Just interested in how others fly their long hauls.

For me, its flying real routes real time with live weather mostly on IVAO. I try to depart when the actual real world one departs and plan my route accordingly to match the given as accurately as possible.

Recently I've been flying the long haul Lufthansa 747 network. Once I had figured out some of the LH dispatching quirks, I now get about 90% of the real world route right. The new PMDG 747 is just perfect for the flying part of the job. 

Right now I'm enroute to Seoul as DLH712 from Frankfurt. 3 1/2 hours to go according to my FMC's PROG page and a beautiful sunrise is about to come.

Pretty much like you, minus the online part. I haven't flown on vatsim in many many years, ive been meaning to get back into it. But anyway, onto how i fly longhauls. When i first get a new AC and am learning the systems, i take very big liberties when it comes to routes and airlines. IE, flying KLM from LAX to EGLL, just because I felt like using those particular colors. And i dont follow any particular flight, so i just depart when i feel like it. I never ever use time accel, to me its blasphemy :P I honestly dont even know how to use the feature, never used it. Always use active sky live weather, and have a flight plan generated with PFPX. If i am flying it during the day, ill keep an eye on the flight as i do other things, doing step climbs, configuring the tanks, playing around with the FMC, things like that. If its a night flight, ill eventually go to sleep and have my alarm set to wake up a bit before my TOD.

Now, once i feel i am proficient with an AC, i do what i think is a kind of unique thing. I choose an airline that i fly all my "official" flights with. I base the airline on personal preference, and what kind of routes it offers me. With the 744 im leaving heavily for BA, but KLM and LH are in the running still. So after i choose the airline, my first flight is always a delivery flight from point of manufacture to where the airline gets its AC delivered. And starting with that flight, for PMDG AC, i turn on service based failures for the air frame. After the delivery flight, i begin my official flights. Flights that i match with RW flights. Matching departure gates, flight plan if i can, departure time (i always use real world time in sim when doing these flights, so if the flight departs EGLL at 0700, ill depart at 0100 my time), arrival gate, ect ect. I also pay much more attention to following procedures, NO SPEEDING DURING TAXI, fuel burn, always following proper NAT procedures (fixed alt and speed), basically just taking it more seriously.

Ill also still do fun flights, if my schedule doesnt fit a real world flight, or if i just want to check out a different airport/airline. I know this went above and beyond your question but oh well, i felt like letting the forum know!

So far I've taken the 74 on more longhauls than shorthaul which is unusual for me.

 

One off the first things I did was take it on a RTW routing YMML-NZAA-KLAX-EGLL-VHHX-YMML (all realtime). I also just did CYVR-RJAA (4x compression) now I'm taking a little break from doing and I'm in the T7 doing RJAA-YSSY realtime.

 

All offline for me at the moment.. I can't forward ports on my current router and I'm not going to stuff around being a /T/ only pilot.

On 01/03/2017 at 11:15 PM, tobi66 said:

For me, its flying real routes real time with live weather mostly on IVAO. I try to depart when the actual real world one departs and plan my route accordingly to match the given as accurately as possible.

Really much the same for me!

Just got done w/ ANC to MIA. Still trying to get used to these new Thrustmaster TRF rudder pedals. I like applying the brakes smoothly now, but still trying to get the hang of this steering w/your feet...thing... Interesting landing...Winds were 080@ 18kts. Not my prettiest, but I didn't bend her!

I have done some interesting ones. Cold Harbor to Anchorage. Not a normally flown route, but a continuation after we diverted there due to a false fire indication. Johannesburg to Auckland. You almost clip Antarctica, and you lose GPS coverage during this portion.