If I wanted to go from GA "low and slow" to tubeliners, could I even do it?

[TracyQ]

GA singles and small twins, mostly in Orbx areas is what I do in FSX. Strictly VFR, using the GPS for autopilot at times is about as "technical" as I get.

 

SIDS, STARS, and all the rest is way above my skill level at this time, really don't know what they even mean. And I only have around an hour or three each week to even get into FSX.

 

Now, in the real world, I would of course figure that I would have to go through the training syllabus in order to advance from VFR GA to flying an airliner, and that would take many, many hours.

 

It's just that the idea of taking off at, say, JFK, and landing a few hours later in Las Vegas intrigues me. And mostly just looking out the window during the flight, LOL.

 

From what I've read on the forums, it seems like it's a lot more difficult to fly the big iron than to put around in a typical Cessna. Well, that makes sense, of course.

[ryanbatc]

Meh... yeah you could do it fine.

 

I've found the NGX to fly better than some GA planes... and there's a lot of similarities between a C172 and a B737 hehe... There's obviously a lot more automation in a B737, but any sim pilot could make a switch with ease. I'd recommend the PMDG bird... You can have it load with engines running and ready to go... programming the FMC might be the only hurdle (takes an hour or so to read the manual then it takes about 5minutes each time after that)

[TracyQ]

LOL. After watching this

, I am in awe.

[Anxu00]

It's not that hard. There is more flying with GA than with complex aircraft, where you sort of program the bird and let the system take care of it. The manual flying steps are at take off and landing. PMDG NGX is very good and let you get in gradually. Plus it is perfect for short time/limited time to spend such as you and me, since it's a short haul aircraft. The Feelthere ERJ and EJets V2 are also short haul birds as well and those systems are even less work than the NGX.

[dm123]

Try a stepping stone? PMDG J41?

[CoolP]

You could also try the stuff being based on older airliners, without a FMC and the various autopilot modes. Now I don't know how used you are to navigating with VOR and NDB methods in your GA planes. If not, I revert my tip since flying some FMC (and navigation display) may eventually be easier once you've gotten into how to explain it where you want to go. B)

 

Perhaps even pick lighter renditions of a FMC plane, like the QW757. Or start with a lighter regional airliner like the mentioned Feelthere ERJ. Those are highly automated and also come with a virtual FO, helping a bit on the checklists. The overall price also is very nice and they are well done in my eyes.

[cmpbellsjc]

Try a stepping stone? PMDG J41?

 

Personally, I feel like learning and flying the J41 to be harder and more tedious than the NGX. The J41 imho is more hands on and more to manage in flight than the NGX thus making the NGX feel easy to fly compared.

[CoolP]

Same here. I didn't blow up a single 737 engine so far, but quite some J41 ones. :lol:

[Boeing or not going]

Buy the PMDG 747, follow the tutorial, and watch the Angle of Attack DVD and it teaches you everything.

[CryogenicPilot]

The only real difference between flying virtual heavy iron and virtual GA is the automation.

 

However, flying is till flying e.g. ailerons, flaps, elevator, pitch, yaw, roll, angle of attack, lift, stall, etc. All of those still apply to a larger aircraft, and the main thing (as stated) is the plane more or less manages itself during the cruise due to the FMC. If you are worried about things like approach speeds, take off speeds, flap settings, etc. that is all calculated by the FMC and you just have to make sure the plane is setup correctly (takeoff and landing) so it falls within those parameters for safe operation.

 

One thing I would suggest, however, is learn how to do ILS approaches in GA aircraft like the default C172 BEFORE you do it in something like the PMDG 747, or L-D767:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dwqf00ii9qw

 

Knowing how the ILS (as well as NDB and VOR navigation) works at the basic level is key to moving forward to more complex addons...

[Guest RWFeldman]

Ya wanta do like they do in the RW. Start out with the Regional jets. Fun and a good learning experience in aircraft that aren't as complicated as the larger commercial airliners yet have some complexity in both avionics and performance.

[styckx]

GA singles and small twins, mostly in Orbx areas is what I do in FSX. Strictly VFR, using the GPS for autopilot at times is about as "technical" as I get.

 

SIDS, STARS, and all the rest is way above my skill level at this time, really don't know what they even mean. And I only have around an hour or three each week to even get into FSX.

 

Now, in the real world, I would of course figure that I would have to go through the training syllabus in order to advance from VFR GA to flying an airliner, and that would take many, many hours.

 

It's just that the idea of taking off at, say, JFK, and landing a few hours later in Las Vegas intrigues me. And mostly just looking out the window during the flight, LOL.

 

From what I've read on the forums, it seems like it's a lot more difficult to fly the big iron than to put around in a typical Cessna. Well, that makes sense, of course.

 

I'm was in your shoes not long ago and I'm crossing the line but doing it in steps.. While GA will always been my love and joy I don't want to limit myself. I love learning.. Knowledge is a wonderful thing to have even if you never use it!

 

What I did was step up to commuter props as a stepping stone to tubes. After some advice from the fine folks here I bought the PMDG JS4100.. Not quite GA, not quite tube but a nice middle ground and big step up into more complex aircraft operations. I don't regret it a bit and I'm learning at my own pace.. Engine startup and operations was a great learning experience. The FMS is overwhelming at first but that's only because it doesn't have pretty moving things on a screen to tell you what to press. :) Once you get the basics of it though, it's actually rather simple in programming yet extremely informative and detailed in return. I haven't mastered the FMS yet but I have progressed enough that I "saw the light" and keep going to learn more.

 

Key for me was to just learn at my own pace and when I get frustrated with something to just put it away for a bit and come back when you're calm.. 90% of the time when you come back to it you'll pick up something that before you thought you'd never get.. Just take your time the sim isn't going anywhere. :)

[mundie]

LNAV VNAV CMD bored. Sums up the heavies for me. Not a thing stopping you learning IFR in a cessna 172. In fact i would reccomend it as you would be able to concentrate on the flying without having to worry about the "buttonology"

[Benjamin J]

I'd say, go into the default 737 first before shelling out the money for an expensive addon. You say thatyou're not even sure if you cna do it, or wheterh you have the time at all, so keep it simple first. When you come to the conclusion that you like flying a jetliner, think of addons, but really don't go pending befroe you know that you do. I think you'll be fine, you'll learn everything as time progresses. Just dop it step by step. Let yourself get vectored into airports first, then start using SIDs and STARs. Heck, I still let myself get vectored into airports most of the time, unless it's some kind of special procedure, such as MHTG, VHHX, or KJFK's Canarsy approach.

[CoolP]

That's a great idea from Benjamin. And there are nice mods available for the default 737 and 747. http://www.simviatio...d/Downloads.htm

 

Just scroll down that page to see what he's done to the VC and the feature list. Since the plane is already running in your FSX, you can't go wrong trying a bit of airliner flying with it. Alejandro Rojas Lucena is the man.

 

I'm sure you will find a free sound set in the Avsim library too, so that default 737 will be a lot more fun and not too detailed on the systems and the whole flight guidance modes.

 

Not to mention the nice framerates you'll get.