Posted for "Tom Gourley" <tom.gourley@verizon.net>:

 Jeff wrote:
 "Last Friday a private pilot applicant I gave a checkride to got lost within
10 miles of his home field, right in the middle of the VFR practice area. He
did not know how to dead reckon nor navigate via pilotage. His troubles began
when I turned off the GPS"
 
 Ah, remember the "good old days" (not) when we had to learn to fly cross
country by dead reckoning and/or pilotage?  When having two NAV receivers was
a real luxury for a VFR pilot?  I confess, I use my GPS all the time.
 However, I keep the chart in my lap, track my position on the chart, and
practice tracking a VOR radial on a regular basis.  Electronics can, and do,
fail.  GPS is wonderful but a pilot should always have a plan for the time
when the moving map display freezes or says "signl lost".  Turning off, or
covering up, the GPS once in while is probably a good exercise.  I've found
that even when I know where I am and where I'm headed I get an insecure
feeling without the GPS.
 
 Tom Gourley
 Still building