What does it take...

[realpilotsimpilot 11]

Interesting topic. But, I must admit with the limited time I have to fly, I tend to keep it as simple as possible, while having some level of realism. First, I tend to fly a lot of the same routes that I like. I also try and find where the weather is the worst and go there. Mostly, I just check the weather, load a route and then go. I usually use a combo of flightaware, the FAA preferred route DB and simroutes. I used to plan the flights out with my charts, but now I let my i7 co-pilot handle that. I then pull up a copy of the SID I'm using and away we go into the sim. Same with fuel consumption. Once I load the route and weather into the FMS, I let it calculate the estiamted fuel. Most of my add-ons load automatically, so that's about it. If I'm flying a bird with panel states, I'll load quick ground turn or something like that, and begin my pre-flight. This is where I don't cut too many corners. I use a real paper checklist and go through it, and then ask for clearance, pushback and have add it. Sometimes in a rare while when I'm in a super hurry, I'll just go with engines already running, but having a complicated plane to start and push and manage the systems is why I pay $80 for a add-on plane. Lastly, I change the fuel from within the sim per the FMS.Super real? No. But, I can get in the air in about 20 minutes and enjoy the flight and its as "Real as I have time for" . I would love to get the FS2Crew stuff, but I need to wait until I have more time.

[DylanC 181]

Pretty similar routine, but I'm a stickler when it comes to realism (i.e. Realistic Airline & Aircraft used). My flights will always start from the airport I landed at last, but only after maybe an hour or so of sifting through either Wikipedia or some other site trying to figure out reallistic airlines and destinations departing out of that airport and with which type of aircraft. That last part is kind of tricky, since I'm limited to the type of aircraft I have in my hangar. The other tricky part is making sure I can find a repaint for that airline with the type of aircraft I want to fly. If I can't find a repaint, it thows off all of my plans and I have to start from the beginning. I will even go as far as double checking the engine types used on the repaints with the actual arline's fleet config. Once a destination, aircraft and repaint have finally been found, I'll search for either a scenery or AFCAD for the destination airport. I'll check winds aloft, SIDS and destination weather. Load up and go.

[DylanC 181]

Lunatic AI? don't know what you mean!!!John Ellison

I have a trick that I use so this sort of thing doesn't happen to me. When I'm 20 - 25 miles out from landing, I'll increase the sim rate temporarily to 8X, for like an instant and revert back to the normal sim rate. This in effect negates all the AI in the air and starts the clock again. Works every time.

[MrSpeaker 122]

You guys are suckers, I usually just fire up fsx, start on the active runway, enter a direct to in the default gps and then its just full throttle time, sometimes it makes some Vatsim controllers a little mad but I think most are cool with it

[Guest wims]

Before starting my flight I open VATSpy to figure out where there are controllers online, if there are anyone at my hub (ZNY area) I usually start my flight there, if not I just go wherever there are anyone controlling elsewhere. After I have figured out my departure airport I go to my VA site and see which routes go from that airport. If there are no routes I go to Flightaware and pick a route from there. After building the route with FSBuild I download all the charts for the departure and arrival airport, then open the charts in correct order of usage in my PDF viewer (ground chart for departure airport-SID-STAR-every ILS approach plate for the arrival airport-ground chart for arrival airport). Now its time to start up FSX and do the preflight procedure. Sometimes I use cold and dark, but normally I just use a short turnaround profile as most real life fights does not start with a cold and dark cockpit. When I'm done with starting up everything except the engines I file my plan at my VA site and VATSIM, log online and ask for clearance to my destination. Then I do the push and start and off I go.

[Turbine777 13]

@ Krister: Haha, loved the play by play of not just the sim part, but the other part with the wife, too funny. I like the idea of having a flight schedule, meaning no choice where I'm flying. That would help me see more of the sim world.@ Scott: Even though creating the AI paths isn't too too difficult, it is pretty hard to get things perfect, if not impossible. I have been working on my own KBOS off and on for years and though I had it perfect, but after plane spotting a couple hours find problems when aircraft either over shoot a specific turnoff or sometimes, no matter what they seem to think for themselves. It would have to be someone that can go far beyond the normal AFCAD design.@ Adrian: Follow Me, is a cheap ($10) addon. I like it, but it does have it's issues. Nothing major, just sometimes will go from point A to point Z without following taxi ways haha. Also it follows the path generated after FSX default ATC gives it to you. So if you use something like Radar contact you will also have to use my work around method. All in all though, it's great, and I just wish it had directionals when approaching a turn hehe. Oh one more point, just like the progressive taxi lines not working in DX10 preview, nor will the follow me truck.Edit: Here's the link for it.Someone mentioned they only fly to and from payware airports that they have. Sorry looked over the page a couple times now and can't find it. But I have about 25+ Payware sceneries and would never limit it to that for a couple reasons. One is FSX does a good job at most airports, and 2, it makes you appreciate your superior airports more when its not so often. Personally I do the opposite in many cases and look at the general area I want to take off and land and pick something with at least a 5500' rwy (have done 4k') and that becomes the airfield. It's taken me to some really cool places. I sometimes use the ASE "Find Weather" option and either fly from that, to that, or have it along my route. There are times I like to either take of or land at one of my paywares, but not always. Even with all that I have, that would get boring fast due to all the hours I put in on the sim.

[Fallap 4]

My preparation only takes around 30 min. at max. I just write down the flightplan from Vroute and then sometimes I have to download the livery of the aircraft I want to fly. :)I then start FSX, use "Real weather download" and then I'm off flying :D

[MatzeH84 81]

Interesting!My preflight-flow:

• Reboot (when used PC for longer time)
• Check for available time (important for route and aircraft.. with some time I also like to fly a B377 Stratocruiser on a 3-4 hour flight, which might take less then half of the time with my 727)
• Start up FSX (takes some time)
• Start up ActiveSky
• Start up TrackIR
• Start up Saitek Profiler
• Start up vasFMC if needed
• Start up Dlmn to check IVAo traffic/ controlled areas
• Decide where from/ where to
• Decide which aircraft to use
• Check IVAO database/ VATroute for route or
• do my own route, it's most fun to just use charts.. veeery satifiying when you self-made FP passes the CFMU validation :(
• otherwise start up FSC to search a route
• Check for weather charts
• Set up flight/ start flight
• Open charts: use IVAO-provided charts, google them, or use Eurocontrol charts (in europe); first loaded set of charts is departure airport docking charts, taxi charts and SID charts, the STAR and approach charts (just for planning use; then I close them and load the second set of charts (STAR, approach charts, taxi and docking charts when nearing the destination)
• Fuel calculation
• Fuel up
• Start IVAP and enter flightplan
• prepare the aircraft
• fly..

[cmpbellsjc 2,963]

Someone mentioned they only fly to and from payware airports that they have. Sorry looked over the page a couple times now and can't find it. But I have about 25+ Payware sceneries and would never limit it to that for a couple reasons. One is FSX does a good job at most airports, and 2, it makes you appreciate your superior airports more when its not so often. Personally I do the opposite in many cases and look at the general area I want to take off and land and pick something with at least a 5500' rwy (have done 4k') and that becomes the airfield. It's taken me to some really cool places. I sometimes use the ASE "Find Weather" option and either fly from that, to that, or have it along my route. There are times I like to either take of or land at one of my paywares, but not always. Even with all that I have, that would get boring fast due to all the hours I put in on the sim.

That was Krister, but i'm the same way also.I fly only to and from payware airports 95% of the time. I agree though that the bigger default FSX airports aren't really that bad and I will fly to the default KLAX, KSFO, KSEA, KPHX, KMIA etc., every now and then. Plus if you download some of Ray Smiths ADE's for those airports it makes them even better. However, once I have gotten used to using some really nice payware airports that offer better looks/detail and sometimes better FPS than default, it really makes it harder for me to choose a default airport as a destination.I agree that it can get boring quicker using just payware airports for arrivals/destinations, but there are so many variations of routes that I could choose from with the assortment that I own now, that the boredom factor hasn't really crept in yet. The one problem I do face tough is that flying the PMDG 747 mostly has limited me from flying into a few of the airports due to runway lenght, Gibraltar and Santos Dumont in Rio come to mind.BTW, when I mentioned ASA earlier I meant ASE. I do own the latest but get the abbreviations mixed up sometimes on which is the latest version.

[Turbine777 13]

I agree that it can get boring quicker using just payware airports for arrivals/destinations

When I use to have little airborne time, I did the same. Latley most of my flights have been research flights for the ENB thing, but other than that an average sim night for me can be 8hours +, so what get's boring for me with my percentage of simming can be a different story too.One last thought that is something really cool to do with your paywares. Do a flight to an airport other than a payware but be sure to have your payware airport as a waypoint along the route. It can be quite cool to see it at altitude since normally you only do that from either an oblique angle during approach, or using the satelite view. It's pretty fun I think and adds a level of realism to the flight in itself! Especially if you can include it during your descent. I like to view them at various Altitudes. If you have your settings high enough you might even catch AI landing and departing and lining up, and that too is the Bee's Knee's!

BTW, when I mentioned ASA earlier I meant ASE. I do own the latest but get the abbreviations mixed up sometimes on which is the latest version.

Yeah, I know. ASA, ASE, AES, FTX, REX, FSX, UTX, UT2, FSP, PMS, etc... etc...

[WTE_Pharoah 7]

actually this is a good point - I usually spent about 45 mins just trying to plan the flight. One of my biggest issues is finding a suitable flightplan (for online flight). I tend to use routefinder and/or vroute and then paste it into simroutes to generate the flightplan in either PMDG or LevelD format. The issue however is that vroute/routefinder uses navaids such as VOR/NDBs which use three letter prefixes (eg. GLA), however simroutes will usually pick the first set of prefixes it comes across. This is especially problematic for long int'l flights. The route (per flightplan) can be 4000nm but when generated it can come out to 12000nm as simroutes has picked GLA in New York when I'm flying from Sydney to FAJS (South Africa)!!Then there's the issue of trying to find the right STAR to unmanned airports like KLAX - on my last flight from YSSY-KLAX, I spent about 40 mins trying to find the right STAR to Rwy 25L (I think it was)...ended up with LEENA4 or something with some direct to's. :)

[NGXfanatic 85]

Flying to just the payware airports is really limiting, you have to expand your horizons even if it means default airports. I appreciate that at least FSX/FS9 default airports have some semblence to reality with the layout of taxiways, terminal buildings, ancillary buildings, unlike X-plane which is basically just the tarmac and runways. In X-planes's case, the payware/freeware airports only argument would make more sense.Default FSX KSFO/KLAX/KSEA, they are very accurate and full featured, I can't believe they are default. Of course payware for those airports would be better, but I'm in no rush to replace them with addons. I welcome the upcoming payware developments for two of those airports (I heard KSEA is cancelled or delayed indefinately), but I'm sure even the most demanding users would rather see the less popular airports worked on like KPHX....

[Turbine777 13]

The main thing for me is the different approaches and departures, not the different scenery. Like I said though, I use to. I flew KBOS/KJFK so much I knew all the morse code identifiers by heart! (beep, b, beep, beeeeep).

[PUP4ORD 1]

Not bad of a topic. Anyway I take anywhere from 15 min. to maybe to 1 hour. It just all depends where I'm going and what aircraft I'm using.:(

[Cras 6]

The main thing for me is the different approaches and departures, not the different scenery. Like I said though, I use to. I flew KBOS/KJFK so much I knew all the morse code identifiers by heart! (beep, b, beep, beeeeep).

I find myself being drawn to different and challenging approaches lately when planing my flights. I am currently in search of a RNAV approach somewhere in the Rocky Mountains that would be a challenge to fly. Just flew into PHNL RNAV 26L which takes you along the coast, past Honolulu, then the quick turns to line up with the runway. Then there is always Toncontin....