RTW Routes

[Guest grapesh]

In the light of ongoing Round-the-World race, I was wondering how many of you here have ever completed RTW flights in FSX? I was thinking of completing the RTW flight since FS2002 but I never had enough time and dedication to properly plan and execute it. I want to try it in a GA plane, prop/turboprop 4-6 seater, with a good range. What would you recommend? As for the route, I'm looking for something close to typical ferry routes over N. Atlantic and N. Pacific. So, the legs like US-Canada-Greenland-Europe and Australia-Hawaii-US are highly preferred. What routes would you suggest? What airports you think are a must?Thanks!Cheers,=S.V.=eMachines T5026/P4/3.07GHz/1Gb RAM/160Gb S-ATA HDD/Windows XP Home SP2/ATI RADEON 9250 PCI 256Mb/ViewSonic VX910 19' 1280x1024/Microsoft SideWinder Force Feedback 2

[asquel 2]

Hi,I personally fly around the world without formally closing the circle : I choose a distant destination (for example now, from Madagascar to Utah) and cut the flight in 1 - 2 hr. flights. I use an Excel macro with the FSX airport database to define the intermediate airports, with the runway length and the distance as parameters.The airplane I use now is Flight1's Pilatus PC-12 : she has a decent speed (around 220 kts. TAS) and an exceptional range of 2200 NM, which is very useful to cross the oceans. On FS9, I used the Aeroworx' King Air B200, which is slightly faster, but with a shorter range. Both airplanes are exceptionally modeled : the PC-12 exists in FS9 and FSX versions; the King Air only for FS9, but the FSX version is in the works, and promises to be exceptional. (FS9 was !)For the routes, I would suggest you to have a look to http://www.earthrounders.com/ . It's a site devoted to the pilots doing or having done a RTW flight in GA planes for real. But keep in mind that the leg Hawai-California is more than 2000 NM long ; in the real world, those flying this leg have to add extra fuel tanks to be able to fly this distance.For the airports, it depends on what you like. Two of the most difficult ones are Paro, Bhutan (VQPR), and Isafjordur, Iceland (BIIS). For the latter one, you have to fly to the end of a fjord, deep between two huge cliffs, perform a 180

[Guest grapesh]

Hi Alain!>Hi,>>I personally fly around the world without formally closing the>circle : I choose a distant destination (for example now,>from Madagascar to Utah) and cut the flight in 1 - 2 hr.>flights. I use an Excel macro with the FSX airport database to>define the intermediate airports, with the runway length and>the distance as parameters.Sounds like a great idea! Is your Excel a Traffic Toolbox airport list dump?>The airplane I use now is Flight1's Pilatus PC-12 : she has a>decent speed (around 220 kts. TAS) and an exceptional range of>2200 NM, which is very useful to cross the oceans. On FS9, I>used the Aeroworx' King Air B200, which is slightly faster,>but with a shorter range. Both airplanes are exceptionally>modeled : the PC-12 exists in FS9 and FSX versions; the King>Air only for FS9, but the FSX version is in the works, and>promises to be exceptional. (FS9 was !)I had PC-12 in mind for this job; however, I was wondering if any addon planes have properly modeled extra fuel tanks?>For the routes, I would suggest you to have a look to>http://www.earthrounders.com/ . It's a site devoted to the>pilots doing or having done a RTW flight in GA planes for>real. But keep in mind that the leg Hawai-California is more>than 2000 NM long ; in the real world, those flying this leg>have to add extra fuel tanks to be able to fly this distance.Thanks for the URL, that's a great resource!I'm kind of thinking, maybe I should fly larger planes on longer routes. 8 hours of flying over the bland water seems kind of boring. Even weather is not going to be realistically updated as there are no metar stations enroute. By the way, is there any weather addon for FSX that uses ocean buoys data?I used to do a "step-up", so as to fly smaller planes in between smaller airfields for awhile, and then progress to larger planes/airports and do longer routes. I wonder if anyone had developed any good "step-up" scheme to mimic a SEL/MEL/ATP progression, and to experience many good airplanes and airports in the world, with a more or less realistic learning curve, as to not fly out/into more complex airports in a first day in a new type but rather build up a complexity with time? It is a question different from the one in OP, but I always thought the "career progression" can be done with RTW or global travel in mind.>For the airports, it depends on what you like. Two of the most>difficult ones are Paro, Bhutan (VQPR), and Isafjordur,>Iceland (BIIS). For the latter one, you have to fly to the end>of a fjord, deep between two huge cliffs, perform a 180

[Tim Arnot 5]

I've got to admit, I have trouble sticking to one plane for the whole trip. I'm probably 3/4 through a rather rambling RTW right now. I started at Oxford Kidlington (EGTK), my local airport, with the "out" portion to Wellington, New Zealand, primarily in the RealAir Marchetti (it's pronounced with a "k", btw, not a "sch" - FS gets it wrong!), routing via France, Spain, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Malta, Greece, Egypt, Sudan, Yemen, Oman, Pakistan, India, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Australia. The "return" trip is in the Eaglesoft Twin Comanche, and went via Antarctica (long range tanks fitted to reach McMurdo), South Pole, Antarctic peninsula, Chile, Falkland Islands, Argentina, Paraguay, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduas, Belize, Mexico, USA, Canada... I'm currently in Edmonton, Canada. It's taken me a year, off and on to get this far!

[asquel 2]

Hi S.V.>Is your Excel a Traffic Toolbox airport list dump?No, I found a .kml file (Google Earth file) that lists all FSX airports, and manipulated it to get a .xls file, with runway lengths, latitude and longitude, and ILS or not. From that list, I use spherical trigonometry formulas to calculate distances and headings. > I was wondering if any addon planes have properly modeled extra fuel tanks?No I have never seen any. In FS, the only way to simulate extra tanks is to add fuel in flight !> By the way, is there any weather addon for FSX that uses ocean buoys data?Not that I know. Active Sky X uses virtual weather stations, but I don't think they use buoy data : and I don't think either these data include cloud cover, visibility, or precipitations. What I do is to have a look at satellite photos, and adjust accordingly the ASX settings, by the "no data cloud cover" slider. On the other hand, the winds aloft are properly modeled anywhere in the world, even above the oceans.> 8 hours of flying over the bland water seems kind of boringI rarely fly 8 hours flights. I often cross the Atlantic through the North (Iceland, Greenland), and the Pacific through Siberia, the Bering strait and Alaska. And, well, when I have to do so, I switch the autopilot on and do something else. But have a look from time to time, because the jet streams can significantly modify your ground speed, and your fuel reserves ; at your arrival, the weather can also change, and oblige you to divert to another airport. So, it's not completely boring !RegardsAlain

[Guest grapesh]

>Hi S.V.>>>Is your Excel a Traffic Toolbox airport list dump?>>No, I found a .kml file (Google Earth file) that lists all FSX>airports, and manipulated it to get a .xls file, with runway>lengths, latitude and longitude, and ILS or not. From that>list, I use spherical trigonometry formulas to calculate>distances and headings. Can you share a link to that .kml? Thanks!

[asquel 2]

Sure !Do a Google search on fsxge.zip. The first site on the list (scenery.org) allows you to download that zipped file. Extract it to find the .kml file that includes not only the airports, but also the navaids.BestAlain

[Guest grapesh]

Awesome! Thanks a lot!

[Guest grapesh]

Is there any accepted grade of complexity for the airports? I guess the terrain, approach slope, weather variability, alternates or a lack of them, would be involved in such a "fear factor"... =S.V.=eMachines T5026/P4/3.07GHz/1Gb RAM/160Gb S-ATA HDD/Windows XP Home SP2/ATI RADEON 9250 PCI 256Mb/ViewSonic VX910 19' 1280x1024/Microsoft SideWinder Force Feedback 2

[Mace 1,896]

>In the light of ongoing Round-the-World race, I was wondering>how many of you here have ever completed RTW flights in FSX? Yes I did what was called the "Round-the-World Buzz" about five or six years ago (FS2002 times). Mike McKuen (who is involved in the current RTW race) was also heavily involved in the RTW Buzz back then, too. The RTW Buzz was not a race. It was just to see the FS world. It was a lot of fun. I'll detail the route for you here.>>I want to try it in a GA plane, prop/turboprop 4-6 seater,>with a good range. What would you recommend? >Hmm Cessna Conquest? There is a payware one for FSX that appears to be nice (I don't own it).Also, the AFG King Air 300 (in file lib here at AVSIM)Also, the default King Air 350Or, the PDMG Beech 1900D ported to FSX (although...I am not sure if the 1900D has the range you are needing...depends on the pacific routing you take).>As for the route, I'm looking for something close to typical>ferry routes over N. Atlantic and N. Pacific. So, the legs>like US-Canada-Greenland-Europe and Australia-Hawaii-US are>highly preferred. What routes would you suggest? What>airports you think are a must?>Depends on what kind of airports you want to go into ;) . Big, small? All types? ILS? In the RTW Buzz, we started in England, went up and around Greenland, Iceland, etc. over to the states, wound down to South America all the way to the tip, then back up to airports like Quintero (Chile), then up to airports like Catacamas (In Honduras), up to Alaska, over to Russia (Petropavlovsk), down to Japan, Australia, back up to Singapore, thru the Himalayas, over to India, down to Africa, around and up to Europe and the end.Our goal was to see all continents, not get around-the-world as efficiently as possible. But that's the route I took...roughly.One ferry route over the Pacific goes up around Alaska and the Aleutians, but you have to be careful doing that this time of year. The weather in the Bering Sea is terrible, and even if you take a turboprop, you still may not be able to get above all of it.RhettAMD 3700+ (@2585 mhz), eVGA 7800GT 256 (Guru3D 93.71), ASUS A8N-E, PC Power 510 SLI, 2gb Corsair XMS 3-3-3-8 (1T), WD 150 gig 10000rpm Raptor, WD 250gig 7200rpm SATA2, Seagate 120gb 5400 rpm external HD, CoolerMaster Praetorian

[Dean_EGTC 57]

Hiya Rhett,How are things?Out of prosperity and with some good memories, I never took the RTW Buzz site down.It can still be found at http://www.dmcity.com/slarty/The route and Mike & Jozefs wonderful narratives are still available.--Dean

[Mace 1,896]

>Hiya Rhett,>>How are things?>>Out of prosperity and with some good memories, I never took>the RTW Buzz site down.>>It can still be found at http://www.dmcity.com/slarty/>>The route and Mike & Jozefs wonderful narratives are still>available.>>--Deanah, Cap'n sighting!Hello there deangood too see you well and here.I didn't realize you were around here at AVSIM much.Good that the site is still up. Keep it up, it is very nostalgic and it is a guide as to how a RTW should be run. You can tell from my post, that I still remember much of the route.To all of the rest of you, go to that site if you want a neat, scenic route, with narrative texts.RhettAMD 3700+ (@2585 mhz), eVGA 7800GT 256 (Guru3D 93.71), ASUS A8N-E, PC Power 510 SLI, 2gb Corsair XMS 3-3-3-8 (1T), WD 150 gig 10000rpm Raptor, WD 250gig 7200rpm SATA2, Seagate 120gb 5400 rpm external HD, CoolerMaster Praetorian

[Dean_EGTC 57]

Thanks for that Rhett. Yes, I'm still following the FS world popping in and out of the numerous Forums most days. Health issues have dogged me the last few years so I no longer rattle up all those virtual air miles we used to accumulate during the Buzz years.I have just ordered a new system to acommodate FSX so who knows :)"Out of prosperity .." Err, I think I meant posterity.Oh, if only it had made us millions. LOL.-Dean

[Guest grapesh]

>Depends on what kind of airports you want to go into ;) . >Big, small? All types? ILS? I thought of avoiding big airports, as in real life it is harder for GA to use them. Did the availability of add-on scenery dictate your choice of the airports to land? The thing with addon scenery is that you need to try it whether you like it or not, (and whether it runs smooth on your machine), but this ruins the "unexpectedness".>>In the RTW Buzz, we started in England, went up and around>Greenland, Iceland, etc. over to the states, wound down to>South America all the way to the tip, then back up to airports>like Quintero (Chile), then up to airports like Catacamas (In>Honduras), up to Alaska, over to Russia (Petropavlovsk), down>to Japan, Australia, back up to Singapore, thru the Himalayas,>over to India, down to Africa, around and up to Europe and the>end.Amazing trip! My goal is also not just to complete the RTW, but to taste the scenery, weather, and "see" the world.=S.V.=System: MoBo fried :( A good reason for upgrade :)

[Mace 1,896]

>>Amazing trip! My goal is also not just to complete the RTW,>but to taste the scenery, weather, and "see" the world.>>Then you could fly the route we did in the Buzz:http://www.dmcity.com/slarty/Or at least part of it. Some of the airports, like Catacamas, were a lot more challenging in FS2000/02 than they are in FSX. FSX is incrementally a step or two closer to real world in the implementation of Catacamas. In real life, it's in a valley area with some mountains nearby, but not in a "pit" like it was in FS2000/02 as I recall. :)That's just one example of the differences you would see if you flew the Buzz route in FSX vs. flying it in old sims. Part of the choice of routing was the dangerousness and "breathtaking-ness" of those airports in the sim we had at the time. Also the desire was to see all the continents. Which we sure did.It was not based on any add-on scenery. In fact we used all stock scenery I think so anyone could do the buzz. There were a few optional legs, like the Afghan Toylift.RhettAMD 3700+ (@2585 mhz), eVGA 7800GT 256 (Guru3D 93.71), ASUS A8N-E, PC Power 510 SLI, 2gb Corsair XMS 3-3-3-8 (1T), WD 150 gig 10000rpm Raptor, WD 250gig 7200rpm SATA2, Seagate 120gb 5400 rpm external HD, CoolerMaster Praetorian