Great instructional series on how to fly the PMDG 747 from start to finish that I found on Youtube...http://www.youtube.com/user/meloescher#p/u/8/vzG5IYgVFWo

Thanks for calling attention to these videos. Are very nicely done.Robert

Be careful at the end.He uses autopilot all the way down to the runway and I don't mean in a Cat III ILS autoland.In the real world, pilots always disconnect the autopilot and autothrottle long before decision height and fly her in manually.They do this in case they have to perform a go-around, or in case other problems arise. Not to mention, they are getting paid to actually fly the plane, not just push buttons and monitor the AP.All the kids on Youtube speculate this guy is a 747 captain, or instructor. I don't think he is. He just knows the lingo and has a very authoritative voice... But his ACTIONS say he is just a simmer, and not a very experienced on since he never takes the plane off autopilot for the final approach.

Be careful at the end.He uses autopilot all the way down to the runway and I don't mean in a Cat III ILS autoland.In the real world, pilots always disconnect the autopilot and autothrottle long before decision height and fly her in manually.They do this in case they have to perform a go-around, or in case other problems arise. Not to mention, they are getting paid to actually fly the plane, not just push buttons and monitor the AP.All the kids on Youtube speculate this guy is a 747 captain, or instructor. I don't think he is. He just knows the lingo and has a very authoritative voice... But his ACTIONS say he is just a simmer, and not a very experienced on since he never takes the plane off autopilot for the final approach.

Autoflight and Auto Land is here to stay as far as jets are concerned. Meaning you become a button pusher.This is fine cause flying is far more than moving the plane, navigtion, weather , etc.If you like hand fly try props instead, i use props when i want to hand fly.Real World pilots say they allow autopilot as much as possible cause it flies far more smoother than they could. As early as 1200 feet above ground autopilot takes over in real world jet flights.And in poor visibility and favourable winds pilots let the plane land itself with autoland, cause it can see better than they can.

Beware the startup procedure in video 5 is wrong. He failed to put the number 4 demand pump to AUX and turn off the 2 and 3 bleed prior to engine start, as well as didn't set beacon lights before start.Also, why is he arming spoilers/speedbrakes on takeoff? I know that is part of the procedures for an Airbus, but I've never seen this in any normal procedures on a Boeing, and it's not mentioned in the NP for the PMDG?

... why is he arming spoilers/speedbrakes on takeoff?

He set the autobrakes to RTO in case of a rejected take-off.

Beware the startup procedure in video 5 is wrong. He failed to put the number 4 demand pump to AUX and turn off the 2 and 3 bleed prior to engine start, as well as didn't set beacon lights before start.Also, why is he arming spoilers/speedbrakes on takeoff? I know that is part of the procedures for an Airbus, but I've never seen this in any normal procedures on a Boeing, and it's not mentioned in the NP for the PMDG?

Correct, the #4 demand pump should be on auxillary for start. However, the 747 APU can actually start the engines with all packs on. Standard procedures is to turn 2 and 3 off to reduce APU load (I believe engine spool is also faster), but is not strictly necessary.The beacons not being on is critically wrong. You need to let all ground crew near the airplane know that you are starting/moving soon.Regarding the spoilers, I don't know for sure on teh 747 (I'm certainly not a real world 744 pilot)...however, all aircraft arm the spoilers somehow or takeoff. I thought the Boeings automatically did this when you set the autobrake to RTO. For an example to the contrary though, you do this manually on the MD-11. The reason for all this is that if you need to perform an RTO near V1, the wings are already generating a lot of lift. You need to spoil as much of the lift as possible (hence the name spoilers) to put weight back on the wheels. If the wheels are only lightly loaded, then they will skid--well antiskid will keep that from happening, but they will be less effective at braking.EDIT: Ok, he started on the runway. There's no way this guy is a real world if he's going to start cold and dark on the runway. I actually watched a few minutes now. He also didn't power on the NAV lights when he powered the aircraft. No IRS alignment....a lot of issues and simplifications.