Everybody talks about auto flight when it comes to the PMDG 737s. But these birds are also great for hand flying.Yesterday I programmed a flightplan into the FMC for the first time (I purchased the 737NG last week). Exept from some minor errors I made, everything went fine :-). On approach into Innsbruck (LOWI) I disconnected the AP at 4500 MSL (2600 AGL) which is the decission hight for ILS approaches to RW26 and also because the LOC is offset by 5

Hi Wolfgang,I'm very impressed too with the handflying behaviour of this "baby" Boeing.Yesterday I hand-flew an ILS approach to KDEN Rwy 8 with a BKN008 ceiling and a 3SM visibility in light rain and was delighted to fly this bird with just the AT engaged (to about 1000 ft AGL).I'm a very very happy customer too !

I totally agree. I spent the first few months mastering the auto flight features of this bird and now I'm hand flying Departures and Finals just for fun. It's such a great feeling hand flying her when you know you can do all the other automated stuff too! Best RegardsBoone,[email protected]"Flying a plane is no different from riding a bicycle. It's just a lot harder to put baseball cards in the spokes."

I second that,I like to fly raw data. No flight director no auto throttle, nothing at all. It is just too much fun. I switch the AP usually on around FL 200 when it gets kinda boring anyway.I think I've flown only two approaches with the autopilot since I own the PMDG Boeing :-) (which doesn't mean that I do perfect landings...).Alex

I have been hand flying all the approaches both ILS and VFR since I got the PMDG and think it is one of the highliights of this aircraft. Last week I decided to shut the left engine down as I was approaching Ft Lauderdale and fly a Visual to 9L. Expecting the plane to be all over the place with power changes, I anticipated a real struggle on the approach. Was I surpised to see how docile this plane was with one engine out. Got it down right on the centerline:). Much easier than a Twin Engine Cessna with one prop parked.........

with the right cockpit controls (yoke & decent throttle), it feels almost as good as a real 737NG simulator. i often fly the entire departure up to cruise these days & rarely do an autoland.the flight dynamics really are excellent, quite possibly the best i've seen for FS.

I love hand flying too, it's so much more rewarding. The only thing I can't do very well is trim the 737 for level flight. I've tried modifying the rudder trim effectiveness setting in the aircraft.cfg file for more precise control but I still have to fight the trim and can never seem to find the right setting no matter what.I use a registered version of FSUPIC for better joystick button control and I have a Saitek X-45 USB digtal throttle and stick combination. I've checked my joystick centering and scanned for any potentiometer noise but my stick is spot on along all axes.Was just wondering, when you guys hand fly, how are you trimming with preccison?

Just a note, Wolf. If you have FSNavigator you can export flight plans from it directly into the saved flight plan directory of the PMDG 737-NG FMC. It saves a great deal of time if you use FSNav.Next up on my purchase list: Reality XP Weather Radar, ActiveSky 2004, and Radar Control 3, in reverse order. =)

The only problem with FSNavigator is it doesn't input jetways. But this can easily be done manually in the FMC. Best RegardsBoone,[email protected]"Flying a plane is no different from riding a bicycle. It's just a lot harder to put baseball cards in the spokes."

>I love hand flying too, it's so much more rewarding. The>only thing I can't do very well is trim the 737 for level>flight. I've tried modifying the rudder trim effectiveness>setting in the aircraft.cfg file for more precise control but>I still have to fight the trim and can never seem to find the>right setting no matter what.>>I use a registered version of FSUPIC for better joystick>button control and I have a Saitek X-45 USB digtal throttle>and stick combination. I've checked my joystick centering>and scanned for any potentiometer noise but my stick is spot>on along all axes.>>Was just wondering, when you guys hand fly, how are you>trimming with preccison?Is there a rudder trim that I have been missing, or are you just adjusting trim ( vs effectiveness) in the .cfg file?

Hand flying this plane is just a breeze. I usually fly SID's with the A/P off, especially when the SID requires frequent inputs. Usually this phase lasts until the aircraft is at about 7-8000 feet, then I switch the A/P on to deal with the rest. Same deal with landings. Only difference is that I usually let the A/P line her up on the ILS and then I take manual control. It is a pure pleasure to fly her down to the RWY in normal weather conditions. Yet the best impression it made is that you can safely land her in critical weather conditions - head down on the PFD/ND style.A word about FSNav; I try to match reality as much as I can, so whenever I enter a route in the FMC I enter it waypoint by waypoint, or airway by airway for two reasons: to make sure everything is the way I want it to be, and to model the pre-flight tasks real pilots do as well.Cheers,

Yes, hand-flying the 737 is enjoyable. Having only the 600/700, I typically fly the Virgin Blue variants. I hope to upgrade to an AMD 2.4Ghz, FS2k4, PMDG 737-800/900 and the eagerly awaited 747-400 after school finishes.Anyways, I usually set aside a day to fly 4 or 5 sectors, beginning at either Brisbane or Melbourne. Obviously this requires planning the night before to organise flights, loads, fuel, the appropriate charts, weather etc.I typically hand-fly to 15000ft-25000ft before engaging A/P on departure. When on approach, I usually disconnect at 10000ft and hand-fly the remainder of the descent and approach.I guess I am lucky in that Australia has generally good weather and I can opt for the visual with ILS as a backup.With that being said, I did encounter some interesting weather at Melbourne a while ago - fog down to minimums. Was a bit of a challenge, but we did end up right on the numbers.It's good to have an aircraft which flies amazingly in both A/P and hand-flier modes.And for those of you who wish to experience good weather, nice scenery, short flights (1-3hrs) - I strongly recommend downloading the Virgin Blue repaints, having a look at the schedule (I can even send you one if you like). It is fantastic for hand-flying and I'm sure you will enjoy it.

Whoops, I meant elevator trim effectiveness :( You can go into the aircraft.cfg file for any one of the PMDG variants and change the elevator trim effectiveness from .80 to a lower value like .35 - theorectically this would give you more subtle, precise control of elevator trim for fine tuning.It does seem to help but I really can't find a sweet spot. A pilot friend of mine (type rated on the B737NG's) couldn't smoothly trim out my PMDG 737 either, lol, and we tried everything. We could eventually level out within +/- 100 feet of our target altitude but it was a bear, lemme tell ya, haha.My friend say that in the real 737 aircraft it is very easy to trim right on the money for whatever target altitude that is desired. Gosh, I wish I could figure out how to make my 737 do that on the computer :)

reducing the trim effectiveness value will make the trim much less sensitive & much less precise. leave it at its original value for the best results (i've fiddled with it a bit too).if you have a keyboard, use that to trim, you can make very small changes just by hitting the keys (i think its the End & PageUP keys, but don't quote me on that!) & that should allow you to trim it very precisely. personally i use the GoFlight trim wheel, but i use to use the keyboard & never had any problems with trim.

Hi Laurie,I will give the keyboard method you described a shot, that never occured to me! Thanks so much for the info.