Importing weather from PFPX into PMDG 777

[Tuckster 0]

I've recently installed PFPX to do long range route planning for my PMDG T7 (previously used Vatsim for route legs and FSX's real (???) world weather. After apparent successful exports from PFPX, ie-

to Microsoft FSX  .pln, to PMDG Simulations  .rt2, to PMDG Simulations B777 .rte and to PMDG Simulations Wind Uplink  .wx, I've started-up FSX, loaded the T7, the route and then checked the winds at each route point - they are not even close to the PFPX route point winds !  In trying to figure this problem out, it appears FSX weather is interfering with PFPX downloads. I've tried ignoring the FSX weather selection, tried the User Input and tried FSX Real World Weather ; all gave me different winds but none close to PFPX's. Can anyone help?  I love flying the T7 and would really like to benefit from PFPX's capability to adjust from great circle routes as a result of adverse or favourable winds. Thx.

 

[hopskip 253]

PFPX doesn't inject weather into FSX. It just gives information to the FMC regarding real world forecasts.

 

You say you are using "Vatsim" for Route legs? VATSIM is a series of servers for multiplayer Air Traffic Control with people. For the pilot end there are 2 clients available, Squawkbox and FSinn. FSinn has a bug in FSX where the weather gets + and - mixed up above FL240. so instead of -55°C at FL350, you get +55° and the aircraft can't maintain speed in the hugely dense air mass that comes with flying in an atmosphere like Venus.

 

FSX real weather is ok, but you have to make sure it is refreshing weather, and not just a static "load once". It's also not particularly accurate, and tends to 'suddenly shift' the wind, occasionally as much as 180 degrees (ie tailwind to headwind) in an instant. One second you're flying fine, the next you're breaking up in an overspeed or stalling.

 

I'm currently using ActiveSky Next, which actually provides something akin to an accurate weather injection. There are other similar products out there.

 

What you really want to do is somehow find a way for FSX to have as close to the real world weather as possible.

PFPX will have a real world forecast, and will ... match as well as a forecast matches a real world.

 

Also notice that PFPX will have a selectable "Departure time". The weather forecast will be based on this time. If you plan a flight now that will depart in an Hour, then go to bed and only takeoff on that flight 12 hours later, then your PFPX  weather forecast will be 12 hours out of sync. ie, different.

 

Now lets look at the attempts you are trying to do:

 

 

 

 it appears FSX weather is interfering with PFPX downloads.

 

Nope. FSX weather might be different to what PFPX was predicting for various reasons, but PFPX is not injecting any weather to your simulator. It is just telling the PMDG 777 FMC what the real world's weather forcast is, without actually making FSX change it's weather presentation or settings in any way. For all intents, you can treat PFPX as "A piece of paper with some numbers written on it that represent the wind direction/speed at all the waypoints your flight will fly that PMDG 777 can see and note down".

 

PFPX has as much direct influence to the weather that FSX is showing you out the window and the speed of the wind as a piece of paper on your desk with numbers written on it.

 

 

 

 I've tried ignoring the FSX weather selection

 

I believe this will just leave FSX with the default weather settings. I believe this is clear skies and wind at 000/0 ISA temps (ie +15°c at sea level) QNH 1013/29.92

 

PFPX has been told what the real wind is outside in the real world (well, a forecast of what it will be) which is very unlikely to be 000/0 anywhere on earth.

 

 

 

tried the User Input 

 

With User input, FSX will display the weather that you select. You can actually decide what the wind and cloud etc is using this mode. You can set up some funny stuff with this menu, such as wind at 180°/195 knots at sea level. +65°C in Antarctica, -55° on the ground in the Sahara.. Raining liquid water in Siberia with a temperature of -30°C. you name it.

 

 

 

 

FSX Real World Weather

 

This is as close as you can get without a product like ActiveSky/Opus/REX.

There's a reason why these products are used by people, and it is because FSX real world weather is ... very lacking in detail unfortunately.

 

If you choose to get a product, please ensure that the weather options in FSinn or Squawkbox are turned OFF, otherwise the 2 weather sources will try to overwrite each other, and you will likely get some wierd results, like the wind shifting from one direction to another ever 1 to 5 seconds constantly. When the windspeed is 80 or more knots like in the jetstream, you get the unrealistic, and possibly damaging, issue of left crosswind to right crosswind at 80 knots knocking the aircraft around so violently that it detects an overstress of the airframe ending your flight.

 

FSUICP (paid version) has a useful tool to reduce the speed at which the wind can change. Instead of being able to flip 180 degrees in 0 seconds and increase speed by infinity knots per nothing, you can limit it to something more possible, like 1 degree per second, 1 knot per second, and gusts handled independently as random increase/decrease that isn't tied to the base windspeed/direction.

[Tuckster 0]

Thx Hopskip - I really appreciate the technical review of what is really happening here - you've given me some new direction. I should have said Vataware instead of Vatsim, sorry. :huh: