Navigate to and from a fix

Tune, identify, set, track. The same four-step ritual gets you to a VOR or a GPS waypoint, and doing it in order is what keeps you from confidently tracking the wrong thing.

The procedure

1. Tune or select — dial the VOR frequency, or pick the GPS waypoint.
2. Identify — confirm the Morse ident on a VOR, or that the GPS has the right waypoint loaded. Skipping this is exactly how a pilot ends up tracking a station that isn't the one they think it is.
3. Set the course — twist the OBS to the radial you want, or let the GPS sequence the leg.
4. Intercept and track — turn to intercept, center the CDI, and hold it centered.

Intercepting and holding

To intercept, turn toward the course at an angle — a 30–45° intercept is typical — and as the CDI begins to center, turn to roll out on the course. Use a bigger intercept angle when you're far off course or short on distance, and a smaller one when you're already close, so you don't blow straight through the radial.

To hold it, you'll need a wind correction: a crosswind pushes you off the radial, so you crab a few degrees into it. A centered needle that slowly drifts off means your correction isn't quite enough yet.

Worked example: you're tracking the 090 radial outbound with a FROM flag, OBS set to 090. The CDI drifts a half-dot left — you've slipped slightly north of the radial — so turn left maybe 10°–20° to reintercept, and as the needle re-centers, turn back to a heading that parallels 090 plus a few degrees of correction into the wind.

That last part is bracketing: if a 10° correction overshoots back across and a 0° correction lets it drift again, the right answer is between them. Split the difference until the needle simply sits still. The standard is the usual cruise tolerance — altitude ±200 ft, heading as required (ACS PA.VI.B.S7) — so trim it out and let the needle, not your hands, do the fine work.

Flying to a fix versus from one is the same needle work with a flipped mental picture. Inbound, the TO flag shows and you're closing on the station; outbound, the FROM flag shows and you're riding a radial away from it. Hold that geometry clearly — which side the wind is pushing you, which way to turn to re-center — and the CDI stops being a guessing game and becomes a simple "keep it centered."