JoeMNY

That is not what a VOR approach is. A VOR approach gets you to the airport and heads you toward the runway but it is a visual "style" approach. What I mean is that once you turn toward the runway on the inbound leg you must fly it visually. It is not an ILS.

Greetings,VFR flight planning is one of the most confusing things for a new pilot to learn. In my ground school class (I am an FAA Advanced Ground Instructor) it generally takes students about a month of practice to get it right. So, here we go.1. Using your sectionals, plan your route using navaids, or pilotage, or a combination. Just make sure you pick waypoints that are no more than 20-30 nm apart so that if you get lost you can return to your previous waypoint easily. Also, if you are using pilotage, pick things that are "unique" and highly visible from the air. (e.g. airports, major intersections, etc.)2. Once you have drawn your course on the sectional, use a plotter to determine True Course.3. Calculate your TAS for your planned altitude using an E6B, any of the tools available on the internet, this wonderful little calculator, or a rule of thumb.4. Next it is time to calculate your WCA (wind correction angle). Again, use your E6B (there are many web based ones available). Add or subtract (East is Least - subtract/West is Best -add) your WCA to/from your TC to get your True Heading.5. Now look at your sectional and find the Magnetic Variation for the leg and add/subtract that from your TH to get your Magnetic Heading now add/subtract your Compass Deviation to get your Compass Heading.6. Next, calculate your fill in your distance for the leg and calculate your Ground Speed. 7. From that you can estimate your Estimated Time Enroute and your Estimated Time of Arrival.8. With your times in place. You can estimate your fuel needs. Don't forget to add 2-3 gallons for start up, taxi, and take off. This is just a quick primer. There are many other nuances but I hope I made it simple enough to understand. By the way, there are many navigation logs available on the net. Just search.

Plan G. A great freeware (yes, I did say freeware) planner. The newest version will be out shortly. But yes, it does include all waypoints in FS9/FSX as it builds it's database from the scenery installed. Try it out at http://www.tasoftware.co.uk/. Registration required but again, totally free.

KMCO for me. The approach end of RWY 17L is 1.3 miles West. And KORL is approximately 10 miles NW.

I agree with WhiteKnight. The VA I belong to (shameless commercial, Virtual Pilots Association, www.virtualpilots.org) requires you to post your image using an offsite (photobucket, etc.) website. That way you don't have to worry about storage space.Joe

A while back I worked with a retired senior controller from NY TRACON. He in fact named many of the intersections in and around NYC. They were named for members of his and other controllers families and things like APPLE, GRITY, EMPYR, etc.

Sounds like you've been taking lessons from PMDG. :( Thanks for all your hard work

There are some ICAO codes missing from the database. I can't remember the ones I have run across. They are added very simply by opening the appropriate file found in your PMDG directory within FS and adding the airport/aerodrome following the syntax. There are other posts on the PMDG forum concerning this. Search there.

There are no free sources of the data necessary to operate the PMDG products FMC. They all use Navigraph. The credits are not expensive 20 Euros = 200 credits. And once you download one source you may download all the sources including vroute and other products at no additional charge. There are also options for discounts.

Jimmy is correct. What happens most of the time is there is another waypoint listed later in the legs that is either the same as another or behind the waypoint where the disco is. This happens when you enter a SID and an approach with identical waypoints. Just scan through your legs, you will find the problem child.

Can't say it enough. Thanks again Dan for your tireless work!Joe Morrison

Steve,I'm back. Give me two more pieces of information and I'll get to work. What were the winds and fuel load/distribution on the day in question?Thanks,JoeM

OK, I'll wait for your post. I'll be away tomorrow but I'll review it on Monday.JoeM

OK, check your take-off page on the FMC. That will limit the throttles to a maximum based on weight and conditions. See what that says and match it to your readings when you apply full throttle. I'm clutching at straws here but trying to help.If that looks good, give me a list. TOW, Airport, RWY, Weather conditions, ZFW, etc. and I'll try and duplicate it to see if I come up with the same results.BTW are you using the registered version of FSUIPC?JoeM

Steve,Have you tried using the TO/GA button with Auto-Throttle and see what happens?JoeM

If I understand correctly, you are saying that the throttle slider when pushed forward closes the throttles. If that is the case, it sounds like your joystick is ready for a dirt-nap. Especially if it's erratic. Although I don't fly helios, I don't think they would cause any difference. I hope my stick doesn't die for a while, I like it.JoeM

Steve,You must also take into account the current weather (temp/dewpoint and barometer (QNH) as well as winds) as well as runway length and conditions (rain, snow, slope). To make sure you are using the correct thrust/flap settings for take-off you must either look up the settings in the tables in the operating manual or use a program like TopCat (payware) or Utopia (freeware do a search for utopia11.zip in the AVSim Library). I use Utopia all the time and although sometimes it does make you use most of the runway because of conditions, most of the time you are up before 2/3's. HTHJoeM

I too use the sidewinder with Vista Premium Home and have no problems with it. Mine is at least 8 yrs old but still works great. You don't say what problems you are having, what aircraft you are having them with (or across the board) and whether you are using FS9 (like I am) or FSX.

In addition the AIRAC updates are about 2 euros for each update. Even if you have several different aircraft so it's a real bargain. JoeM

Al,Spin recovery is not required in the US either except for the Flight Instructor certificate. However, spin avoidance is a part of the Private Pilot Certificate.I personally have over 300 hours in SEL aircraft and have never entered into a spin either intentionally or accidentally but I was fortunate that my instructor spent many hours on accelerated stalls that let me know where the envelope is and when a spin could happen. Many a time while flying at MCA in a turn did the wing suddenly drop and I was taught what to do to avoid the spin. Most flight school insurance policies will not allow intentional spins except during flight instructor training.JoeM

They will sometimes have the names of the SID/STAR but not the waypoints.JoeM

Bump! JD, anyone.......Beuller?????

The only option I can think of is a uninstall/re-install. I know this is a pain in the a** but it may be your only option at this point. Make sure when you unistall, you verify that all the files have been deleted. I use a program called REVO Uninstallerhttp://www.revouninstaller.com/ which not only runs the native apps uninstaller but then searches your computer files and registries for left overs. I love it. And, it's FREE.JoeM

Just be aware that simroutes.com (an excellent tool that I use everyday) uses the AIRAC cycle from 0711 so you must adjust your flight plans in whatever you export them to. DPs and STARs especially change often and the flight plan may be incorrect. JoeM

Johan,In addition to my reply to you at VPA, make sure you use the PMDG Load Tool that is in your PMDG folder to manage your loads. Do not use the default loader for FS9.JoeM (VPA105)