So what will you be doing on your long hauls? Most likely i will be the one who stays awake for 14 hours in front of my PC watching movies and eating.

Watching 777 DVD's if I know myself correctly :LMAO:

 

All seriousness - depends on the flight. Most 6-8 hour flights I'll be around 99% of the time as they go quicker than you'd imagine. If I'm on BAV then I need to give a position report every hour so that'll be when I have no plans of leaving the house.

 

I've just started watching Burn Notice on Netflix - watching things like that will pass time. Video editing also since my PC can fortunately handle that and FSX! On those 15 hour ULH's there's no way I'd be able to sit at my PC that long- probably go Gym/Swimming or something when I know nothing will be needed to be done. Also long hauls are great if you need to study!

 

Many things to do - for the first couple of months I bet I'll literally sit and stare at the flight deck and exterior longer than I should; actually I bet that for the first year :LMAO:

Long hauls are perfect for me to study for sure! Especially when I need to study for my Instrument Rating..will be taking one very soon :-) EXCITED!!! Cannot wait to start flying the T7!

I will be doing the same thing I do on the 737ngx short hauls, only 4x longer.

Drink Guinness and listen to music

Also long hauls are great if you need to study!

 

I'm definately going to agree with you on that one!

 

At the moment on the NGX: take of from Perth and establish cruise, study, half way through the flight, tune two different VORs and calculate the distance between them, study more, at T/D prepare for descent(clear desk), wait for some convinient point 5-10nm from the airport to disconnect the AP then land manually and Adelaide.

 

Multiply that by 3 and there you have my 777 cruise occupation.

Shouldn't you guys communicate with ATC from time to time during that long haul flight?

I normally don't use VATSIM because of the lack of aussie controllers online when I fly. I don't use the default ATC because it stuffs up the descent profile that the VNAV has calculated .

VATSIM has a strict 30 minute rule, but I am not sure if it is possible to be off for a longer time with an "appointment"? In CRZ crossing several CTR areas you need to be ready for those handoffs. Not seldom I get DCTs too, even in CRZ.

Not seldom I get DCTs too, even in CRZ

 

That's why you ask for direct. Even if you get DCT a waypoint, it doesn't mean the controller won't contact you again. Oceanic crossings are great for long lengths of "me" time, it be studying or watching TV, because it's the pilot who checks in every 30min+/- or at each waypoint crossing, and not the controller contacting you. SELCAL is great too because you can't miss those tones, even if you're in the bathroom :lol:

Do something productive academic work, etc.

Ah, thanks, I am new to SELCAL but I saw it on my VA's routes and in SB. Does the CTR's see that I have SELCAL or does it automatically chime when CTR tries to contact me? Great tip, gracias amigo

Eat, walk around, go to the lav, read a book (or a manual for those strict management people), nap, monitor systems. Make sure I know where my diversion airports are (in case of a cargo fire again...).

If the autopilot is really good (is not ever!) I will start the flight at night and wake up and land it.

Drink Guinness and listen to music

 

Yep. That and movies, perhaps taking care of odd things around the house, and work.

 

I'm definately going to agree with you on that one!

 

I will as well. I used to force myself to read/study in college by putting a flight up. My old laptop couldn't handle FS9 and any other programs, so if I put a flight up, I'd leave my computer alone, unless I had to do something in the sim. In a 9-10 hour cruise (freeware A330 at that point), there isn't much.

 

Shouldn't you guys communicate with ATC from time to time during that long haul flight?

 

Nope. Over the Atlantic, now-a-days it's mostly text based using CPDLC. There's also SELCAL as mentioned, but position reports are relatively infrequent when compared to all of the frequency changes over mainlands.

 

VATSIM has a strict 30 minute rule, but I am not sure if it is possible to be off for a longer time with an "appointment"? In CRZ crossing several CTR areas you need to be ready for those handoffs. Not seldom I get DCTs too, even in CRZ.

 

True and false all in the same. The actual rule is "immediately," but supervisors are taught to give a 30 minute buffer.

 

 

 

 

 

For those of you who are interested in some of the ATC side of things:

Over the ocean it is seldom you'll get direct because they can't see you. You need to be on a predictable track at predictable times. Giving direct takes that predictability out (and requires a lot of calculation on the controller's end, which is a lot of work on top of all of the calcs they're already running).

The same goes for altitude changes. Because NATs are flown at all altitudes only east- or westbound (depending on the time of day) the next altitude available above you may already be taken. Minimum separation in non-radar environments is often 10 minutes (note, not miles - ever wonder why your position reports require you to report times over fixes?), which, depending on speed, can be somewhere around 75nm. So, even if there isn't an aircraft directly above you within normal separation in radar coverage (5nm for center), here, you can't get within 75nm of any aircraft above you (laterally - altitude separation is still 1000' on the NATs). Altitude change? Not likely.

 

Just another addition: a controller may only amend your route (giving direct is a route amendment, which is why a proper controller will say "cleared to [point], rest of route unchanged," or as appropriate) in his/her own airspace, unless coordinated with the next controller.