Heading and track
Separate the direction of the nose from the path over the ground. Predict what a crosswind changes, then test your prediction.
What you’ll learn
- Distinguish true heading from ground track using the same north reference.
- Turn a wind direction stated as from into the direction the air moves.
- Add aircraft and wind velocities to explain drift and groundspeed.
The nose and the path describe different things
Heading tells you which direction the aircraft's nose points. Track tells you the direction of its actual movement over the ground. Your intended route is a third thing: a line you want to follow. Pointing along that line does not by itself keep the aircraft on it.
All directions in this lesson are true, measured clockwise from true north: 000° north, 090° east, 180° south and 270° west. Compare headings and tracks using the same reference. A true heading and a magnetic track cannot be subtracted directly to find drift.
The model assumes straight, level, coordinated flight at a constant true airspeed, or TAS. Its through-air velocity follows the heading. With no wind, the heading and track agree. Adding wind changes movement over the ground without requiring a change in where the nose points.
Heading describes orientation; track describes movement over the ground.
Wind is named for where it comes from
A wind from 090° comes from the east and moves towards the west. A wind from 270° comes from the west and moves towards the east. Reverse the reported direction by 180° to draw the air's movement.
Keep the nose north. Wind from the east adds westward motion, so the track lies west of north. Reverse the wind and the track moves east of north. The aircraft can retain the same heading in both cases.
A wind speed is the speed of the moving air mass, not a correction to add to the heading in degrees. First identify the wind's direction of movement; then consider its speed.
From the west means movement towards the east.
Add two movements over the same time
True airspeed describes motion relative to the surrounding air. Groundspeed describes motion relative to the ground. To connect them, draw the aircraft's through-air movement and then add the movement of the air mass. The arrow from the starting point to the final point is the resulting ground velocity.
Directions matter. Flying north at 100 kt with air moving east at 20 kt does not produce 120 kt north. The result contains both a northward and an eastward component. Its direction gives track; its length, on the same scale, gives groundspeed.
The angle between heading and track is the drift angle. In this model, a crosswind changes both the track and the groundspeed even though TAS stays fixed. This does not mean the aircraft is flying faster through the air.
Velocities are arrows with direction as well as size.
Predict the side before reading the number
Before moving a control, say where the nose will point and which way the wind will carry the air. Then predict which side of the heading the track will fall on. A correct number is more useful when you can explain its direction.
In the lab, begin with heading 000° and wind from 090° at 20 kt. Expect a track west of north, around 349°. Keep the heading north and change the wind source to 270°. Expect the track to cross to the other side, around 011°. Finally, try zero wind and watch the track return to the heading.
Changing the wind can change track while heading stays unchanged.
Keep the nose north. Reverse the wind.
TAS is 100 kt. The lab starts at heading 000°, with wind from 090° at 20 kt. All angles are true. Read the initial track, then deliberately change the wind source.
TAS 100 kt · All directions in this wind model are true.
Type a value or use the slider. Arrow keys make small changes.
Keep heading 000°. Set wind from 270° at 20 kt. Predict the side of drift, then check the target. The track should be about 011°.
Show a hint
A wind from 270° moves east. Add eastward wind motion to northward through-air motion.
Explore the controls, then check your setup against the task.
North through the air, east with the wind
- Use TAS 100 kt and heading 000° true. Set wind from 270° true at 20 kt, so the air moves east.
- Over a one-hour construction, the through-air movement is 100 NM north and the wind movement is 20 NM east. Add these perpendicular arrows.
- The drift is arctan(20 ÷ 100) = 11.3° east of north. Track is therefore about 011° true while heading remains 000° true.
- Groundspeed is √(100² + 20²) = 102 kt approximately. It is the diagonal result, not the scalar sum 120 kt.
Heading 000° true; track about 011° true; groundspeed about 102 kt.
Check your understanding
- Heading points the nose; track follows movement over the ground.
- A wind direction states where the wind comes from; the air moves the opposite way.
- Add velocity vectors, not just speed numbers.
- Compare directions against the same north reference before interpreting drift.
Complete lesson
Solve the interactive exercise and all four checks to complete this lesson.
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Progress saved on this browserSources & syllabus
AMC1 FCL.210; FCL.215 — PPL(A), 9. NAVIGATION / 9.1. GENERAL NAVIGATION / DR navigation: Basis of DR; The triangle of velocities — heading, wind velocity, groundspeed, track and drift angle. October 2026 edition.
- EASA — Easy Access Rules for Aircrew, October 2026 ↗AMC1 FCL.210; FCL.215, PPL(A) theoretical syllabus, 9.1 General Navigation: DR navigation / Basis of DR; The triangle of velocities.
- FAA — Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge, Chapter 16: Navigation ↗True heading; Effect of Wind; wind triangle. Used for shared navigation physics, not European procedural requirements.
These references support the syllabus scope and the navigation principles taught here. The exercises and explanations are original Trimbrief material.
Simplified, steady-wind learning model; no live weather or operational navigation data.
Content edition: 2 November 2026