From smartphones and laptops to e-readers and tablets, personal computing devices are more advanced than ever, with applications that can do practically anything – including apps that make flying safer, simpler, and more convenient for pilots. There are even applications that help pilots to connect with other pilots. If you’re curious which applications are most useful for pilots, look no further. The following list covers the top 10 apps ever pilot needs to know about.



1) AeroWeather Pro

This app by Lakehorn AG allows pilots to check weather conditions and forecasts at their destination prior to takeoff. You can see everything from visibility to wind speed to runway conditions in one place.



2) Air Navigation Pro

Xample Sarl developed this app to assist pilots in their efforts to plan a flight with an interface that looks and feels like the instruments of a cockpit.



3) Airports

Peter Lundkvist developed this application to give pilots everything they need to know about their destination airports before taking off, including NOTAMs, runway data, weather conditions, and more.



4) CloudAhoy

This app from CloudAhoy, Inc. allows pilots to use the GPS receiver on their iPad to record flights and retrieve the data later on from any location. It’s the ultimate debriefing app.



5) FAA Airplane Flying Manual

Insomniac Industries put the most pertinent information from the FAA Flying Manual in one place so pilots are set up for a safe trip every time. This free app is an excellent refresher when pilots forget emergency procedures and other information in the rush of the flight.

 6) FBO Fuel Prices



The team at GlobalAir .com developed an app that makes it easy for pilots to check the latest FBO fuel prices and ramp fee information before heading to their destination and fueling up. The app was developed to work in-flight or in Airplane Mode.



7) FlightPlan

Jeff Cardillo’s FlightPlan – Pilot’s Toolbox tak es the guesswork out of common calculations with everything from weight and balance calculators to conversion calculators to a cutting-edge E6B slide rule computer, making calculating simple.



8) LogTen Pro X: the Pilot Logbook

Coradine Aviation Systems developed a logbook replacement app that some say is one of the greatest applications for pilots on the market today. Now those bulky, old, hard-to-use logbooks are a thing of the past.



9) WnB Pro

This application from Angell Development LLC is the go-to tool for weight and balance calculations. Pilots receive an accurate weight and balance calculation for their exact aircraft and a warning if the inputted baggage, fuel, and passenger weights are out of the safe range.



10) Spin-a-Wind

Last but not least, this app from Len Robinson goes above and beyond the basic weather conditions to provide pilots with a more accurate picture of the crosswind, headwind, tailwind, and other conditions at the destination runway and its surrounding area.

Pilots are relying on apps to do everything in this day and age: charting their routes, viewing the pertinent weather maps, completing safety checklists, getting help with navigating, and much more. From a technology standpoint, there’s never been a better time to be a pilot.