5 quick WingX tips

Last week, we offered 5 quick tips for ForeFlight, and received a lot of positive comments. So today we’ll present another 5 tips you can try right away, this time for WingX. This powerful app has loads of features, but you may not know about all of them. With a few tips and some experimentation, you can get more out of your iPad in the cockpit.

Here’s our list of 5 tips for WingX:

1. Customize your split screen moving map–One of WingX’s standout features is the split screen on the Moving Map page. The options here are almost endless, so spend some time finding the setup you like best. First, use the Route button on the far left to turn on the route view and airport information windows. Tap Route again to change it from 1/3rd of the screen to 1/2. Tap again to hide it. Then, tap the Screen button the right side to split the screen vertically. This is a great way to view a sectional chart and terrain at the same time, for example, while retaining your Route view on the left. There are plenty of options for these two screens, chosen from the View 1 and View 2 buttons. You can even make these two screens switch places by tapping the Swap button. Finally, you can turn on the side profile terrain view by tapping the mountain symbol. One setup we like is to have the moving map sectional on top, the route view on the left, and a notepad on the bottom for keeping up with clearances (see photo below).
   
2. One button night mode on approach plates–A white approach chart can be blinding at night, but WingX has you covered with its built-in Night Mode. First select AeroNav Charts from the main menu, then choose an airport and a chart. From there, tap the light symbol at the bottom right of the screen. This will turn the white background black, and the white text black. It’s still very readable, but much easier on the eyes. Just note that this only affects the chart, so you may want to turn the Route view off if you had that selected.
   
3. Filter your approach plates–At some larger airline airports, there can be dozens of approach plates, from arrivals to approaches to airport diagrams. Wading through all of these in flight can sometimes be a pain, so WingX has a neat feature to help you sort out the approaches you don’t want. From the AeroNav Charts page, select an airport and you’ll see two menu bars at the bottom of the pop-up window. The bottom one allows you to switch between airport diagram, approaches, arrivals, departures and other data. But just above that you’ll see another menu bar for All, ILS Only, GPS Only and Six Pack. Tapping one of these buttons will display only the charts that meet those criteria. If you fly a vintage airplane with no GPS, this is a great way to hide approaches you’re not able to fly. Likewise, if you fly a G1000-equipped airplane and get nervous at the thought of an NDB approach, tapping the GPS Only button is a good way to find the approaches you like.
   
4. Add a custom waypoint to a route–Sometimes your route of flight isn’t direct, and sometimes it may even include user waypoints (like private airports or scenic routes). Adding a custom waypoint to a route is easy in WingX. Just select the Route Planning button from the main menu and enter a route in the search box. To add your custom waypoint, tap the Waypoint button on the bottom right, then Add. This will bring up a window that allows you to name the waypoint and enter the lat/lon coordinates (as 37.234256712 or 37 45.81239 or 37 45 33.29). You can also tap the Use GPS Location button to create the waypoint at your present position.
   
5. Find Yelp reviews in airport info–The trip isn’t over when you land at some airports, as you need to find a place to stay or eat. While there are plenty of databases out there to help you find a place nearby (and WingX has one built in), how do you know the “Five Star Inn” is really a dump? That’s where Yelp can be a real benefit–this popular website allows customers to write honest reviews of hotels and restaurants. And you can quickly access this real world feedback right from the WingX app. From the main menu, select A/FD and AOPA, choose an airport, then tap Food/Hotels from the bottom menu. Next to some hotels and restaurants, you’ll see the Yelp logo–just tap on this to see the comments. One important note: this does require an internet connection, so don’t try this in flight.
   

This list is just a start to our list of WingX tips and tricks. What’s on your list? Share your tips below in the comments section.