How to "Re-Set" ATC in FSX?

Been flying a lot from airport A to airport B, then to C and so forth, ultimately back to Airport A.

 

When I land at Airport B, I shut everything down - ready for a cold, fresh start for the next flight. But....

 

When I return to the plane, everything is still setup for the "end" of the previous flight - obviously, I'm selecting "previous flight" to get my plane back in the same status for fuel load, etc. Consequently, my ATC options are for parking, contact ground, etc.

 

I want options to either fly VFR to the next airport or file a flight plan, check with ground clearance, etc.

 

How can I "reset" all the ATC stuff without starting all over with a flight? Somehow I now I'm overlooking the obvious, but I can't see the forest for the trees!

 

Art N4PJ

Leesburg, FL

After landing at airport B and shutting everything down, do you hit ; and save, labeling it something like At airport B-ready for next flight? I might have to experiment with this scenario.

 

It could be something like cancel IFR with ATC and going into flight planning and creating a new IFR destination.

 

Ah, the ol' noodle is finally waking up! I did do a flight like that a year or so ago. It was several hops across the Pacific. After landing at airport/airfield B and saving, I then started the new flight from B by creating a new IFR flight plan.

In the scenario I described, NO, I do not save with the ";" key - when I return to FlightSim, it's the "previous flight" - advertised as being "...right where you left it...."

In the scenario I described, NO, I do not save with the ";" key - when I return to FlightSim, it's the "previous flight" - advertised as being "...right where you left it...."

 

OK, then you still have to cancel the A-B IFR flight and construct a new IFR flight from B-C.

ATC is not smart enough to realize the A-B flight is finished and you want a B-C flight.

When you do this flight A-B-C-A, do you make the ifr plan A-B, or A-A?

 

I don't fly IFR that much, and if I do I make it A-B. If I want to fly on, I usually just remember (write down) where I am, and then start a new flight there.

 

I do have one idea on this. Assuming the plan is A-B, do you taxi to gat, along the arrows, and park where you are supposed to? Then save?

 

Because taxing to gate is ending the flight(-plan).

As soon as you have parked on the spot the atc is pretty much reset.

The options then change to Taxi to: fuel/active.

 

If it also offer to start a ifr plan, not sure, I don't think so.

It may also depend on weather. Maybe it only offers to create a IFR plan in bad weather.

 

One thing you could try is take off vfr, and then contacting 'Center'. In flight you do have the option to file IFR plan.

Or just vreate a IFR plan from the menu bar while at the airport. Select the Aircraft-Create flight plan, then create your plan and after saving it, select don't move aircraft to start location.

IIRC when you've taxied to the correct spot as assigned by ATC(ground), you'll get "Taxi for Take-off Options" in the ATC window, meaning the previous flight is cleared.

 

Wim

Most of you guys are saying the same thing - and it provides sufficient evidence that I suspect it's not so much a bug in FSX as it incorrect procedures on my part!

 

What I really want is the tower/GND to direct me to the correct runway for takeoff. My mistake is one I apparently make very often - after landing and being told to contact ground, I generally acknowledge that I'm supposed to contact ground on such-and-such a freq. However, I tend to go park right in front of the closest terminal building - in preparation for theoretical unloading/loading for the next flight.

 

Generally, if I'm flying from A to B to C to D and back to A, each "leg" is handled as a separate flight. My home-made log isn't prepared for multiple intermediate destinations.

 

Consequently, it appears that most of the time I'm not actually "completing" a given flight - regardless of whether it's VFR or IFR.

 

The great majority of these flights are into small airports (mostly flying a DC-3), many of them uncontrolled. By not completing things properly, I'm probably just making the default ATC even more unrealistic than it already is!

 

One member sent me a PM, suggesting that I go into the "map" and alter my heading by one degree and that will "reset" ATC. Haven't tried that yet.

 

Thanks to all for the suggestions.

 

I tend to fly a lot of pseudo-flight plans for these flights. ATC is often so unrealistic. Instead of routing you directly to a dinky, non-controlled airfield, on a really short (70 miles or so) flight, they immediately start vectoring you miles out of the way. In real life you might either call CTAF or the tower and they'll identify left-base, right-base etc. and you can get pretty near the airport and follow the rules. If you fly a VFR plan instead of an IFR plan, you can get close on your own, then either follow the tower's instructions or "play by the rules" with the CTAF.

 

Art - N4PJ

Correct. You are doing something wrong. For the current flight to `complete` you MUST park in the designated parking spot, not just any old place you happen to choose.

That makes me realise, after parking in he designated spot, you can taxi anywhere you want!!

(and then save)

Ain't over until the overweight lady sings.

 

Cheers,

LOL - well I came to the conclusion that even if I never get it quite right, it isn't the end of the world. In a worst case I can record the remaining fuel quantity (manually) and then open the flight planner and load the next leg's flight plan.

 

Yesterday was as good an example as any as to why I despise the default ATC. I had a flight that was about 90 miles total. I figured I would "do my normal thing." That is, takeoff under ground control, tower permission, follow ATC until I got to my cruising altitude (5,000 or 6,000 in the DC-3, then temporarily "abandon" ATC until I got about 25 or 30 miles from my destination. However, I got about 4 minutes into my flight and heard "N44PJ, you are 89 miles from your destination, please turn right to 330 and......" And they proceeded to vector me all the way to the IAF for the ILS at my destination.

 

A friend of mine flies almost exclusively with VATCOM (or something similar) and has been trying to lug me over there. My problem is that I fly mostly GA. If you fly mostly "in the sticks" there don't seem to be a lot of controllers. But it would certainly be more realistic than the canned stuff from FSX. Also been thinking about things like Radar Contact - that apparently offers somewhat more realism.

 

Thanks for everyone's help. Love these forums.

 

Art - N4PJ

Leesburg, FL