Sim Flying A thread to get you interested.

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Sim Pilot

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Flight sim is a game, but a serious one. I've joined this forum to find other sim pilots and just maybe get you gamers hooked. Although FX 9 and 10 is old, the software downloads, updates and features are still available and may I add, world wide still very popular. Initially having the original package, little irritations like the need to insert disk 4 and as example, the lack of required TCAS aircraft systems made the MS Flight Simulator almost unpopular.

Luckily for us "enthusiasts" the aircraft schools use these simulators as part of the "real life" flight training. Therefor these sites will never disappear. In this thread I want to constantly add the much needed "extra" information. I suppose a good way to create a thread that is not only informative but exiting to follow would be to re-enact a flight series like The Bush Pilots.

The series Bush pilots got a lot of attention world wide... almost the best reality show ever. For us here is SA, well, just on our doorstep and most of the exiting adventures took place in Botswana. Many moons ago, me and a few friends, also sim pilots, took on the adventures of the Bush Pilots via simulator. There's a real interesting twist.

As news spread, we got to meet other real life pilots that's also sim pilots. As you can imagine the invitations to get on the real thing followed soon. Imagine a passenger on a commercial flight from Joburg to George, you get to spend time in the cockpit of the real thing! Many opportunities in small aircraft with awesome pilots!

Anyway, to get you interested... I'm going to do it again... the Bush Pilot thing and you can sit back, in front of your PC and follow the videos that will ultimately become a African Bush Pilot Sim story. Our tour and video one start in Durban.

There are some rules... basically we created them at the time to prevent "cheating" and fly true to the real thing! That's where and why our enthusiasm brought us to the "real thing". That discipline that was embraced by the real pilots!
Enjoy... Video 1.
 
For what I've seen, Flight Sims are insanely popular. I see Flight Sim streaming still in the top lists on Twitch even.

I wish I had the time to actually spend and get good at flight sims. I really would love to get into it. I've heard that the sim pilot community in SA is actually rather big and active.

You'll enjoy this story [MENTION=24960]Sim Pilot[/MENTION]; one of my earliest memories of gaming was with Flight Simulator 95. I remember taking an atlas and tracing "routes" I would fly. I would plan the whole thing, and try and complete these. One of those trips was with a commercial airliner from San Fransisco to LAX. I actually managed to complete that flight. I was super proud of myself.

So tell us, what type of setup would one require to get into the sim flying?

Poking around the internet and quietly watching flying streams, I notice that these serious sim pilots all have a huge amount of additional software and mods installed on their games as well. Part I guess to add to the realism of the experience. It all seems really intimidating however.
 
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DieGrootHammer said:
So tell us, what type of setup would one require to get into the sim flying?
Click to expand...
I plan on getting to the requirements soon... but the quick answer for now, FX9 work with OS windows XP,7, 8 and 10! I have all here on different PC's and the same extracted folder works on all Windows PC's. Maybe in the next video, I cover that aspect.

I have to answer the forum question, what color is Mmusi and get the answer wrong each time not allowing my post. I hope I can get to skip that soon. Also to update my user profile as I don't have privileges to do it. Maybe a message to the mods... It will be hard to get new people involved with these steps.

OK, back the the thread. Sim flying is a educational game. Basically it requires a lot of discipline. Before I continue to write my paragraph, I want to see if I can post.
Enjoy Video 2.
PS:
The 3,5 floppy question works... I almost unsubscribed. Maybe some on the forum can PM me and help me to navigate posting and getting at least my avatar up. Thanks.
 
How to get flying. I suppose its good to start with the "original" install package. I'll add a photo of it here and maybe someone may help to "fix" it like before. The pack consists of 4 DVD's. The fist hick-up from MS, was you need to insert disk 4 to fly... meaning should you stumble upon a set, Disk 4 would most probably be damaged. Disk 4 only activates the exe file to start the program.

On the flight sim site where all downloads and updates are available, is a download file called NO CD. After install the No CD flight sim exe must be copied to the main folder and the original renamed or deleted. Problem solved.

Photo: flight sim pack.
https://imgur.com/ANMAMo1

Should you google FX 9 or FX10 free download you should be able to get the compressed zipped folder to extract correctly. The complete extracted folder is only 1,45 Gig... Amazing to believe that it covers major airports and small airfields all around the world. Because the folder is so small the software run smooth with no hick-ups on a old P4, XP with 230 MB of ram and add to that it handle MSI Afterburner to capture your flight. Imagine the joy of it using our new type PC's... 4 core, 4 or 6 gig ram with a terabyte hard drive.

This is what I did. I installed the 4 CD's to my notebook OS win 10. Did the No CD thing. Once finished I copied the entire extracted folder named FS9 in its main folder named MS Games to a flash drive. Just copied the folder to my flight box in Win 7 and XP and both worked immediately with no hick-up.

I fly in XP, purely because that MSI Afterburner works the best on XP. Capture Gaming with no problems. MSI in win 7 have no audio from the wasapi... whatever... hehehe setting. MSI dont record gaming in win 10. I still need to find a good gaming capture software for win 10 notebook.

The hardware.
A joystick is needed to fly. Make sure to install driver and joystick "enabled" in the settings. Cheap joysticks works awesome. Just get use to finding the center position during flight. (That is why at some places, the plane is jumping up and down...)

Most pro sim pilots fly with the trims or a trim box. That's what I've build. In the DIY trim box, you can add PC keyboard functions on knobs... saving your poor PC keyboard from gaming abuse. The entire flight is on the trims only and you only grab the joystick on that final moments before touch down.

My next post... video... flight instruments and a sneak peak of whats to come.

Flight sim is a game that never end or have that highest score.
 
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The next video is the proof of honesty and discipline. I tried the Mkuzi to Pongola flight 4 times, overshot the small runway each time. The thing is, I could have moved on, skipped Pongola and fly Mkuzi to Matsapa. The thing is, this isn't so easy. I'll go back to Pongola again in the future and do Touch and Go's there.

This remind me of way back when myself and Danie, a real life pilot, create challenges. One he gave me was a DC3 landing at Calvinia. I got it finally... about 20 attempts and landing at stalling speed not to overshoot. This is basically the rule with the C208 at Pongola. Stall speed is 62 Kts.

From Pongola I'll fly to Matsapa to demonstrate what difference runway and airport size makes compared the the small strips. It will be a ILS landing unlike the VFR approach you saw so far. Another hick up of Pongola with the C208, I can only rotate between 70 and 80 Kts. I'll most probably run off the runway before take-off. We'll see.

In the next video I explain only the few most important instruments. Have a look at the real aircraft at the right seat. Remember a pilot fly a plane, left seat.

Just to tease you of where I'm going with this thread.... After our Cessna tour, we go bigger... and I cant wait to show off the 747... but it will be a progressive process building to the ultimate. Should you get flight sim tomorrow... you need to be a fast learner on the basics to fly a 747 for a good flight.
I want to see if I can finish Matsapa International this weekend. It will be a bit busy next week.
 
Looks awesome.
I spent hours with combat flight sim in the 90's.
Out of interest, what do you do after take off on a long flight?
Do you just skip it and land or is their scenery?
 
Sim Pilot said:
Should you google FX 9 or FX10 free download...
Click to expand...

Just a small recommendation here. Grab FSX:SE from steam instead of dealing with dodgy "free" versions. Its currently R269 but you will probably get it for half price next week during the Halloween sale.
 
snowbeast said:
Looks awesome.
I spent hours with combat flight sim in the 90's.
Out of interest, what do you do after take off on a long flight?
Do you just skip it and land or is their scenery?
Click to expand...
Two awesome comments!

I have the combat sim flight CD somewhere... started on it with 98SE at the time... I do IFR short flights. In the videos so far. all flights in real time under an hour and ATC keeps you busy enough. Long flights is real boring. The "R" and "+" or minus key will speed up the flight to X2, X4, X8 or X16. You cant really skip the scenery. With challenges in the flying group back then, we just circle the airport with Touch and Go's till you manage the given challenge... cut the capture and done.

Part of your comment is those long cross Atlantic flights in the 747. The are utterly boring! The moment you go above R+4 (speed up) ATC commands come splattering, ATC terminated and IFR void. That is also one of the stupid things of FX.

PLEASE LOOK AT THE SPECIAL OFFER ON THE FLIGHT SIM PACK! THAT IS AN AWESOME PRICE AND WORTH WHILE TO PURCHASE! YOUR KIDS WILL BENEFIT PLAYING FLIGHT SIM. You'll have no hick-ups of the free software downloads that usually only work partially as the component needed must be purchased. Thanks for that information! Awesome!
 
About Video 4. ATC instruction and communication. Maths and learning skills.
I thought to place the write-up first as the is a bit more info to cover this chapter.

The radio and communication discipline of pilots and Air Traffic Controllers is just amazing. A little secret of me… The aircraft call I use on the simulator is my own Amateur Radio Call, ZS 1 JDT. Aircraft in SA and all over the world follow the same principle. ZS is the HAM and aircraft prefix for SA. Namibia as example is V5. The 1 in my HAM call represents division 1, Western Cape and Gauteng or the old Transvaal, 6. These divisions aren’t used in aviation. The suffix is my initials. A typical aircraft call ZS-JDT will be big letters on a aircraft.

The same grouping of HAM’s is used in aviation. Most aircraft ZS first class, ZR, small things like gliders and ZU something real small.

IFR and VFR. Instrument Flight Rules are almost always used to control air traffic and make sure someone knows who fly what and where. VFR Visual Flight Rules apply on landing small strips with no ATC. I think the only pilots that fly VFR is crop dusters and military guys.

During this video I’ll insert a recording of a inexperienced pilot making a few… ok, a lot of mistakes with approach and taxi. What is amazing is how calm the guy stayed while the ATC almost exploded!

You will always hear Altimeter 2992. Look on the altitude indicator of our Cessna, the reading 29.9. This is the barometric air pressure. The air pressure affects your altitude. The lowest and highest is 25 to 35. When you reach transition altitude, you set the altimeter to 2992. On the simulator, I just keep it at 29.9.

Listen to the IFR instruction when its given and you must read it back. It gives a lot of info! First your cruising altitude, like 5500 what ever. Departure frequency on the radio stack. (I’ll get to the radio stacks and VOR and DME soon.) Squawk is very important… Squawk is set on the TCAS. TCAS is the transponder that send the signal of your and other aircraft to prevent collision! The squawk is always a 4 digit number entered to the TCAS. Pity its so difficult to post pictures and screenshots on this forum. IFR clearance timeframe before its void or cancelled is 30 min…. On the sim.

Hand-Off’s is common practice. On the ground on taxi ways, you talk to “ground”. Take-off, you talk to tower, In flight you talk to ATC covering air traffic for that area. You’ll receive these commands and the appropriate frequency.

Landing instructions is very important to follow. On big airports like this video, landing is ILS. You will hear approach altitude, the runway to land… like… Cleared to land runway 8, ILS, till established on the localizer that will take you in, contact tower. The instructions will be ILS, Tower or Advisory. Bush pilots communicate and land on advisory. A Cessna flight as example Stellenbosh flying club, Tower ATC.

I’ll get to taxi and parking in a different video.

How are runways marked? The runway number is your inbound heading. If you have to land runway 36, your heading is on fly-in 360. That is North. The opposite side of the same runway is 18. South. 360 degrees in a circle. This is where flight sim helps your kids with basic Maths! What is the opposite side number of runway 11? 11+18 = 29. To get the opposite side runway number add or subtract 18. 180’.

Upington airport runways is almost like an X. When you approach, ATC tells you, cleared to land runway 35. There are two runways in site, 01 and 35. Is it easy?… Try fly in heading 360 and the runway on the left of you is 35 ? NO! Runway 35 is the one on the right!

Ask your kids if they understand this…. Make an X with your two arms. Between your hands is North. The direction of your right hand is heading 350, 360 (North) in the middle and 010 your left hand. So when Upington ATC instruct you to land runway 35, it will be the one to the right of you… the direction of your right hand points left heading 350. Get it?

As I carry on with this thread, you will understand how Maths is a very important subject relevant to aviation. Things such as working out fuel, payload weights, momentum… everything touch on practical mathematics!
 
You will really like this video! This video have all the elements to cover aspects of aviation communication.
In the video I inserted a audio section of a student pilot doing just about everything wrong. The read backs is all wrong. The fellow at ATC got really mad.
Should you do things wrong thing with the simulator... Do you thing the ATC can get mad? Watch the video!

I have explained a lot in my previous post. In this video I decided to test ATC. I with purpose missed the ILS vector approach. ATC didn't react to it. Thinking about it, it's real stupid and only a idiot will miss the ILS vector! It's BIG. Then I continued on and requested from the tower a new approach.

I was suppose to fly left traffic, turn and land runway 7, ILS. I decided , for the purpose to land on the wrong runway! If you hear Simulator ATC, just maybe the ATC in the audio clip is justified! I really hope you enjoy watching this as I have enjoyed making it for the purpose!
 
I think the start to the thread was perfect! I do think its easier to continue this on a blog purely to keep the postings chronological. I do plan and work out a build-up to the big aircraft like the Boeing.

On the blog I can go back edit and insert and the use of screenshots is easier. I have completed the next to postings and added them to the blog.

Doing it this way this forum page is now open for discussion on the subject and maybe Apollo can post more information on that Simulator pack that come at a very good price!

Here is the blog link where you can follow the progress of this thread.
https://africansimpilot.blogspot.co.za/

Here is a very short clip of the Boeing 737-400 to guide where I'm going to with this. Added information on the blog, such as TCAS and more!
Thanks.
 
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