Some flying questions

[VojakX]

Hey all,

I've got some general flying questions:

1. Taxi speeds in FSX seem to be really hard to control. I've been flying the Caravan and can't seem to get it into a stable taxi speed. It just keeps going faster and faster. If I make the slighest change in power it eventually stops. Any ideas?

2. Pushback seems to be a bit odd. I start the push back in top-down view and when it reaches where I need it to turn I push 1 or 2. Nothing happens. SOmetimes when I keep pushing either one or 2 it starts turning (way later) and sometimes, not at all.

3. Descent calculations. I've been flying some IFR flights and get routed pretty much all the way down. My problem is during VFR flights when I dont know exactly what the formula is for figuring out when to start the descent. For example, say I'm flying at KIAS 120 @ 4000. If I need to be down to 1500 X miles from the runway how do I know when to start descending and at what speeds to get to the desired alt and distance from the runway?

4. Are there any freely downloadable aircraft manuals on the internet? For example, for the caravan and other aircraft in the default FSX fleet (besides the ones in FSX)?

Thanks much in advance!

Cheers!
Vojak

[bostona1]

Hi Vojak,
As for taxi speed, the Caravan is a turboprop. Instead of pulling the power back, try decreasing the prop rpm. I know that any turboprops I've ever flown in FS you have to do this. As you take "less bite" out of the prop it will slow down.

Paul

[Buchek]

Hi Vojak,

as for the descent calculation:

you know how much ground speed you have by

a.) having the experience to calculate it
b.) looking at it using GPS tool

Having that value it's easy to calculate how many miles you are travelling per minute: GS / 60

Now you know the altitude to be descended, lets say from 4000 ft to 1500 ft means 2500 ft to be done. And: you know your preferred descend rate, don't you? Let's also assume this is 1500 ft/min.

So you'd need 2500 [ft] divided by 1500 [feet/min] equals 1.6666 minutes. In this time you'd be travelling (GS / 60) * 1.66667 miles.

Does this make any sense to you?

[slarente]

And about the pushback, keep in mind that the aircraft must move back for at least its own length before it will start turning. So if you press the 1 or 2 key, wait a bit. It will start turning at some point. Of course, it will take longer to start turning with a 747 that with a CRJ...

[Atlanticmoe]

For the taxi question its alot harder to taxi in a sim then in a real plane. To get forward movement from a stopped positon push on the throttle to get moving then pull back the throttle very fast. You need more power to get going but once your moving you need only a little bit. Also use your brakes to slow down like making turns instead of adjusting the throttle.

Moe