PLT356: ILS Compass Locator
What code PLT356 covers, why the FAA tests it, and how to study ILS Compass Locator before your checkride.
Recall radio - ILS / compass locator
What this means for your checkride
Compass locators are low-powered NDBs, often installed at ILS marker beacon sites. They are received and indicated by the ADF receiver and help pilots transition from en route navigation to the ILS, track the localizer, and fly holding procedures.
Compass locators support the ILS and identify approach fixes, so pilots must know they are NDBs flown with the ADF.
A compass locator is tuned and identified on the ADF, not the VHF nav receiver used for the localizer and glide slope.
Where to study it
A code on your test report is an area of deficiency. An authorized instructor must review it with you and endorse that review before you take the practical test, and the examiner may revisit it during the oral. Study it until you can explain it out loud, not just recognize the answer.