Blown away by SI demo

[JYW 2,989]

Some feedback from my first 4 hours of using SI, as a paid up beta user:-

Well, you're not going to believe this, but my first two flights were VFR.... and a hot mess!  My third flight was IFR and almost perfect!   By the way, I've not seen it mentioned on here much, so in case some aren't aware, SI has a Simbrief function and to fly IFR properly with it, you need to use it.   I think some of the really bad IFR videos and experiences may be where people have tried using SI to fly IFR, "off the cuff".   The GUI now advises that you must create a Simbrief flight plan to use IFR.

Ok, first a bit about the 2 less than ideal VFR flights.   All of these flight were in the UK and non-US coverage is still very much experimental within the beta.   Ok, so the basics at the start of these flights were fine.  Once en route and under flight following, I asked my friendly controller which runway was in use at EGNV (Teesside).   I was told Runway 05 was in use.  As I approached the airport I was asked to report when downwind.   As I did so, I was then told to "report base, runway 23"...... ok, but I thought runway 05 was in use?   So I changed to runway 23 and got onto base. "Report final 23".    Ok, well at least 23 is active. Maybe it was a runway change I thought.    I then got no landing clearance by 200' AGL.   "Teesside Tower, is G-WILL cleared to land?".  No response.   I landed.   I said to SI "Tower, this is G-WILL, I did not receive a landing clearance".    SI replied "Sorry for the confusion, turn base, runway 05".  Oh, so now we're back to runway 05???   "Tower, I'm already on the ground".    SI replied; "Roger, taxi to parking". 

I had a number of these changing runways and non were due to runway changes.   It's worth pointing out that, in the UK (and probably everywhere outside the US), SI doesn't know anything about your airports.   All calls for taxi etc are "Taxi to tunway 25, at your discretion".   It is also not aware of any airspace in the UK either.  The immersion was great but there were bugs, and not just a few.   I disappeared from my flight following a couple of times.  On a few occasions, I was not given a squawk.   But then got a call;  "G-WILL, please check you're squawking 1172"....... Well, I am now.  

It really wasn't a great start.    Then came the interesting part;   I filed a FP in Simbrief from EGNM (Leeds) to EGTK (London Oxford / Kidlington).    On the ground at Leeds, I asked for my clearance.   I received a perfect clearance - including SID.  After take off clearance, I was handed over to approach and told to follow the (named) SID and climb to 6,000 (the correct SID altitude).   I was sent en route and all calls were relevent and correct.  70 miles out from Kidlington, I was given the ILS runway to expect.  I was then given descent clearance at an appropriate time, but the descent I was given was to 11,800.   Aside from that one odd alt, and the fact that - in the UK at least - SI cannot vector, all went well.    In the UK where it clearly doesn't know the airspace, you're just told to report when established.   But there are no vectors or named FAFs.   Still, this IFR flight was incredibly immersive and a lot smoother than my VFR flights.   The VFR side of it - in the UK - really does just feel like you're talking to ChatGPT. There's little interactivity with the environment araound you.   Visual pattern approaches are all based on calls (call on downwind etc).   They cannot appear to 'see' me, and instruct any pattern turns.  Hand offs were ok on VFR though.   IFR was much more interactive.   Altitude instruction, hand offs, etc were all linked to my FP from Simbrief, which SI automatically picks up. 

It was generally a pretty good experience aside from the bugs - which were more numerous than I'd hoped.

Two final things that I really don't like in the current iteration (and outside of the US):-
 

• The ATC chatter is all US airlines and airports.   So I'm flying through rural England and I get "United 53 contact O'Hare tower", etc.  This is a real immersion buster.
• I must have been lucky when I tried the demo, because I was flying in the UK and the 3 ATCOs I spoke with all had British accents.  I thought the programme was choosing this because of where I was flying.  This evening, I had a 50:50 mix between British and US-accented ATCOs, even though all of my flights were in the UK.  Again, this was disappointing.  In the US, I'd like American accents.   In the UK, I'd expect only British accents. (I've never heard a North American accented ATCO in the UK in the real world).

So there we are.  VERY immersive but quite a lot of bugs. I am sure the experience will be MUCH better when I fly in the US with SI.   The European experience is much 'lighter' on features and realism.  Pleased I spent the $30 to be able to try this for a month.  Whether I keep the subscription going will depend on how it develops over the next month, in terms of European coverage.

Edited March 17 by JYW

[JYW 2,989]

I'll keep this one a lot shorter;-

I flew in the US with SI, from Chester (KSNC) to Martha's Vineyard, VFR and it was literally perfect.  What a difference. Local VRPs referenced, airspace, everything so realistic.

So, this has drove home for me the fact that SI as it really is right now is excellent, immersive VFR ATC in the US. Europe and the rest of the world is coming, but at present is considerably less of an experience than flying in the US.

Love it!  

Edited March 17 by JYW

[vbazillio 2,314]

3 hours ago, JYW said:

I am sure the experience will be MUCH better when I fly in the US with SI

End of last year, during the Beta, SI has no data at all of the taxi layout (even in US). I'm surprise it didn't seem to progress regarding pattern entry as errors you encountered were numerous at that time (in US). If you have a detailed handcrafted scenario and want to train your taxi skills (a flight ends when engine shuts down), SI gave you unreal clearance.

[JYW 2,989]

1 minute ago, vbazillio said:

End of last year, during the Beta, SI has no data at all of the taxi layout (even in US). I'm surprise it didn't seem to progress regarding pattern entry as errors you encountered were numerous at that time (in US). If you have a detailed handcrafted scenario and want to train your taxi skills (a flight ends when engine shuts down), SI gave you unreal clearance.

I just flew from KEWB (New Bedford, MA) and it gave detailed taxi instructions. It sounded convincing but I can't be sure it was correct, as I just don't know the airport (and I didn't pay attention to the taxiway signs!). 

[vbazillio 2,314]

1 hour ago, JYW said:

as I just don't know the airport (and I didn't pay attention to the taxiway signs!). 

... just a matter of expectation and the way each of us use MSFS. Enjoy!

[turbomax 3,299]

3 hours ago, JYW said:

It sounded convincing but I can't be sure it was correct, .... (and I didn't pay attention to the taxiway signs!). 

playing only with a simulator has its advantages. 😅

[techman 174]

Taxi instructions, or lets say Taxiways, arent implemented yet, according to their discord they are working on it. You just get generic replies regarding Taxi right now. 

Edited March 17 by techman
Burp

[Fiorentoni 4,299]

32 minutes ago, techman said:

Taxi instructions, or lets say Taxiways, arent implemented yet, according to their discord they are working on it. You just get generic replies regarding Taxi right now. 

It's not a question of implementation, it's a question of data. They do not have the data for it and cannot afford buying it. They need to read MSFS default data, which is most often wrong / fake. They hope that the MSFS World Hub can change that in the future and give correct taxiways. Until then they just have to wait.
So tldr don't expect this to be fixed soon and in general expect this to be never fixed for most smaller / more obscure airports (i.e. those that do not get the World Hub treatment). Though, to be fair, I don't really need taxiway instructions on an airport that has like two taxiways only. I need it for the big hubs, and luckily big hubs will most likely get correct taxiways through the World Hub first.

[JYW 2,989]

5 hours ago, techman said:

Taxi instructions, or lets say Taxiways, arent implemented yet, according to their discord they are working on it. You just get generic replies regarding Taxi right now. 

There are taxiways mentioned right now - at US airfields.  Eg. At one I was flying from today, there was a "Taxi to Runway 25 via Alpha and Charlie. Hold at Alpha one".    But again, I don't know if those referenced taxiway routes are correct.

Outside of the US, you just get "Taxi to Runway 25 at your descretion".

[Fiorentoni 4,299]

1 minute ago, JYW said:

There are taxiways mentioned right now - at US airfields.  Eg. At one I was flying from today, there was a "Taxi to Runway 25 via Alpha and Charlie. Hold at Alpha one".    But again, I don't know if those referenced taxiway routes are correct.

Outside of the US, you just get "Taxi to Runway 25 at your descretion".

No you also get taxiways outside the US (I did earlier today on my first test flight). They are just wrong, probably taken from the (also wrong) MSFS default scenery taxiways.

[JYW 2,989]

23 minutes ago, Fiorentoni said:

No you also get taxiways outside the US (I did earlier today on my first test flight). They are just wrong, probably taken from the (also wrong) MSFS default scenery taxiways.

Oh ok.  I've only flown in the UK and US with SI.  In the US I got taxiway mentions, as you describe above. In the UK I only heard "Taxi to the runway at your discretion".

Where were you flying in Europe where you got taxiways mentioned?  Germany?

[Fiorentoni 4,299]

1 minute ago, JYW said:

Oh ok.  I've only flown in the UK and US with SI.  In the US I got taxiway mentions, as you describe above. In the UK I only heard "Taxi to the runway at your discretion".

Where were you flying in Europe where you got taxiways mentioned?  Germany?

I was only doing "ground" tests, will do an actual flight in an hour or two. I was in Africa.

[Mike62 29]

I did a IFR flight yesterday with Pilot2ATC, which has been around awhile from Felts Field (KSFF) to Harvey.  Pilot2ATC kept wanting me to taxi to Runway 03 which is Felts water runway, I tried telling the controller that I was ready to depart one of the 04 runways, it kept telling me to contact ground for taxi to runway 03, which I did not want to do in a C172.  I finally just departed from 04R, no response, after that, even though I was on a IFR flight plan, I was essentially a VFR flight.  I could contact the various controllers, but all they would respond is good day or afternoon, no handoffs.   In all fairness, I might have entered something wrong in P2ATC but I started from the GA ramp, ground should direct me to the paved runways.

 

Mike

[Fiorentoni 4,299]

2 minutes ago, Mike62 said:

I did a IFR flight yesterday with Pilot2ATC, which has been around awhile from Felts Field (KSFF) to Harvey.  Pilot2ATC kept wanting me to taxi to Runway 03 which is Felts water runway, I tried telling the controller that I was ready to depart one of the 04 runways, it kept telling me to contact ground for taxi to runway 03, which I did not want to do in a C172.  I finally just departed from 04R, no response, after that, even though I was on a IFR flight plan, I was essentially a VFR flight.  I could contact the various controllers, but all they would respond is good day or afternoon, no handoffs.   In all fairness, I might have entered something wrong in P2ATC but I started from the GA ramp, ground should direct me to the paved runways.

 

Mike

P2ATC is strictly scripted. You'll have to stick to the phraseology. if you do, it works perfectly as an ATC.

[techman 174]

43 minutes ago, Fiorentoni said:

No you also get taxiways outside the US (I did earlier today on my first test flight). They are just wrong, probably taken from the (also wrong) MSFS default scenery taxiways.

Not sure, FSHud seems to have found a solution for that, the taxi instructions are in 99% correct. So I assume somewhere deep in the dark there are some Taxiways hidden in the scenery... (data...)