Precision flying and ANR in MSFS2020

If this is not the correct place for this, please forgive me and feel free to remove the post. If there is a better place I would appreciate a pointer. Thanks.

We would like to share with you a peak at a project we have been working on for the past half year. It is a flying competition tracking platform designed for tracking and scoring precision flying (FAI, https://www.fai.org/page/gac-precision-flight) and air navigation racing (FAI ANR, https://www.fai.org/page/gac-air-navigation-race) in real-time for real competitions and real aircraft. Precision flying is a competition form where you're presented with a route consisting of several waypoints (gates), and based on the type of aircraft you're flying you're expected to pass the waypoints at specific times. You are scored both on your ability to hit the gate (which is approximately one nautical mile wide) and your ability to pass it at the correct time. Your only is a compass and a paper map annotated with your timing information. This is a challenging competition form which is performed all over the world for GA and light sport aircraft.

With the release of Microsoft Flight simulator 2020 we realised that the simulated world is now good enough to perform visual navigation based on real-life charts. We have therefore developed a flight simulator client to replace the GPS trackers usually carried by the competition aircraft to allow you to compete in the exact same competitions using MSFS2020. This is great as a training tool for real-life pilots, as well as loads of fun for real-life pilots and simulator pilots alike. Create competitions with your flying bodies to see who is better at visual navigation, complete in tournaments, or just practices your flying and navigation skills. Scoring is provided real-time on a competition navigation map with whether current standing is dynamically updated and detailed score breakdowns are available for each competitor.

We are still in the early testing phases, but as you can see from the video below the system is basically already up and running. In fact, we are planning for its use during the national precision flying competitions in Norway, so this is as real as it gets.

If you have any questions or are interested in participating in testing, feel free to contact me, or email support at airsports.no. Also, be sure to check out www.airsports.no if you are curious.

Please enjoy this short teaser video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4K7ypnrsgA

Edited March 12, 20215 yr by kolaf