I am now looking at building a T-38C model cockpit. For those of you who haven

Let me get it right:in the REAL plane, you have to type on a keyboard to change the QNH??????Hell, i would never have thought of something like that...How on earth are you going to type when you are pulling gees???Well, for you to do this it requires a decent programming knowledge in my opinion.What i would do, is this:an application with a defined set of commands listens to the keyboard, when it receives the command (as to say after pressing enter) it parses the line entered separating commands and parameters.For example you could define these commandsqnh nnnnobs1 nnnobs2 nnnhsihdg nnnwhere nnn represent the dimension of the parameter you are acquiring.So typing "obs1 342 enter"the program would interpret: set obs of nav1 to 342.Obviously you ain't using the PC keybard for this, otherwise you need this application to be in focus (and FS to be non focused then).So by using any keyboard encoder like hangstrom, and interfacing your application with that, you can do this.

LOL Yes Claudio, Santa does have to type while pulling g

It seem a strange way to do things, especially in that type of aircraft. It's a lot easier to turn a knobin flight than it is to push buttons. Just ask anyone who has one of those new Garmin transponderswere you have to type in your squawk code.Have a nice Xmas.-------Scottie

OMG :-eekKudos to the pilots then, they have to do a helluva lot ot work to pilot AND TYPE ON A KEYBOARD!!!!!Well... i thought that the HOTAS concept was the most intelligent and straightforward concept in a plane...Looks like they went back on their paces.

>It seem a strange way to do things, especially in that type>of aircraft. It's a lot easier to turn a knob>in flight than it is to push buttons. Just ask anyone who has>one of those new Garmin transponders>were you have to type in your squawk code.I'll be able to comment on that in a few weeks when our refurbished Cessna arrives.. :)http://www.mik.fi/gallery/albums/koneet/dsc_1095.sized.jpgIt's still probably lots better than most of those iPaq + GPS combinations out there - they are trying to sell those for pilots here too with the Finnish VFR charts etc - but the program they use has tiny buttons and you are supposed to poke them with the stylus.. Not the right way to do it. There is another program with a separate "button" mode where the whole screen fills up with thumb-sized buttons, which is a lot better. But still the feedback could be better. That's why all rotary knobs in aircraft radios *click* when you turn. That's why switches have a *click* or they are toggles which you can also feel very clearly when they toggle. So you know the input went through, its sometimes very hard to be precise in the inputs when there's turbulence. Also, a knob you can grab and turn, while your finger can slip on a button, especially if there's a keypad.. pretty interesting indeed for a fast jet.//Tuomas

I use a PDA moving map in my aircraft. I set the map up before departure and I never really have to messwith it again while I'm in flight. I wouldn't want to use the stylus in flight. With my luck I'd hit a bitof turbulance and put the thing right through the screen :(. I fly a flexwing microlight with an opencockpit. When I fly to the edge of my paper chart I have to land and refold it, so the moving map onthe PDA has the advantage here. I use a program called memory map which uses digital copies of the actualUK CAA paper charts. (http://www.memory-map.co.uk/maps_uk_intheair.htm)I find the PDA maps give much more detail than the likes of the Garmin 295 or the Bendix King Skymap, and as I already had the PDA, it was much cheaper too.BTW, nice panel, Tuomas.

>I use a PDA moving map in my aircraft. I set the map up>before departure and I never really have to mess>with it again while I'm in flight. I wouldn't want to use the>stylus in flight. With my luck I'd hit a bit>of turbulance and put the thing right through the screen :(. I>fly a flexwing microlight with an open>cockpit. When I fly to the edge of my paper chart I have to>land and refold itYeah, no refolding of paper in the wind :)That pic looks amazing, I have never flown in an open cockpit, it must be a lot more like "being one with the wind" :)I found this useful: http://www.catskillhikes.com/mapfold.htmlAlthough it is not ideal either - it works well, if you fly mostly east-west routes, but you need to re-fold if you fly north-south. But if the route fits on one side, this works reasonably well, it makes the chart somewhat small and keeps the paper in better condition thant continuously refolding it. But the problem is when you happen to go just over the edge on top or bottom..But maybe one could have two charts, one folded horizontally and one vertically? :)>so the moving map on>the PDA has the advantage here. I use a program called memory>map which uses digital copies of the actual>UK CAA paper charts.>(http://www.memory-map.co.uk/maps_uk_intheair.htm)>I find the PDA maps give much more detail than the likes of>the Garmin 295 or the Bendix King Skymap, >and as I already had the PDA, it was much cheaper too.Yeah, a VFR paper sectional chart (or a scan) does indeed work better for VFR navigation, because you also see the ground detail and landmarks, while the GPS map mostly shows you the airspace boundaries and roads and some landmarks - a paper chart is still a lot higher on resolution and information density.>BTW, nice panel, Tuomas.Thanks. I'm really looking forward to having that plane in Finland, we got the permit for a ferry flight now, so it's just about waiting for good weather to fly it from Denmark..//Tuomas

Actually, as I understand it, the aircraft does have HOTAS. I would think that the pilot would input the flight plan into the computer, while on the ground and select functions, i.e., NAV, Weapons, Intercept, etc. from the keyboard. He could also change or update his flight plan and, update the INS from a GPS fix while at altitude.The system was built by Boeing to simulate a wide range of fighter/bomber aircraft. The F-18 uses a similar UFCP. However, it has a touch screen MFD. I wish they had this when I was in pilot training.Tuomas, you can fan fold a chart so that it is easy to unfold the next section while in the air. Also, we use to cut the charts into strips that had the course drawn on it, for low level routes. I would fan fold it so I only had to open the next page. At 420kts and between 100 and 500 feet AGL, you don

>Tuomas, you can fan fold a chart so that it is easy to unfold>the next section while in the air. Also, we use to cut the>charts into strips that had the course drawn on it, for low>level routes. I would fan fold it so I only had to open the>next page. At 420kts and between 100 and 500 feet AGL, you>don

USAF! I flew F-4s and B-52's. Most of my time was in the RF-4C, flying low level reconscience. That was some of the best flying in the world. Low and fast. I loved it. We were unarmed and relied on stealth and speed to survive. I have been supersonic 50 feet (15 meters for you Europeans) above the ground. I have been so low over water that I looked into the eyes of the tub boat Captain I was passing and looked up at million dollar houses perched above me, over looking the valley I was flying down. It was the best flying in the world for me. John

>USAF! I flew F-4s and B-52's. Most of my time was in the>RF-4C, flying low level reconscience. That was some of the>best flying in the world. Low and fast. I loved it. We were>unarmed and relied on stealth and speed to survive. I have>been supersonic 50 feet (15 meters for you Europeans) above>the ground. I have been so low over water that I looked into>the eyes of the tub boat Captain I was passing and looked up>at million dollar houses perched above me, over looking the>valley I was flying down. It was the best flying in the world>for me. I can imagine.. Very interesting indeed :)I found this recently:http://www.pkbase.com/download/index.php?id=28 (380MB) - German air force Tornados doing low level training..Captures the similar feeling :) Btw, www.pkbase.com has a lot of other neat videos too..//Tuomas

Tornados IDS where made following the positive USA experience with the F111 (whose name is untypeable): equipped with two powerfull engines, double speedbrakes, variable wings, auto terrain follower; they were not supersonic (an IDS fully armed is not that aerodynamic :() but could strike at 500kts, 15m above the ground, in the european valleys... all on autopilot :-eekReally nifty little beasts we did :)The ADF was an improved version: engines powered up, some airfoil cleaning done, only AA meant very aerodynamic weapons and so faster speed (ADF is supersonic).Now if only i can have an EFA i would be happy...Peace to the beloved DID team who made TFX, EFA2000 and F22 TAW.If you are a retrogamer, a very powerfull tornado sim should be available somewhere on the net.I think it was made by infogrames...

That brought back memories. I loved the air race video under the bridge and through the cones. Now that my kind of flying!John

Tuomas:"I have never flown in an open cockpit, it must be a lot more like "being one with the wind""I learned to fly in one of these.....http://forums.avsim.net/user_files/101946.jpgWith no engine noise either, this really is "One with the wind"Richard