{"id":14212,"date":"2025-06-03T16:11:38","date_gmt":"2025-06-03T10:41:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/?p=14212"},"modified":"2026-07-26T10:10:50","modified_gmt":"2026-07-26T04:40:50","slug":"vector-velocity-triangle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/vector-velocity-triangle\/","title":{"rendered":"Triangle of Velocities"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/page-show\/general-navigation\/g6-wind-velocity-triangle-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<h2>Wind Velocity Triangle<\/h2>\n<p>Track Plot is the process of marking an aircraft&#8217;s planned or actual route on a navigation chart.<br \/>\nAir Plot is the method of continuously updating the aircraft&#8217;s current position, heading, and progress during flight. Both are used to ensure accurate navigation and safe flight operations.<\/p>\n<h3>Track Plot<\/h3>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/page-show\/general-navigation\/g6-wind-velocity-triangle-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Track plot is the simplest method of keeping track of an aircraft&#8217;s position.<\/li>\n<li>It is maintained by connecting successive ground positions of the aircraft.<\/li>\n<li>The <strong>Planned Track<\/strong> is the intended flight path over the Earth&#8217;s surface.<\/li>\n<li>Planned Track is also known as the <strong>Track Required (TR)<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>The <strong>Track Made Good (TMG)<\/strong> is the actual path of the aircraft over the ground.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Vectors in a Track Plot<\/h3>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/page-show\/general-navigation\/g6-wind-velocity-triangle-3.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The Planned Track represents the intended flight path over the Earth&#8217;s surface.<\/li>\n<li>Planned Track is also called the <strong>Track Required (TR)<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>The <strong>Track Made Good (TMG)<\/strong> is the actual ground track flown by the aircraft.<\/li>\n<li>TMG is obtained by joining successive ground positions over time.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Track Error<\/strong> is the angle between the Track Required and the Track Made Good.<\/li>\n<li>Track Error is measured in degrees and expressed as <strong>Port<\/strong> or <strong>Starboard<\/strong> of the planned track.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Usability of Track Plot<\/h3>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/page-show\/general-navigation\/g6-wind-velocity-triangle-4.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Track plot is useful for pilot navigation.<\/li>\n<li>It is simple to maintain.<\/li>\n<li>Suitable for short-distance flights.<\/li>\n<li>Useful when frequent ground position fixes are available.<\/li>\n<li>Ideal in clear weather when the ground is visible.<\/li>\n<li>Helpful for making quick heading changes during terminal navigation.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Drawbacks of Track Plot<\/h3>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/page-show\/general-navigation\/g6-wind-velocity-triangle-5.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Track plotting is not suitable for every type of flight.<\/li>\n<li>Not practical in poor weather when headings must be changed frequently.<\/li>\n<li>Unsuitable for long-distance and oceanic flights with limited ground fixes.<\/li>\n<li>Cannot be effectively used when the ground is not continuously visible.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Air Plot<\/h3>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/page-show\/general-navigation\/g6-wind-velocity-triangle-6.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Air Plot is the preferred method of maintaining aircraft position during long-distance flights.<\/li>\n<li>It can be used for all types of flights.<\/li>\n<li>Suitable in bad weather where frequent heading changes are required.<\/li>\n<li>Ideal for long-distance and oceanic flights with limited ground position fixes.<\/li>\n<li>Can be used even when the ground is not visible.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Vectors in an Air Plot<\/h3>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/page-show\/general-navigation\/g6-wind-velocity-triangle-7.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Air Vector<\/strong> consists of <strong>Heading<\/strong> and <strong>True Air Speed (TAS)<\/strong>, represented by a single-arrow vector.<\/li>\n<li>Heading is the direction of the aircraft&#8217;s longitudinal axis.<\/li>\n<li>TAS is the aircraft&#8217;s speed in still-air (nil wind) conditions.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Ground Vector<\/strong> consists of <strong>Track<\/strong> and <strong>Ground Speed (GS)<\/strong>, represented by a double-arrow vector.<\/li>\n<li>Track is the path followed by the aircraft over the Earth&#8217;s surface.<\/li>\n<li>Ground Speed is the aircraft&#8217;s actual speed relative to the ground.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Wind Vector<\/strong> consists of <strong>Wind Direction<\/strong> and <strong>Wind Speed<\/strong>, represented by a triple-arrow vector.<\/li>\n<li>Wind direction is always given as the direction <strong>from which<\/strong> the wind is blowing.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Drift Angle<\/h3>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/page-show\/general-navigation\/g6-wind-velocity-triangle-8.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Drift is the angle between the aircraft&#8217;s Heading and its Track.<\/li>\n<li>During flight planning, the Track refers to the <strong>Track Required<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>During flight, it refers to the <strong>Track Made Good<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>Drift Angle is measured in degrees and expressed as <strong>Port<\/strong> or <strong>Starboard<\/strong> of the Heading.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Port and Starboard Drift<\/h3>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/page-show\/general-navigation\/g6-wind-velocity-triangle-9.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Port Drift<\/strong> means the Track lies to the left of the Heading.<\/li>\n<li>This occurs when the wind blows the aircraft from right to left.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Starboard Drift<\/strong> means the Track lies to the right of the Heading.<\/li>\n<li>This occurs when the wind blows the aircraft from left to right.<\/li>\n<li>The velocity triangle can be solved accurately by plotting it to scale.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Triangle of Velocities<\/h3>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/page-show\/general-navigation\/g6-wind-velocity-triangle-10.jpg\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<h4>Finding the Ground Vector by Plotting<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Draw the <strong>Air Vector<\/strong> using the Heading and True Air Speed (TAS).<\/li>\n<li>Draw the <strong>Wind Vector<\/strong> using the Wind Direction and Wind Speed.<\/li>\n<li>Join the start of the Air Vector to the end of the Wind Vector to obtain the <strong>Ground Vector<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>The Ground Vector provides the <strong>Track Made Good (TMG)<\/strong> and the <strong>Ground Speed (GS)<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Wind Velocity Triangle Track Plot is the process of marking an aircraft&#8217;s planned or actual route on a navigation chart. Air Plot is the method of continuously updating the aircraft&#8217;s current position, heading, and progress during flight. Both are used to ensure accurate navigation and safe flight operations. Track Plot Track plot is the simplest method of keeping track of an aircraft&#8217;s position. It is maintained by connecting successive ground positions of the aircraft. The Planned Track is the intended flight path over the Earth&#8217;s surface. Planned Track is also&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"disable_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[324],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14212","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-cpl-atpl-general-navigation"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14212","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14212"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14212\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16623,"href":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14212\/revisions\/16623"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14212"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14212"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ibexaviation.com\/pilot-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14212"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}