Kiwi Spitfire

Haha yep, I did put in a 'or more' disclaimer! Being an A&P Mechanic on everything from Hughes 369's to Boeing 747's before I went flying I am well aware of the 'markup' on avionics installs, and TBH it depends entirely on how 'ready' a particular aircraft is for a certain install. I mean it could cost more than a grand just to actually 'fit' the GTN into the console, not to mention doing anything behind the panel. You must be pretty stoked though getting one of those installed, very capable toy to have up front!

Having bought the Duke V2 a week or so ago, I can't stop flying it! One of my favourite aircraft alongside my A2A Spitfire and Cub, and PMDG 737NGX. Great feel when flying the aircraft, and love the VC quality and the beautiful gauges with their needle shake. So to GPS and WX Radar, with twin engine GA aircraft of anywhere near this quality few and far between, I personally would be happy to pay a little extra for F1 GTN750 and ASN WX Radar add-on modules. Not sure how other people feel about it, but to fully integrate these extra items into the Duke takes time, and I would happily pay the good people at RealAir a modest fee to upgrade the cockpit of my snazzy Duke (These upgrades don't come for free in the real world, Av techs have to fit this stuff for you after you buy it! - prob around $1,000 or more to retrofit a GTN750 into a Duke)

Thanks for that Ralgh, always good to learn a little something about different aircraft, couldn't be bothered wading through the systems manual to find out myself, was just mentioining similar systems on aircraft I have worked on/flown. On the P-3 Orion we have a ram air aux vent valve that precluded pressurising on the ground and our outflow valve works a little differently, and I only worked on 747/767/A320 at AirNZ when I was a AMEL so they might have slightly different systems but the pack doors definately ring a bell now thanks for that, been flying the P-3 for too long :unsure: Also I never said you 'couldn't' pressurise on the ground, just that you would have to manually carry this out, obviously every aircraft pressurises a little on the ground when you close the door, (to the point it is hard to open the door again with aircon on in the P-3), and I believe pax jets such as the 73 etc pressurise a little more at higher power settings to smooth out the change once airborne. I was asuming we were talking about down to say -5,000'+ etc so replicating in-flight diff levels. Aircraft don't just do this all by themselves sitting on the tarmac... Being a military aircraft we don't get too 'carebear' about peoples ears or if it is a little uncomfortable when we close the door etc haha so don't worry about little pressure changes, we open and close the main door in flight all the time to chuck stuff out, and also have a pack of tubes we deploy out of the belly of the aircraft for launching buoys - you definately feel that if the taco doesn't check you have depressurised first before opening the door to lower the package :blush:. Some of our pilots are more 'military' than others so to keep ahead of the aircraft we have to sometimes increase the cabin depress rate to over 1,200ft/min...which you feel, but isn't as bad as the aircraft catching up with the cabin alt and then depressurising at 4,000ft/min! Interesting in the PMDG NGX by manually closing the outflow valve all the way with aircon on the cabin doesn't pressurise - is this how you do it in the 'real' thing?

As you stated the classic had an air/ground switch which enabled manually pressurising the cabin on the ground. I think you will find modern aircraft have this switch tied in to the weight on wheels switch, automating the procedure and subsequently the aircraft will not pressurise untill the aircraft leaves the ground, and will depresurise upon landing...(but it should have done that already before touching down). These aircraft will require either pulling the air sense CB manually, or may have a specific test switch to enable pressurisation on the ground. (We actually use this test switch in flight in the P-3 in a pressurisation emergency) You may notice the Ram Door Full Open annunciator light on the NGX - this indicates the ram air doors are open and effectively behaving like wide open outflow valves, making pressurisation impossible. These should open automatically on the ground, and close upon liftoff allowing pressurisation. Hope this helps a little - Also, you mentioned cracking your window when you pressurised the classic on the ground, are you unable to manually position the outflow valve on that model?

Yes - well aware of the instances of pilot-error.....pilot error is not the 'evil human element' I was referring to but thankyou. Please read my post correctly regarding electrical systems on the aircraft 'turning off' also. First time in history?....I would recommend going away and checking your aviation history before making such a bold claim. Why people try to bend the known 'facts' to suit themselves perplexes me - so I guess we are in the same boat. Suffice to say I didn't come here to argue, based on 20+ years in aviation both civil and military that is my viewpopint - everyone has one and it is interesting to just read them. ..hopefully time will reveal all, and we can learn from the result.

Interesting - I have never had to use the gear to slow the NGX, just the usual speedbrake to flight detent when requested by the FMS - which is pretty standard for all aircraft these days. very rare to see a modern airliner not use the SB on descent for at least a portion. Saying that - using the gear is a perfectly valid way of slowing an aircraft on descent/approach under less than favourable circumstances, and yes we do it in the P-3 Orion is if looks like we are a little high/fast for one reason or another with no problems at all. It is a little amusing however seeing some of the reponses from the 'professional sim pilots' who think that using the gear is 'not correct, cheating,wrong' etc. ^_^ A point to note - I see in the post above EGLL had to use the gear to slow down, be careful that you don't chuck out flap too soon on approach....this will NOT help you slow down and stay on profile easier, you may notice the aircraft will actually attempt to slow to the applicable flap speed by raising the nose, and from there you will be asked for Drag Required etc etc. Better to ensure you are slowing on profile and look good before hamstringing yourself with flap too early. So your example is yes you must make sure the MCP speed is correct (it should be following the FMS profile anyway correct?) - so at most you should only need flight detent speedbrake maybe a little up to the point the engine spools up to maintain speed (at which point pull in the SB) and start feeding out flap. Also - just a query, why would you have a 15kt tailwind on finals may I ask? My approach may not work in this case....I wouldn't know as I am pretty old school and try to land into the wind, not with it

Anyone that thinks a heavily fuelled and loaded Boeing 777 can fly to FL450 must obviously be on the Boeing marketing team!...why do people keep on about things that obviously don't make sense. Also I don't get why so many people are discounting certain probable scenarios with comments like 'But why didn't they make radio contact...why did they turn off the transponder' Fire/electrical malfunction leading to fire can do these things perfectly well all by itself, sometimes with no indication to the pilot. Also believe me when I say, based on first-hand knowledge, that when you have smoke in the cockpit at altitude the last thing you are worried about is calling someone up on the radio! We practice fire in flilght drills all the time, and I can tell you as an example Radio Message/IFF is item #6 on a list of 10 items carried out when ditching due to fire - not item #1. Aviate - navigate - communicate...but obviously each step is based on that system actually being functional! Despite seeing many imaginative scenarios, unfortunately the simple truth is aircraft are just machines operating in a very hostile and unforgiving environment - there is no pulling over to the side of the road, no magical way home to the nearest airfield - put simply ###### gets real, really fast.. This is pretty bad on the ground..just imagine this happening at FL350 - http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=20110729-0. Given that the actual origin and extent of the fire has infinite variations, all I can hope for is that the pax and crew were spared a grisly death and smoke inhalation or decompression and hypoxia had it's inevitable conclusion. Resulting in the inherently stable aircraft to continue on its flightpath based on the current state of navigation, trim and power settings, noting that as the aircraft got lighter it would have more of a tendency to slowly climb left unchecked, possibly resulting in stalls, wing drops leading to course changes, and recoveries to level flight once the trimmed speed was re-established..a cycle that would continue for hours. It seems to me that the more outrageous scenarios are based on peoples unwillingness to accept that civilian air travel isn't as safe and guaranteed as we all 'hope and believe' it is, and wanting to believe that the 'evil human element' must be responsible somehow. Something as simple as mechanical malfunctions, electrical fault/fires etc can and do happen...and you are incredibly vulnerable and 'just along for the ride' with limited variables you can control, which from 35,000 feet can sometimes be a bad one!

Generally HYD overheat is either caused by a. Low fluid level b. Faulty hydraulic pump internal cooling or c. Insufficient fuel in the tank to cool the hydraulics. That is just real aircraft - not sure about PMDG 737 specifically.

Ummmm - Not to diminish the spotlight on your 'experience'....but I think you will find I was tongue in cheek referring to the 'designers' comments at the end of the video :huh: Us Kiwis have a fairly dry sense of humor at times....

Yea - and he still hasn't! lol. But we can rest easy knowing it's not a problem with the aerodynamics...just a few minor design difficulties with the gear etc.

Sounds like a problem with cheap pots - I had a similar problem with this stick approx 2 weeks after purchasing it. Was a loose wire from the rotation pot in the base of the stick. I would either return it for replacement before it fails completely (or better yet refund...and buy something reliable like a logitech)...or just do what I did and open up the base and re-connect/solder the loose wire back into place. In the meantime - just put in an adequate centre-deadzone in the tail rotor/rudder axis to remove this off-centre movement. While the idea of the twin throttles and customisable grip etc are all great ideas, I have seen a lot of people have had problems such as this - personally I just went and got a TM Warthog HOTAS - never looked back!

Same for me too - 747-400 is still my favourite widebody aircraft, so waiting patiently for V2 to come out and just flying my 737-800NGX around for now (and loving it). Just last week I was actually in CAE's Virgin Oz 777 sim in Sydney flying around and landing etc (777 so stable and easy to fly with heaps of grunt, and gentle to land!), but still not swayed...747 all the way!

Flown in a fair few aircraft from military such as MB339CB, P-3K, C-130, Seasprite, Huey, - all the way to most Boeings etc. Just the usual commuter aircraft we have all flown on, and the odd chopper like the Hughes 500. But to be honest..I was more excited that posters in this thread managed to find the space bar and enter key on their keyboards..the early posts were painful.... :lol:

Thanks for that Julian, so pretty unreliable real-time weather in NZ then. Yes having just got back into FSX...I have noticed that the 'head-in-the-sand' approach seems the general way to go for a lot of developers of FSX add-ons regarding problems. Take the money and run I guess... :huh: Shamelessly though...I have to say A2A's customer service is second to none...and the beta testers test new aircraft and core updates tirelessly till they are good to goooo... :lol:

I solely run ASN with live weather also, with the no downloads on approach - and have noticed... 1. that the weather in ASN does not match the weather out the window in RL (NZWP...not a proper reporting station?), and 2. that the ATIS does not report what the actual weather is in the sim...had 8/8th cloud cover and the ATIS was reporting sky clear?? Does it put the weather on 'hold' if you are doing circuits also, and does anyone know why I am seeing such wild weather inaccuracies. At RNZAF Whenuapai it can be blowing a gale and raining outside...and I get a light cloud cover and maybe 12kts in FSX via ASN with clear skies and unlimited vis reported?

Found another thread - EDIT: I just figured it out it's not the liveries it's a problem with FSCaptain. FSCaptain inserts a few lines in panel.cfg and I guess this triggers this error. I reverted back to original panel.cfg and no more error. Which resolution of displays are installed if there is no green check mark? From looking at the displays (have seen them both high and low res) - I would say your displays keep the resolution you had before FSC added a line to the panel cfg. I seem to still have high-res as was set before I tried FSC.

I have seen a few posts like this : first and foremost - don't try and fly a complex SID departure into an FMS programmed step climb followed by a hold into a last minute wind-changed STAR down to an offset localiser approach followed by a go-around to hold due to weather minimums...on 1 engine! The PMDG 737NGX may be able to do all this easily...and you will be able to as well in time - guaranteed! Just take some time with the basics and then ramp up. Spend a lilttle time with the tutorials or head-down in the FMS if you want - or set up a simple straight out departure, and just head direct to a nearby intersection - then just chuck the departure airport back on the end again and go in using basic HDG, ALT HOLD, and SPEED AP modes...or even better no AP at all! Then crack out some visual circuits, great way to get a feel for the aircraft. Then just progress to more complex instrument flight and delve a little deeper into the manuals. Maybe research a little on holds, or sort a nice short route with a standard SID and STAR, set no weather and just fly it a few times. In RL aircraft conversion courses, especially in the military, it is keep up or get kicked out...force fed massive amounts of information that you better remember. But this sim is yours...take your time and get there in stages. I am re-reading the RL P-3K systems manuals every week.. and have been for years and still don't remember everything perfectly. You certainly don't need to either - manuals that massive are there for your reference - use them as such. I guarantee you will enjoy the 737NGX a great deal more if you don't let it overwhelm you with complexity and thousands of pages of manuals, and just slowly discover what it can do - nothing like making that aircraft your own and having full control over her - eventually! B)

While I do have the NZNI and NZSI, I can't comment on the other global products you are asking about, as mmann is correct - you won't get a better display of NZ scenery than the two specific products you already have. However I can help you out with the mesh question. Essentially this is the 'framework' underneath the scenery display so to speak. From the pic below you can see that a series of points are joined to make a mesh type structure. The elevation of these points is very accurate, usually via satellite - and the closer together they are then the more accurate the resulting terrain will be with regards to having bumps hollows and cliffs of the correct 'resolution'. You will have noticed if you have your graphical settings to the right in FSX that you can easily navigate around NZ using a VNC by looking out the window picking landmark hills, gullies etc - thanks to a good 'mesh'

What a strangely titled thread....something akin to "Man Eaten by Shark' ....attached to a video of a frog sitting on a rock doing nothing on youtube, in an attempt to get the view count up.. Perhaps something along the lines of 'Vector Light Tool with UTX lowering my FPS' may be more relevant....

If you are after something a little more 'Old-School' away from the fancy computers while you wait for the DC-6 - A2A's awesome B-17 Flying Fortress is worth a look! Very nice aircraft to both hand-fly, and set on AP....after you figure out how to use that archaic C-1 autopilot! The B-17 with A2A's Accu-Sim add-on features amazingly detailed engine and systems modelling - everything from oil viscosity to fouled spark plugs and inertia starters - gotta take care of this ole girl! Check out all the amazing features of the classic A2A B-17 here, and with Accu-Sim here!

I am also having a problem with FSUIPC and the NGX. I assigned the throttles to #1 and #2 seperately through FSUIPC, and turned them off in FSX. I am using the TM Warthog. Before I changed to FSUIPC axis assignment I could move the throttles while AT was engaged to match position without effecting the AT....now when I move them the actual throttles move and cancel auto throttle? (I have the option set to disable overriding the autothrottle - but it still does?) Anything I am missing here - or is it just a bug with assigning throttles in FSUIPC? The major benefit of using FSUIPC is that I can use the lower lift-detent button on the throttle levers for the reversers and it actually works properly(repeats). This is not possible to do in FSX even with full repeat on.

Interesting indeed....considering I 'subscribed' on the Simair site quite a while ago out of interest, and have received nothing to date... (Yes I know how email filters work.....before I get the obvious replies..) Can't help but chuckle really :rolleyes: . As a matter of interest I will be producing a Space Shuttle model for FSX which simulates all systems in the shuttle, photo-real textures (you won't believe the detail!), and even includes a fully realistic launch procedure! Screenshot of my work so far on the flight deck attached....stay tuned for progress reports and an expected release date!

You may think your support is a little 'slow'....but just think how slow some products are to release following the first 'announcement'! <_< Years in the making...must be going to be pretty epic. I guess I just don't grasp the 'finer nuances' of PC product advertising, but I suppose the term vapourware had to come from somewhere

Thanks Chris - yep after watching plenty of reviews, and Froogle getting stuck in - I went out and got myself the 737NGX. All I can say is wow - love it. I was a little concerned with the performance on my PC, but it seems to be handling it fine, maybe a 5fps drop at the busier airports, but back to 30 in the climb/cruise. With EZDok and TrackIR you just feel so at home on the flightdeck with such realistic textures and systems! Takes a bit more than a 737 to 'daunt' me B) Was a AMEL at Air NZ on 74, 76 and 777's etc and currently am a FE on the P-3K2 in the NZ Air Force :zeland-flag: Thanks for the heads-up regarding the Aviator course, but have over 2000hrs sitting on the flight deck of a P-3 along with stick time in a Traumahawk, King Air etc - so pretty sorted with the basics haha. EDIT: Didn't see it was free thou! Couldn't hurt to brush up a little! I will also check out that review, thanks Ray - googling now.. Actually jumped in the 73 the other night for my first flight and managed to fire up a trip from NZAA to NZWN using the TPAPA2B approach to autoland, was nice. Now to just dig into all the systems (Hey I am an FE lol)....the 737 Captain package looks pretty interesting :p0303:

Single-prop (preferably fast) - A2A Cessna 172 (slow) or their Civilian P-51 Mustang (Fast) - You get a really nice feeling of connection with A2A's aircraft, from the spluttery start to the awesome sounds and flight performance. Make sure you tag on the Accu-sim pack when you get it!! I personallly love the Spitfire, but not so good for general aviation such as IFR etc. Dual-prop - RealAir Duke 2.0, Majestic Q400 which has nice systems and FMS depth Bush plane - A2A Piper Cub...but don't reallly have any bush planes in my virtual hangar. Classic commercial airliners from the 40's/50's/60's - Another vote for the amazing A2A B377 COTS edition...not much more to say. Would be interested in trying out the Concorde as well at some stage.