Hi all,

this is my first tech problem request in these forums after lurking and researching multiple topics over several months. The knowledge I have gained from here has been invaluable, whether from posters' tutorials or heated 'discussions'.

Before I describe my problem here's my sim 'background':

 

Im a 'manual' loving guy. I read and read and read till my brain hurts. eg when i got the Reaiity XP GNS530 I read the entire Garmin manual from start to end TWICE till I knew how it all works.

 

Worked my way up from learning to 'fly' single props like the 172 to the Lancair Legacy to multi engines vial Duke B60 then Turbo. Flown complete round the world flights using all these several times in the worst weather I could get REX to produce to and from the most variable approaches I could find to really test my knowledge and ability to put into practice the knowledge gained from all those pdfs..

 

I finally purchased the PMDG 737 NGX after finding the default jets in FSX somewhat lacking (!) after those wonderfully immersible add-ons I have mentioned.

FANTASTIC product....I can now handle that plane from cold and dark to landing and shut off with all flying and nav procedures memorized and my flights are faultless except for the odd user error. ALL my problems have been user error none from the sim itself.

If I tell the plane to do something in manual or AP it DOES it..even if its suicidal :0

I LIKE this as after all Im supposed to be the 'pilot'.

 

I then got the 747 which pleased me technically despite 'bugs' I could not fathom (such as VNAV/LNAV buttons staying lit and active whenever I tried deselect them (plane flys manually for me easily so i just switch to IFR flight plan in these cases.

 

OK thats the preface done with...now we come to the MD-11....

 

As before I started with the beginner tutorial and Boeing/MD adjustment doc. I KNOW it works quite differently and welcomed the new way of doing things. However the AP is doing the same thing over and over in ALL auto flights to the point of me pulling my rapidly diminishing hair out:

 

Whenever I activate a vertical AP command either via PROF being activated or using FCP altitude selector the plane simply refuses to stop climbing at a suicidal rate (if it can) or ANY rate it can if plane is heavy. 

 

Here is my major problem and I would love nothing more than to be told I am a dumb*** and i SHOULD be doing something obvious however I have found nothing to help after scouring these forums and elsewhere on web.

 

Unlike the 737 NGX the plane completely IGNORES what the FCP altitude is set to. If cruise is set to say FL250 or 5000 or any setting the plane climbs up and above this until I disconnect AFS systems and/or violently add control inputs. After stabilizing plane at altitude I want and setting FCP altitude to hold or level change (push or pull) and pressing autoflight plane once more climbs incessantly regardless *usually to 44k plus when it struggles to not stall)

 

Even during a manual descent following FMS profile if i reconnect it starts to CLIMB.

 

I thought originally this was a weight problem in FMS so tested all weights and balances but after trying a FCP controlled flight realised the AP ignored that too. Heading/Speed knobs work as directed either with push or pull but altitude knob is ignored. Well not ignored so much as any input is converted into 'dock with ISS ASAP please'!

 

If the plane is heavy then once reaching acceleration height plane will climb at max that the protection system will allow...ie at contant stall speed plus several knots. In panic I have sometimes added slats/flaps but it just slows plane down to stall speed here too.

 

I often get slat/flaps overspeeds warning too even when they are NOT extended (either in VC or via external visual checks)

 

During such dangerous climbs I have manually changed FMS thrust settings from low to N1 all of which result in plane changing pitch so it can hover over the stall speed and climb more.

 

FCP VS mode when set will be automatically ignored after several seconds ( I admit I do not fully understand yet diff between VS/FA mode here? - neither of which make a difference tho)

 

When speed is safe in climb I select FMS mode for speed which takes over fine until stall speed again kicks it out to manual input. Manual setting of speed via knob is useless as plane once more CLIMBS at max rate it can so speed just drops.

 

If plane is light it will attempt to climb at up to 14k + f/m

If plane is heavy it will struggle at 500 f/m

Either way its stuck just above stall speed.....

 

YES - I have checked and double checked weights and balances in FMS over and over despite the ambiguity as to where I should be setting these

 

External load manager

Internal load manager

FMS fuel reloading

 

MCDU shows correct fuel levels on display.

 

Any ideas? I could try a uninstall/reinstall but would like advice first as the 737 and 747 have had no such problem or any other aircraft I have installed

 

REX indeed messes up the autoflight but I have used FSUIPC to smooth winds but this happens ALL the time even in calm weather.

 

Thanks for your patience and time reading my long post I want so much to LOVE this plane as soon as it will start doing what I d*** well tell it to,,,,whether sensible or smart..like I said already I assumed I was the PIC

 

Russell Gough

registered owner 737/747/MD-11

Daytona Beach

(in case my sig does not display)

 

 

 

 

First of all, no one is dumb. We all learned at some point and this bird as you mentioned is very different from Boeing. I got a little lost in your explanation , but a pic of the cockpit would help.

 

PROF is directly tied to the FMS and what altitude restrictions are in place up to and including the MCP altitude. 

 

I would try taking it off AP and just pull the MCP altitude selector and see what it does. You can also initiate it with V/S. it should climb or descent to what your altitude is set at. If this is working, then your FMS is saying something different depending where the aircraft is on what waypoint. 

 

I also highly suggest the angle of attack md11 training. These really explained the procedures really well and especially the FMS.  I can fly this puppy much better going through all those videos. 

Thanks Hightowers for the reply... I might indeed do the training you mentioned as I really enjoy flying by the book! I am trying to solve this first though as it affects all flights and as you can imagine makes the experience impossible to enjoy right now. You say turn off ap or something similar I can't see on this tab I'm using should I Not press auto flight at any point in flight then? Does AF only enable fms navigation or fcp navigation too? As regards fms altitudes well the bird just ignores them. I thought at first it was trying to climb to the fms suggested optimal cruise even though I had told it lower And the fcp was set lower but it just climbed above optimum too. Nothing stops the climb... Of course my belief in a bug or software issue is backed up by the understanding that under no circumstances whatsoever should the plane ascend above fcp set altitude or below regardless of what fms setting is. This is a primary safety issue and would make the plane dangerous to fly and would ground it in real life I'm sure!

Will post pix maybe later all display readouts seem correct don't matter what mode is active plane just ignores altitude settings..

 

Sent from my GT-P3113 using Tapatalk 2

Thanks Hightowers for the reply... I might indeed do the training you mentioned as I really enjoy flying by the book! I am trying to solve this first though as it affects all flights and as you can imagine makes the experience impossible to enjoy right now. You say turn off ap or something similar I can't see on this tab I'm using should I Not press auto flight at any point in flight then? Does AF only enable fms navigation or fcp navigation too? As regards fms altitudes well the bird just ignores them. I thought at first it was trying to climb to the fms suggested optimal cruise even though I had told it lower And the fcp was set lower but it just climbed above optimum too. Nothing stops the climb... Of course my belief in a bug or software issue is backed up by the understanding that under no circumstances whatsoever should the plane ascend above fcp set altitude or below regardless of what fms setting is. This is a primary safety issue and would make the plane dangerous to fly and would ground it in real life I'm sure!

Will post pix maybe later all display readouts seem correct don't matter what mode is active plane just ignores altitude settings..

 

Sent from my GT-P3113 using Tapatalk 2

You cannot disable AP on the panel. Autoflight is for engaging the auto throttles on takeoff known as clamp and pressing again engages AP.  To disengage you have to press the yellow button on the yoke twice. Once to disengage, a second time to stop Betty from screaming at you.

Or you can go to pmdg options under keyboard commands to assign it to the joystick, or through fsuipc. Your choice of flavor. 

 

There is no bug with the MD11 with regards to climbing descending as far as I know. Plus if shes not doing what you want, its our responsibilities as pilots to intervene. Either manually or Level change mode which in this case is using interventions on the MCP. She flys well, but it takes some getting used too. 

Thanks for clarifying.. I use a button on my yoke to turn ap off and stop the BB... So far the only way I get the plane to do what I want vertically is to do that and also disengage the two afs ovrds as well as no ap altitude commands work and plane climbs regardless.. Am right now setting up a simple kmia to kdab flight with clear weather to do more testing.... Will take screen shots if!/when normal problem occurs

 

 

Sent from my GT-P3113 using Tapatalk 2

You are a dumb **** the solu... Just kidding  This is one of the most unusual things I have heard. Never heard of an MD11 flying in space, better contact Houston space center :rolleyes: As I have understood the weather is fine meaning normal temperatures and winds.... The only thing left is that the game somehow is corrupted. It would be nice if you could post a screen shot but my guess is that you actually do everything right. What I guess is that something else heavily interfering whit the game. Have you tried turning of add-ons as FSUIPC and REX. Just go with the plain old FSX stuff. For some reason the FSX registry repair tool does some wonders and sometimes fixes crazy errors. Reinstalling the MD11 itself might be a good idea as well.

I would begin with these steps and lets see what happens.

 

HTH,

  Manfred

Sandpatch dang I was hoping u wld tell me why I was a dummy!! Thx for reply I'm about take off Miami to kdab clear weather taking screen shots after every button press... More later and yes all Seems to be set up right

 

Sent from my GT-P3113 using Tapatalk 2

Update - did the KMIA flight to KDAB took tons of screens - error reproduced exactly as described in original post...during climb/cruise and descent (although these phases could not be defined as such in such a pogo-ing flight track....)

...not sure how to upload so many pix so choosing the best ones - actually got it to autoland at end although FSX crashed due to all my menu clicking so the reload meant a dive descent...i then tried prove i wasnt a complete newbie by doing a manual circuit immediately with all ap systems off (disconnected half way thru) - happy to say perfect landing (to me) considering no planning or discipline involved :0 this IS a sweet plane to hand fly..! now if only the AP would do as its told...pix coming later tonite

..NB..even with trim set pitch down (2.7?) airplane STILL wanted to climb with idle thrust during my manual descent!! almost as if the tail had a ghost elevator?!

I uploaded all 107 screen shots in a zip file to the AVSIM file library as it seemed the least innocuous way to do it? Total size under 50mb so if anyone can suggest how i can post them here without breaking any forum rules Id be happy to oblige - I tried sharing the file here but cant find it I presume moderators need to check it out first - seems my MD-11 is now my go to bird for hand flying heavy routes until this issue is fixed/explained to me

Can you provide a link to the pictures. Your problem sounds very odd...are you sure you are actually engaging the autopilot?

 

Peter

Disable REX   Put 20,354 kg     as cargo weight   fly to FL 340  or FL 310  and see how this will work

 

as far as PTCH mode it is a Little weird how the MD-11 climes after take off i have looked at it from out side view and it does not look right but it is doing exactly what it should do

 

i have allays had altitude jumps with REX and from there forms this is a Little normal thing with REX

 

I do strongly think your problem is because it is a New aircraft for you / it is possible that you are pulling and pushing the knobs and that's  why the aircraft is acting like that

 

as far as speed and slowing down the MD-11 will not slow down as fast as you want it to do it has a Little mind of its own

 

if all this Does not apply to you and you insist  that  the Aircraft is really acting wired then either software is corrupted /  and a reinstall is DU or a small ticket to PMDG and let them see what is going on

 

hop you fix your Problem and Fly this Beautiful Bird because it is really a Wonderful aircraft to have

thanks guys! i did another flight after uninstalling the plane and re installing but exact same problem existed...then i did two flights using atc only from egbb to eglc wow 76 handoffs i counted them for the 110 mile trip but at least i flew it well...the problem is altitude only but using hdg select and speed input worked ok except that i had to keep my hand on the yoke to avoid the planes

constant attempts to climb and dive....i thought that here was the PMDG support forum...will make ticket if i can work out how to do it...got 107 screenshots that show the whole problem uploaded to files then admin told me to upload to screenshots so trying that now...i AM for sure connecting the AP that is the problem

 

inverness to Edinburgh i used combo manual and auto....found i could use lateral HDG and speed fine...but had to hold yoke to keep plane level..UGH!! gave up and used totally manual eventually

as that meant i could trim the plane and relax...ANY trim input during autoflight disconnects the AP so had to be gentle on the yoke

 

did EGBB to EGLC TOTALLY manual and bird flew great..landed perfect in that tight zone....ok im trying to upload jpegs to screenshots library now...I am NOT ****ing the setup like i said i can fly the 737 from memory...not this bird....

al1234 thanks but im no idiot....i can hand fly the plane great same as 737 and 747 the AP's on those work great the MD-11 for me is garbage on AP..please feel free to test me on my knowledge anytime!

my screens prove the problem....but how the heck do i post them here? im determined not to dump this plane yet..it flys so well manually but that obviously misses the whole point of the automation

a1234 like i said i can slow the bird down on manual no problem..my 3 world circuits with other planes have taught me all the correct ways to fly....this damn bird wont do what i tell it on AP ONLY regarding any vertical commands....

Possibly your yoke is interfering with the A/P causing it to disconnect/come out of vertical control. There is a setting in the PMDG menu for CWS.... how have you got that set ?

 

I would try a flight and either use a FS control to "disconnect joystick" or unplug the yoke and see if that helps you narrow down the problem

 

Peter

Peter good idea except for the fact that I want the ap active.. Wherever er it tries to climb I always use manual inputs from yoke to disengage the ap climbing.. If only I could post these revealing screens hots u could all see the issue...

 

Sent from my GT-P3113 using Tapatalk 2

 

I would actually Bet money here that no one could fly MY md-11 with any vertical mode active..