← All explained questions · Cross-Country Flight Planning
Why must a pilot apply a wind correction angle on a cross-country leg?
Choices
✓ To hold the desired ground track despite a crosswindcorrect
Turning into the wind by the correction angle keeps the aircraft on the intended track.
To increase fuel burn on the leg
The correction angle is about track, not deliberately increasing fuel burn.
To convert statute miles to nautical miles
Unit conversion is unrelated to wind correction.
To reset the altimeter
The altimeter is unrelated to the wind correction angle.
Why
A crosswind pushes the aircraft off track, so the pilot turns slightly into the wind by a wind correction angle to make good the desired ground track.
FAA source: PHAK Ch. 16 / wind trianglebrowse the reference library →
Original study question written for this course — representative of FAA knowledge-test topics, not an actual current FAA exam question.