It's best not to fixate on a single instance of a problem and declare everything broken because of it.

Hook

36 minutes ago, mtr75 said:

Seems like maybe they've coded CFIT's into the game.

So I'm guessing you won't be buying this then?

32 minutes ago, mtr75 said:

He didn't request 8,800 feet and 8,800 is not the minimum anything for his route of flight (I checked the charts). I also understand what you're saying about emergencies. In this case he was given a cruising altitude on an IFR flight plan which put him straight into the side of two successive mountains. Seem like a potential problem? He avoided them both because he was visual; if he had been in IMC he would have hit both mountains.

Your theory is a good one though, as to how it's coded. Seems like maybe they've coded CFIT's into the game.

There are two points here.

Is 8,800 feet an assignable altitude? You said no and that this isn't done unless on an approach. This is false. I can give more examples if needed.

Is there an error in the game at that airport and probably others that don't take into account the terrain along a route of flight and adjust the altitude accordingly? From that video, that appears correct. 

Sounds like an Altimeter readings at locations issue.

16 minutes ago, Adrian123 said:

Sounds like an Altimeter readings at locations issue.

Win. 🙂

Although ATC could assign stupid fractional levels, the reason they wouldn't assign you something like 6,600 feet or whatever, is because even if your altimeter is nailed on standard calibration or local calibration, this does not make it a certainty that an aeroplane 300 yards off to your left on the exact same altimeter setting, would be at the same height as you even if both your altimeter needle pointers were reading exactly the same number. That only happens in computer games, not the real atmosphere. So you need separation of at least 500 feet to be reasonably certain that discrepancies in localised pressure and minor instrumentation calibration issues won't result in a compromise to safety.

This is why when real aeroplanes get an assigned altitude of 5,000, but their altimeter reads maybe 5,030 feet, ATC will not be bugging them about 'not being at their assigned altitude'. Flights sims will, but the real world just isn't like that because a lot of ATC radars just aren't really accurate enough to pick up that kind of deviation.

So if ATC ask you to go to 6,650 feet, the correct response is: 'yeah mate, can you put your dad on so I can speak to him?'

 

Edited August 13, 20205 yr by Chock

1 hour ago, mtr75 said:

Do MVA's normally take you straight into the side of a mountain?

No, of course not but it had nothing to do with the 7900 altitude assignment, or any other non even thousand altitude. I wouldn't and couldn't expect either the default or payware ATC to know every minimum IFR altitude including MRVA's. The default ATC has never known much about mountains and terrain clearance.

  The point was more the fact that your comment about "Never in the history of aviation has an aircraft been asked to climb to or descend to some random altitude like 7,800. Never. " is a wrong assumption. How do you know it's random? I'm not arguing the fact that it was too low, thats clearly obvious but odd altitude clearances are issued all day every day worldwide, they just have adequate IFR terrain separation. 

Edited August 13, 20205 yr by Dave_YVR

1 hour ago, LHookins said:

MSFS has additional problems in that it has to vector our traffic to merge with real world traffic,

It has real-time, real-world traffic?

1 hour ago, Adrian123 said:

Sounds like an Altimeter readings at locations issue.

That could very well be. He skipped the middle portion of the flight, so I have no way of determining if the altimeter setting changed. I could listen to the ATIS from his landing I suppose. 

2 hours ago, mtr75 said:

You're a pilot. What clearance from mountainous terrain do minimum altitudes provide? I know you know the answer, and it's not 200 feet below the ridgeline directly in front of you.

Jeez Dude this is a game, not IFR certified simulator! L35 has only one instrument approach (below). MSA listed as 12700. Pilot would stay above this altitude if got lost in the soup. Real ATC is only responsible for  separation of IFR traffic. Any kind of approaches  in VFR, even when filed as IFR,  pilot rely good pair of eye and common sense. And yes I it happens to me in real life when ATC vectored me right into mountain! And when I complained they responded "well if you can't clear the ridge then climb" 🙂 By the way FSX was infamous  for vectoring airplanes into mountain. At least new system in MSFS is using SID/STAR. Not all airport have them, but those that do well assure if you never ended up CFIT (controlled flight into terrain)

2 minutes ago, mtr75 said:

It has real-time, real-world traffic?

Yes. Did you just wake up? (joking!) 😏

2 minutes ago, n4gix said:

Yes. Did you just wake up? (joking!) 😏

No, but I'm about to fall asleep!

5 minutes ago, mtr75 said:

It has real-time, real-world traffic?

Yes.  That won't open a huge can of worms for ATC, will it? 😄 

The first thing I thought of when I heard it was having to wait an hour on the ground for takeoff, or fly holding patterns for that long waiting for clearance to land at certain busy airports.

Still worried about some odd altitudes? 😄 

Hook

Just now, LHookins said:

Yes.  That won't open a huge can of worms for ATC, will it? 😄 

The first thing I thought of when I heard it was having to wait an hour on the ground for takeoff, or fly holding patterns for that long waiting for clearance to land at certain busy airports.

Still worried about some odd altitudes? 😄 

Hook

That is pretty cool, but yeah, that's going to be interesting.

Just now, mtr75 said:

That is pretty cool, but yeah, that's going to be interesting.

Heh!  "Interesting" as in the Chinese curse: May you live in interesting times.

But don't mind me, I'll be off scouting Alaska for likely sandbanks or glaciers to land on.  Maybe now you understand why a lot of formerly airliner-exclusive simmers (and some real life airline pilots) are going to GA flying in MSFS.  It's really that good.

My favorite switch in the whole aircraft is the OFF switch on the radio. 😄 

Hook