Flying the Garmin 430 (and other Gremilns) like a pro

Stop using the direct-to navigation for VFR flight

I mean it. Don't use it. At all. Instead hit FLT PLAN and enter destination airport into flight plan.

Why?

1. Notice that your current airport is already entered as first waypoint in the default flight plan when you power-on the 430. Direct-to will remove this. It's advantageous to keep this in place.
2. Direct-to does not add destination airport to flight plan, only to "active waypoint" (top right corner of flight plan page). You want to see it in flight plan itself. Why? Because if you ever add a waypoint (like a VOR) to the flight plan while en route on a "direct to" flight, that fix becomes the new destination and it wipes out your destination airport. So you scramble to re-enter the dest airport as final waypoint. Lots  of unnecessary button pushing. We're pilots, not accountants.
3. Bonus - if you're doing local pattern practice, your airport is already in the flight plan! Just "direct-to" on it in the default FLT PLAN page.

TIP: think of Direct-To as the "emergency diversion button"

Stop using the "Activate Vectors to Final" and "Active Approach" functions

I mean it, don't use them. At all. They are evil. Once you can fly every approach perfectly _without_ these shortcuts, start using them as appropriate.  

Instead always go to flight plan page, use direct/-to and activate leg on the waypoints/legs.

What do these shortcuts actually do? Nothing special.

Activate VTF = Activates FaF fix leg as next active leg. (but also wipes away every fix before FaF!)

Activate Approach: Sets IAF as direct-to waypoint.

I personally don't use these at all any more, it's same button pushing to do it manually, many advantages:

+ You get to review your flight plan while you activate

+ Verify that what you think is the IAS or FAF is actually the right thing

+ If you fuck something up you're already in the right place to fix it immediately

+ You don't wipe way IAF-FAF segments

This is one of the stupid things Garmin added. I think a lot of people think it activates some magic chip that puts the GPS into approach mode, when this is not the case. It's really good at  prevents you from really understanding what the unit is doing.

Don't "Select approach" "Vectors" "Load"

Don't ever do this. This wipes away the IF and IAF and gives you this weird representation:

KSMO

APPROACH GPS-A

REVEY INT (faf)

CULVE

MAP

Notice there is no leg before the FAF REVEY. And it's guaranteed you'll never fly direct-to the FAF. 

It's better to always choose some IAF. Yes, even if you don't ever intend on flying to the IAF (which you rarely do).

1. You have better sense where you are relative to FAF on moving map.

2. You can use the "activate leg" feature. If you choose "vectors" as my example above you actually MUST use "activate VTF" because there is no prior leg to FAF to activate. 

3. If the controller issues some amendment like "maintain 4000 until ___" it will likely include one of the pre-FAF fixes. You won't have to scramble to figure out where the hell you are. And this always comes at last possible minute.

4. It's guaranteed that the leg before FAF is aligned with the approach, so behaves the asme way as Activate VTF.

Know your CDI sensitivity

You should already know your GPS switches from ENROUTE to TERMINAL 30nm from airport, then APPROACH sensitivity on localizer/final approach course. 

But also note that the CDI deflection (first nav page) shows numbers on either side, like 0.8 or 5.0. This is the course width for CDI sensitivity. Get in habit of monitoring this, watch it narrow and widen the course through different phases of flight. Forget the TERM/ENR, those are just high level indicators.

Know your OBS button

ATC says something like: "Fly RW heading, intercept 300 radial off SMO VOR and fly outbound to intercept V38 and resume navigation as filed"

There are lots of ways to do this. What's the lowest workload? Learn your OBS button.

In FLT plan enter SMO as first fix. Hit OBS button, select bearing, then hit OBS again. This way the garmin will do the right sequencing, but instead of flying DIRECT from SMO to the next fix it will fly that bearing outbound. You still get the CDI deflection as you approach the radial, but you don't have to switch between VLOC/GPS/OBS modes.

Did you know "direct to" from nav page lets you set a course heading? The default is the heading from current position to the fix, but you can change it. (Of course, I'm not suggesting you should use direct to here)

OBS to suspend sequencing

Get comfortable with understanding why sequencing is paused when you go missed, and how to use it in a hold.

The big danger is if a MAP says "climb to 5000, THEN turn right to heading of 090 direct FIX"

The non-waas GPS is dumb, it doesn't know altitude. If you resume sequencing as soon as you go missed (hit the OBS button)) it will turn to go direct FIX. But the instructions say climb to 5000, THEN turn. That's because there's a huge rock 2 miles off your right wing up to 3000, and your airport elevation is 1500. Nice way to die in IMC (and many have). To make things worse, Remember lateral separation in terminal areas is narrower than en-route, because you're navigating off a narrow CDI. So the rocks can get really close. 

As a point to the last paragraph, the first thing I look at when I brief a plate is the field elevation and the MSA circle. Especially night/IMC this gives you a sense of where the rocks are. For example if MSA north of runway is 14000 and south is 7000, and field elevation is 6000, you know there's a mountain to the north, It's a good high level snapshot to keep in back of your head if shit hits the fan. Memorizing every tower and obstruction is not practical, but memorizing this MSA picture is.

OK, enough for today, let's keep this thread going and folks with other advanced tips please share and critique.

Note i mostly fly SR22 G2, but this applies to all 430 flying.