Hi everyone,I'm going to attempt to make SIDSTAR files for the USA Simflyers airports. If anyone out there is using these sceneries and would like to have the files, let me know and I will copy/paste them into this thread. I am going to start with Atlanta, but I guess your posts will indicate which I do next, based on popularity. :)Also, if someone from PMDG has a spare moment, I'd appreciate if you could reply and let me know how to add instrument approaches into this file, as the examples only seem to contain SIDs, STARs and GATES. Also, could you please confirm if I'm understanding the FIXES entries correctly? Consider the following example:FIX EBOTO COLOCATED SPR 229 23I'm assuming that this tells the FMC that EBOTO (which I assume is a fix NOT found in the PIC AIRAC data, please let me know if I need to do this for every non-VOR fix) is located 23 nautical miles from the SPR VOR along the 229 radial. Is this correct? This is the only thing that is not totally self explanatory. Thanks.-Shaun

PMDG,whoops, not sure how this thread got here twice! feel free to delete the second. :) Anyhows, there actually is one more thing I don't understand. How can I base a SID on a transition rather than a runway?I tried putting ATL5.NOONE RNW 08L but then I ended up with a DP called ATL5.NOONE rather than ATL5 SID with a NOONE transition available. Also, this SID is for all runways so I'd like to be able to omit the RNW part of the various transitions and just put it in once if I could. :)-Shaun

sorry but.. bump :)I will do this just one time. If everyone is too busy to help I understand and will just let the thread get buried and forget about it.-Shaun

Shaun,as soon as Anthony is available today, he will be able to answer all your questions.Cheers!

Marc,Excellent, thanks! I can't wait to be able to take the PMDG 737 between the Simflyers airports (the only ones I typically fly to anymore) with ease and realism. :)-Shaun

Shaun,do you have the World Airports simflyers collection? I was thinking of getting it but not sure about performance, especially with the 737TNG.

Hello,Was just going throught the forum before installing the new born.I have the complete Simflyer world collection, so if you need help with the sids star, let me know.Cpt Cyrille de LattreP IV 2.4 GHZ/1.5 GHZ SDRAM/ATI RADEON 9700 128 MEG/

Marc,I have just the USA airports so far. I am thinking about getting the rest but I rarely fly outside the USA so I dunno. At any rate, the performance is just fine with one exception. All of them have completely fluid frame rates EXCEPT for KDFW, which is just so complex that it isn't even fluid without the NG. :) For comparison, I'm running an Athlon XP 2600+ with 1 GB of crucial PC2700 DDR RAM (running in dual channel mode) and a GeForce 4 Ti4200.Frankly though, I don't think that using the NG or not makes a real (read: observable to the eye) difference. I did a test parked on a runway with the default 737 and then the NG (engines running in both) and noted a drop of only THREE FPS(!) when in the NG. This is with the 2D cockpits only, I'm not much of a VC fan so I didn't include those versions in my test.I did take a brief stroll through the virtual cabin at one point though, that was VERY cool! :) It reminds me of a question though, is there any way to open and close the doors? (not the ctrl-e door but the internal doors like cockpit, lavs, or maybe even get the internal representation of the main exits to open and close?)-Shaun

Hi Cyrille,I could sure use some help if you'd like to build files rather than test fly the new plane. :) Right now we can't do much until we know how to impliment DPs and STARs dependant on transitions rather than runways. :) I am currently slewing around KATL and getting the lat/lon positions for all of the gates that don't currently have a static plane parked at them. If you wanted to do the same at another airport that would be great, and that way we will be done with the really labor intensive part by the time Anthony logs in. :)-Shaun

I tried to make a SID/STAR file for my home airport of KTUS last night and failed miserably! Anthony, when you read this, is there any chance you could make a basic SID/STAR/IAP explaination file availiable for download for us procedure nuts right now rather than making us wait for the manual?? I'm getting somethign in the syntax wrong because it seems to match what's in the two example files, but I get FMC errors when entering in the dep/arr airports.Specific questions:1. As Shaun mentioned, how do you have a procedure for multiple runways, but that has the same name? For example, the TUS6.GBN DP has you overfly the TUS VOR first, then intercept the radial to ROSKR if using Runway 11L, but if you take off the other direction on 29R, you just intercept the radial of the TUS VOR right away to ROSKR. How do I have two TUS6.GBN's each for a different runway. Also, if a proceedure is the the same on more than one runway, is there a way to say which runways it's valid for and not have to write it out several times?2. Can you define the common waypoints of a procedure and then just fill in the differences for the individual transistions? (like for the example above - NAVAID ROSKR NAVAID GBN would be the common part, and then youd have two different parts that are runway specific dealing with intercepting the radial)3. How do you define "at or above", "at or below" or a block altitude constraint?4. Are approach and missed approach modeled? (please say yes!)Ryan

Actually, just to avoid any confusion, I wanted to know how to have multiple TRANSITIONS on the same STAR and have them available for ANY runway :) I think I can help with some of your questions though. If this works you won't have to wait on PMDG.. BUT it's just my observations from the files and playing with the FMC a little so nothing's garunteed :)1. It appears that you would have the same SID multiple times.. like this:SID TUS6 RNW 11L ..................SID TUS6 RNW 29R ..................2. It doesn't SEEM that it works that way, from the examples, but I sure hope I am wrong. :)3. No clue, I've made some assumptions about this from the STAR file but haven't had a chance to try them at all and I could be way off base.4. No clue here either, we'll have to wait for Anthony to tell us how to program an IAP, but I'm sure something like missed approaches weren't left out.-Shaun

Hello,1) Instrument approaches : can you be a bit more specific, an example perhaps ?2) FIXES section is to have the possibility to declare fixes that are not listed in the AIRAC database. I suggest you first assume they are, and if not, you'll get an error message in the CDU upon airport load. You can also directly check in the appropriate AIRAC file.3) Your assumption is 100% correct.4) I tentatively paste here the grammar (bear with me, it will be much more readable in the upcoming doc)..Airport file editing syntaxRemarks- Check out the LSGG and LSZH files for comprehensive examples- Lower case tokens are compound and are to be developed - Sections within [ ] are optional- The following :gates:| gates gate;means that

Anthony,By instrument approaches, we mean being able to select "ILS26" "VOR32R" etc - they appear (at least in 767PIC) above the runways on the right side of the FMC on the DEP/ARR page. The approach is actually defined fully by the fixes along the localizer or VOR radial, and then followed by the published missed approach procedure. I'm guessing by your answer that there's no model for this currently - if you guys could addit in the future, it'd be great!I'm gonna try to decipher the formatting stuff you just posted and I'll post back here with any additional questions...Thanks!Ryan

Hi Marc,I have the World Airports collection, and as far as add-on airports go, they are quite frame-rate friendly (with the exception of KDFW, but with low AI traffic and no static scenery it's perfectly flyable). You can check for yourself, by downloading one of their sceneries and just install the demo. Bear in mind, though, that the demos don't include the runways, and if you think framerates at the gate are on the low side, they will improve, once you get to a runway. Simflyers have designed their sceneries, so that object details depend on your proximity to the object, i.e. the further away you get from the terminal, the less detail is loaded, and fps improve greatly.Cheers,Gosta.http://hifi.avsim.net/activesky/images/wxrebeta.jpg

Ryan,You can define any "fix" in the fixes sections, such as FAF26L or whatever and include it in the star.(Published MA procs syntax will be available when the 800 900 package comes out.)De nadaanthonyAnthony MertonPrecision Manuals Developmenthttp://www.precisionmanuals.com