marker beacon receiver

They use the ILS 13 approach heavily at BTR. I've got a glide slope, but had no way to locate the outer marker other than GPS. I noticed that marker beacon receivers are all over eBay for little money, so, I bought a nice one and an antenna to go with it. It's old school, but so am I. When I trained there were MMs and FMs behind the OMs. I miss those "-.'s" and "...'s", but at least I can hear "---" when I cross the OM and start the stop watch if the GPS lets me down. And, the flashing purple light is kind of festive. John

As you observe, it is a different world.

There's been more change in the preceding decades than previous centuries. We of our generation have observed it and cope with it.

The development of computer micro chips has done it. A lot of it is good, some of it crazy.

Experimental aviation is experiencing the leading edge of it with affordable glass technology not imagined 25 years ago.

That's for better or worse so far as basic aviating skills go.

How many of todays pilots could navigate successfully across the county with a compass and sectional chart?

Most would be hopelessly lost with GPS failure.

This stuff is wonderful but there is a side effect - pilots not knowing the basics because they don't need to.

Just an observation from a perspective spanning from an introduction to range approaches to what we have today. Things have changed a lot.

No more di-dah's thats for sure.