Comparison

Holding Pattern Trainer vs AeroAltitude

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Holding Pattern Trainer

Master IFR holding pattern entries on your mobile device to save time and money on instrument flight training. Practice at your convenience to make choosing the correct entry a breeze.

Highlights
  • Entry Trainer for holding pattern drills
  • Holding calculator for scenario visualization
  • Holding tutorial for quick learning
  • Practice at your own pace
  • Save on flight and ground lessons
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Save time and money on your instrument flight training by mastering IFR holding pattern entries at the comfort of your own mobile device. Make IFR flight training easier! Is the following scenario familiar? You receive a holding clearance from ATC, and only have a couple of minutes, sometimes only a few seconds, to choose the correct entry. By the time you've figured out what's going on, you've already passed the holding fix and don't know what to do next. If this sounds familiar, then you need not to worry. Confusion during holding entries happens to practically almost every new instrument student. Even instrument-rated pilots occasionally have the same problem — when they don't get enough practice. Holding Trainer solves this problem and as a result, cuts the time you have to spend on expensive flight and ground lessons. With Holding Trainer, you can practice on your own time and convenience, so that choosing the best holding entry in the air becomes a breeze. Features: -Entry Trainer - Drills you on choosing the best holding entry. Practice until choosing holding entries becomes second nature and impress your flight instructor with your skills. -Holding calculator. Solve and visualize any holding scenario by entering your current bearing to the fix and a outbound or inbound holding radial. -Holding tutorial - learn how to choose the best holding entry quickly and easily. Holding Trainer for iOS is a complete rewrite based on my popular Flash-based desktop Holding Trainer app available on pilotscafe.com. ***Don't get "stuck" next time you receive a holding pattern clearance!*** ---------------------------------- For only a fraction of the cost of one ground lesson with your flight instructor, you can practice this important instrument skill at your own pace and save hundreds of Dollars on figuring out holding entries in the air. This is a great tool for anyone training towards their instrument checkride, CFII, proficiency check, or simply trying to improve their holding patterns. ----------------------------------

About

AeroAltitude

This app calculates pressure and density altitudes using GPS, barometer, and airport METAR data. It offers manual input options and displays airport information, including charts on larger screens. A watch app and customizable units enhance its usability for pilots.

Highlights
  • Pressure and density altitude calculation
  • GPS and barometer integration
  • METAR data display
  • Airport database search
  • Watch app support
  • Customizable units
  • Data sharing
Features
Read full description

AeroAltitude calculates pressure altitude (PA) and density altitude (DA) either from user data inputs or automatically by using built-in GPS, built-in barometer*, and METAR** of airports. Overview of features: - PA/DA/QNH calculation for current position using GPS and barometer (enter temperature manually) - PA/DA calculation based on user inputs for altitude, QNH, and temperature - PA/DA calculation of any airports from the built-in airport database. Including METAR display and chart of DA (on 4'' screens and higher) - List of user defined airports showing PA/DA calculation - List of nearby airports showing PA/DA calculation - Includes watch app to display DA at current position, user, and nearby airports - User definable warning threshold factor - Sharing data via mail, message, etc. - All units are customizable - Pre iOS 14 today widget with PA/DA for maximum five nearby airports (not available in iOS 18 or later) AeroAltitude uses the freely available Aviation Digital Data Service from US NOAA to get METAR data and can not be guaranteed. Internet connection required

Screenshots

Holding Pattern Trainer4 screens
AeroAltitude3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: AeroAltitude at 4.8 against Holding Pattern Trainer's 4.1. AeroAltitude also leads on update cadence (every 2 months vs every 5 months) and price ($2.29 vs $4.99). Holding Pattern Trainer's advantage is ratings volume (114 vs 5) and review sentiment (77% vs 60%). On ads, in-app purchases, monetization model and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Holding Pattern Trainer costs $4.99 and AeroAltitude $2.29 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

AeroAltitude holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Holding Pattern Trainer has 114 ratings behind it against 5, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 77% of Holding Pattern Trainer's written reviews are positive against 60% of AeroAltitude's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Holding Pattern Trainer ships an update every 5 months, AeroAltitude every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 22, 2026 and September 21, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Holding Pattern Trainer versus AeroAltitude: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHolding Pattern TrainerAeroAltitude
Price$4.99$2.29 — better
Rating4.1 (114 ratings)4.8 (5 ratings) — better
Positive reviews76.9% of reviews — better60.0% of reviews
Number of ratings114 — better5
Update frequencyEvery 5 monthsEvery 2 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
Best chart rank#11 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS11.0 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size10 MB12 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperFLEMINGER MEDIA LLCLakehorn AG

Customer experience

Holding Pattern Trainer

All ratings114 ratings
Positive78.9%
Neutral5.3%
Negative15.8%
Written reviews91 reviews
Positive76.9%
Neutral4.4%
Negative18.7%

AeroAltitude

All ratings5 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews5 reviews
Positive60.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative40.0%

Bugs and requests

Holding Pattern Trainer

Reported bugs

15 issues
  • Entries are wrong for turns
  • Plan view is incorrect
  • App drawing entries in wrong directions
  • Slicing the fix completely wrong
  • Bearing questions are wrong
Show 10 more
  • App does not apply reciprocal track to 'pod'
  • Giving wrong answers
  • Visualizer is mirrored to map plan view (user confusion)
  • Practice screen plan view incorrect
  • App craps out and goes to a black screen
  • Guide lines separating direct, parallel, and teardrop incorrectly in practice mode visualization
  • Not updated for iOS 11
  • App loads upside down
  • Button sensitivity could be better
  • Cannot change values on hold computer

Requested features

11 requests
  • Include more methods in tutorial
  • Add teardrop heading to fly
  • Allow practice with bearings on/off
  • Show outbound teardrop/inbound parallel correction headings
  • Work in portrait mode
Show 6 more
  • Add voice ATC instructions
  • More variety in questions
  • Larger text for older users
  • More tips for newbies
  • Ability to fly the hold like a nav trainer
  • Use real-life ATC phrases in exercises

AeroAltitude

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Holding Pattern Trainer

No in-app purchases

None

AeroAltitude

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Holding Pattern Trainer free?
Holding Pattern Trainer costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is AeroAltitude free?
AeroAltitude costs $2.29, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Holding Pattern Trainer or AeroAltitude?
AeroAltitude is rated higher. Holding Pattern Trainer averages 4.1 out of 5 from 114 ratings, while AeroAltitude averages 4.8 from 5 ratings.
Do Holding Pattern Trainer or AeroAltitude have ads?
Neither Holding Pattern Trainer nor AeroAltitude shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Holding Pattern Trainer or AeroAltitude?
Holding Pattern Trainer ships an update every 5 months, and AeroAltitude every 2 months. Most recently, Holding Pattern Trainer was updated on September 22, 2026 and AeroAltitude on September 21, 2026.

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