Hey guys, can you tell me a programme that will give you the arrival rwy whilst using real weather ASE. I have rc4 and although it is done automaticly i would like to know before hand so i can punch it in to the fmc well in advance.Thanks for your suggestionsChris

Hey guys, can you tell me a programme that will give you the arrival rwy whilst using real weather ASE. I have rc4 and although it is done automaticly i would like to know before hand so i can punch it in to the fmc well in advance.Thanks for your suggestionsChris

Well, if your using ASE why not just open the Report button and look at the wind conditions at your arrival airport? Or if you use the Briefing button and entered your flight plan you can dial 122.00 into the radio and it will give you the winds at your destination. Neither way will tell you what runway to use, but based on what direction the winds are blowing it will give a good idea. I usually check the winds about 100 miles before I land and then again about 30 miles out to be sure that they are the same and hadn't changed direction.

If you have FS Flight Keeper, you can install ACARS into any of your FS aircraft, and when you do that, you can crank up ACARS in your cockpit, and request the weather at any airport you like, which will of course then tell you what runway is likely. That feature is also useful if you have an aircraft that cannot make high category landings, since you could request weather at your alternate as well. FSFK adds a lot of realism to your airliner flights, and that's just one of the ways in which it does so - highly recommended.Al

Cheers Al, that sounds like just what im after.Chris

ATIS ?

For ASE check whether DWC is activated and how it affects ATIS. Also be sure Global weather is off (that means FS sees the weather at your aircraft location all over). That is what some users have been stating.With an earlier version of Active Sky (6.5) I download first thing for the flight date the Z time of my FS flight so I get the matching time of day of the flight as that affects weather (thermals and convective activity, visibility, winds and temperatures aloft, etc.) that are affected by sunlight. Then also I don't have the issue of updates loading down performance while flying. This takes care of any time zone issues.After I get the download I enter the flight plan into into AS and get its data printed report useful for entering into the FMC for its fuel assumptions and performance data. I also flight plan with FSBuild which connects to the version of AS (don't know about ASE) to get winds aloft for its fuel planning option.I have been successful in estimating the arrival runway and pressure and once on standard altimeter pressure if the aircraft has a standard/surface pressure button on its EFIS panel I enter the estimated value in advance. It is very close to the RC clearance given when descending below flight levels.RC4.3 looks at destination AI activity just before approach contacts you and if present the AI pattern then in force determines the chosen runway regardless of weather. If AI is not present then winds and runway properties determine the arrival runway.

Thanks very much for your detailed explanation Ron, ive just got fsbuild and currently working out how to get the plan into fs9.Thanks again for your help,Chris

There is an update for FSB not listed on simmarket. It may be needed. Look over my tips sheet.FSB tips:1. Include this line in FSbuild.cfg:NAVCHKDUPDIST=100This decreases the chance of using the wrong duplicate named local (to the airport) waypiont from a nearby airport. Local waypoint names are not exclusive. It decreases the database search when it is named in the route to within a 100 nm radius of your airport. You will find these in terminal procedures such as "D" number something within a SID or STAR to define a merge or turning point.2. When doing a Auto Generate (Route) be sure the SR (Stored Route) button next to it is "up" that is not highlighted. Auto Generate will use a stored route if found by default and most are out of date with old waypoints and terminal procedures. Having Stored Routes off forces it to search a path with fresh data.3. Take advantage of the frequent AIRAC updates at the FSBuild site for the greatest possibility of matching current charts and real world flight plan procedures and waypoints.4. Where an airport uses specific runways for different terminal procedures select the runway using an estimate based on weather and if the runway fits your aircraft requirements before doing the Auto Generate. This helps select the correct SID and STAR for the runway and direction of departure and arrival.5. After the Auto Generate and/or first build look at the map created to spot any obvious errors. In the route grid look for any sudden non-sensible changes in direction or extremely long legs not in the correct direction creating a zig-zag in the map. (See item 6 following to correct).6. Be aware there is an option you can set for each session titled "Build Route from Grid Table". It does not stick between sessions. This lets you build from an edited route grid that you may have modified without recreating the table with the same error on your next build/export. For example you might wish to drop an errant waypoint when proofing the map and rebuilding.7. Sometimes the name of a procedure (SID/STAR) does not match the name exactly in a published route and the procedure will not expand into its plan waypoints in the grid table. You can click on the arrow in the SID/STAR box to see what close name is in the FSB database. (Another reason to keep up with AIRACS.) For example KMSP has a current real such as this one:http://flightaware.com/resources/airport/KMSP/DP/WAUKON+TWObut the FSB database only has UKN2. (It does have UKN3 now with the latest available AIRAC update). If so in the route line just change UKN3 to UKN2 so it will expand. Here's a real route from flightaware.com for KMSP to KMDW:KMSP UKN3 DBQ CVA MOTIF3 KMDWthat can be pasted into the FSB route line. If UKN3 or MOTIF3 does not expand in the route grid to individual way points look in the upper part of FSB in the airport section dropping down the SID or STAR box to get the available version and substitute that label in the route line and rebuild.8. Sometimes it takes a second build to get the map to move and/or magnify. The mouse scroll wheel lets you magnify. Just click on the portion of the map you want to center on and scroll to magnify.9. If you click on a line in the route grid table to highlight it, the waypoint on the map will turn red. This is useful for finding errant waypoints that cause an error in the path. That line can then be edited or deleted and a rebuild accomplished with the build option to build from the route grid table.10. If you are running a weather program such as active sky, first build the route in FSB exporting to FS9 using an anticipated cruise altitude and specify the nearest aircraft profile. In AS get the weather you wish to use. (I always get the weather for the zulu time of the departure in FS since time of day affects weather characteristics). Import the plan into AS via the new route button, check the altitude and choose an appropriate true airspeed in knots (this is your no wind ground speed). Process the route. When it is finished click the button to print a hard copy of all. Use this AS navlog for METAR data at both ends and winds aloft and temperature aloft that can be used for FMC data. (You'll also get your estimated average wind at your specified altitude - handy for FMC data.) Leave AS running. Now go back to FSB and your chosen aircraft profile. Enter the surface temperature from your departure METAR, then estimated total taxi time, hold time, and extra time (sometimes called discretionary fuel). Now turn on again your FS9 export along with any FMC export you might use. Rebuild and you'll see the messages regarding the export completion. On the route selection on the left which brings up your route window select the navlog tab and click the .pdf to save the navlog in a file or the print button to get a hard copy so you can easily reference the estimated fuel and other data. This estimated fuel has now taken into account your winds aloft data - no need to enter it in FSB. Now that you have the hard copy and exported your route, you can first optionally save the plan by selecting flightplan window, then clicking the category tab, then select user category. Now click file, save from the menu bar. The name you might want to embellish. Click Save Route To User Flight Plans. For another session, you can recall this working plan and just build.11. If you are using an aircraft with nav equipment that has its own terminal data procedures in its nav equipment (think FMC) you might wish to use step 6 above to take out the waypoints of the terminal procedures keeping just the transition points and build and export with just them. This easily in most cases lets you select the SID and STAR assigned by ATC on your nav equipment by providing a clean legs list in your nav equipment. If you need ATC to monitor the waypoints of the terminal procedure than just export all. To keep ATC and you nav equipment in sync, you might consider importing the full plan into your nav equipment and not using your nav equipment procedure database.This is kind of long but through experience I've described some tricks I've used watching out for any pitfalls.There is a later update for 2.3 not linked from simmarket. From the fsbuild forum that link is:http://www.fsbuild.com/dl/Fsbuild2376_2Upd.exeInstall that if you have a lower version number after your 2.3 update from Simmarket.

Wow, thankyou so much Ron, i have followed your advice and i seem to be getting somewhere now. The only problem i have now is that i cant seem to import asv6 wind data, i have browsed the folder settings and directed fsbuild to asv6 but im not sure where to go from there. I hope you dont mind me asking how to do this. Thanks for your time,Chris

After you set the path to ASV65 in the Options/Export Directory Tab switch to the Settings Tab and click SAVE CONFIGURATION. That writes it to the HD. Then restart FSB and see if it now works.Each time you load weather into AS65 it creates a snapshot file in its folder that is read by FSB. That snapshot is sticky in AS until you download the next weather section and is called current_wx_snapshot.txt. It includes aloft winds and temperatures.In FSB when planning do not put in the average winds in the aircraft tab. That will be figured out automatically by FSB from the snapshot data.I'm attaching a navlog from one of my test flight plans. Note the wind field filled in.One quirk with VISTA or WIN 7 if you are using it. In order for FSB to access the snapshot you must be logged in as an admin and have it set to run as admin just in case that is your problem. This happens if you have FS installed under any Program Files folder tree.

Wow, thankyou so much Ron, i have followed your advice and i seem to be getting somewhere now. The only problem i have now is that i cant seem to import asv6 wind data, i have browsed the folder settings and directed fsbuild to asv6 but im not sure where to go from there. I hope you dont mind me asking how to do this. Thanks for your time,Chris

Again, thanks very much for your help on this Ron, you have been a great help on this subject and i appreciate your time. Just loged on here at Avsim and i noticed that there is another flight planning tool, Virtual Dispatch, freeware so i will try this one out aswell. Anyone else tried it out yet?