JaneRachel

hey Edmundo, You will have no problem at all. The documentation is very good and covers these gadgets in detail!JR

Quite seriously, hand on heart, the beta team are not seeing any stutters at all with the aircraft. It is smooth as silk. All of us will attest to that. That said, I do a lot of FRAPS videos for PC Pilot Magazine and FRAPS causes my FSX to stutter when making the videos. Non of us are seeing poor framerate issues, lag or stutters in any shape or form on ANY of our test machines. Honestly, I think people are overanalysing stuttering from the video making process. If I remember, Nick pointed out on these forums when not using FRAPS he has silky smooth operation..The video is NOT indicative of performance in FSX. Hopefully that sets some mind at rest,JR

Clayton T Dopke was a very popular member of the beta team and is sorely missed by all of us. He did everything from piloting B-52's to flying special rescue flights to collect stranded animals from very dangerous locations during Hurricane Katrina. With Clayton you always knew where you stood as he called things how he saw them and was one of those totally honest people. A huge loss to the beta team and a great loss to the FS community. The whole team of developers and testers wanted Clayton to be remembered in the sim world, so I am so pleased you saw his name on the side of the aircraft.I hope that those who knew him, think of him when they fly the aircraft. I know that I do.JR

Hey Jim, not only should there be a virtual RSR to collect data, he should hand out airsickness bags. I have had some VERY rough approaches into the real Reno courtesy of winds around those mountains. I often think I would rather land in SFO and walk ;) Yet RSR flies around there for fun with his aircraft! He needs to hand out virtual certificates to every virtual pilot who lands there in one piece without breaking the NGX :)JR

I can verify that with Fraps. I use it for PC Pilot screenshots each issue and it takes quite a toll on frame rates,JR

I will try and do a FRAPS video and link it at some point, but the behaviour you see on the NGX HUD is absolutely accurate to the real aircraft and yes there are mode differences :)JR

absolutely right, the scale is very sensitive! look at my ground based picture with the 2D HUD. There you can see what looks like a pronounced localiser deviation, yet my nosewheel is pretty close to centreline. It allows for very precise calibration to the localiser pathJR

to be honest I rarely use 2D in FSX, unless doing demo screenshots. That said, I think the guys have recreated the feel of the NG really well in the 2D panels. It is hard to do, to get all that stuff onto a 2D screen and still not look out of proportion and still look right. So to me it looks great, but that is a response tempered by the fact I pretty much only use the VC in FSX as the sense of immersion is fantastic.JR

it is my lateral deviation line as I am crabbing to the right to counter the slight cross wind on the approach. all the bestJR

hey Ron, interesting questions there!ANP is indeed fluid as navigational accuracy is constantly updated from all nav sources. It can indeed become larger than the RNP, at which point, you would discontinue the RNAV approach. You will see this on the PFD navigation scale when this situation occurs. You would also be alerted by a message UNABLE REQD NAV PERF-RNP, to really get your attention!It hasn't happened to me in the NGX, but it is feasible considering the navigation systems operate under the exact same criteria as the real aircraft!all the bestJR

absolutely Steve, this is an aircraft that is almost as easy or as difficult as you want it to be. I am sure Ryan can tell you further, but this is an aircraft with a little bit of practice that you can be airborne with in 5 minutes! He has also produced an excellent tutorial that distills the basics of what you need to know. With the option to load the aircraft in various states, such as ready for take-off everyone can enjoy the NGX regardless of experience with just a little (and genuinely a little!) bit of reading.It really is an aircraft that grows in detail with your experience. The team have worked very hard to make it accessible to everyone. You can quite honestly be up and running in 5 minutes. If you want to do everything yourself and learn every last nuance of what is in the real aircraft you have that option too! There are an awful lot of features and the no-nonsense tutorial that really will get you airborne in no time!JR

Gang,It would be remiss of me not to show you this way of viewing terrain also, for those who are not aware of this feature. Yes, the terrain detail is precise and not just pretty graphics in this mode too!JaneRachel Whittaker

Hey Gang,I wanted to share some imagery with you from another beta flight this afternoon. Now, one thing that I find to be a really silly comment is when someone tells you that glass cockpit simming (or real glass flying) is all push button, no skill required. My response used to be that the glass cockpit aircraft still have exactly the same systems as the old school analogues and require just as much piloting skill, with the only difference being the presentation of data to the pilots of those systems. Well, I need to revise that response as with new tools now available the glass cockpit aircraft has tools that the old schoolers can only dream about! These new tools require the pilot to be fully versed in their operation, just like any other feature of the aircraft. Don't let the "push button" detractors get to you, as Ryan pointed out earlier today, to learn every feature of this NGX inside and out will take you years if you really want to go into depth!A case in point is the vertical situation display. This is a fantastic tool and is available as a cockpit option when you guys take delivery of your shiny NGX! I have tested this tool today on a flight from San Francisco to Reno, as Reno is rather renowned for its unforgiving terrain! The VSD gives the pilot fantastic situational awareness of terrain around the aircraft. To be absolutely precise, the VSD gives you a terrain overview in a 1 mile corridor - 0.5 miles either side of the aircraft path. (This actually widens in a turn into a cone shape for obvious reasons)There is also plenty of symbology and lots going on within the display, so without further ado let me share with you. Please note, I have popped up the Navigation Display and stretched it beyond normal size, so you can see these pics better.Here I am climbing out of San Francisco towards Sacramento. A few things to point out here:-That little triangle symbol is your aircraft, the base of the triangle is your current altitude. That is the altitude scale to the left.That little green dot ahead of the nose is where in space your target airspeed will be achieved and moves through the profile based on your targets. The bottom scale is in nautical miles.The green display is the terrain below the aircraft. Right now everything is green, so no worries there, we are going to be more than 2000ft above any terrain for the foreseeable future. If terrain is going to be an issue you will see amber and red terrain if your aircraft is going to be scraping those hillsides during your flight!You can also see the target waypoint in magenta and the waypoint beyond it at this scale of zoomHere we are, running flat along the magenta line as we are at our chosen cruise altitude - that magenta line reflects the altitude you have dialled into the autopilot window. Terrain is slowly starting to raise as we push on towards Lake TahoeNow we really see terrain as we are close to Reno. You can see from the descent vector if we continue at this rate of descent we will be getting up close and personal with the mountains around Tahoe! Don't worry, the VNAV flying the aircraft will keep us safe as all the constraints in the FMC have been confirmed as valid for the approach. You see the little white triangles over each waypoint. That is where VNAV is planning to put us. The solo UP arrow at the first waypoint shows us that VNAV plans to have the aircraft above that point in space (it is an ABOVE restriction). The following waypoint you see the arrows pointing towards each other but not actually touching. Here we have an above and below waypoint, and VNAV is going to be flying in that narrow altitude window between those markers. The third waypoint is a restriction we must achieve precisely, hence both the arrows touching each other at the required restriction altitude.Notice also in these shots the RNP and ANP varying as we get closer into the approach. The required lateral precision of VNAV gets much tighter! You can just make out to the right of the display two little chevrons. Boeing call these "decision gates", denoting when the aircraft should be at 1000 and 500ft respectively where the pilot can confirm a stable approach.A bit of a lump at APINE just after we turn onto the final approach course. No biggie in daylight, but if you are flying this approach in the dark and have no VNAV guidance (for instance if being directed down by ATC and you are using level change or VS) this terrain awareness can literally be a life saver! Use the cunning plan of avoiding all the lumps and you will not be scratching the paintwork of your shiny new NGX!The magenta line here extending towards the runway is another helpful aid. It is the glideslope for the ILS at RWY 34L at Reno. If we were off the glideslope you would see another line here, the white line of the aircraft path. We are established on the glideslope. We only see the one line as we are on that line, so life is good! A bit of a tail wind here, but the APP mode of the autopilot is managing just fine. The forecast winds are expected to be calm passing through 1500ft from the airport elevation, so we are good to continue the approach to this runway. The blue line on the main display, either side of the aircraft and magenta route line shows you the coverage corridor for the terrain.Getting close to touchdown now. At this altitude we see some yellow warnings. What you are seeing is high ground beyond the runway, which you can just make out in the distance. This yellow warning tells us that at this altitude we would collide with that terrain, but we are capable of climbing above it with a proper missed approach profile.On the ground now, you can clearly see the elevation of the runway here. You can also see all of the high ground ahead of us which is in yellow.I personally think that the VSD is a fantastic tool to aid your situational awareness. I am totally thrilled that we have a very accurate rendition in the NGX as one of the gadgets that can be equipped! The next time someone tells you that jet simming is pushing buttons and nothing to learn, politely point out their folly. There are a range of fantastic tools on the NGX for you to get your teeth into and really enjoy!JaneRachel

yup! it is such a great aid!all the bestJaneRachel

I do find the 2D overlay to be crisp and clear and actually looks much better than my quick screengrab. I had the JPG quality wound quite a way down. Also, don't worry about the aspect ratio. I didn't set my 2D aspect ratio to the widescreen option as I normally only just use the VC to fly in FSX. It was just a quick and dirty image really to show that the HUD works in a 2D overlay, so I wouldn't analyse it in any depth :)

Hey Michael, gang,It is not really a ase of "not going to say", but right now it is meaningless to say. Firstly, you are quite right in everyone's system is different, with their hardware and setup. Secondly, whilst we are still in beta there is diagnostic code running in the aircraft so none of us are seeing final figures to share with you all.I know that this is very important to people. All I can say is that all of the testers, myself included, have been entirely happy with the frame rates we are seeing, even with diagnostic code still in place. Every single tester, regardless of their hardware (and we have some testers deliberately testing on older machines) are really satisfied with performannce to the point where we see it as a non-issue for us. We are more than satisfied, even with diagnostic code in place and things will only get better as code gets tightened up for release.Having been on the test team for all the FSX releases by the team (and for some years before that, to the original NG), I think I will be giving away no secrets to say that the guys skills are evolving and enhancing with every FSX release. Every aircraft has given them the opportunity to learn new optimisations to really squeeze FSX in performance. They really are honing their skills with every release. There is no sign of them reaching a plateau as I continue to be blown away with every new aircraft in my hangar!I should also point out that RSR has told us should we wish to post about the aircraft then we are totally free to be completely open and honest with you all. Every tester will tell you, hand on heart, that they are pleased with performance.JaneRachel

Hey Etienne,To answer your question, yes there is still a fullscreen 2D panel overlay (on the W key)all the bestJaneRachel

absolutely right, but I was simpiflying as the net result is going to be stopping in an equal distance.

Hey Gang,As those of you who have read my articles for various magazines will know, I have a real problem with poor implementations of LNAV and VNAV! I have seen some really beautiful sims completely broken by a wobbly LNAV or a VNAV that is far from accurate in its implementation. I should not complain so much as these features use incredibly complex algorithms. In fact, I have only seen PMDG, out of all sim developers, actually have a VNAV profile that matches the real aircraft.So, I spent some time this morning checking out the LNAV and VNAV on the NGX and wanted to share some really interesting observations on the incredible accuracy of the NGX. It is another one of those parts that add up to a really incredibly satisfying whole.Cue a choppy ride into London Heathrow on the BNN4A arrival through Bovingdon. For those unaware of the arrival there are some pretty tough altitude stepdowns and speed constraints followed by quite a sharp turn to align up for 27R, the westerly runway at Heathrow. I also wanted to show you further pictures of the HUD as quite simply, I love it!I elected to fly to localiser capture, from top of descent (at 21,000ft from Manchester) completely in LNAV and VNAV, allowing the aircraft to decelerate based on FMC leg constraints to give the automatics a maximum workout. My only intervention being to deploy flaps at the appropriate junctures to allow VNAV to decelerate further. You might want to try something similar with other sims and notice how few of them actually manage to reach the localiser at the correct speed and altitude after a complex string of restrictions! For good measure, I had some choppy weather and mild windshear throughout the descent.The NGX hit every constraint and speed restriction on the nail using absolutely accurate parameters. A good example of the intricacy - you fly over a waypoint and your next waypoint requires you to slow to 200kts - most sims immediately decelerate when they see the speed restriction ahead. The NGX slows only at the distance from the waypoint that it needs to do so to make the next speed target. No sudden deceleration when the FMC "sees" the waypoint ahead. So if the NGX determines it only needs 6 miles to decelerate to meet the next target, it will only do so 6 miles from the waypoint. Similarly, the vertical profile is perfectly managed to match the real aircraft. Gone are the days in other sims of long shallow descents that are not needed or sudden dives to make the next waypoint. The NGX follows a precise vertical profile that is matched in the real FMC, no fudging of climb or descents but a real profile that will match your cost index economy parameters.if you look at the CDU in the picture above, you will also notice the NGX is also fully RNAV equipped. You can see the required navigational precision and actual navigational precision. In this case, the LNAV track is required to be within an error tolerance of 0.3nm. The NGX is doing fine with an actual navigational precision of 0.06nm, well within safe tolerance. Are these numbers made up? No you will see the required navigational precision is totally accurate for the environment you are flying in, be it oceanic airspace or a tight approach into an airfield. These figures are not made up in the NGX but reflect actual requirements for your approach chosen etc. That then asks the question, is the ANP - our actual precision fudged in any way? The answer is also no, the ANP is calculated realtime from all of the navigational sources. It does change and will change, not randomly but based on realtime navigational monitoring using actual aircraft parameters. If you are flying an RNAV approach, you need to be aware of your ANP! None of this stuff is fake numbers, LNAV, VNAV, RNP and ANP values and data are all calculated real-time based on the mathematical algorithms of the real NG!In short, a whole new world of accuracy never before seen in a desktop sim, if like me you love flying complex approaches!Here are a couple of HUD pictures from flying the ILS into 27R. Notice the difference from when I was in VNAV in the first picture to changing to APP mode? The HUD has automatically decluttered to maximise the approach view. See how the speed and altitude scales have been removed?I am 200ft above the runway at decision height, further HUD guidance has been given by projecting the guidance lines over the sides of the runway. By aligning with the view of the real runway, you can confirm your path. You can also see the 3.0 marker, highlighting the required 3 degree glideslope.The combination of the incredible navigational precision of the NGX, coupled to using the HUD really transforms how we fly approaches in the sim!all the bestJR

no, when using the autobrake function the braking is modulated to stop you in X distance (where X is a constant defined from lots of parameters, such as speed, aircraft weight, elevation, weather, runway surface etc) REGARDLESS of whether you are using spoilers or reversers. So you will always see the same stopping distance in the same conditions with reversers or not. The system will reduce or apply brake pressure as necessary dependent on drag being provided by other devices, to even out the stopping distance. As RSR pointed out, with spoilers and reverse the brakes don't have to work so hard to stop in that distance X so they ease off as required to save wear and tear and overheating.If you are not using autobrakes and plan on using manual braking it is a different story and you are going to have to work out how much brake pressure you want to apply.This modulated braking with the autobrakes is PRECISELY how the real 737 works. It is also the first time I have seen this achieved properly in a sim. How many other sims have this level of complexity in braking to take into account spoilers/reversers? Every other sim I have seen just applies a fixed brake pressure for each notch of autobrake. Not realistic at all!all the bestJR

I think it would be fairer to say there is a whole pack of cards up their sleeves! Can you tell that I am loving this aircraft! In my opinion, the finest aircraft ever made by PMDG by a long way, and that is quite something when you consider the quality of what has gone before!JR

no clue how it works, that is one the team will have to answer. I know the Addictive Pitts S1 has something similar in that the pilot puts on his sunglasses when direct light hits the canopy.all the bestJR

yes if facing into the wind...

Hey Guys,First off, I know the photo is not taken at the gate, I was just messing!This is the first time in FSX that I have seen the option to have a ground based air-con unit added to your aircraft to keep your crew and passengers comfortable before engine start.In the photo you can see the air con unit with the rather meaty yellow hose connected to the belly of the aircraft. You can also see the ground power unit and air starter units. Each of these three units are available to you independently according to your needs. Yes, they really work too, with your onboard systems being appropriately affected! After the discussion thread on hot aircraft, I wanted to show you the air con unit doing its thing! If you want to be really nitpicky, yes sunlight on windows also affects the internal temperature in the cabin in addition to doors being open or closed!all the bestJR

at the risk of disagreeing, the SFP gets significant improvement in landing distance, both from the engine idle improvements and the deflection of the spoilers to 60 degrees.