So I have been flightsimming for many years, but I only ever learned how to fly Boeing planes. With the the release of the A380 from FBW though I decided now might be a good time to start and need some help. I have tried the A320 a few times, just doing some prctice patterns around an airport and learning how to use the AP  but that’s about the extent of my experience with Airbuses. So I downloaded the A380 and figured I would just a quick flight just to get a feel for the the plane, however I ran into some issues with the AP that I coldn’t figure out even after reading the manual and I’m not sure if it’s something im doing wrong or a random bug. 

 

Basically, I took off without anything programed in the FMC and figured I would just fly around a little bit, manually managing my speed, heading, and altitude using the AP. Now I was able to get the plane to hold a vertical speed rate until reaching the desired altitude but I couldn’t get the plane to follow my desired speed or heading. When I tried adjusting the speed the numbers on the MCP would change however the arrow on the speed tape in the PFD would not change and the AT would not change the throttles to reach the speed I set in the MCP. I tired clicking on the knob itself but the only thing that would happen would be that the numbers go blank however I woudln’t see any changes on the PFD where it shows the indications of what modes the AP/AT is in. With the the heading knob, when I turned it I could see the arrow moving on the MFD, but again no matter how many times I tried clicking the knob I could not get the plane to follow the heading I set and nothing would change on the PFD. I checked several things making sure both the AP and AT buttons where engaged along with the FD but I couldn’t get anything to work except for the VS mode. I tried looking online but didn’t find any tutorials just explaining how to use the AP. One thing I did notice after watching a video someone else made on the A380 was that when they clicked the knob you could see the animation of it being pulled or push which I dont see on my end. I already tried uninstalling and reinstalling the plane with no luck

 

So is there something I am doing wrong and if so is there a good tutorial that just focuses on how to use the AP? 

 

Thanks

It's simple:
All the knobs on the MCP can be either pushed or pulled. If you push them you let the airplane fly what the MCDU says it to fly. 

If you PULL them it does what YOU want it to do.

That goes for ALL airbus types, all the way back to the A300.

 

https://docs.flybywiresim.com/pilots-corner/a380x/a380x-beginner-guide/05_takeoff-climb-cruise/#base-knowledge-about-the-airbus-a380-for-flight

Edited November 1, 20241 yr by Farlis

https://docs.flybywiresim.com/pilots-corner/a380x/a380x-beginner-guide/overview/

Here's the manuals. 

Quick answer, on Airbus a push on knob makes it follow fms programmed nav /alt and a pull makes it follow what you set on mcp. The - - - means you set it to fms and you have nothing in there! 

So PULL to set the value you dialed in. 

In msfs depending on your setup... There is a down arrow and up arrow on knobs. Up arrow is push down arrow is pull. 

If that's what you see set your alt and hdf and press down arrow. 

Im not sure if I'm posting this in the right place, but does anybody know a good tutorial for the fbwA380x that goes from cold and dark to shut down, It's been about about a year since I last went out in an airbus, I'm a strictly Boeing (737) pilot. However I want to do some long-hauls on vatsim without splashing out on the 777. Thank you.

37 minutes ago, Farlis said:

It's simple:
All the knobs on the MCP can be either pushed or pulled. If you push them you let the airplane fly what the MCDU says it to fly. 

If you PULL them it does what YOU want it to do.

That goes for ALL airbus types, all the way back to the A300.

 

https://docs.flybywiresim.com/pilots-corner/a380x/a380x-beginner-guide/05_takeoff-climb-cruise/#base-knowledge-about-the-airbus-a380-for-flight

That's what I thought, but as I explained in my post I couldn't get the knob to push or pull. The only thing that would happen is that the speed display in the MCP would go blank when I clicked it, but nothing changed on the PFD. I could change the numbers manually and would see the change on the MCP but the arrow next to the speed tape on the PFD wouldn't move.

How are you trying to pull or push? You have to click on the knob (top to push, bottom to pull) and you will see the knob move in or out. 
 

See a few AP tutorials for the 320 online to see how it works. The 380 works the same way. 

Also there’s a possibility that you have an add in that’s conflicting and somehow preventing the knob from moving. Try with nothing in your community folder except the 380. 
 

I see you were able to use the 320 AP.  You can push and pull in the plane? 

2 hours ago, worldsimmer2000 said:

Im not sure if I'm posting this in the right place, but does anybody know a good tutorial for the fbwA380x that goes from cold and dark to shut down, It's been about about a year since I last went out in an airbus, I'm a strictly Boeing (737) pilot. However I want to do some long-hauls on vatsim without splashing out on the 777. Thank you.

We just literally posted links to Flybywire's guide for beginners in this thread. Right above your post.

Edited November 2, 20241 yr by Farlis

Might have to change from lock to legacy (MSFS menu) for push/pull on FCU to work. At least it’s like that in the Fenix. I think.

OT but, anyone know how to communicate with ATC via the handle bar drop-down?  Me I click the intended message and nothing happens. TIA,

-B

22 minutes ago, btacon said:

OT but, anyone know how to communicate with ATC via the handle bar drop-down?  Me I click the intended message and nothing happens. TIA,

-B

You need to turn the radios on. They are in standby. 
 

read the beginners guide. 

1 minute ago, JonathanC said:

read the beginners guide. 

TY,

-B

3 hours ago, JonathanC said:

Also there’s a possibility that you have an add in that’s conflicting and somehow preventing the knob from moving. Try with nothing in your community folder except the 380. 
 

I see you were able to use the 320 AP.  You can push and pull in the plane? 

OK so I will post a video below so you can see if I am doing something wrong. Before recording this I moved all of my addons outside of the community folder and then uninstalled and reinstalled the plane, but the problem still persisted. Also another issue I noticed is that when in the A380 for some reason I cant click on any of the dialogue options for ATC which make me think it's and issue with the plane. In the video you can see that when I hover the knob the cursor changes into a hand like it clickable except if I right click then the speed numbers in the MCP go blank.

Thanks again for the help

 

I think you need to change your mouse mode to legacy.

-B

8 minutes ago, btacon said:

I think you need to change your mouse mode to legacy.

-B

Agreed. Try this.