I can't seem to find a specific user forum for RealAir products (any pointers to the right place would be highly appreciated).

 

I can't seem to figure out how to put the RealAir Turbine Duke's autopilot into ALT hold while allowing me to change headings with the stick. Canceling HDG mode displays ROL in the autopilot and I still can't change headings with the stick/wheel. I even tried the trick of engaging and then disengaging HDG mode (like I have to do with other planes) to go into manual roll control but this doesn't work here. (As good as the Turbine Duke is, it's documentation is terribly lacking almost to non-existent). Can some one tell we what I'm missing. Thanks.

There is a fully illustrated, detailed flying guide and an illustrated guide to the autopilot. I don't think that is terribly "lacking" and nor do the other several thousand customers. For safety reasons the autopilot goes into ROL mode when you enable it, thus levelling the wings unless you command the autopilot to change heading. Almost all similar autopilots do this unless you purchase a special button/function to over-ride the wing leveller. Very few a/p operators have this option and it is perfectly normal for the ROL mode to kick in when using the a/p.

 

If you have any queries or questions please do email me with your order details and I will be pleased to respond, as we always do, extremely quickly.

 

Thank you.

 

Rob - RealAir

There is a fully illustrated, detailed flying guide and an illustrated guide to the autopilot. I don't think that is terribly "lacking" and nor do the other several thousand customers. For safety reasons the autopilot goes into ROL mode when you enable it, thus levelling the wings unless you command the autopilot to change heading. Almost all similar autopilots do this unless you purchase a special button/function to over-ride the wing leveller. Very few a/p operators have this option and it is perfectly normal for the ROL mode to kick in when using the a/p.

 

If you have any queries or questions please do email me with your order details and I will be pleased to respond, as we always do, extremely quickly.

 

Thank you.

 

Rob - RealAir

Hey Rob, while you're here, I'd just like to thank you for producing such a fantastic aircraft. You guys really have excelled with this little beauty. Cheers... :good:

Hey Rob, while you're here, I'd just like to thank you for producing such a fantastic aircraft. You guys really have excelled with this little beauty. Cheers... :good:

 

Same here Rob. I don't have the turbine Duke, just the piston and I feel it's the best aircraft I've ever installed.

 

John

I do on average about 4 flights a week in the Turbine Duke, and use it mainly in PNW & NZSI. A truly outstanding aircraft. The only issue I have ( not a Real Air issue) I can not get the RXP 530 to power up sometimes. (user error of course)

Hey Rob, while you're here, I'd just like to thank you for producing such a fantastic aircraft. You guys really have excelled with this little beauty. Cheers... :good:

 

I have to concur here. Definitely my favorite RealAir product and currently my favorite plane in FSX.

I have both the Dukes. Right now I'm spending a lot of time in the piston Duke practicing IMC...the virtual controllers at my favorite airports "oh crap...it's him again." LOL. Looking forward to switching to the turbine where I have Linda support...yeah.

OP - there should be a .pdf called "KFC 225 Autopilot" that goes through the buttons... it should be under your start menu, if not browse to this location:

 

YourDriveLetter:\Flight Simulator X\RealAir\duket10\AutoPlay\Docs - Both the AP guide and main guide is in there (both are comprehensive enough imho)

PMDG's FMC User's manual is 60 pages in length and has a detailed description of every phase of use (granted it is a lot more complicated than the KFC 225). The real life Honeywells KFC 225 Pilot's Guide is 42 pages in length with a full detailed description of use (I just downloaded it due to the lack of instruction in the RealAir product). RealAir's illustrated autopilot guide is only two pages in length. It labels each button and gives a brief two or three sentence description of each but with essentially no actual instruction on how to use the device. The Turbine Duke/Duke B60 Flying Guides (yes I bought both products) does not provide any instruction on the KFC 225. In my opinion, a two page document which only labels and describes the buttons on such a complex piece of equipment is terribly lacking.

 

I am not a pilot, I've never even sat in a real cockpit. Nor am I a highly experienced FSX hobbiest so I don't have much of any experience to fall back onto in trying to figure these things out on my own. I do know that in EVERY other FSX plane that I've purchased and flown including PMDG's 737, 747 and Aerosofts Beaver and Otter and others as well as countless freeware I can have the autopilot hold altitude while I fly manually. If these are all unrealistic, then I guess I've learned something new again (and I'm a little disappointed with FSX and the other products if this is the case). I'm fine if this is real life. But I've struggle with this for a week searching the internet, trying to fine a user forum etc etc. Better documentation would have helped tremendously. The Honeywell manual will probably help but I'm sure there are elements of the real thing that aren't modeled (like the pitch (PIT) attitude hold mode) that I'll just have to discover by trial and error. .

Hi CajunRon,

 

I appreciate you are honestly saying you are not experienced with FSX and that's fine. Our main guide is we feel sufficient in length to operate the specifics in our aircraft. We don't pad out our guides, and we really don't need an FMC-type of manual because the Duke is much simpler in operation than the PMDG aircraft.

 

However, there is a huge library of instructions about aircraft operation, navigation, systems and other stuff generously laid out in FSX's excellent own learning centre which I recommend reading. It is not always easy to decide how much info to include but I do understand that the KFC can be confusing regarding ROL mode. I think perhaps you are assuming because other aircraft addons might allow manual control when the a/p is on then that is the norm. It does tend to be the norm in FSX because that is the way it is set up, but on balance I would guess most real aircraft running the KFC do not have an over-ride of the wings level default when the a/p is switched on.

 

As I described earlier some pilots install what's know as a CWS (Control Wheel Switch) which in a limited way can defeat the wings level default of the KFC in order to manually command a slight turn. The reason why this is an extra, and not often used, is one of safety. When in altitude hold and heading mode, the KFC produces a smooth and reliable turn with very little gain or loss in altitude. If the pilot over-rides this and manually turns steeply, the likelyhood is that the turn will lose height or be unstable. For that reason the recommended mode is to let the autopilot do the work, which it does extremely well.

 

Other aircraft might defeat this mode, but that is not particularly normal. It is just a feature of FSX that is not necessarily a reflection of the real world, but equally is not that unusual either. Having re-read the KFC guide, I think it is succinct and useful. It's quite normal to refer outside a particular addon's internal guides for more info, and we are all constantly learning from the wealth of info on the internet. Another issue you might not have considered is that for copyright reasons most developers do not have the right to publish the entire manuals of major manufacturer's copyrighted information. We therefore have to summarise, knowing that most users are able to get any further info first hand.

 

The PMDG products are different in that some of their aircraft were developed with the co-operation and input of major aircraft makers, and that is reflected in the price of their addons.

 

We do our best to provide as much info as we think necessary, keeping in mind that we don't feel it is necessary for example to give detailed instructions about how to operate a joystick. it's hard to gauge exactly how much info is too much and how much is too little.

 

As I said, if you had sent me an email with your order number I would have been pleased to give you any clarification you need on any aspect of the Duke, and sometimes this is quicker than posting in a forum then waiting for me to do the rounds of forums. Thanks.

 

Rob - RealAir

Rob, thank you for the explanation. I do agree with the other posts that this is a beautifully modelled GA plane and one of the most impressive one's I've purchased.

 

I had never encountered an autopilot such as the KFC225. It was so different from what I was accustomed and for someone like me, the documentation provided, though helpful, was just not sufficient. So what should have been an enjoyable experience turned into a bit of frustration on the lack of instruction. I'm going to guess that inclusion of a link to the Honeywell manual in your documents is probably not a viable option but that manual is helping me understand and feel more confident that I'm using the device correctly. In case other's might find this helpful, here's the link

 

https://www.bendixking.com/servlet/com.honeywell.aes.utility.PDFDownLoadServlet?FileName=/TechPubs/repository/006-18035-0000_1.pdf

Hello,

Realair Duke is one of my preferred plane also, really outstanding in realism and involvement.

As Robert said, they modelled the autopilot behaviour on the real thing but...

...if you want virtually "install" a different kind of autopilot you can use this FSX feature to avoid the automatic wing leveler engagement.

http://fsxtimes.wordpress.com/2011/11/02/123-disable-wing-leveler/

 

briefly, in aircraft.cfg you can insert theese rows in the [autopilot] section

default_bank_mode=0

default_pitch_mode=0

to have control as you intended.

 

Sometimes it can be confortable.

briefly, in aircraft.cfg you can insert theese rows in the [autopilot] section

default_bank_mode=0

default_pitch_mode=0

to have control as you intended.

 

Word of caution on this. Yes this can enable manual heading/roll, but it can also confuse the coding of the KFC in the Duke.

 

Rob - RealAir

 

Rob, thank you for the explanation. I do agree with the other posts that this is a beautifully modelled GA plane and one of the most impressive one's I've purchased.

 

I had never encountered an autopilot such as the KFC225. It was so different from what I was accustomed and for someone like me, the documentation provided, though helpful, was just not sufficient.

 

I think the vast majority of users realise when they deploy the Duke a/p that there is a wing leveller.To be frank over the three years of one or other Dukes being available, no-one else has got hot under the collar about this. You've made your point now, so why not move forward, be positive and enjoy all the many things about the Duke and its documents that you might feel we did quite well on!