hello!when flying in my wonderfull 737NG using the fmc i usually use fsnavigator to make a route and load this in the fmc(i use the export module to convert to pmdg rte files). but how if the destination runway change during flight i have a hard time rearrangind the route in the fmc. I allways end up whit the old route plus som of the new fx. star route??? how is this easely arranged?? how does the real pilots administrate a sudden change in runway landing??and offen i see that the vnav disconnectes because that during desent my speed is to high! what excackly does the fmc need to know to calculate the correct desent??hope you have the right answers ;-)

Lots of posts over the years but;1) Create your route in FS9 WITHOUT any STARS/SIDS. Make your last fix some way out before the destination. Then you can load up your flight plan on the ramp at departure and select the appropriate SID according to your clearance/runway. Once you get nearer to your destination (tune ATIS frequency to get active runway), you can select the approach and transition on the FMC. You will have one or two DISCO's, but it's usually easy to sort out.2) Descent planning? Try to input the cruise wind when you program the FMC .... but the conventional wisdom is to ditch VNAV descents and use VSPEED/LVL. It's a lot more controllable. In real ops, there are altitude and speed constraints placed upon you in any case. I tend to use VNAV down to around 10,000 (it won't forget to slow you to 240k!) and then use VSPEED. Refer to the STAR/Approach plate for your altitudes/speeds. Dial in the descent rate to hit the fixes at the appropriate altitudes and always look at the green arc to see the predicted descent.Otherwise, hit 300k as descent speed, and level change. Just remember to slow down at 10000 feet!Try it. You'll suddenly realise you can descend knowing what's happening and when!

Gents,If I may butt in here:I would avoid the use of any third party flight planners if I were you and just use the FMC and real world charts/positions etc as the PMDG sim is EXACTLY as it is in the real world and there we have no need of FSNAV etc ;)Also I would contest that the recieved wisdom is to avoid VNAV DES. VNAV works just fine but it MUST be set up correctly. The problems experienced online is the use of artificially changed weather etc or wind shifts that are instantaneous or were not set up in DES FORECAST prior to ToD.In conclusion, the PMDG sim is so good that it needs to be flown like the real aeroplane, nothing less will do.All the Best,Brad

>Gents,>If I may butt in here:>>I would avoid the use of any third party flight planners if I>were you and just use the FMC and real world charts/positions>etc as the PMDG sim is EXACTLY as it is in the real world and>there we have no need of FSNAV etc ;)>>Also I would contest that the recieved wisdom is to avoid VNAV>DES. VNAV works just fine but it MUST be set up correctly. The>problems experienced online is the use of artificially changed>weather etc or wind shifts that are instantaneous or were not>set up in DES FORECAST prior to ToD.>>In conclusion, the PMDG sim is so good that it needs to be>flown like the real aeroplane, nothing less will do.>>All the Best,>BradI use FS Nav exported to PMDG and it works perfectly every time. I think the mistake in the original question is to program the landing runway into the FMC. There is no way, of course, that a Pilot can predict a landing runway at the arriving airport unless he has a crystal ball, because it would be dependant on ATC and wind direction normally, which can change any moment. I just wait for ATC to assign the runway to me, and then program in the Arriving runway. I have seen Towers change the approach runway from one to another right in the middle of an approach. I don't use VNav since FS9 ATC tells me the descent path and I like to use ATC during the approach. I generally don't use the STARS because of that. If you wanted to use the Stars, I guess you could cancel IFR and ask for a VFR approach and then ATC will let you do want you want.

There is a need for third party software in my opinion; as far as I can see the PMDG FMC does not give the option of exporting the plan to anywhere and quite frankly I am not going to waste my time making 2 plans where there is a danger they might not be the same. If you cannot create a FS9 flight plan you cannot load the plan for ATC. Sure if you don't want the default ATC then you dont need to create any other plans but even with its misbehaviour the default ATC is still better than nothing for commercial aircraft.Perhaps PMDG could address this in a future update; for me it is a major weakness in an otherwise great product

Thanks for that Brad - and you should know!Couple of thoughts. I do have FSNav and do use it on occasion to produce a plan because it has a much easier map structure to navigate. I don't have all the enroute charts, and the FS9 planner is ... OK it works but FSNav allows much easier route tweaking. Other than that it's a waste of cash! Exporting allows production of the FS9 route (I don't use VATSIM yet so spend the first half of the route with the default ATC) that will match the FMC route.Admittedly, if you don't want ATC and have enroute charts, just punch the FMC.I guess you've hit on the interesting point in that the FMC needs dedicated and true-to-life operation. The trouble is that us armchair pilots are just that - and have no co-pilot! .... and fairly frequently, the FMC VNAV disconnects when we don't want it to; even when we take care to program it how we think it should. There are so many variables here. Are SIDS/STARS written as they should be? Do they include altitude restrictions? Do they include speed restrictions? I find it so easy to get into a lash with VNAV - and the problem is, there's probably a different reason on every occasion! It needs to be flown like the real thing - nothing less will do - but the majority of us don't have access to that kind of training! That's why it's so valuable for this forum to have the skills and opinions of 737 pilots (such as yourself)! I've tried to fly the NZQN VOR/DME BRAVO approach using VNAV loads of times. Every time it disconnects at some point and I really don't know why. I can fly the profile. I can punch in the fixes and the altitude constraints - but it just doesn't like too many constraints it would seem.The solution? I need to learn more - but it's very difficult to learn from your errors when the penalty is arriving in a heap and another 3 hour flight to start again! :)I'm sure it was Tim Metzinger who advocates not using VNAV for letdowns.Anyhow it's bath time. Cheers:-beerchug