Using an HSI

To many pilots, an HSI ranks high on the list of essential flight instruments, while others find it
mystifying. So let’s try to demystify the HSI. HSI, as most of you know, stands for Horizontal
Situation Indicator. However that definition by itself doesn’t offer much of a clue as to why
pilots love it. So let’s examine an imaginary evolutionary history of the HSI.

In the beginning there was the trusty DG (or heading indicator, if you prefer) and the VOR
display. They were two separate and distinct instruments, with two separate and distinct
functions.

Most of us during our training learned to use the OBS knob on the VOR display to select our
desired course, in this example the 330° radial. Then we would determine an appropriate
intercept heading. The CDI shows the aircraft is west of the radial, so we fly towards the CDI. A
heading of due north, as shown on our trusty DG, will work nicely. Sooner or later the CDI will
start moving towards the center of the VOR display, at which point we guess as to how quickly
to turn to a heading of 330°.

This all works very nicely, and it’s how the majority of us were trained. But we have to look at
two different instruments and figure out if everything will work. Will we intercept that 330°
radial? But suppose we could somehow magically rotate the VOR display so that it matched the
aircraft heading.

This improves things, but you still have to look at two instruments. But now suppose you could
merge those two instruments, so that the VOR display was superimposed on the DG. This is
exactly what the HSI does – it merges the two instruments so that you only have to look in one
place for both heading information and VOR navigation information.

The course selector is the OBS from the VOR display; it shows the selected radial of 330°. The
steering bar is the CDI from the VOR display. It shows the position of the aircraft with respect to
the selected radial. The heading information is presented in a familiar manner, with the magnetic
heading of the aircraft shown at the top of the display. The orange aircraft symbol shows the
position of the aircraft with respect to the selected radial. In this example it’s easy to see that the
airplane is southwest of the selected radial. The white triangle always points towards the VOR.
So in this case, the VOR is behind us, and we are on a heading to intercept the 330° radial. The
lubber line is a thin white line at the top of the display. We’ll see in the discussion below how
very useful the lubber line is. With the HSI display, the pilot flies the aircraft towards the
steering bar until the steering bar moves to the course selector. At that point you’re on the radial,
so you turn the aircraft to the desired course. In a no-wind situation, this would be 330°.

Wind correction
Wind correction is done in a conventional manner, offsetting the heading as needed to keep the
steering bar centered. But unlike the conventional DG display, the HSI makes it simple to
determine the wind correction angle. If the steering bar drifts off center, simply turn the aircraft
so as to place the tip of the white lubber line on the tip of the steering bar. As the steering bar re-
centers, fly the aircraft much like you would fly a ground reference maneuver. Imagine the
course selector is a road, and you are flying so as to maintain a ground track down that road by
visual reference. Crab into the wind to maintain that ground track, and you have your wind
correction.

Course Interception

One of the really great features of an HSI is how it allows you to smoothly intercept a given
course, whether it’s a localizer, VOR or GPS. ATC puts you on a vector to intercept a given
course, 030 degrees in the above graphic. Eventually the steering bar starts to move in towards
the course selector. But when do you start to turn to the course? Depending on the sensitivity of
the station (localizer versus VOR or GPS), do you wait until it is almost centered, or do you start
turning earlier? The HSI takes the guesswork out of this situation. Once the steering bar starts to
move inward, turn the plane so as to keep the lubber line on the tip of the steering bar, as shown
on the right. As it moves towards the centerline, continue turning the plane so as to keep the
lubber line centered on the tip of the steering bar, and you will have a smooth, effortless intercept
of the course. Be forewarned, however, that in a strong crosswind coming from the direction of
your intercept heading, this technique will lead you to the perfect wind correction heading. So if
the steering bar stops moving, you will need to turn back into the wind in order to completely
intercept the course.

Circling Approach
A circling approach, either at night or in poor visibility, presents a challenging situation to pilots
of all experience levels. Experienced HSI users will set the Course Selector to the runway
heading when the airport has come into view. Experience has shown that the safest path to the
runway is the shortest path, and the HSI can provide a very helpful visualization as to where the
runway is and where the pilot needs to go. You can either turn to enter a downwind, paralleling
the course selector, or if you’re in position to enter directly into base leg, you can turn the aircraft
to a heading that is perpendicular to the course selector.

You can even use this trick as an aid in taxiing when you’re at an unfamiliar airport –
particularly where there is no helpful tower to provide progressive taxi instructions. Simply set
the course selector to the desired runway, and it will at least get you started in the right direction.
This little trick is very effective at night.

Quick Aid for NDB Approaches

DME Arcs

Admit it; there might still be a bit of mystery, even for experienced pilots, about DME arcs. Or
maybe you just haven’t flown one in a long time. The HSI can be a pretty handy decoder ring for
demystifying DME arcs. Say you are flying outbound on the 050° radial to intercept a 12-mile
right-hand DME arc. Right-hand simply means you are to progress around the arc clockwise, or
to put it in another perspective, your right wing is pointing at the VOR. So when do you start
your turn onto the arc? The rule of thumb is ½ of 1% of your ground speed. So theoretically, if
your ground speed is 130 knots, you would start your turn at ½ of 1% of 130, or ½ of 1.3, which
would be about 0.6 miles. However, for anything less than about 150 knots ground speed, ½ mile
works quite well. When you get to within ½ mile of the arc, turn the aircraft so that the orange
aircraft symbol is perpendicular to the steering bar. Then move the course selector 10°, in the
direction that puts the steering bar ahead of the aircraft symbol. To go around the arc, simply
drive the aircraft perpendicularly towards the steering bar. When the steering bar centers, move it
10° more and continue the process.
This even works if you are not tracking directly on a radial towards the arc. Suppose you have
been given a heading to intercept a 12 mile left-hand DME arc. Let’s further assume you are
intercepting the arc from the outside.

As you approach the 12.5 mile point, center the steering bar and turn the aircraft perpendicular to
the steering bar. Since you are going around a left-hand arc, you want your left wing to point
towards the VOR – left wing points in the same direction as the white triangle. Now move the
course selector so the steering bar is in front of the aircraft symbol, and continue flying the arc as
before. Now all you have to do is watch for the final course and be prepared to turn inbound. So
there you have it – DME arcs demystified.

Holding
So all of the sudden, out of a not-so-clear-blue sky, you are given a hold. Yikes, and you don’t
remember how it’s done. Okay, so you manage to sketch out the hold, as you are approaching
Podunk VOR. But how do you get into it? Once again, the trusty HSI can help out. As you pass
over the VOR (or waypoint), set the course selector to the inbound course. After passing over the
station, turn so as to line up the miniature aircraft symbol to fly parallel to the course on the
outbound leg. Fly for one minute and then turn inbound and intercept the course. It may not be
the entry your flight instructor would prefer, but it will keep you within the confines of the
protected space and get you into the hold.