I noticed that I cannot request a relief on the 250kts speed restriction after departing any US airport. I know it can't be selected on the Controller Info menu, but am I absolutely not allowed to go above 250kts below 10,000ft in the US?As a side question, I was watching ITVV's 744 DVD and noticed that the ATC at least at Heathrow gives the Departure Procedure to be followed. Is this simply impractical to be done in RC? Also, ATC had the aircraft hold at certain altitudes (e.g. 6000) for a bit before having them continue to climb. Then they would level off again, then climb as usual; being cleared for a higher altitude before they reached the previously cleared altitude. Is this planned for Version 5 or is it also impractical?Ryan GamurotLucky to live Hawai'ihttp://www.precisionmanuals.com/images/forum/supporter.jpg

I noticed that I cannot request a relief on the 250kts speed restriction after departing any US airportYes, that's the way it's been set up in RC. If you're flying in an area subject to ICAO rules, the departure controller can can cancel the departure speed restriction; in FAA areas, this check box that operates this feature is not active.but am I absolutely not allowed to go above 250kts below 10,000ft in the US?There are 2 methods you can use in RC to exceed 250kts below 10,000ft without getting yelled at - one mirrors real-world practice, the other is a workaround.If you've selected your aircraft type as "heavy", you can go to page 2 of the menu after you've contacted Departure and there you'll find an entry allowing you to request relief from the 250kt speed limit. If my memory serves me correctly, you'll be allowed up to 280kts but remember, this only applies if you've filed as a "heavy" with RC.If you're not flying a "heavy" you could also try this workaround. At start-up, click on the "General" button and at the bottom right of the page that appears, you'll see an entry marked "250kt Alt". This is set by default to 10000ft but you can edit it to a much lower altitude. It was not designed to circumvent US rules - it's a legacy from earlier versions of RC - and I've never tried it in the US, however, I see no reason why it won't work. Give it a try with, say, 2000ft set and you should be able to accelerate to above 250kts without RC's speed watchdog barking once you're above this altitude.ATC at least at Heathrow gives the Departure Procedure to be followed. Is this simply impractical to be done in RC? The short answer is yes, it's completely impractical with the current method of getting RC controllers to "speak". Everything that's voiced in RC needs a .wav file to be recorded - have a look in the "Winwood" folder to see just how many there are for RC4 and RC5 already has many more planned. I don't know how many differently-named SIDs/DPs there are throughout the world but it must run to many thousands and each of these would have to have a .wav individually recorded for each pilot/controller set. Even selecting a small number of major airports would cause an unacceptable increase in the number of sound files needed so I can't see RC going there with its current sound format. Also, ATC had the aircraft hold at certain altitudes (e.g. 6000) for a bit before having them continue to climb. Then they would level off again, then climb as usual; being cleared for a higher altitude before they reached the previously cleared altitude. Is this planned for Version 5 or is it also impractical?Being stopped-off at intermediate altitudes/levels is a common occurrence in areas of high traffic density especially where there is not a lot of room for manoeuvre as is the case around the London airports, for example. I don't know what the plans are in this area for RC5 so I'll leave it to jd to answer that part of your question.Pete

Thanks for the info Pete. But in the US and as a Heavy, I don't get the relief option on page 2. That was my problem. I didn't know it only applied to heavies though.Ryan GamurotLucky to live Hawai'ihttp://www.precisionmanuals.com/images/forum/supporter.jpg

Even if you're a Heavy in US airspace, 250kt relief is not available. This has been discussed back and forth between the beta team, on the various avsim forums, and even on the pprune forums etc etc.But in neither place can anyone seem to agree on the topic. Some say Houston is the only place where 250kt relief is accepted, others contradict and say LAX also allows it for departures to the west. Doug, our resident controller from Memphis says he's only ever been asked for 250kt relief once in his 25yr career. Others say Canada is extemely strict and under no circumstances will it be approved.Then there are others who say they "can't" climb in a 747 if they have to have flaps 1 out. Others say FAA regs state aircraft can climb at minimum clean airspeed or 250kts which ever is higher. People then ask why a 747 can't climb with flaps 1 out, and the discussion generally goes haywire from there :()So in RC's case it was decided that 250kts option would not be available. But as Pete suggested, if you really want to, you can do the 250kts below 2000ft trick and climb as fast as you want.I hope it gives you an insight into why the 250kt relief is unavailable.Subs

Thanks for that explanation. I don't necessarily need to fly over 250 to climb out, it just makes it a lot easier. I'll stick to the speed restrictions.Ryan GamurotLucky to live Hawai'ihttp://www.precisionmanuals.com/images/forum/supporter.jpg

IIRC, the Alphasim SR-71 requires a climbout speed in excess of 250kts. However, it gets to FL10 so fast I doubt if anyone would notice. :)Visit the Virtual Pilot's Centerwww.flightadventures.comhttp://www.hifisim.com/Active Sky V6 Proud SupporterRadar Contact Supporter: http://www.jdtllc.com/

I think you mean FL100 (10,000 feet) for the FAA airspace. However FLs do not start until the transition altitude (18,000 feet in the FAA area) so to keep the terminology straight you really mean 10,000 feet. The first FL for the FAA areas is FL180 (18,000 feet) at which point you set the altimeter to standard pressure of 29.92 inches (1013 mb).

>I think you mean FL100 (10,000 feet) for the FAA airspace.>However FLs do not start until the transition altitude (18,000>feet in the FAA area) so to keep the terminology straight you>really mean 10,000 feet. The first FL for the FAA areas is>FL180 (18,000 feet) at which point you set the altimeter to>standard pressure of 29.92 inches (1013 mb). LOL! Brain cramp! Hard to believe I have over 3000 hours of real life flight time as PIC. Scary!!VicVisit the Virtual Pilot's Centerwww.flightadventures.comhttp://www.hifisim.com/Active Sky V6 Proud SupporterRadar Contact Supporter: http://www.jdtllc.com/

Hi Subs,as our resident TRACON controller (Doug is a Center guy :-)) I can confirm 250K relief is available in US airspace. If a heavy jet needs it, they get it. And yes, it is always available in Houston. Don't know about LA, but I'll check with a few friends at Socal TRACON and get back to ya.Scott

Here's an idea, how about in version 5, we ask JD to program in a checkbox on the controllers page to give us the option. I personally would like to be able to decide for myself when I fire up my PMDG 747 in the US; although I fully comprehend the desire to remain true to life for the hardcore as well.How about it JD, an option-checkbox to let the end-user have the final say?

i have asked the controllers on the team to provide the logic for this. what they say, goes.