Video tip: How to use a sectional plotter to plan a cross-country flight

As you enter the cross-country planning phase of your private pilot training, you’ll learn the skills required to plan long-distance trips using a VFR sectional, plotter, E6B flight computer and Navlog. This will teach you the core planning skills necessary to fly to a new airport and allow you to fly the trip via pilotage (looking for landmarks on the ground) and dead reckoning (heading, groundspeed and time en route calculations).

This week’s tip takes a look at the first phase of this planning process and shows how to use a plotter and sectional to measure the trip distance and determine the exact direction you’ll need to fly. We’ll explore the second phase of the planning process by using an E6B flight computer and filling out a NavLog in a future video tip.

The video clip below is from Sporty’s 2025 Learn to Fly Course

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Bret Koebbe

As Sporty’s lead aviation course and video producer, Bret is usually flying an interesting airplane, and often with a camera rolling. He oversees the development, production and distribution of over 30 aviation courses from Sporty's, including the Private Pilot Learn to Fly Course. He is a flight instructor and check airman at the Sporty's Academy flight school and a senior captain on a Cessna Citation.

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