Practical preflight decision-making, from the framework down to the forecast. Written for US Part 91 GA pilots.
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Free, practical guides on preflight decision-making from the FlightDecide team: no sign-up, no paywall. Each guide takes one piece of the go/no-go picture (the decision framework, your personal numbers, the forecast, the NOTAMs) and turns it into something you can actually use before the next flight.
A repeatable structure for the decision: PAVE worked through concretely, binary calls made early, and what a marginal "caution" flight requires.
Your own hard numbers for ceiling, visibility, wind, runway, and fuel: how to set them, slide them with conditions, and keep them honest.
Decode every group in a terminal forecast so you can see whether your departure window improves or decays.
The NOTAMs that actually change a go/no-go (closed runways, unlit obstacles, TFRs) and how to find them in the noise.
Where a Canadian briefing actually comes from: plan.navcanada.ca, the FICs, and how to read a GFA.
The ICAO format, the Q-line, and how CFPS filtering differs from the FAA system.
Advisory vs restricted vs danger: entry rules, activity suffixes, and how to check whether a zone is hot.
Headwind and crosswind components at steady and gust speeds, instantly.
What today's heat and elevation do to the runway your airplane thinks it's on.
Printable write-in worksheet for setting your ceiling, visibility, wind, runway, and fuel numbers.
FlightDecide pulls weather, winds, NOTAMs, fuel, performance, and W&B for your aircraft and departure window, compares them against your personal minimums, and scores the flight GO, CAUTION, or NO GO, with the raw data one tap away.
Get FlightDecide on the App StoreEducational content for flight-planning practice. These guides are advisory only and not a substitute for an official weather briefing, your POH, or your own judgment as pilot in command (14 CFR 91.3). Sources are cited on each guide. Last reviewed: July 17, 2026.