Approaches: how to know if they are in the GPS?

[Guest]

I fly down under almost all the time (FTX!) and I find it convenient to be able to load an approach into the FS GPS. Specially now I've got FSPassengers and landing smoothly has become more important. ;) However, I don't know of a way to check if an airfield has them before I am actually in the plane with the flightplan loaded. I can't seem to find the information using the FSX flightplanner map. Am I overlooking something...? Is it possible to see if an airfield will have approaches in the GPS? And if so, can you also see for which runways and what kind of approached they are?

[wiltzei 15]

Check the proper charts from this page, and add the corresponding waypoints in the flightplanner. I use the GPS mainly to navigate into Final Approach Fixes, if not flying by-the-book, and in Direct-To'ing strips, if I

[Guest]

Hm, interesting, thanks for the link, but not the answer I was looking for. ;) I simply want to know of the approaches that are in the FS GPS can be looked at while planning the flight, so that I know beforehand if an airfield will have an approach or not and what kind.

[woodhick 504]

The only way I can think of is to open a saved flight (reserved for exactly this use) and navigate the GPS pages to the needed screen and actually look it up before you plan your flight.

[Guest WarpAir]

if you happen to have a second screen, get Fscommander, its a moving map with many other great features, one being tha it gives you approaches just like fsx gps, but i think its got approaches for all fsx airports. On a flight where FSX gps showed no approach for me, fscommander gave the approach for same airport runway.Downside is, you need s second screen to view fscommnder and fsx at same time.I also use fscommander for airport taxi and flight planning.

[n4gix 4,947]

After all these years, I am constantly amazed that folks don't take the time to actually explore the default GPS, or read the very excellent documentation for it in the Learning Center... :(

WPT4

[Guest]

After all these years, I am constantly amazed that folks don't take the time to actually explore the default GPS, or read the very excellent documentation for it in the Learning Center... :(

After all these years, I am constantly amazed that folks don't take the time to actually read the post... and understand the question.:( You didn't tell me anything new. All you posted is known by me for ages. I've used the RXP GNS that was in the Dreamfleet2000 Bonanza for I don't know how long and read the complete official manual so I know (almost) everything about these devices. And btw I also know the default GPS is actually quite good (for a 'freebie'). I've explained the GPS myself to others in numerous posts.So... let me repeat the core part of my question again for those who have trouble reading... :( QuoteHowever, I don't know of a way to check if an airfield has them before I am actually in the plane with the flightplan loaded. UnquoteI don't know how to put it any clearer. Feel free to enlighten me, Bill! B) (Mind you, your effort of giving a complete answer, with screenshots and all, is very appreciated because usually similar posts contain nothing but 'RTFM' or 'Use Google' and remarks like that. I myself also always try to go the extra mile. So no harm meant with this post: I hope you noticed all the smileys! B) )EDIT:To make the question completely clear... Here is the information I get in the planner:And here is the information I get in the GPS:I would like to have that information that's in the GPS available while planning the flight in the planner, so before I started a flight and before I can actually use the GPS!

[n4gix 4,947]

However, I don't know of a way to check if an airfield has them before I am actually in the plane with the flightplan loaded. I don't know how to put it any clearer. Feel free to enlighten me, Bill! :( (Mind you, your effort of giving a complete answer, with screenshots and all, is very appreciated because usually similar posts contain nothing but 'RTFM' or 'Use Google' and remarks like that. I myself also always try to go the extra mile. So no harm meant with this post: I hope you noticed all the smileys! :( )

Well, you do have to be "in the plane," but you certainly do NOT need to have any flightplan loaded... The major advantage of using the default GPS is that you are looking at the sim's actual database, and not some out-of-synch and out-of-date database that bears as much relation to the sim's world as a monkey does to a pigeon... :(

[Guest]

Well, you do have to be "in the plane," but you certainly do NOT need to have any flightplan loaded... The major advantage of using the default GPS is that you are looking at the sim's actual database, and not some out-of-synch and out-of-date database that bears as much relation to the sim's world as a monkey does to a pigeon... :(

True, a flightplan isn't needed. It makes selecting/checking the approach easier of course (because you don't have to search for the airfield anymore :( ) but yes, you can search for info about ANYTHING that's in the GPS database. Problem is you can't check the GPS while working out a flightplan... So I would have to 'enter the plane', go to the planner, find a destination, quit the planner, enter the GPS, look up the airfield and then go back to the planner etc. etc. Cumbersome. ;) Pity all the GPS info isn't available in the planner. And apparently I am not overlooking something and this is just as it is.BTW I don't own the RXP GNS (the Bonanza came with a version that was limited to that plane) because I hardly used the extra and realistic options. For me the default GPS does the job perfectly. And I agree about out-of-sync databases...!

[woodhick 504]

Ahem, perhaps you didn't hear me earlier. In that case, I'll try the volume control: WHY NOT LOOK AT SOMETHING LIKE THIS IF YOU ARE FLYING WITHIN THE UNITED STATES. You get up to date database info too.There, I feel better.

[Guest]

Ahem, perhaps you didn't hear me earlier. In that case, I'll try the volume control: WHY NOT LOOK AT SOMETHING LIKE THIS IF YOU ARE FLYING WITHIN THE UNITED STATES. You get up to date database info too.There, I feel better.

Glad you're feeling better now. :( However, I can't recall you giving that link earlier in this topic... but I am not flying in the USA right now. I will when PNW is released, though. But even then I really doubt if the information of that site will give me the exact same data as the default GPS when it comes to GPS-, VOR- and NDB-approaches... But that can be easily checked, of course. Still, it would be a lot more convenient to have that information in the flight planner. It's a bit strange that it's not there, but then again, the flight planner has never been a strong point of FSX...

[n4gix 4,947]

Well, in all fairness, technically speaking an approach procedure isn't part of a flightplan, so it's hardly surprising the data isn't in the default flight planner...OTOH, I do agree it would be nice to have all of an airport's information available... ;)

[scott967 62]

Well, you do have to be "in the plane," but you certainly do NOT need to have any flightplan loaded... The major advantage of using the default GPS is that you are looking at the sim's actual database, and not some out-of-synch and out-of-date database that bears as much relation to the sim's world as a monkey does to a pigeon... :(

I have to admit, I also bit on the "have flightplan loaded" which seemed to me that there was a question about GPS functionality.I guess if you have ADE installed you could use that to query the approach data. Super Flight Planner could have done this, as it extracts airport data from the sim files, but that wasn't included in the design.scott s..

[woodhick 504]

Dang I hate it when I confuse what information I posted into which thread. I stand enlightened and self corrected. No, the site will not give you exactly the same info as in the default (or RXP) GPS/GNS. It will give you the latest and greatest information though.Thanks for your calm response to my over the top minute.

[michal 44]

Still, it would be a lot more convenient to have that information in the flight planner.

These are sort of issues that never arise in the real world. In the real world your Garmin would be loaded (presumably) with up-to-date data and the same information would be easily accessible through whatever flight planner you were using.