So, after about 3 PM legs, this is the first successful one where the FO didn't rotate the aircraft into orbit. There was one thing, however, that maybe is a bug. I have a video to show it to you, but will attempt to describe it first. 

 

When I post the video you'll see the FO do a BEAUTIFUL rotation and pitch maintain (never had that before), so I was in awe of that. However, the problems start when the aircraft pitches down to pick up speed. The PFD immediately flashes "LVR CLIMB", but the FO doesn't respond. In the video, he doesn't respond until passing the THR RED altitude (which was 2370) phase (which makes sense), but what's happening is that the speed tape is literally right up on the red (but not alerting to overspeed yet) when he responds and reduces the detents to CLIMB. Honestly, I didn't want to get an overspeed warning so I manually adjusted the detent using the keyboard.

At this point, he's blown past the flap up speed in the FLEX detent, and in the video, you can see I start to panic a bit because I also didn't want to move my throttle knowing that was going to mess things up too. 

Here's the video: https://youtu.be/s-DRZ8uefbE

Am I doing something wrong to where when the PFD flashes "LVR CLIMB" he's not responding to that right away?

 

Hi,

First, you need to get the autopilot on right away.

The virtual PF should be calling for the autopilot about 5 seconds after takeoff.

If you don't get the autopilot on, the virtual PF won't fly very well.

 

For LVR Climb, the trigger is based of the thrust reduction altitude you entered on the FS2Crew Departure Brief page.

All he's doing is pressing the equivalent of F2 on your keyboard to move the throttle back.

 

Important: When you takeoff, keep your throttle in the full idle position.  Don't try to match the throttle.

 

I can confirm all of those things happened. I entered the thrust reduction altitude into the control panel of FS2crew, but when the plane nosed down attitude to pick up speed, you can see it didn't trigger FS2crew to respond with the throttle adjustment at all. 

• Throttles were at complete idle
• Altitudes were entered into the control panel
• Autopilot was engaged after the FO says "Autopilot 2 on" (you can see my reaction in the video right after he says it). 

Despite all of those, he didn't move the levers into the CLIMB detent. You can hear the FO rattle off quite a bit after I changed the throttles myself to prevent from getting an over speed warning. 

As I watch it again, I think I might recognize an issue (maybe it's the issue). 

Is the FO in this instance reading the Radio Altimeter? I'm looking at the timing of when he does finally say something, and it's around ~2300 RA. The airbus gave me a reduction altitude of ~2300 in my take off performance page.

 

 The airbus's doesn't go by the radio altimeter height for the take off performance page -it goes by Above Ground Level, and it looks like FS2crew is going by the radio altimeter height.

That would explain the significant delay. Especially because he doesn't even call flaps 0 by the time we pass the flaps up speed bug.

 

Edited July 17, 20196 yr by AntonioK

Your video is not visible.

You probably need to make it public or something.

 

I'm looking at the code now, and the PM will attempt to set Level Climb when"

1. You're the Pilot Monitoring

2. The PM"s autopilot on has been completed

3. Aircraft Altitude > takeoff elevation plus the thrust reduction altitude as entered on FS2Crew Dep Brief page.

 

When those conditions are met, the PM will attempt to put the throttle in Climb Detent, then he'll announce what we assume will be on the FMA at at that point: "Thrust climb... autothrust".

 

 

I think the problem is FS2crew is reading the radio altimeter height, while the airbus is giving those heights as AGL. That's a ~1000 height difference in what's being looked at.

 

 

I think I may be able to guess the problem.

(It would be nice if your video could have recorded your voice too 🙂

 

What value you did you enter in the FS2Crew Dep Brief for the Thrust Reduction altitude?

It needs to be in AGL  (same value you entered in the MCDU)

I suspect you entered it as ASL, not AGL.

 

I can't figure out why Xbox overlay on this PC isn't recording my voice...if you know how to fix that, I owe you one. Been trying to figure that out and couldn't.

In terms of what I'm entering into the MCDU, I'm not entering anything. These are the default values the MCDU provides given the current Navdata and the airport. In the same vein, the thrust reduction altitude and the acceleration have (tended to be) the same values, so I enter those values into FS2crew. In this case, and I'm going by my memory here, the thrust acceleration altitude was ~2300. 

You can see the bus pitch down at 2300 ASL, but entering the same exact value into FS2crew, it waits until it's 2300 AGL. So both tools/systems are reading two different types of altitude.

I imagine since the FSL is the plane, the tool should match what the plane is reading/interpreting, yes?

 

But what did you enter on the FS2Crew Departure Brief Page for the Thrust Reduction altitude (value must be the same one entered in the MCDU).

Remember FS2Crew  cannot "read" the MCDU.

Many of the values need to be passed to FS2Crew manually.

I'm 99 percent sure this your issue.

 

 

 

No, I understand that. Sorry I'm not articulating this well enough, but let me give this ago.

 

This is what the airbus values were:

Thr Red/ACC       Eng Out Acc
2300/2300              2300 

Similar to this image, but with the values above:

 

So, the values I entered into control panel of FS2crew

Thrust reduction altitude: 2300
Acceleration Altitude: 2300

 

That's what I should be doing, correct?

Correct, you'd type in 2300 into the Thrust Reduction field on the FS2Crew Departure Brief page.

The trigger for Level climb is, in addition to what i said earlier: 

Altitude > Takeoff Elevation plus Thrust Reduction Alt.

 

Just for fun, try it again at a Sea Level airport.

 

I'll test it by subtracting the values the bus gives me from the airport elevation and report back.

Subtracting?

Test it at at Sea Level airport like KSFO

Enter 1500 as the Thrust reduction Altitude in FS2Crew and the MCDU.

How did it go?  I'm waiting with baited breath here 🙂

Just did it, and it worked. So how is this to be configured when not at sea level?