Hey guys, I was attempting to do a maiden voyage with my new 737ngx, when I entered everything into the FMC shown on a guide video, but I wasn't able to activate the LNAV and VNAV, and I did the exact same thing as the guy in the video. Both buttons can be pushed, but they do not illuminate or actually work at all. Is there a specific setting I need for the autopilot or anything?

 

-Jeremy Chesney

One more thing, the route it gave me to get me to my destination of KMSY, brought me to Virginia, not New Orleans, I'm not sure what the problem exactly is. Is there a way to directly import a flight plan, I'm better with just having the magenta-pink line put in there once you start the flight so is there a way to do that?

 

-Jeremy Chesney

You can use default 737 for that you want. Just make a flight plan and magenta line will be at navigation display of your default 737.

 

Seriously, you wasted money if you expect PMDG aircraft to display you magenta line without using FMS.

Have you done the 2 tutorial flights that were supplied by pmdg when you purchased the ngx well worth doing.

I will do the tutorials, I started them but they were a little too much at first, but I will complete them. And I didn't waste my money -.- I just bought it because it is like the #1 payware aircraft on the market. And it is a ton of fun. Plus the default plane is a failure in everything

 

-Jeremy Chesney

And I didn't waste my money -.- I just bought it because it is like the #1 payware aircraft on the market. And it is a ton of fun. Plus the default plane is a failure in everything

 

-Jeremy Chesney

 

There is one thing the default 737 doesn't fail in. It doesn't fail in supplying you with the basic environment of flying a simulated NG.

From the reasons you provided I do not think it made much sense to purchase the NGX, this isn't a pick up and fly addon, and if you watched a single online video of how to start your NGX, and not even bother reading a wealth of information provided with the NGX, then you have already defeated the purpose of you even having the NGX.

Yeah as I complete the tutorials Im really starting to pick up on more realism and how what I was doing was almost completely unrealistic. I just pulled onto the runway, full-throttle, and just left and did stuff, this is way more interesting and gives the actual feel of a 737NG. I thought it was too hard because I always go for the easy way out... therefore I didn't want to try, but I love this aircraft now.

Did you active both F/D switches on the MCP? That's the first thing I think of when I hear you programmed the FMC exactly like the guy in the video, but you still can't switch on the LNAV and VNAV switches.

Follow the tutorials #1 and #2 supplied and this will make a big difference.

 

Simply trying to convert from the (rubbish) default 737 to the complexity of the PMDG NGX beauty is always going to be fraught with 'issues' like the ones you are having. Not least in the area of FMC programming. Tis a breeze once you know what you are doing, but you will only start to gain this knowledge from following the detail info supplied with the add-on.

 

Personally, there are very few vids online that are any real use as they often don't follow full procedures. In fairness, some of them do state they are not such, so you have been warned!

 

I would suggest that in most cases of person vs. technology 'failures', the failure is user centred! How many times have I attended someone's computer software that does not 'work' only to discover it is the moron 'operating' it that is the issue. That was not meant personally btw, just stating a fact of life which I am sure many can give examples of.

If you not too good on the reading front( and you seriously need to start doing that to be operating the ngx realistically) then videos from skysurfer007 on you tube , are ones to follow for some good accurate guidance on procedures on flying. He's a real world 737 pilot. He shows up some of the missing features the ngx as still.

Let's start first with the LNAV (the VNAV you can postpone untill you have the LNAV all figured out)

 

If you are not on intercept heading you won't be able to activate the LNAV.

 

The LNAV can be activated even while still on the ground. For this to happen you need to have configured the departure runway and the SID to the first waypoint of your route. Ensure you have no route discontinuities in the LEGS page. I would strongly suggest using some sort of charts for the airport you are taking off from and enroute flight planner, e.g. http://rfinder.asalink.net/free/ . If you try to activate the LNAV without those set, the button won't illuminate until after you have taken off and turned the airplane in the direction of the first waypoint of your route. Other thing you must make sure is switched on are the Flight Directors, as someone else mentioned above. Good luck

Hey guys, I was attempting to do a maiden voyage with my new 737ngx, when I entered everything into the FMC shown on a guide video, but I wasn't able to activate the LNAV and VNAV, and I did the exact same thing as the guy in the video. Both buttons can be pushed, but they do not illuminate or actually work at all. Is there a specific setting I need for the autopilot or anything?

 

-Jeremy Chesney

 

Good for you - glad you've managed to get past the initial brain-overload and start to enjoy it. Now you'll never leave ahahahaha!

 

On a serious note, the more you try and imitate the real world when flying the NGX, e.g. starting on the parking stand in cold and dark rather than hot and on the runway, the more everything will fit in its right place and you'll enjoy it even more

Assuming you followed correctly the video, are you sure it doesn't contain some "cuts" to have a shorter video to upload?

Then, most common mistake is to not execute the route so without pushing EXEC (lines changes from cyan to magenta).

If you follow step by step the tutorials you will learn a lot of things, without just following a series of consecutive clicks without knowing the reasons.

This will also help you in understanding why something is not working.

Assuming lines are already magenta:

Are you activating LNAV and VNAV on ground or in flight?

If on ground, what about flight directors?

In flight flight director can be off, and LNAV and VNAV could be engaged (there are limitations at low altitudes for each mode)

Climb above 1000ft (radio altimeter) and try them.

To check the route:

The ND could be used to check your flight PLAN, use the efis panel to select PLAN and move the map using STEP in the LEGS page.

Check for route discontinuity, and at each modification you need to EXEC again.

Fill the various required fields in FMC ((they are squared boxes on the various PERF IniT, N1 LIMIT, TAKEOFF pages and so on) VNAV will be never avaiable if data are missing in squared boxes.

Just to verify if there isn't another problem, make sure you aligned IRS in NAV mode (not ATT).

 

About the second question.

A route can be saved using the FMC, you will learn using the tutorials, you will be able then to reload the route whenever you want. You will always need to fill the other pages.

Per the Tutorial #1 manual:

 

There are conditions when the LNAV will not ARM on the ground, most notably when the first leg's course is more than 5 degrees away from the runway heading.

Anybody who tries to tell you that you are wasting your time trying to learn something new has already wasted theirs. You took a shortcut and tried a video guide and found it wasn't up to the job, so now you have learnt that this baby doesn't like shortcuts. As I suspect you are already finding out for yourself, this is one of the most difficult, challanging, and ultimatly rewarding sims on the market. You can fly it in 'lightweight' mode, letting the automatics look after the basics, all failures disabled, but you still have to do everything a real pilot has to do to get it to the other end. You wont get told off for using more fuel then necessary, for poor navigation, or even for bouncing once or twice on touchdown, but in a way, that can be worse, because it pushes you to try harder.