Hello All,Being that I use to be a real world pilot, (don't fly any more due to a quintuple bypass and the FAA has NO sense of humor), with excess of 15K hours logged, you would think that FS would be a breeze.NOTI have good equipment, AETI yoke, Suncom dual throttle control which works very well and I pay attention to the aircraft specs, both modeled and real . . . and I probably screw up as many landings as the next simmer. Oh, once in awhile I get a really neat 'greeser'but it is rare. I try to make at least 3 landings per evening of simming and rarely is more than one what I would call acceptable. I watch the replay's and slap my own wrists for foolish mistakes. Keep in mind, I hate autopilots, and do most of my approaches by hand like we did in the old days. Ok, I'm not THAT old . . . Now, you have to understand, I say this because flight simming IS more difficult in landings than the real thing. Your sense of vision and perspective is WWWaaaayyyyyy different than in a real aircraft, espicially on the larger, commericial jobs. the smaller planes are much better for that.Just wanted to let some of you know that even for an experienced pilot, I botch landings alot. Oh, and windshear, crosswinds and rudder control and sideslip in FS just isn't modeled correctly . . . trust me. It's not bad, but in my opinion, it ain't the real thing.Saying all that, for a guy who can't do the real thing any longer, it sure beats not doing it at all.Best to all and to all a good night.Clayton T. DopkeMajor, USAF (retired)"Drac"

Yep, Just remember, its in reality a controlled crash!!Give plenty space (say 20miles) in 737, and have a reasonably correct approach direction to ILS runway. I wait until the altitude comes just on the ILS bar, and then select A/P approach.It does take you in ready to flare on landing.Good luck.

Hi Drac, just thought I'd throw something out here about FOV. In MSFS or most setups (monitor sizes and viewing distances) the 1X zoom setting is going to give you the same perspective that you would get in the cockpit. The idea is to treat your monitor as a window in your cockpit rather then a screen with a wide view compressed into a small space. I'm finding that because of 3D cockpits and because it makes the "world" look better, a lot of people are flying with zoom settings set so wide that near/far perspective and perception of speed and rates is really messed up. If you've been landing using a wide angle view try setting to 1X. It's made a world of difference to me.TonyDigital-Flight

Junior, all the info you

Though this isn't as specific or thorough as smartcockpit (see Tord's post), do a search in the AVSIM library for:Werner Schott 737That will show you four files in all, two for FS2002 and two for FS2004 that will give you a much better checklist and speed references for the different phases of flight. The manual for FS2004 (fs9b7374.zip) meant to be printed in booklet form, and there is a checklist in HTML format that can be used during flight (fs9b737c.zip).Hope this helps,Kevin

Hi Jun. pilotI think the best way to learn smooth landings is to setup the aircraft on a localizer path with autopilot as far away from the airport as possible. Boeing 737: Heading hold and altitude hold (eg. 7000 feet) and autothrottle at 145-150 kts, flaps 30, gear down. Calculate descent point for a 700 fpm descent and select 200 feet or so on the altitude hold. Once the autopilot has trimmed the aircraft I find it very easy to fly the aircraft smoothly to threshhold, even when disconnecting the autopilot. I mean very easy. After feeling how the aircraft "feels" during such a descent you'll know how it feels to have the aircraft perfectly trimmed and you now can move on to flying the real approach speeds and flap settings.I strongly recommend setting trim buttons on the joystick, and as others mentioned, to have good throttle control.Go Grease!-Halabraham

>I have completed the 737 checkride and passed it. Even though>I am only 15 years old (explains the junior_pilot) I still>know a lot about airplanes and how to fly them. The plane I>usually fly is B737-400 with FS2004. The main think I want to>know is what speed I should be at different points, what>degree of flaps I should have at different points and any>other tips. I also want to try and learn how to fly the 747 or>777 well. Which one do you thin kI should learn first. Are>there any checkrides for the planes or is it possible to just>swap the plane in the 737 checkride to a 747 or 777. I don't>really like flying cessnas or small planes becuase I find they>are too light and less controllable than the boeings. I also>want to get the Flight 1 Dreamfleet Beoing 737-400 for FS2004>when it comes out. Do you think that is a good idea and is it>possible to buy a newer version of the B737 (e.g. 737-500,>600, etc) as a flight sim plane that is like the Dreamfleet>one (i mean very accurate and high-tech).I have to say I think you have the same bug I have. I too love the bigger, faster planes and I too know a lot about flying. However, I don't fly for real yet and I know my place. While I can fly and land the 737-400 since flight sim '98 I don't feel I have enough hours with the other planes.You should really start out with the Cessna's first, do some hours and get to know the basics. I suggest the Cessna 208 Grand Caravan. First I don't agree with you that they are less controllable, in fact I think the Grand Caravan handles like a dream and is VERY forgiving even on rough landings.The biggest difference between the Boeings and Cessnas are their approach speeds. You will find it so much easier to land a Cessna because you literally go as slow as 70knots and still stay on a nice approach while if you tried that on a 737 you would probably stall.Since you can come in a lot slower on the Cessna you can react better to it and learn to land on it a lot quicker. You'll get a better feel for what you have to do during landing.Another thing if there is an ILS on the runway, turn on the FD and just follow its path. I really do hope you try the Cessna 208 and then move on up to the faster planes. You will notice if you try this progression it will be easier for you...whether in real life or in sim.Good luck, cheers.

I must agree with one of the other responders. I fly Cessna Skyhawks and Piper Cherokees in the real world, and I find it much easier to land a real airplane (strong crosswinds notwithstanding). The small aircraft in FS9 don't operate as smoothly as the larger aircraft. I will agree that the Caravan is an excellent plane and is very smooth. One hint you may use regarding the large jets is to use the 3 to 1 rule. This basically tells you when to start your descent. For instance, if you are at 30,000 feet of altitude, you will want to begin your descent about 90 miles from the airport, and try to maintain this ratio, so at 20,000 feet, 60 miles, and so forth. In the end, per se, you will be 1,000 above the airport elevation when you are 3 miles from the field. This will atleast help manage your altitude setting.Good LuckPilot Pete

One thing that is also important as speed and aoa is not "chasing" the command bars when executing an ils. the bars will deflect more the closer you get to threshold, try to anticipate their movement and use small inputs, use you trim alot, and practice as always.good luck cato87 kc-135q

"Power for altitude, pitch for airspeed on the approach"No, I know that's what is written on the books, but for me it works best the other way around. Power for speed, pitch for altitude, it's more intuitive, and leads me to more precise and faster correction. If I fly the other way, I have to think about what to do.Just remember that if you have the right speed and want to go down, you point the nose down but you have to remember to bring your power back a little too. Otherwise, you will overshoot your approach speed.You must try to learn the balance between attitude and speed, and play that with the power and pitch.Kind regards,