ok, so if i want to fly from miami to atlanta with downloaded real weather i would need to take a snap shot after i made a flight plan? would i need to click on any weather stations along my flight plan or is that taken care of with the snap shot? if the snap shot covers that big of an area then i have to take my hat off to MS. that IS a BIG change from fs2002. oh, i don't want to stay online and have the weather updated every 15 minutes. only one phone line you know. thanks, william

WilliamHi. If I'm understanding you're question correctly, the short answer is yes.First, let's assume by a snapshot, you mean a single download event where the FS wx engine fetches the weather from Jepp and loads it into FS. That snapshot catches every weather station in the wxsta.dat file and makes it available to FS when it's running. As you fly along the route, it loads what it needs for that part of the world from the download data obtained during the snapshot.A snapshot does not capture a single station but all stations in that *.dat file for that shot in time. The next time it updates, it gets all the weather stations again.Did I answer the right question??BobL

Interesting....This is related to something I've been thinking lately, so I might add my 2cents worth.When I use real world weather, and download over my dial-up modem, I'm surprised at how quickly the information downloads, compared to other things I download.It has made me wonder just how much information is in the file, and whether (pardon the pun) I should take it too seriously...Just thinking out loud really.See yaTim

The standard download (that is, without winds aloft data) is rather small, even though it contains data for several thousand weather stations around the world.* so, in reponse to the original post, yes, the static snapshot contains data for all weather stations everywhere. (And, in fact, it's been this way since Fs2000.)Winds aloft is the option that bloats the download since you get so much more data (winds and temp for multiple altitudes per station). If you want to check whether you're getting this data, check out the weather settings dialog.Lastly, if you choose the updated (15 minute interval) weather option, FS starts with a complete, worldwide snapshot *then* downloads just what it needs as you fly. hope this helps

thanks alot guys, you answered my questions well. william