Best ATC Addon

[tf51d 284]

 

I don't mean that to be offensive, but yes, you can fly Sids and Stars

 

Yes you can fly Sids and Stars, but from what I read in the manual, you have to define them in your flightplan just like PFE, or am I missing something?

[metalmike 34]

If your flightplan contains waypoints within 30nm of your departure airport, RC assumes you're flying a SID and allows you leeway to fly the departure within 30nm. Once you get outside the 30nm boundary, however, it expects you to be on course with your plan. This is why you should have all your Sid/Star waypoints in your plan, so when you exit that boundary, your in sync with the plan. However, you can always request to go direct to a particular waypoint if you're off.

 

For Stars, initially when you're 40nm from the arrival airport, RC will tell you to expect vectors, but in your dialog box you'll notice an option for an IAP approach. Once you request this option, ATC leaves you alone and lets you fly the star/approach, and within proper range you'll be handed off to the tower.

 

So basically, for the points outside of those boundaries (30nm from departure, 40nm from arrival) yeah they have to be defined in your plan. Of course it's not perfect, but I was just trying to clarify because a lot of people think that because RC is giving them vectors that they don't have the option to fly their own procedures.

 

If your flightplan contains waypoints within 30nm of your departure airport, RC assumes you're flying a SID and allows you leeway to fly the departure within 30nm. Once you get outside the 30nm boundary, however, it expects you to be on course with your plan. This is why you should have all your Sid/Star waypoints in your plan, so when you exit that boundary, your in sync with the plan. However, you can always request to go direct to a particular waypoint if you're off.

 

For Stars, initially when you're 40nm from the arrival airport, RC will tell you to expect vectors, but in your dialog box you'll notice an option for an IAP approach. Once you request this option, ATC leaves you alone and lets you fly the star/approach, and within proper range you'll be handed off to the tower.

 

So basically, for the points outside of those boundaries (30nm from departure, 40nm from arrival) yeah they have to be defined in your plan. Of course it's not perfect, but I was just trying to clarify because a lot of people think that because RC is giving them vectors that they don't have the option to fly their own procedures.

[wims80 121]

But RC will never assign a standard arrival or departure dynamically like how it's done in real life, am I right in thinking that?

[tf51d 284]

 

So basically, for the points outside of those boundaries (30nm from departure, 40nm from arrival) yeah they have to be defined in your plan. Of course it's not perfect, but I was just trying to clarify because a lot of people think that because RC is giving them vectors that they don't have the option to fly their own procedures.

 

That's how I thought it worked. I was just making the point that PROATC-X appears to have the capability, of dynamically assigning SIDs and STARS based on weather/runway selection. To my knowledge, it's the only ATC program that does this, unless VOXATC can do it as well?

[Gregg_Seipp 568]

I can see how non-pilots might use a synthetic program to learn the ropes, but for someone who actively flies, I'm curious why you make the conscious decision to fly offline, and furthermore, when you do fly offline, why would you want to utilize a pseudo-atc system that operates very differently than the real thing? I'm not being critical, I'm just trying to understand the motivation.

 

For me VATSIM was never available where I was when I was flying...partly my fault flying west coast when I'm flying in the morning on east coast time.  Other than that there are two times I fly off network:

--I'm not flying in the PilotEdge area.  I'll use RC if I'm IFR, FSX if I'm VFR.

--I'm doing training that would annoy the crap out of any controller (and vice-versa)...e.g. DME arcs, repeatedly flying a nonprecision approach, hitting reset, using a different IAF...hitting reset.  I don't use any ATC when I'm engaged in this annoying behavior.

[Gregg_Seipp 568]

Hello!

 

I'll bite I got VoxATC after using RC4 for a long time. I wanted to try four things that RC4 didn't have: 

 

1) Talking to ATC with "correct" phraseology (I used RC4 with IYP so I could talk to RC4, but wanted  "more").

 

2) Ground handling. VoxATC gives you taxiways to use and is aware of the other ground traffic (because it generates the traffic). And it's nice to be number 8+ for departure on large airports.

 

3) Full support for SIDs and STARs. I enjoy the fact that the aircraft that depart in front of you (sometimes) fly the same SID you have been assigned.

 

4) VFR flying

 

There are a couple of things that I personally would like to see changed in VoxATC:

 

- Vectoring currently not aware of the terrain. Safest way is to request full approach when there is dangerous terrain around the airport.

 

- Correct transition altitudes for the whole world.

 

- Radio frequency ping-pong when flying near borders.

 

- This is more of on issue with Opus, but tail wind landings are quite common. Opus recovers the surface winds too late for ATC programs to assign a correct runway. If the weather could be read from a weather engine specific file, this would not be a problem.

 

To summarize: I'm happy with VoxATC and RC4.

 

EDIT: Having said all that, I'm currently following ProATC very closely. When they get the ATC part working solid, I will give it a try. Already have the money "earmarked"

 

Thanks for biting.  That actually doesn't sound too bad.  How is it with VFR and does it affect your framerates?  I have Ultimate Traffic 2 so I'd miss the real world schedules (sigh) but I could live without it at times.  With RC4 I've had AI traffic fly right through me and IFR traffic fly right off my nose up at flight level.  It's a complex problem that these guys are trying to solve and my hat's off to them for rising to the task.

[mwilk 1,106]

Tom,

          Vox also assigns SIDS/STARS dynamically. Of all of the ATC programs, I like VOX the best with one caveat. The way it handle AI traffic. It generates its' own traffic and when you are airborne, you rarely ever see another aircraft. Otherwise, it's a great program. I own RC4, PFE, and VOX. 

[XPX64man 130]

Vatsim or Pilot Edge is my next move, and I will probably be spoiled for them once I start, but I believe the best one offline is ProATC.  It seems to bring me to a good altitude, speed and intercept for the approach and is the closest to realistic I've found.

PFE is also very good, but it is a mod of an old FS2000 program and I'm not crazy about having to compile the route on the old program. 

Also I love the realistic chatter and voices of ProATC.

I do not like VoxATC or RC4 very much and never use either, though I have both.

[Gary1999 7]

Honestly I dont understand how anyone could compare PE/Vatsim with some pre rendered ATC software. I do all my flying on vatsim and used to fly on PE a bit too...but living on the otehr side of the world means the hours dont suit any more. For starters Vatsim is free and 12 months on PE is probably still less than the ATC software. but think of it this way. Ever done a group flight with 12 P51's/spitfires and B17s in the air with real people flying beside you while getting approval from a real person to do formation landings at an international airport in the middle of a huge fly in with over 100 aircraft all with real people behind the controls. What virtual ATC software can give you that? NONE!

 

Edit - to suit the Tubeliner theme here, I just took off fro St Maarten, while I was taxing out there were 3 arrivals, and a departure, all were real people. There is just something nice about knowing that those guys/girls were working their butt off to land there when the weather was just above minimums. All I can say is try it, its very different to atc software (thats a good thing)

[GrayX 0]

Thank you all for your thoughts an feedback.

 

I was not aware of IVAO or BVATC. I am going to give BVATC a try since the VATSIM ATC coverage is not always consistent.

 

I gave the VOXATC demo a try but I could not get it to work. I found the instructions very confusing.

[wims80 121]

BVATC has far less coverage than VATSIM

[realkewl 3]

I'll also chime in on VOXATC. Note: I'm a real pilot (GA) and wanted to keep radio skills current. I did PilotEdge for about a year and the things that I did not like were the lack of other pilots, lack of radio chatter, and that it covered a very small area.

 

So I switched to VOXATC. Once you setup it up it does a lot of nice things. Note I have about a dozen voices installed. One of the things I really like when you setup the voices is that my controller's voices speed is faster then everybody else (real world)

 

But like someone else noted about RC you've got to read the manual VOXATC has a lot of features. I'll touch on some:

 

VFR Flights:

 

1. Some airports no need to file a flight plan can do local touch and go's

2. Flight planned file gives proper phraseology to use in all airports E,D,C,B.

3. Taxi instructions and runway crossing holds

4. Open your flight plan with Flight Services, close flight plan with Flight Services

5. Request airport advisory from unicom

6. Uncontrolled airports announce taxi, take off intentions.

7. Declare emergencies, by tuning to 121.5

8. Line up and wait instructions

9. Controlled airports departures with heading and altitude

10. Request traffic advisories once airborne

11. Arrival to controlled gives heading, altitude, runway to expect, or report when airport in sight, and reduce speed if necessary.

 

IFR Flights:

1. Tune ATIS if on site

2. Contact Clearance/ground for clearance. I use route finder so it includes SID/STARS and VOXATC picks this up and gives me the correct SID/STAR to fly. (But again you need to read the manual to set it up correctly...you need navigraph level-D, for starters)

3. IFR flights allows you to have a FO (first Officer) which is nice to handle the radios...if need be.

4. Hand offs...of course

5. Pretty much the same things with VFR...but no traffic call outs.

 

Also, like it was mentioned high terrain areas give VOXATC some issues with IFR flights...and no way to cancel IFR enroute.

 

Also, I have setup a headset with mic and setup PTT. VOXATC can only be heard through the headset...closer to reality

 

- Probably the best thing I like is that I get world wide coverage 24/7

- Also, in the USA altimeter settings is called out with altimeter 2992, but in other parts of the world they say qnh 1062. That through me at first.

- Also, some other phraseology that is standard but I/we get lazy in doing but VOXATC keeps us true...for example how many new private pilots in the USA would know that when you touch down and the controller says turn left any intersection, you're suppose to say, "wilco 3 bravo vector" and once off the runway and told to contact ground you're suppose to say, "ground 3 bravo vector vacated runway 23"...of course it would be even better if it allowed you to say what intersection you vacated at..." ground 3 bravo vector vacated runway 23 at intersection delta."

 

So these are just some of the things I enjoy about VOXATC...is it perfect...no. Does it crash every now and then...yes. Does it get confused...yes (when this happens...just disable and wait a minute and enable again)

 

Note...if running VOXATC do not pause FSX...this causing issues on my system with VOXATC.

 

But for the price I'm quite happy :-)

 

-Ray

[klamal 282]

But RC will never assign a standard arrival or departure dynamically like how it's done in real life, am I right in thinking that?

 

No, it will not.

[MrSpeaker 122]

Thank you all for your thoughts an feedback.

 

I was not aware of IVAO or BVATC. I am going to give BVATC a try since the VATSIM ATC coverage is not always consistent.

 

I gave the VOXATC demo a try but I could not get it to work. I found the instructions very confusing.

Vatsim probably has the most ATC coverage, If your smart like me lol, sign up for both Vatsim and IVAO, sometimes one is better then the other for the area your going to fly in. I wish they would merge, but thats a dead horse.

[scandinavian13 5,192]

 

--I'm doing training that would annoy the crap out of any controller (and vice-versa)...e.g. DME arcs, repeatedly flying a nonprecision approach, hitting reset, using a different IAF...hitting reset.  I don't use any ATC when I'm engaged in this annoying behavior.

 

I'd be glad to have traffic like that, even if you're loading mid-air.  Just log on at an airport and coordinate it so I can clear some space.  MTN and a few others in my area (ZDC) have arcs and other cool approaches (LDAs, or charted visuals, etc.).

 

That isn't annoying at all.  What's annoying is people complaining about me giving them a visual in weather like this:

KIAD 021252Z 28012G20KT 10SM SKC 04/M10 A3012 RMK AO2

 

...but I wanted to AUTOLAND!!!