CDU FMC questions

[warbirds 555]

Regarding the cdu and or fmc in Boeing aircraft,  such as the X Plane 757 or 777, is there any user made company routes available somewhere? I am looking for routes that are complete all the way to auto land. 

 

I have the 757 and find the cdu a most complex,,,actually over complex,,,device and, to be honest, if this plane was in FSX I would slap a GTN 750 in that panel right now and forgo the torture and time required to work that antique device called a cdu. 

[Scramjet333 39]

Regarding the cdu and or fmc in Boeing aircraft, such as the X Plane 757 or 777, is there any user made company routes available somewhere? I am looking for routes that are complete all the way to auto land.

 

I have the 757 and find the cdu a most complex,,,actually over complex,,,device and, to be honest, if this plane was in FSX I would slap a GTN 750 in that panel right now and forgo the torture and time required to work that antique device called a cdu.

Routes are easily available at SimBrief which also has fuel and load calculations. You need to create an account, and once you plug in your departure and arrival airports, you are given real-world routes from Flightaware and such as well as other sources.

 

The CDU is not difficult to operate - reading the given Operations Manual will help. Also, you can post at the Official B757 Professional forums to get help - they are very welcoming as far as newbies are concerned.

 

And once again - FSX stuff don't apply here in X-Plane, it's a different sim with different rules.

[warbirds 555]

Yes I know it is a different sim with different rules but a cdu is a cdu weather in X Plane or FSX or PD3 and if this was an FSX airplane that cdu would be removed and a GTN 750 would be in it's place. 

 

I can program a GTN 750 to go where I want the plane to go and at the destination put me at the runway decending and all that setup would take me less then 5 minutes. Hopefully someone will come out with a 750 for X Plane in the near future. 

 

I have been to SimBrief and setup a flight plan and it worked ok until we got to the destination.  I was hoping there would be flight plans made by users available. 

[Scramjet333 39]

Yes I know it is a different sim with different rules but a cdu is a cdu weather in X Plane or FSX or PD3 and if this was an FSX airplane that cdu would be removed and a GTN 750 would be in it's place.

 

I can program a GTN 750 to go where I want the plane to go and at the destination put me at the runway decending and all that setup would take me less then 5 minutes. Hopefully someone will come out with a 750 for X Plane in the near future.

Why'd you use a GTN750 in place of the 757 CDU? That defeats the purpose of the 757... Oh, well, to each his own, different people work differently.

 

I have been to SimBrief and setup a flight plan and it worked ok until we got to the destination. I was hoping there would be flight plans made by users available.

Near your destination, you can check the METAR for your destination airport, check the wind direction, and plan accordingly. You could choose a STAR from the nearest exit point of your flight plan, and then descend via ILS/RNAV to a runway that is approximately downwind.

 

Flight plans in general are common throughout the sims - you can choose to export in whichever format you choose.

[warbirds 555]

Go to Google and look up restored vintage cockpits such as the B-17. Somewhere in the cockpit you will find a gps. Same with vintage airliners you should use the most modern unit available for accurate navigation. 

 

Yes if I buy the PDGM 777 or upcoming Queen of the Skies for FSX I will stick a Garmin GTN 750 in that pit to be sure that some little tiny mistake I have made on an antique cdu does not ruin the end of a three hour flight.

[Old_As_Dirt 160]

Just plan shorter flights (say KIAD to KJFK) until you get the hang of things.  At first, forget SID and STAR and just plan a flight into say 13L.  As you approach in your 757 make sure that you have tuned 111.50 into your ILS and initiate ILS as you go through TELEX.  You should land fine and the flight will probably take around 40 minutes.  Set TOC to about FL285 or lower or you will never reach it before decent.  Play with that flight and then you can expand to others.  Since the default runway from KIAD is 01L, make your first waypoint at LAUGH, then JEDCO, then TELEX at about 3000 feet.  Not realistic, but that will get your started.  Be sure to set your MFD back to about 0000 after reaching TOC or you will never come down.

 

John

[Scramjet333 39]

Go to Google and look up restored vintage cockpits such as the B-17. Somewhere in the cockpit you will find a gps. Same with vintage airliners you should use the most modern unit available for accurate navigation.

Those are vintage airliners - that's the point. In that case Boeing would've included a touchscreen FMC in the 787, which still has a CDU (although it is now touch-based)... But as I said, to each his own.

 

Yes if I buy the PDGM 777 or upcoming Queen of the Skies for FSX I will stick a Garmin GTN 750 in that pit to be sure that some little tiny mistake I have made on an antique cdu does not ruin the end of a three hour flight.

Needs piloting skill to save such a flight. It honestly doesn't harm to learn how a CDU works... And it can be quite interesting.

[warbirds 555]

Lol I am afraid I am much to old to learn this cdu. I just set up a flight from kcid to kdsm on simbrief and it worked great until the end. I think there is something I am supposed to do near the approach but not sure what yet. I had lnav and vnav set and as I got to the end the altitude did not change so I was too high and at the last turning to final the autopilot decided that was enough and just went it's own way.

 

I know with the GTN it will let you know when to go from gps to approach setting but not sure how when or what to look for to tell me when to shut off vnav or lnav or both and then go to approach.

[Murmur 3,941]

Those are vintage airliners - that's the point. In that case Boeing would've included a touchscreen FMC in the 787, which still has a CDU (although it is now touch-based)... But as I said, to each his own.

 

 

Off topic: isn't a touchscreen a lot more hard to use if there's significant turbulence?

[Old_As_Dirt 160]

All you have to do is to come in under the glideslope at your last waypoint.  You can do this by placing /2500 in your data entry and clicking the button on the right hand side of the waypoint line. (You can set your speed and your altitude by typing say 160/2500 and clicking that button).  It helps to "step down" your altitude through several approach waypoints, but is not absolutely necessary for the learning phase.   It will automatically achieve this altitude unless you forget to set the MFD down to or below the runway altitude before your descent.  Once you see the pink markers at the right side and the bottom of your HSI light up, click on the approach button (bottom button on the right center of your glare shield).  It will capture the ILS and bring you in.  Landing the 757 should be at 30 degrees flaps and about 136/140 knots.  Disengage your AP with the DISC (I think) button on the glare shield as you near landing.  Brakes and reverse thrust needed now!

 

Age has nothing to do with it.  I'm 72 and just started figuring all this out just a few months ago.

 

John

[warbirds 555]

John thanks. I think I know what you mean but just to be sure. Do I go back into the cdu to make those settings (altitude, speed) or is the another place to make them?

 

John your answer is the kind I am looking for, simple do this and do that and it should work, thanks again. 

 

paul

[Old_As_Dirt 160]

Paul,

 

Everything is set up in the CDU prior to you leaving the originating runway.  Once you take off, you shouldn't have to make any changes to the CDU settings - in a simulator.  IRL, changes are made as needed because of weather and other factors, but you shouldn't have to touch the CDU once it is set up for your flight.  Just play with it with relatively short flights so you don't sit there waiting for the end, because everything has to come into play during the last few minutes of flight.  That's frustrating!  

 

Each time you set up a trial, just save it as say 1, 2, 3, or 4 for company names.  Then, all you have to do if something isn't right is go back and put that number into your company route and fix the problem and save again with the same number, which will overwrite the old one.

 

Once you make the first successful flight, you will start throwing more and more stuff into the equation and as someone else has said, it becomes satisfying to see it work.  Having just been where you are, I can understand and hopefully communicate because of my recent experiences with what you are having to deal with.

 

Stick with it and good luck.

 

John