Two more very basic questions right now (with thousands more to come)--In the Learning Center/Basic Aerodynamics/A balance act it says to set up straight and level flight in the Cessna 172 and speaks of adding and reducing power to observe how the plane reacts. How do you set it up to work on just that and be in straight and level flight (and as someone suggested just to taxi around)?What is the essential difference between cockpit view and virtual cockpit and is one preferable to the other?Louis

You can set straight and level flight by setting the autopilot on the Cessna to keep the wings level for you. Off the top of my head I can't walk you through this but you can find out how to control the autopilot in the learning section in FS2004, accessed from the main menu page - it's part of the radio panel (CTRL-2 I think)..... Once the aircraft is flying level by itself you can play around with different throttle and trim settings and see what the effects are.As for the virtual cockpit, they are just different ways of presenting the player with the controls of the aircraft. The virtual cockpit gives a more realistic view of the control panels (as the pilot would in real life), but can be a little more awkward to use. The preference is entirely down to your own choice - try both for a while and see which you are more comfortable with.

"How do you set it up to work on just that and be in straight and level flight (and as someone suggested just to taxi around)?"Not sure what your question is... but if you establish a straight and level flight (set weather to no wind and no turbulence) and then change power settings the aircraft should climb when you increase power and descend when you decrease power. The rate of ascent or descent may be subtle if you make slight changes in power or abrupt if you pull the throttle completely back or firewall it.With regard to taxiing simply set the throttle to create a 10-20 MPH taxi speed. The 172 taxis well, the KingAir can be a bit of a challenge to master (the turbo prop modelling in FS is not at all accurate)."What is the essential difference between cockpit view and virtual cockpit and is one preferable to the other?"You can see the difference between the two when you prress the "S" key. I prefer the virtual cockpit, but only if the VC is done well. And for me none of the default VC's are acceptable. For some add-ons, though, the VC is really very good, and I fly them only in VC (the freeware aircraft from Milton Shupe and team, as well as the payware Aerosoft Katana and Aeroworx KingAir B200 immediatley come to mind).Hope this helps,Greg

Where is the autopilot? Sorry about what must seem to be such simple-minded, helpless questions, but I really did look for it. Basically, I am feeling my way around and crawling in tiny baby steps.Thanks.Louis

Hi thereStraight & level flight is when the aircraft will fly straight and level, hands off, without the aid of an autopilotThe two important tools for straight & level flight are the throttle and the elevator trim. In short, use the trim to hold the aircraft at a certain speed, say about 100 knots in the default c172. TO do this take off full throttle, climb to a sensible height (say 1500 ft above the ground) then use the joystick / yoke to push the nose down (or up until the plane is flying at 100 knots (don`t worry about climbing or descending for now), next reduce the throttle to about 2400 rpm, still using the joystick to hold the plane at 100kts (if it slows down push the nose down, if it speeds up pull the nose up). Once you are happy that the aircraft is doing 100kts use the elevator trim to remove the effort of holding the joystick down or up. If the nose wants to drop when you let go of the stick, use the elevator trim up to hold the nose, similarly, if the nose wants to raise, use elevator trim down to hold it down. With practise, you will end up with the aircraft flying itself at 100kts without touching the joystick. The last piece in the puzzle is to add or reduce throttle, depending on whether you are climbing or descending in order to maintain a chosen altitude. Incidentally 100Kts speed and 2400 rpm throttle are just rough figures. but you will find a combination of speed, throttle and trim which the aircraft will maintain until the fuel runs out! I would recommend not using the autopilot too much. Straight and level flight and trimming are such a vital skill that you really need to get the hang of it before using the autopilot. Also, in the real world, as a student pilot, you will not come across an aircraft with an autopilot, though you do have an instructor sat next to you for the early stages! Sorry for the waffley post - good luck and welcome to the FS world!CheersRottenlungs

One thing worth noting is that `straight and level` refers to the flightpath, not the aircraft. It will often be the case that the PITCH attitude of the aircraft might need to be several degrees nose up to maintain straight and level flight. Don't get hung up on the view out the window, as changes in power and speed will affect the trim of the aircraft and the attitude it adopts to maintain straight and level flight.That's why using the autopilot will teach you nothing about flying the aircraft.Allcott