Brief workflow tutorial: PMDG 777 SP1 Company Datalink function with PFPX + Active Sky Next (ASN)

[scandinavian13 5,192]

1.) When ASN is live and connected is the WX file updating at the ASN update intervals? 

2.) If this is the case and when in mid-flight when I select Wind Data Request again will it update this data?

 

In order to do what you're asking, download Tutorial #1.5 and complete the section about setting up ASN and the aircraft (ignore the part about historical weather, though).

 

https://s3.amazonaws.com/PMDG_Downloads/file_library/documentation/PMDG-777-Tutorial-1.5.zip

 

Also, full names in the forum, please.

[rjord 3]

Thanks for the tutorial johnj....... this will be very handy for me.

 

Roy

[ErichB 3,642]

I'm assuming this workflow works like-for-like in P3D also and can therefore be followed in the same way?

[scandinavian13 5,192]

I'm assuming this workflow works like-for-like in P3D also and can therefore be followed in the same way?

 

Yeah. I tried to keep it as vague as possible (which is why I used [Developer], instead of "Microsoft Games" or "Lockheed Martin" specifically).

 

Edit: disregard - thought this was in a different thread...but yes, it's all the same.

[ErichB 3,642]

C:\Users\ERICH\AppData\Roaming\Hifi\ASNP3D\Weather

 

Can I just confirm...that the above is the correct path entry in PFPX  under the 'Weather' options  to ensure PFPX is exporting the correct ASN wx  data to the FMC?

[scandinavian13 5,192]

 

 

Can I just confirm...that the above is the correct path entry in PFPX  under the 'Weather' options  to ensure PFPX is exporting the correct ASN wx  data to the FMC?

 

Nope.

 

Honestly, your best bet is to have a look at the workflow in Tutorial #1.5 (here: http://precisionmanuals.com/pages/downloads/docs.html).

[ErichB 3,642]

Nope.

 

Honestly, your best bet is to have a look at the workflow in Tutorial #1.5 (here: http://precisionmanuals.com/pages/downloads/docs.html).

 

Okay, thanks Kyle.

 

erich

[xkoote 57]

Good thread. I wanted to inject just one small note as a real world airline pilot. Winds forecast on a flightplan is just that. A forecast. They never ever agree to the degree or the knot. So that is why I do not load an FSX plan into ASN.

Firstly I just launch ASN, In PFPX I export the WX and RTE files, and load the plan in the aircraft, and voilà. If you load the route in ASN, it will let the planned winds match the flightplan calculations. And that is all but real. It is why we carry contingency fuel. Otherwise, what is the use. I like the fact that weather changes and that I thus have to monitor flight progres.

It is how it is in real life. Sometimes it is spot on, sometimes I use up a great portion of contingecy fuel on a long route where wind forecast were off a little. If you want to do this as well, you just make sure to skip the step about loading flight plans in ASN and let it be live.

 

Xander

[bjratchf 80]

Good thread. I wanted to inject just one small note as a real world airline pilot. Winds forecast on a flightplan is just that. A forecast. They never ever agree to the degree or the knot. So that is why I do not load an FSX plan into ASN.

Firstly I just launch ASN, In PFPX I export the WX and RTE files, and load the plan in the aircraft, and voilà. If you load the route in ASN, it will let the planned winds match the flightplan calculations. And that is all but real. It is why we carry contingency fuel. Otherwise, what is the use. I like the fact that weather changes and that I thus have to monitor flight progres.

It is how it is in real life. Sometimes it is spot on, sometimes I use up a great portion of contingecy fuel on a long route where wind forecast were off a little. If you want to do this as well, you just make sure to skip the step about loading flight plans in ASN and let it be live.

 

Xander

 

This...

 

Be careful that your PFPX wind file (which is basically based upon world forecasts, aka, used by dispatcher) is not being overriden by ASN. Thus, you'll have an accurate prediction- and over each waypoint you can follow along on your flight plan and compare winds, just like we do in the big jets.

 

After all is said and done with the FMS, you can load ASN with the flightplan in order to get accurate flight weather depiction. ASN will override your PFPX wind file now- but since it is already loaded in the FMS, your predicted winds are safe. 

 

Later during the flight (I simulate this during FD forecast updates-) you can either reload new winds (they are updated at 00Z/06Z/12Z/18Z remember) from ASN, or go back into pfpx and refresh the calculations for the flight- which honestly is a lot of fiddling, so I usually take the ASN winds. Lets just pretend you have access to everyone's installed TAMDAR...

[xkoote 57]

ASN does not write to PMDG's .wx file as far as I know, does it? PFPX uses a snapshot of current weather from ASN and creates an output. Kind of like what a dispatcher does. This in turn is loaded into the FMS i.e. the forecast. ASN just keeps downloading weather and injects it into P3D.

 

The only point I'm trying to make is that if you load a plan in ASN, it will save the weather and fix the winds along the route (I believe) which is not realistic. That is why I leave out that step.

 

Xander

[Slayer 190]

Why not just use PFPX to export all 3 (.rte, .wx , .pln )at once...it has the option to do so. This will work fine for FSX

 

For P3D it's kind of broken because there are currently no export options for PMDG planes in P3D...although the files are exactly the same. I get around this with a symbolic link to the FSX location using a free program from Microsoft called SyncToy.

 

I think the thing that is confusing people is that yes it is a forecast but it is also a forecast that is obtained through a datalink, in other words the data link is not static, it would request a new forecast whenever you hit request (although said forecast may not have changed)

 

This isn't the old times where you had your printout and that's it or where the radio operator had to call ahead and get an updated forecast. It's a satellite connection with data that would be updated often.

[Slayer 190]

C:\Users\ERICH\AppData\Roaming\Hifi\ASNP3D\Weather

 

Can I just confirm...that the above is the correct path entry in PFPX  under the 'Weather' options  to ensure PFPX is exporting the correct ASN wx  data to the FMC?

 

You are partially correct, if you are talking about the program options for PFPX and you are looking for the weather file location that PFPX will read and use for flight planning this would be correct.

 

EDIT: This also shows another issue with PFPX because if you have both sims there is only 1 choice for an ASN folder so if you forget to change this option every time you bounce between FSX or P3D you may potentially have no weather in PFPX because you have to change where it reads the data ( it is a different folder for the FSX ASN and the P3D ASN)

 

The export options on the other hand (this is where you send the generated .wx file and .rte file to the 777 )can't be set until you finish your flightplan then hit the Export button - in the route export window that opens up  the default location should work just fine BUT right now there is no option as of this writing to directly export the 2 files to the PMDG's in P3Dv2. See my previous post about making a symbolic link until they can get it added to PFPX in an update.

 

If you are ONLY running P3DV2 and no FSX you can also trick it by changing the  "FSX Folder" to the location of your P3DV2 folder -  I don't recommend to do this if you currently use both sims as you will forget then it will quit working in FSX

[bjratchf 80]

ASN does not write to PMDG's .wx file as far as I know, does it? PFPX uses a snapshot of current weather from ASN and creates an output. Kind of like what a dispatcher does. This in turn is loaded into the FMS i.e. the forecast. ASN just keeps downloading weather and injects it into P3D.

 

The only point I'm trying to make is that if you load a plan in ASN, it will save the weather and fix the winds along the route (I believe) which is not realistic. That is why I leave out that step.

 

Xander

You're probably right... I had trouble with P3D's 777 writing its own flight plan- the route winds would uplink fine, but the descent forecast would be invalid. If I went to PFPX and re-exported the winds, they loaded fine. 

[scandinavian13 5,192]

ASN only writes to the WX file if it has a flight plan telling it where you're going. There is a whole procedure outlined in Tutorial #1.5 that automates all of this for you such that every time you request it, it's like you're making a new request through your airline's data center.

[kenz 33]

The thing that seem unclear to me is that ASN is really sending forecast ? And not actual winds ? And how can we know wich forecast it is (6, 12, 18, 24) ?