What I’m trying to do is use autothrottle really just to hold my cruise speed and sometimes in descent.  IAS Hold, if I’m understanding it correctly, should allow me to hold the speed that the aircraft was doing at the time of engagement when climbing.  So really just like IAS Hold on the F28, BAe-146 etc.  What i’m used to doing with those, and am trying to replicate with the 727, is that you can climb in vertical speed, under you reach the speed you want to continue climbing at, engage IAS Hold, and the aircraft will then change v/s to hold the selected IAS.

So I’m not trying to use these together, and I don’t think I should be using these together if I’m understanding the procedure correctly.  I found a YouTube video on this and that’s exactly how that person got IAS Hold to engage.

16 minutes ago, regis9 said:

What I’m trying to do is use autothrottle really just to hold my cruise speed and sometimes in descent.  IAS Hold, if I’m understanding it correctly, should allow me to hold the speed that the aircraft was doing at the time of engagement when climbing.  So really just like IAS Hold on the F28, BAe-146 etc.  What i’m used to doing with those, and am trying to replicate with the 727, is that you can climb in vertical speed, under you reach the speed you want to continue climbing at, engage IAS Hold, and the aircraft will then change v/s to hold the selected IAS.

So I’m not trying to use these together, and I don’t think I should be using these together if I’m understanding the procedure correctly.  I found a YouTube video on this and that’s exactly how that person got IAS Hold to engage.

Yep, that's pretty much the way of using IAS hold... even in concorde! Set your EPR Climb, use pitch hold or V/S to attain your desired speed, then switch to IAS hold. The aircraft will pitch for speed. I have a couple of YouTube videos in various 70s aircraft that use this technique. Then as you climb higher, switch to mach hold.

So I just did another departure in the -100 and IAS Hold engaged as expected.  Maybe it’s a bug in then-200, I’ll try reinstalling them.

14 hours ago, longhaul747 said:

As far as I know the 727 never had an actual auto throttle.

IAS Hold mode on the AP is nothing to do with an autothrottle.  It changes the pitch of the aircraft to maintain a set foreward IAS.  Eg.   FLC on a 737

29 minutes ago, JYW said:

IAS Hold mode on the AP is nothing to do with an autothrottle.  It changes the pitch of the aircraft to maintain a set foreward IAS.  Eg.   FLC on a 737

Correct

All good now, reinstalled the -200 and IAS Hold is working as expected.  I’m really enjoying this 727 weekend 😀

How well is the roll inertia simulated on the FSS 727?   I have heard reports it flies like it is on rails?

So take this with a grain of salt, but as a non-pilot, I have actually flown the B727 in couple of holding pattern events which due to the nature of operations meant we had to remain overhead for 2 hours while awaiting the primary aircraft's departure. We were the back up if anything went wrong. This was a long time ago, with just our crew aboard and no passengers and long before the rules became much stricter. 

I recall quite clearly, that the aircraft was not light on the controls but that the roll into the turns was easily attained without attendant over or under roll which with my lack of experience, would have resulted in roll snaps. Roll out and straight line flying was rock solid unlike my attempts to remain within 100 feet of altitude!!! 

So in that regard, I experienced a very stable aircraft that really didnt allow me to mess it up no matter my lack of flying experience. 

There are plenty of real pilots who have attested to the stability of the B727 especially in relation to approach and landing. I/we would love to hear their view on this for which I believe there are a number reasons.  

Wing dihedral on a swept wing aircraft like the B727 aircraft tends to lead to a convergent (as opposed to divergent) yaw stability. However the B727 was famously known for its tendency to 'Dutch Roll', especally at higher speeds and altitude.  This was associated with its rear engine and T-Tail configuration.  To overcome this, yaw dampers were fitted to the upper and lower rudders. (Question: I wonder if the -100 was more susceptible to this than the -200?).

But at lower altitudes and especially on approach, the clean wings (ie, no engines), with Kruger flaps, slats and Fowler flaps lead to a stable approach. 

So as I say, take my experience with a grain of salt but I personally think FSS have a done a fairly good job of replicating the flying feel of the B727 to the extent that yes, when its speeds are correct,  there is little turbulence and the aircraft is trimmed correctly, it does sometimes feel like the FSS 727 is flying on rails.  

 

 

 

Edited January 18Jan 18 by Lord Farringdon

Hi, I'm looking for some feedback before purchasing the 727 - I understand there is the flight engineer/co-pilot who can run all the flows for you which is great. However I don't like having everything done automatically. Is there an option to use this option to receive automated workflows on the flight engineer panel solely and then I would be able to execute the rest itself.

I would execute everything on my own but the flight engineer panel is just too much 🙂

 

Thanks

 

4 hours ago, Shomron said:

Hi, I'm looking for some feedback before purchasing the 727 - I understand there is the flight engineer/co-pilot who can run all the flows for you which is great. However I don't like having everything done automatically. Is there an option to use this option to receive automated workflows on the flight engineer panel solely and then I would be able to execute the rest itself.

I would execute everything on my own but the flight engineer panel is just too much 🙂

 

Thanks

 

I'll try to help, its been 2 weeks since I've flown it. Yes there is an option to let the flight engineer to do all the flight engineer check lists, start the apu, he basically does all the work that's on that back panel. You as the pilot still have to start the engines, work the lighting, work the anti ice stuff and navigate. It really is very well thought out. I usually like doing all the work myself too but I use this option on this plane because its just too complicated for one person to handle. The way you control the first officer is through a cell phone like device, you can let him do everything by enabling each stage of the checklist (pre flight, before taxi, take off, after take off, etc), or you can do the the stages you want to by yourself. I was really pleasantly surprised with this plane as it had a bit of a rough start in MSFS 2020 when it first came out (according to many of the original reviews). I for one am glad I got it.

18 hours ago, Lord Farringdon said:

So take this with a grain of salt, but as a non-pilot, I have actually flown the B727 in couple of holding pattern events which due to the nature of operations meant we had to remain overhead for 2 hours while awaiting the primary aircraft's departure. We were the back up if anything went wrong. This was a long time ago, with just our crew aboard and no passengers and long before the rules became much stricter. 

I recall quite clearly, that the aircraft was not light on the controls but that the roll into the turns was easily attained without attendant over or under roll which with my lack of experience, would have resulted in roll snaps. Roll out and straight line flying was rock solid unlike my attempts to remain within 100 feet of altitude!!! 

So in that regard, I experienced a very stable aircraft that really didnt allow me to mess it up no matter my lack of flying experience. 

There are plenty of real pilots who have attested to the stability of the B727 especially in relation to approach and landing. I/we would love to hear their view on this for which I believe there are a number reasons.  

Wing dihedral on a swept wing aircraft like the B727 aircraft tends to lead to a convergent (as opposed to divergent) yaw stability. However the B727 was famously known for its tendency to 'Dutch Roll', especally at higher speeds and altitude.  This was associated with its rear engine and T-Tail configuration.  To overcome this, yaw dampers were fitted to the upper and lower rudders. (Question: I wonder if the -100 was more susceptible to this than the -200?).

But at lower altitudes and especially on approach, the clean wings (ie, no engines), with Kruger flaps, slats and Fowler flaps lead to a stable approach. 

So as I say, take my experience with a grain of salt but I personally think FSS have a done a fairly good job of replicating the flying feel of the B727 to the extent that yes, when its speeds are correct,  there is little turbulence and the aircraft is trimmed correctly, it does sometimes feel like the FSS 727 is flying on rails.  

 

 

 

Thanks very much for taking the time to write such a detailed response.  I really appreciate you sharing first hand experience about how the aircraft flies and operates.

I was actually very close to purchasing the aircraft today but after taking a closer look, I've decided to hold off until the visual model develops over time.

Thanks again!

16 hours ago, Daytona125 said:

I'll try to help, its been 2 weeks since I've flown it. Yes there is an option to let the flight engineer to do all the flight engineer check lists, start the apu, he basically does all the work that's on that back panel. You as the pilot still have to start the engines, work the lighting, work the anti ice stuff and navigate. It really is very well thought out. I usually like doing all the work myself too but I use this option on this plane because its just too complicated for one person to handle. The way you control the first officer is through a cell phone like device, you can let him do everything by enabling each stage of the checklist (pre flight, before taxi, take off, after take off, etc), or you can do the the stages you want to by yourself. I was really pleasantly surprised with this plane as it had a bit of a rough start in MSFS 2020 when it first came out (according to many of the original reviews). I for one am glad I got it.

"The way you control the first officer is through a cell phone like device, you can let him do everything by enabling each stage of the checklist (pre flight, before taxi, take off, after take off, etc), or you can do the the stages you want to by yourself" - can I separate the flight engineer flow from the co-pilot flow? I never use the co-pilot help and like doing evertyhing myself.

16 hours ago, Shomron said:

"The way you control the first officer is through a cell phone like device, you can let him do everything by enabling each stage of the checklist (pre flight, before taxi, take off, after take off, etc), or you can do the the stages you want to by yourself" - can I separate the flight engineer flow from the co-pilot flow? I never use the co-pilot help and like doing evertyhing myself.

In short, no. There is only an option to have the flight engineer do his, her stuff, there is no co-pilot option, you have to do that part by yourself.

I just undo what the copilot does and flip the switches at the correct time.

On 1/19/2026 at 10:14 AM, Shomron said:

"The way you control the first officer is through a cell phone like device, you can let him do everything by enabling each stage of the checklist (pre flight, before taxi, take off, after take off, etc), or you can do the the stages you want to by yourself" - can I separate the flight engineer flow from the co-pilot flow? I never use the co-pilot help and like doing evertyhing myself.

I've flown the 727-200F for over one hundred hours, and while I use the automated flight engineer during flight, I do all the checklist work myself up to take-off, and after landing. It keeps me busy on the ground but doesn't distract me during flight. Feels very good this way, and is actually faster than using the automatic checklist tool.