Microsoft Flight Sim for IFR practice

snoboy

snoboy

Pre-takeoff checklist
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snoboy
I'm wanting to purchase a simple but effective sim setup to practice approaches, holds etc. So far the Saitek Pro yoke with throttle quadrant and Microsoft Flight Sim looks to be a reasonable "best bang for buck" route. I would really like something that shows a plot of the approach I flew like the more expensive Elite 8.6 and On Top provide. I really like seeing these profiles after the fact. Does MS Flight Sim have this feature?
 
Yes it does. It has "instant replay" which you can use to plot your track on map etc.
 
Its great for learning procedures like holding and approaches. You can review your flight and it will show you the altitude, speed, the ILS feather if you shot an approach and how well you maintained the approach course and glide slope. If your school has an approved simulator definitely take advantage of it. I did about 10 hrs of my instrument rating in a Redbird and it saved me alot of money
 
Keep in mind that FSX is VERY old and has a lot of out of date approaches, frequencies, airport layouts, etc.

I use FSX myself but have to constantly manually update any new places I want to practice at. Take about 2-3 hours per airport when you get the hang of it. About 8 hours per airport when you're learning.
 
tehmightypirate said:
Keep in mind that FSX is VERY old and has a lot of out of date approaches, frequencies, airport layouts, etc.

I use FSX myself but have to constantly manually update any new places I want to practice at. Take about 2-3 hours per airport when you get the hang of it. About 8 hours per airport when you're learning.
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Is X-plane any better at this?
 
AggieMike88 said:
Is X-plane any better at this?
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I have not used it personally but I know it's better in a lot of ways than FSX and should be up to date. You should also check out Perpar3D which is essentially FSX upgraded by Lockheed. However, it's more geared towards professional flight sims for the military and such, not much the little guys.

http://www.prepar3d.com/
 
tehmightypirate said:
Keep in mind that FSX is VERY old and has a lot of out of date approaches, frequencies, airport layouts, etc.

I use FSX myself but have to constantly manually update any new places I want to practice at. Take about 2-3 hours per airport when you get the hang of it. About 8 hours per airport when you're learning.
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Your saying the charts CAN be updated but it takes 2-3 hours per chart or for the whole airport? (if you have the hang of it)
 
Forget an advanced setup. Just use the mouse and fly the autopilot.

FS is not about stick and rudder skills, just putting a theory into practice.
 
"Flight analysis" in the menu at the top of the screen will give you what you are looking for. I've used it a few times on FSX IFR training flights and it works pretty well. Also, cloudahoy supposedly integrates with FSX now with its latest version, though I've not tried it.

I would highly recommend getting something other than the default planes to fly with though. Something like the A2A Cessna 172 is far better alternative and will handle much more realistically. Prepar3d would probably be my recommendation at this juncture technology wise since FSX is essentially deprecated thanks to Microsoft.

I've got upwards of 7000 hours on PC-based flight simulators over the past 20ish years. And while the flying "feel" part of things just really isn't there with flight sims, IFR procedures and the ATC aspect (VATSIM, PilotEdge) can certainly be learned and practiced with a home sim.
 
snoboy said:
Your saying the charts CAN be updated but it takes 2-3 hours per chart or for the whole airport? (if you have the hang of it)
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2-3 hours per airport, assuming it's got less than 10 approaches and doesn't need anything major like a new runway added or something. Also, note that the actual chart (the airspace shown on the GPS in the sim and such) can't be changed that I know of.
 
It's great for that. I'd go Prepard3D though since it's basically FSX with newer graphics features and is still being developed.

Also, spend $40 and get a weather add-on like Active Sky Next or Opus.
 
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I recently purchased FSX and I don't need to change a thing. I'm using FSX to learn Instrument Flying and it works terrific from my perspective. Currently I don't see the need to add anything. YMMV but no complaints here. Cheap enough. :D
 
etemplet said:
I recently purchased FSX and I don't need to change a thing. I'm using FSX to learn Instrument Flying and it works terrific from my perspective. Currently I don't see the need to add anything. YMMV but no complaints here. Cheap enough. :D
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Are you using FSX to practice instrument flying following a lesson, or are you using it to "teach yourself" instrument flying prior to starting "real" training with a CFII?

I ask because a lot of instructors would not recommend the latter as you may ingrain bad habits that will be hard to correct.
 
dukeblue219 said:
Are you using FSX to practice instrument flying following a lesson, or are you using it to "teach yourself" instrument flying prior to starting "real" training with a CFII?

I ask because a lot of instructors would not recommend the latter as you may ingrain bad habits that will be hard to correct.
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I am already instrument rated. Just want to be able to exercise my scan, run checklist , practice the approach etc at home.
 
A couple of quick thoughts from someone who has used a home sim for a long time.

FSX out of the box stinks. The planes are crap, the weather is crap, the nav database is ancient...it's terrible. However, with a few add-ons it can be really good. Buy a decent 3rd party airplane that suits your needs, get a good weather program, buy some ground scenery, and an aftermarket GPS simulation, and voila. It takes a lot of time tweaking to get it to work like you want, and if your computer can't handle it, then you're not going to be happy with the choppy mess that ensues.

X-plane 10 is really really good. Default airplanes are equally ugly but the simulation is light years better. Scenery and weather are great out of the box, and the failure simulations is unmatched. They have a downloadable demo...I highly recommend it.

For controls, I've had them all. I typically don't like the yokes because the centering is very sloppy. I have a Thrustmaster T16000 joystick (like 30 bucks I think) that is stiff and has perfect centering. I fly with my left hand just like I do in the airplane, and the realism is about the same as a yoke. Tuning radios is the only thing that is more challenging vs. real-life, so I've ordered a 100 dollar radio panel from amazon...we'll see how that goes.

I happened across this video...it's long but certainly has some of the info you're looking for. Pilotedge also seems like a great way to practice ATC comms, and they offer a two week trail. Worth a look.

http://www.pilotedge.net/workshops/flight-simulation-for-primary-and-instrument-training

Hope this helps.
 
snoboy said:
I am already instrument rated. Just want to be able to exercise my scan, run checklist , practice the approach etc at home.
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I find it most helpful for my instrument training. I make the same mistakes with the simulator as I do in the Airplane. I find time spent in a flying environment very beneficial to my situational awareness and planning and preparing for the next phase of flight. I am most happy with the simulator as is.

Good Luck.
 
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etemplet said:
I find it most helpful for my instrument training. I make the same mistakes with the simulator as I do in the Airplane. I find time spent in a flying environment very beneficial to my situational awareness and planning and preparing for the next phase of flight. I am most happy with the simulator as is.

Good Luck.
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That seems to the case with me as well.
 
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