, to that I would like to add voice recognition, As in. "Focal Point, one mile." The optical enhancement would do that for me and the speaker in the bow of my glasses over both ears would respond with, "Focal Point now one mile."
On a different note but on the same flight:
When the Mexican taxi dispatch broke in on my radio I would say. "Radio squelch up 5." The Radio squelch would move up to #5 on the squelch and say, "Radio squelch at 5." (Marketing for the blind should be high.)
I would say, "Radio frequency 151.925." The radio would go there and announce, "Radio frequency now at 151.925."
I could say, "Vario average 12 seconds." The vario would say, Averaging 12 seconds."
I could say, Vario volume up two." and so on.
For feet per min up a women's voice might say, "400."
For feet per min down a man's voice might say, "400."
I could say GPS ----whatever---
While winter towing and dressed with full head covering, googles, gloves, and snowmobile suit I developed a feel for the wind through my clothing. One can easily imagine that a flapping jacket sleeve will impart some knowledge as to airspeed but flying slower with no flapping one can, after a while and if their paying attention, be aware of the pressure the air imparts to your clothing where it touches your body. After a while it is automatic.
My pilot friend could detect the thermals temperature increase on his face. He could do it without thinking about it. I could only do it when concentration to the exclusion of everything else so it never came automatically to me so I gave up on it.
General Aviation teaches pilots how to scan the sky for air traffic but I have never read where it was suggested for distance. But you are on the right track. (They should.)
I have only focused for distance while standing on launch, shading my eye from direct sunlight with my hand and looking for pollen, and spider threads moving between me and the sun. I do this for wind direction indication at different distances.