New user questions

[ekesol 1]

Sorry if answers to these are buried in the rest of the forum.  New to P2ATC and this forum.

I just started my trial version and so far it looks like it could work okay.  I'm tired of the built in ATC in FS2020.

First questions...

I tried to fly to an uncontrolled airport IFR today.  The ATC vectored me to the airport, which I would expect, but left me hanging at 4950 for a runway altitude of 1175.  Any way to get it to bring me down closer in distance and altitude.  If this had been IFR I probably would have had to divert even if the runway was above minimums.

How does one use unicom going into an uncontrolled airport?  Do I just swap frequencies to unicom then back to cancel IFR upon landing?  Does anyone really care if I use unicom or not?

How to I get to chose the altitude I travel at.  I pick 5000 and the plan will will bump it up to 7000 even though 5000 give me at least 1K clearance over any obstacles.

 

Thanks in advance.

Dave

[Dave-Pilot2ATC 871]

The controller should clear you for the approach and that gives you clearance to fly to the approach minimums.  It will not give you altitudes to fly all the way down.

When on Unicom, you are just talking to yourself, so it doesn't change anything with how the program reacts.  But in the real world, after ATC clears you for the approach it should tell you to contact local CTAF, at which point you can contact UNICOM and announce your intentions, etc.  After landing, you can switch back to the controller that gave you vectors and cancel IFR.  In real life, you would likely make a phone call as the radios might not reach the controller on the ground.

There's a setting in Config for Minimum altitudes enroute.  If you want to fly low, reduce that setting.

Dave

[ekesol 1]

To clarify, when flying into an airport without an approach what altitude above the runway should I expect the controller to take me to.  I would expect a controller routing me to the end of an uncontrolled airport to give me altitude and vectors to get me as close as possible to that runway.  In the case of what my original question was to I was handed off to my own devices at 4950 and asked to report if I had the airport in site.  It would have been tough to see the field if the weather was overcast at 1000.

One last question.  I flew into the airport S48 in Oregon.  Setting up a plan to fly out it wanted to call the airport KS48.  Should I expect to have a "K" added to US airports that only have three characters?

[Dave-Pilot2ATC 871]

Yes, K is added to US Airports.

You would not get Visual Straight In vectors if the the weather was not VFR.

On an IFR Flight plan, you should get vectors to a published approach.  The program does have some limitations.  You should not try and fly IFR into an airport with no published approaches like S48.  Use a VFR flight plan and procedures.

On the vectors for a straight in, the "report field in sight" is given at about 2-3NM out.  With mountainous terrain like around S48, that may leave you at several thousand feet above field elevation, but in VFR weather, you should be able to make it anyway..

[ekesol 1]

Thanks for your replies.  I landed fine.