atrdriver

Hi Guys, Here's my two cents worth (and that may be all it's worth). I have spent the past 20 years flying for a regional airline. I have more than 12,000 hours in the ATR-42/72 and just started flying the Embraer 145. In fact, I am doing my first "official" flight tonight following completion of training this week! I dreamed of having something like MSFS for as long as PCs have been around (I started sim flying with Microprose Strike Eagle in 1982 and still have, in the original box, MSFS 1 that came on a 5.25" floppy!). PC sim flying is amazingly advanced. Companies like PMDG have done a tremendous job of showing people what flying an airliner is like. I have actually used MSFS for years to get ready for proficiency checks. It's great for practicing procedures if used with a high fidelity add-on. As far as learning to fly, MSFS certainly provides a 'leg up" to those who use pursue flight training for real. The bottom line is that someone who learns to fly on MSFS will not jump into a real airplane and fly it with confidience as they might in the virtual world. They will certainly be more familiar with what's going on than the uninitiated. To give you an idea of how impressed I am with what I've seen in the PMDG 737NGX, I have sat in the jumpseat on a 737NG many times. Having looked over the captain's shoulder through the HUD, I can tell you that the PMDG 737NGX HUD is simply stunning! I, for one, WILL be purchasing it! Sim hard! Terry Swindle

Not to rip on the Embry-Riddle guys, but I have flown with many Riddle grads. I haven't flown with one yet that impressed me any more than a guy who got his training through a good non-college flight school. Don't get me wrong...Embry-Riddle turns out good pilots, but a Riddle flight education doesn't make a guy the next Chuck Yeager! The best "natural-born" pilots I have flown with are the guys who had a passion for airplanes from a young age. One of the things that younger folks have these days that I didn't is PC simulation. The closest I got to something like that (with the exception of having grown up around airplanes) was radio-controlled planes, which I still enjoy.By the way, thanks for the back up Sean. I was expecting flaming arrows over my post. I was simply telling the truth! Who's your Eagle buddy in DFW? If he's done any flying in Miami, I may have flown with him. I've been on the ATR for my whole 20 year Eagle career. Stayed in Miami post 9/11 and waited for ERJs to be based here, which happened in January. I fly my last trip in the ATR on April 7th, then it's off to DFW for 6 "glorious" weeks of ERJ training! With more than 12,000 hours in the ATR, I'm ready for the change!Terry

Ross,I am a 20-year captain for a large regional airline in the US. I may sound a bit negative in my response here, but I believe somebody has to play devil's advocate in any situation. I want to give you some things to think about as you consider a flying career.I fly with a LOT of first officers who are just beginning their airline careers. Almost without exception, they were all flight instructors. Many of them attended an aviation university such as Embry-Riddle while others went to a traditional college and attended a good flight school such as the Delta Connection Academy or Flight Safety. Some don't even have a college degree. This is rare but most airlines don't require it. However, I DO recommend getting a degree, namely something you can fall back on should you experience setbacks in obtaining that coveted flying job.Nearly all the first officers I fly with are in massive debt for their college and/or flight training. I can't recall flying with a first officer in the past few years who wasn't $50,000 to $80,000 AND MORE in debt for their flight education. All that debt to get a job starting at $22,000 a year! I flew with one first officer recently who had to pick and choose which bills he was going to pay and which ones he wasn't. He said that creditors were hounding him all the time. He was living mostly on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches! That's very stressful. My #2 recommendation to ANYONE wanting to become a pilot is NOT to go into debt to do it but to pay for it as they go (I'll tell you my #1 recommendation in a minute)! That's very hard to do these days with flight training being as expensive as it is. I never went into debt for my flight training. I paid for it as I did it. It probably took me a little longer than many, but it was an awesome feeling NOT to be in debt when I started this job in 1991 at $14,000 a year! Start saving your money now. If your parents are paying for it, fly as much as you can.CAL757 suggested the military route. I would also strongly recommend that. However, it is becoming increasingly more difficult to get into the military as a pilot because the military simply isn't training as many pilots as they used to. The military is using more and more unmanned aircraft and pilot slots are becoming increasingly hard to get. I don't know how it works in the UK but I imagine it's not unlike here in the US. If you want to go the military route I would STRONLY suggest making top grades now and trying to get into whatever the top military academy is in the UK. That is a sure way to get into an airline job, although a bit later than those who go the civilian route. The best part is that you don't go into massive debt but instead GET PAID to go through flight training!Now for my #1 recommendation. BECOME A DOCTOR OR LAWYER AND BUY AND FLY YOUR OWN AIRPLANE!!! There's nothing like being self-employed and flying when and where you want to! If you STILL want to be an airline pilot, just be aware that it ISN'T an easy life. You will be flying when your kids have important events in their lives. You will miss birthdays, anniversaries, etc. You'll fly when you don't feel like it. Depending on who you fly for you may be pressured to fly when you're sick. You may be on reserve (on call) in a base that you don't live near, spending hours and days sitting in a crash pad with other pilots while waiting to do a short round trip to some podunk little town. You could be on reserve for years as I have seen with many pilots at my own airline.You may ask me if I would do it all over again. Absolutely! I would do some things differently but not much different. 9/11 had a profound impact on my career and is the main reason I am still flying for a regional airline. There is a worldwide pilot shortage coming and many say it is already here. For now, study hard and make good grades in school. Get that PPL as soon as you can and follow it up with your Instrument rating, Commercial License, multiengine ratings and Instructor ratings, namely the multi-engine instructor ratings. If go the civilian route, multi-engine time and experience is a MUST! Single engine time will build your total time but airlines want to see that multi time!Hope I haven't been too much of a killjoy here. Just want you to be aware of what you're planning to get into. Best of luck in your endeavors!Terry Swindle

I too flew the Chuck Yeager sim. I believe it was called Air Combat. About the same time I was playing Microprose's Strike Eagle. Remember that one? I also still have the original Microsoft Flight Simulator, STILL in the original box with the 5.25" floppy disk! That's probably a museum piece! I am also currently flying the DCS A-10C. Unreal!!! Couple it with the new Thrustmaster HOTAS Warthog and TrackIR 5 and you have no reason to ever leave the house! ;-)Terry SwindleAmerican Eagle Airlines1992-PresentATR-42/72 CA, soon-to-be ERJ 140/145 CA

I would really like to see V1 cuts that are triggered by speed rather than time, as in the FSX failure menu.Terry Swindle

This one has actually been done for the RealFlight RC simulator. Fun to fly too!Terry Swindle

I make my living as an airline pilot and am quite passionate about FS. Here's my take on this contentious question.I consider FS as much a hobby as my radio-controlled planes/helis and my music. However, I also use FS as a tool in my real world flying. I don't compare it as much to real world flying as I do to the multi-million dollar simulators in which I train every six months. FS allows me to practice required procedures that I don't get to do in the real airplane, i.e., stalls, steep turns, V1 cuts, etc. I don't sweat going to the simulator like a lot of guys do because FS allows me to practice those maneuvers at home in a high-fidelity virtual version of the plane that I fly at work. The majority of other pilots at work go to sim training without the benefit of having practiced at home like I have. I get to set up the same scenarios at home that I will see in the simulator, even flying at the same airport and using the same approaches that my company uses in sim training. As far as realism goes, it is certainly as accurate as the company simulators and those that we occasionally use at Flight Safety International. With regard to comparison to real aircraft, it is certainly similar. The fact is that you cannot get the same control feedback or physical sensations that flying a real airplane provides. FS CAN prepare you for the experience and give you a jump start should you decide to pursue real world flying. I am often asked what the attraction to FS is for me when I get to fly for a living. My answer is that aside from personal enjoyment, FS allows me to fly just about any airplane that I have dreamed of flying but will likely never get to. I get to fly carrier ops in the VRS Superbug, or I can shoot an ILS approach to minimums in the PMDG 747. It also allows me to practice scenarios that I can't practice in the actual airplane (honest truth is that I'm not PRACTICING in the actual airplane), AND the biggest benefit is that it increases my situational awareness by forcing me to think outside the box that is the flat screen monitor through which I view my virtual world.Final answer? Anything that gives you relaxation and personal enjoyment/education/edification could be called a hobby. There are games and there are simulations. Microsoft Flight Simulator started life as a game but evolved into a true simulation of flight. Thanks to developers like PMDG, add-on software has turned the last couple of versions of MSFS into truly high-fidelity simulations. There will always be critics of this idea. The bottom line is that we need to be supportive of this "hobby" and encourage others to pursue it so that developers like PMDG STAY IN BUSINESS! We need for folks in this industry to do well, especially as crappy as the economy is these days!Keep the blue dots up!Terry Swindle

Thanks John! I will give this a try, just as soon as I purchase the FSX version of the Mooney!

Hi folks,I am trying to contact Sean Doran. He has dozens of repaints in the file library. A few years ago, he did a custom repaint of the Caarenado Mooney for FS2004 in the colors and tail number of my father's Mooney. My father just made the jump to FSX and we would like to contact Sean to see if he can do the same repaint for the Carenado Mooney for FSX. The email address I have for him and the one listed in all his files is getting kicked back as undeliverable. If you know how to get in touch with Sean, please let me know. Thanks,Terry Swindleatrdriver@aol.comKBCT

I was on the Beta Test Team for the Flight1 ATR-72-500. I also have 12,000+ hours in the real ATR series aircraft for a US-based regional airline. The difference between the ATR-42/72-600 and all previous models is like night and day. The -600 series will have an all new glass cockpit and would be a worthy "next project" for PMDG. I, for one, am pulling for the ATR!Terry Swindle

Hi Terry,how is the impact of Track ir on framerates???MoritzHi Moritz,As stated above, no impact on frame rates. Natural Point's slogan is " Put your head in the game." It really does put you in the simulation and make you feel like you're in the cockpit. People ask me ask the time if I have a multi monitor set up. I tell them that with Track IR I really don't feel the need for such a set up. Track IR eliminates that need for me. You really will love it!Hope this helps!Terry Swindle

Guys, Guys, Guys,Do yourselves a HUGE favor and invest in a Track IR by Naturalpoint. If you haven't seen one on action, go to the Naturalpoint.com website and check out the video. I REFUSE to fly any simulation without it! And you'll wonder how you ever did without it too!Terry Swindle (realworld airline pilot)

Is it possible that a Christmas release of NGX will see the product flood the retail market with boxed versions for $29.95? I might put it on my Christmas wishlist as the wait might be worth it, that is IF it is released by Christmas!Just a thought,Terry Swindle

After seeing the CAE 7000 Boeing 787 simulator video on YouTube, I think it goes without saying that the 787 should be their next project. The 787 represents the state-of-the-art in commercial aviation and I believe PMDG is the one software developer that can do it the justice it deserves. I'll be highly disappointed if the 787 isn't their next project!Terry Swindle

I don't think VRS fixed that flaw in their HUD. While it's a tradeoff for them, it IS still there. Check out Aerosoft's HUD in their F-16. Now THAT HUD is done right! And it is my understanding that they have a patent on that HUD as they market it to the (foreign) military. It really looks and functions like the real thing, collimation, POV, everything! You MUST have TrackIR to make it shine. I too hope to see this level of sophistication in the PMDG B737 NGX HUD.Terry Swindle

Here's an idea I have yet to see anyone pursue, even in freeware...Burt Rutan's/Scaled Composites' SpaceShipOne with the White Knight mothership, as well as SpaceShipTwo and the White Knight Two mothership. These are all fascinating air/space craft that I'm quite surprised haven't found their way into our simulated world!Terry Swindle

I have to side with those who've posted here stating a desire to see some Biz Jets roll out of PMDG's hangar! Being that PMDG is developing a HUD for the 737NGX, I believe they would do well to pursue the sector of aviation that holds the most promise in terms of technology advancements.I recently read an article in an aviation trade publication that said that the FAA/NTSB are concerned that there are better weather tools and other advanced technologies in general/corporate avation planes than there are in the (US) nation's airline fleet. This is quite true! My dad's 45-year-old Mooney is better equipped than most airliners! Corporate jets are rolling out these days with amazing technologies such as Head-Up Displays, Enhanced Vision Systems, Synthetic Vision Systems, Full TouchScreen Displays like the Garmin G3000, PlaneView avionics, L3 avionics, Aspen Avionics, etc. There are some really exciting technologies out there that really haven't found their way into our simulated cockpits. Jets with these technologies are the kind of things I would like to see coming from PMDG.I believe the Gulfstream G650, in flight testing now, probably represents the most advanced bizjet on the horizon. The Falcon 7X is probably right up there with it. I don't know how much info would be available to PMDG to create these planes, but it would certainly be worth them looking into it! Eaglesoft has done the Cessna Citation X and smaller Citations. Someone, I think X-treme Replicas, has done an older Learjet. FeelThere has done a nice job with the Embraer Legacy and RJ series and WilcoPub (vendor) released a CRJ series and are working on what looks like a nice Piaggio P180 Avanti II. I don't think anyone has done anything from the Gulfstream or Falcon line. This may be a new niche for PMDG!I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm ready for the next step in aviation technology! Let's see if PMDG will follow through with a plane the truly represents the CURRENT "state of the art!"Terry Swindle

I am 46 and have been employed for 18 years by a regional airline in the US as a captain and soon-to-be IOE/Line Check Airman on the ATR-72. I have more than 15,000 hours total time and nearly 12,000 hours in the ATR-42/72 series. I've flown more than 40 types of airplanes including the DC-3, Beech 18 and BAe Jetstream 32. My dad, who is a Commercial/Instrumented rated general aviation pilot and avid flight simmer, once asked me if I thought flight simming had any benefits in my professional flying. I told him that I believed that it had very positive benefits, namely an increase in situational awareness. He responded by saying that he believed that was what I would say. I also said that flight simulation allows me to fly airplanes that I will never get to fly in real life and expose myself to situations that I may never see in real life as well, even though I have had more than my share of emergency situations in real aircraft!I have been involved in PC flight simulation since 1982 when Microprose released Strike Eagle. I wanted to be a fighter pilot but was unable due to poor (uncorrected) eyesight which, at the time, was NOT correctable by surgery like it is now. I have been lucky enough to get some sim time in actual USAF F-16 and T-38C simulators and I can tell you that my home PC sim experience really prepped me for those events. After 1 hour in the F-16 sim I was told by the sim instructor (who also happened to have the most flight time in F-16s at the time) that he wouldn't have any problem strapping me into a real F-16 for a few turns around the pattern! Knowing that simulators are always harder to fly than the real airplane, I believe I would have been comfortable in that scenario! (See me taking an aerobatic lesson in a REAL Extra 300 at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLpF-fb8W4s)Incidentally, I was on the beta test team for Flight1's ATR-72-500. It is a pretty accurate rendition of this great aircraft and I actually use it to prep for my semi-annual proficiency checks and recurrent training events in my job.I count myself among the most fortunate people on the planet. I love my job, which is also my hobby and my passion. It just doesn't get much better than that!Terry Swindle

I was on the beta test team for the Flight1 ATR-72. It is a great product. Since PMDG has ventured into the turboprop realm with the J-41, I think they should consider what I think is going to be an exciting airplane: the upcoming ATR-72-600. There is already a great deal of information on the ATR website on the Thales avionics package, not to mention the fact the ATR says the new autopilot will be CAT IIIa capable. It will also feature a push button "power boost" system that overrides the P&W 127M engine's derated power to provide additional power for better "hot and high" takeoff performance. Check out the new ATR at: http://www.atraircraft.com/public/atr/html...cts.php?aid=814. Take a look at the downloadable PDF file on the left side of the page. It details the new avionics package. I think you will agree that this would be an exciting next project for PMDG.Terry

They sure are expensive! I bought the FS9 version when it came out. I never understood why the FS9 PMDG 747 had to have an interface driver that cost more than the airplane, but they have you over a barrel AFTER you've bought the MCP Pro. I also never understood why GoFlight didn't supply a FREE driver for PMDG when the MCP Pro works with so many other add-on planes. I recently migrated to FSX and bought the PMDG 747-400X. NOW, if I want to use my MCP Pro with it, I have to buy ANOTHER $80.00 interface driver! I'm feeling violated! Does anyone know if the FS9 PMDG driver will work with the FSX version? I WILL try it before I buy another PMDG interface driver. Nearly $160.00 for JUST drivers!!!!

I bought the CDU II and am having a lot of trouble getting it to work correctly. It refuses to work in full screen mode in FS2004 or FSX. I have had limited success getting it to work with the PMDG 747-400X. You can't seem to get the software CDU display to display correctly in the CDU hardware display. You basically see most of the software CDU's frame and buttons in the CDU II display. I have played with resolution settings in the FSX.CFG file, as well as the PMDG 747-400 Panel.CFG file. Nothing seems to work. The included software and documentation (poorly translated into English from Korean) are woefully inadequate. There is a pretty good review of the product at http://www.avionic-online.com/index.php?Mnu=vri_cduII . This review is in French and requires an online tranlator like the Google Toolbar Translator. It is a mostly favorable review, but the reviewer does communicate that this product could use a great deal of improvement in in regards to the software and documentation. He was using FSX in full screen mode with the Captain Sim 757-200. He applied extensive knowledge in the mechanics of FSX to get this product working as advertised, most of which was NOT addressed in the unit's manual.After hours of experimenting with this unit, I am considering returning it. VRInsight needs to step up to the plate and provide some significantly improved software and documentation to support this product. Additionally, the LCD display in the unit is not secured in the frame and keeps falling out. I contacted eDimenensional (local US vendor) about this and they cleared me to open the unit and reposition the display (sticker on back panel says warranty is voided if unit opened). I have opened the unit three times to reposition the display, even applying some tape to hold it in place. It is currently hanging in the frame by one piece of tape! There is clearly no attempt by the manufacturer to secure the LCD display in the frame.If anyone finds a way to make this unit work as advertised, please let me know at atrdriver@aol.com. This product has great potential but misses the mark in its present form by miles!

Does anyone know if you can bring up ILS data in the HUD in the F/A-18 in FSX Acceleration? AOA bracket? I haven't seen either, although it looks like you should be able to enter an ILS freq in the UFC. I can't find any info on this anywhere.Any help would be GREATLY appreciated!Terry

>>Saitek emailed me back right away and asked for all my info>>and said to do NOTHING until I receive a replacement unit>from>>them with an RMA for the faulty unit! They said that there>>was a firmware issue with the first units (mine) and that>they>>would be replacing them as they received requests. I>replied>>this morning and am awaiting the new unit. They didn't say>>how long it would take.>>>>Terry>>>>Now that is a nice thing. Also Saitek told me, if I order from>Germany, I have 14 days return-policy. So, if I don't like it,>its going to cost me 10

>>I read about Saitek exchanging directly the yokes if you>send>>it to them directly. I would suggest contacting Saitek>>directly about that.>>I read that newer yokes are performing as they should and>that>>there are no more phantom button pushes.>>I contacted Saitek support asking for information on>exchanging or repairing the yoke as I liked it... got no>reply. I kept e-mailing them until I finally got a short>reply telling me to return it to where I got it. (barely>within the exchange window btw). This was a major pain as I>purchased online, so I had to box everything back up and ship>it. Fortunately Amazon was good about it (although it still>took me a long time to get my money back). >>Needless to say I was very disappointed by the whole thing,>especially since I was a person who used to sing nothing but>praise for Saitek. I still use their X52 joystick now and>like it (would prefer a yoke, but I hate the CH one and this>one never worked). >>I understand technical problems, but was disappointed when>they would not even repair the yoke for me. I've never heard>of a company that would refuse an RMA, usually that is what>they encourage...Oddly interesting!Saitek emailed me back right away and asked for all my info and said to do NOTHING until I receive a replacement unit from them with an RMA for the faulty unit! They said that there was a firmware issue with the first units (mine) and that they would be replacing them as they received requests. I replied this morning and am awaiting the new unit. They didn't say how long it would take.Terry

Hi guys,I got one of the very first yoke/TQs to be released. It has been terrible! I understand via some of the posts that the early yokes were/are bad? It is almost unusable as the view cycles often and sometimes one thrust axis will go to max uncommanded. Has anyone exchanged the yokes for a new one? As I'm sure my vendor may not be willing to exchange it due to the length of time since I bought it, I'm wondering if any of you have corresponded with Saitek directly about the problem and if they are willing to make an exchange via warranty.Any help/ideas are appreciated!Terry