Patent ID: 8055395

Claim:
A system for providing crosswind component information to a pilot of an aircraft, the system comprising: an aircraft navigation system for providing measured flight data and runway of intended landing data to a crosswind component module; the crosswind component module comprising: a database comprised of runway direction data of a plurality of runways, and a processor programmed to receive the measured flight data, receive the runway of intended landing data, where such runway of intended landing data is representative of a selection of the runway of intended landing, receive airport-reported wind data at the airport of intended landing, retrieve runway direction data from the database, where such runway direction data corresponds to the runway of intended landing data and is representative of the magnetic direction of the runway of intended landing, determine aircraft-measured wind data at the flight altitude of an aircraft from the measured flight data, determine first crosswind component data using the runway direction data and the aircraft-measured wind data, wherein the first crosswind component data is representative of the value of the crosswind component of the aircraft-measured wind data, where such crosswind component of the aircraft-measured wind data is referenced to the magnetic direction of the runway of intended landing, determine second crosswind component data using the runway direction data and the airport-reported wind data, wherein the second crosswind component data is representative of the value of the crosswind component of the airport-reported wind data, where such crosswind component of the airport-reported wind data is referenced to the magnetic direction of the runway of intended landing, and provide the first crosswind component data and the second crosswind component data to an aircraft indicating system; and the aircraft indicating system configured to receive the first crosswind component data and the second crosswind component data, whereby the values represented in the first crosswind component data and the second crosswind component data are displayed simultaneously on at least one display unit.