PRO ATC SR is released - first impressions

[Bobsk8 12,680]

22 minutes ago, rob0203 said:

The only thing is that with PF3 you need to choose the SID and STAR before the filght which is a big immersion breaker for me!

If you use Simbrief, your Sid and star are picked for you. I generally use the Sid that Simbrief picks, and the star, I select when on approach, due to weather changes, actives runway, etc. Just like in real life. 

[psolk 3,040]

5 minutes ago, Bobsk8 said:

If you use Simbrief, your Sid and star are picked for you. I generally use the Sid that Simbrief picks, and the star, I select when on approach, due to weather changes, actives runway, etc. Just like in real life. 

Same.  I usually fly the approach based on direction I am coming from and assigned in Simbrief  then have a point in the published approach where PF3 clears my for the STAR based on runway in use and I fly it as published.  

There are a lot of options in PF3 for handling the departure/arrival procedures but some of them do take a bit of configuration which some do not want to fuss with. 

[rob0203 689]

1 hour ago, psolk said:

Same.  I usually fly the approach based on direction I am coming from and assigned in Simbrief  then have a point in the published approach where PF3 clears my for the STAR based on runway in use and I fly it as published.  

There are a lot of options in PF3 for handling the departure/arrival procedures but some of them do take a bit of configuration which some do not want to fuss with. 

Ok, also I saw you get your clearance and then immediately also the taxi clearance which is also not really realistic.

What I do like is all the voices!

[icewater5 181]

really ? well thats encouraging. I dont like the ususal robotic c3po r3d3 atc sound that we normally get

[tup61 1,553]

2 hours ago, Bobsk8 said:

and the star, I select when on approach, due to weather changes, actives runway, etc. Just like in real life

It's not the pilot's job to select the STAR. Afaik ProATC is the only addon that picks and assigns a STAR depending on the weather all by itself, as is done in real life.

[psolk 3,040]

11 minutes ago, rob0203 said:

Ok, also I saw you get your clearance and then immediately also the taxi clearance which is also not really realistic.

What I do like is all the voices!

Hmmm, With PF3 I personally tune and get ATIS then I ask for clearance then do my pre-flight, then I ask for and get push and start clearance, then I ask for taxi clearance and get taxi guidance after ground crew disconnect and then I set my Co-Pilot mode to fully automated, get turn by turn taxi instructions from the PNF and get a contact tower as I approach the runway and then the appropriate runway commands (expect clearance in xxx, hold for traffic, line up and wait, or takeoff clearance)

Timing is determined by me in manual mode or configurable in auto mode in PF3

Agreed on the voices

[RALF9636 1,951]

15 minutes ago, rob0203 said:

Ok, also I saw you get your clearance and then immediately also the taxi clearance which is also not really realistic.

That only happens with a certain virtual copilot setting in PF3 (automatic handling of ATC), which you shouldn't use on the ground.

I never get this with my settings.

[RALF9636 1,951]

2 hours ago, rob0203 said:

The only thing is that with PF3 you need to choose the SID and STAR before the filght which is a big immersion breaker for me!

I would also prefer if PF3 would assign a STAR "on the fly". It is correct, that it doesn't unfortunately.

But it is not correct  that you have to pick a STAR before the flight. You can set your last waypoint in PF3 to be the one before the STARs begin and PF3 will then assign you a runway according to the wind and let you fly any STAR you want (or a direct course or whatever you want). You can then ask for landing clearance when established on final.

[threexgreen 3,139]

52 minutes ago, RALF9636 said:

I would also prefer if PF3 would assign a STAR "on the fly". It is correct, that it doesn't unfortunately.

I would prefer if PF3 used a navdata base like Navigraph and assigned everything based on that. I find it cumbersome to have to input all the data myself and basically tell ATC what to tell me. I was thinking about ProATC-SR for this reason.

[RALF9636 1,951]

25 minutes ago, threegreen said:

I would prefer if PF3 used a navdata base like Navigraph and assigned everything based on that.

Absolutely.

25 minutes ago, threegreen said:

I find it cumbersome to have to input all the data myself and basically tell ATC what to tell me.

This is a common misconception of PF3 here an Avsim.

You don't need to input any data of a STAR at all. Just choose the last waypoint at which PF3 should clear you for the approach and then fly whatever route you want to the final. Nothing cumbersome about that at all.

It never takes me more than one or two minutes to set PF3 up for my next flight.

Of course if you want ATC to guide you through the STAR from waypoint to waypoint and altitude constraint to altitude constraint, then you have to input these data. But - as far as I know - that would be totally unrealistic. IRL ATC just clears you to fly a STAR and expects you to do so according to the charts without any further intervention.

 

 

Edited August 14, 2022 by RALF9636

[KL Oo 699]

1 hour ago, tup61 said:

It's not the pilot's job to select the STAR. Afaik ProATC is the only addon that picks and assigns a STAR depending on the weather all by itself, as is done in real life.

Pilot2ATC also assigns SIDs and STARs on on the fly depending on weather .

[threexgreen 3,139]

2 hours ago, RALF9636 said:

Absolutely.

This is a common misconception of PF3 here an Avsim.

You don't need to input any data of a STAR at all. Just choose the last waypoint at which PF3 should clear you for the approach and then fly whatever route you want to the final. Nothing cumbersome about that at all.

It never takes me more than one or two minutes to set PF3 up for my next flight.

Of course if you want ATC to guide you through the STAR from waypoint to waypoint and altitude constraint to altitude constraint, then you have to input these data. But - as far as I know - that would be totally unrealistic. IRL ATC just clears you to fly a STAR and expects you to do so according to the charts without any further intervention.

I've used PF3 for years. What I mean is putting in the procedure names, top altitutes, missed approach altitudes for every runway that might be assigned, configure every airport I fly into for the first time including minimum FAF altitude and TA/TL and set the procedure transitions, etc.

If it used navdata like other ATC addons it would know all this by itself and I wouldn't have to grab the charts to look that all up. If you're already doing quite an expanded flight planning and trying to shorten that this becomes annoying quite fast. I've actually gotten to the point of just leaving some of the fields blank like procedure names and MAP altitudes because I can't be bothered anymore. ProATC-SR is an example of an ATC addon that's more dynamic and 'free-thinking' (i.e. it knows everything itself rather than rely on user input for all the data).

Apart from that it's a decent program (although I keep running into some issues with it in MSFS compared to P3D).

Edited August 14, 2022 by threegreen

[JasonPC 173]

11 hours ago, threegreen said:

I'm wondering why the MSFS toolbar windows aren't/can't be used, which can be hidden as you like and also be easily displayed in VR. I have a couple of addons like Navigraph Charts and a PDF viewer that use these windows and I believe FSHud uses them too. If something as complex as the entire Navigraph Charts application can be displayed and interacted with perfectly fine in the MSFS windows and a hobby dev can use them to display PDFs with a custom navigation menu within the window, why wouldn't ProATC-SR be able to use the windows for the interface?

Is it possible to interact with the ProATC-SR menu via hotkeys or do you have to click on the options in the window?

Yes hotkeys do work I forgot about that. But if you want to make any requests, (runways, approaches, etc) you will need the window.

[Virtual-Chris 682]

3 hours ago, tup61 said:

It's not the pilot's job to select the STAR. Afaik ProATC is the only addon that picks and assigns a STAR depending on the weather all by itself, as is done in real life.

Agree. Even the default ATC can do this. The fact that PF3 does not assign an approach with star/transition on arrival makes it a non starter for me. 

I’ve narrowed my choice to Pilot2ATC, ProATC, and FSHud, but ultimately I might determine none of them are much better than default and just stick with that. 

Edited August 14, 2022 by Virtual-Chris

[threexgreen 3,139]

1 minute ago, Virtual-Chris said:

I’ve narrowed my choice to Pilot2ATC, ProATC, and FSHud, but ultimately I might determine none of them are much better than default and just stick with that.

From my own experience I believe all of them, including PF3, are much better than default. Although none is a solution that does well in every aspect. It's an exercise of weighing the pros and cons of each against your own preferences and priorities.