FSX heading off

[Guest nhraracer90]

Hello, In FSX during an autopilot flight, if I set the heading to 150, the plane will fly heading 145 or around there. It will just not fly the heading that I put in. It is always off 5 degrees or so. Any ideas? Thanks

[n4gix 4,956]

What are your wind conditions? If you are flying into a crosswind, the Autopilot will automatically "crab" into the wind to maintain a straight track.

[Brett_Henderson 5]

Heading.. Course.. Track.. Bearing.. Relative BearingThese are all different things..Heading is where the airplane is pointing.. Course is where you want it to go.. Track is where it is going.. Bearing is the compass direction to a destination target.. Relative Bearing is the direction to a destination target where you treat your current heading as zero degrees.If the autopilot is tracking a VOR radial, or GPS course, your heading and and track will differ by a relative bearing; depending on winds aloft, as n4gix pointed out.If the autopilot is tracking a heading, you will have to set a heading that will compensate for winds aloft.Also... If you are flying an airplane like the default C172, where the heading-indicator/HSI are not slaved to the compass .. the heading indicator will "drift" over time. It needs to be regularly set to match the compass (during straight and level flight).. The keyboard shortcut for this, is the 'D' key.

[Guest nhraracer90]

OK, this is in a no wind condition, weather is clear and calm, so there is nothing blowing me around. I don't have the airplane tracking a VOR or anything. I am just in a "free" flight cruising with the autopilot set to a certain heading to follow and it is just always off by a few degrees. Then if I have it following the GPS, it is always to the right or left of the "line" on the GPS, never center.

[Guest PPSFA]

Check your FSX settings to see if 'gyro drift' is enabled.

[snave 0]

..and if it is, hit the `D` key. It's all in the Learning Center.

[Guest nhraracer90]

what exactly is gyro-drift?

[pontiuspilotus 6]

Here is an extensive explanationhttp://www.flightsimworld.com/forums/index...owtopic=108038#

[Guest nhraracer90]

Ok thanks

[snave 0]

Ok thanks

You missed the clue:IT'S IN THE LEARNING CENTER...FSX is your friend.

[Guest nhraracer90]

Well there was a conversation going on here so I asked on here instead of looking in THE LEARNING CENTER

[flaminghotsauce 1]

Well there was a conversation going on here so I asked on here instead of looking in THE LEARNING CENTER

Quick explanation is the heading indicator runs on a mechanical gyro, which, when one turns, climbs, or any flight other than perfectly flat and level, will cause a creeping error that compounds as time goes on. Reset by pushing "D" every fifteen minutes or more often in turbulence.

[JET 1 0]

What are your wind conditions? If you are flying into a crosswind, the Autopilot will automatically "crab" into the wind to maintain a straight track.

It will only do that in NAV mode (tracking a VOR radial or RNAV track), not HDG mode, which will basically keep the nose pointed at the selected heading.

[snave 0]

Well there was a conversation going on here so I asked on here instead of looking in THE LEARNING CENTER

You should know that in forums that require people to reply it is polite to consider the level of imposition on any request. What you have effectively said is that you can't be bothered, but expect everyone else to...? Not good thinking. :( What I say is that I have answered your question in a form which will probably also answer many more of your questions, saving you from needing to impose on others. It would certainly have answered your follow-on question, so it is obvious that you are not looking for a hand up, you expect a hand out. You need to re-think that rationale.

[Guest PPSFA]

Most here are happy to assist you, while at the same time pointing you to additional sources of pertinent information. It's the best of both worlds, so don't let some discourage you from asking, but you should use all available recources provided.