Flight Planning and Approach Charts

I need some help with flight planning and approaches. I am really trying to learn this program (FS9) and how to read and use approach charts. It is easy enough to go from one airport to another. And let's eliminate ATC for now, which is almost like cheating. You file your flight plan with ATC, take off, start the auto pilot and every now and then you have to turn a dial or change an altitude. I know you have do deal with speed, but I would like to do this without the ATC first.

 

So lets say for the heck of it, I'm flying towards JFK in a southwesterly direction. Logic would dictate that runway 22L or 22R would be the easiest approach (forget about wind and the like for now) and I pick 22L for no good reason. So I pull up sky vector and see that there are 6 22L IAP Approach charts (plus 5 STAR charts)! The 22L IAP charts are:

ILS OR LOC, ILS (CAT II-III), RNAV (RNP) Z, RNAV (GPS) Y, VOR/DME AND BELMONT VISUAL. The STAR charts are: CAMRN FOUR, KINGSTIN INEM LENDY SIX, PARCH TWO (RNAV) PAWLING TWO AND ROBER TWO.

 

I'm gonna stop here for now. I have a lot of questions but don't want to start a stream of conciousness type of posting. So can someone just start me off. Where do I start. Which chart to I pick if I want to try and land on my own without ATC taking my hand and bringing me down?

 

Thanks, Dave

Once you figure out which approach you want to fly, you can use flight plan maker found here Type in the waypoints that make up the approach and that will input the flightplan into the gps. As an added bonus on that same site you can update the FS9 waypoints to use on today's charts.

Hi Dave,

 

Start smaller - this is one of the best sites ever created for learning the ropes - I started with this myself - back when FS9 was new and now I'm a licensed pilot... You never know how far it will take you...

 

http://www.navfltsm.addr.com/

 

Regards,

Scott

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thank you, but is the only difference with FPM and FS9's flight planner the ability to put in the runway i want to use for arrival?

Thank you Scott, I have seen this site before, in fact I have it bookmarked.

Lets just say I am in the vicinity of an airport and want to land. How would I know which approach plate to use? It is mainly the approach plates I am inquiring about right now.

The default gps has built in approaches for the main airports. Have you tried those? A lot of times the default approaches will have waypoints on the approach plates. One method to use is to manually type in the waypoints into the gps as you fly the approach. But that only really works after you update the waypoints from the site I mentioned below. You can look at the approach plates once you have listened to ATIS to get the active runways.

OK, thanks

Mqytn, which updates? The Fixes Updates and the FS9 NAVS? I am running FS9.Thanks

Hi,

 

You normally have some guidance on your choice of approach to use; in real life (and in FS ATC) that would usually be suggested by the air traffic controller. You can ask for a different approach, though.

 

As a general guide, if you are modeling today you would usually go for the GPS (or RNAV) approach, which involves flying the waypoints. That requires you to rely on your GPS for guidance. As you know, you can automate this using the GPS, the GPS/Nav switch, and the AP.

 

If you want a little more "classic" approach choose the ILS approach. This is usually easiest to perform in FS, since the ILS needles will bring you right down the approach, and the typical 30 degree intercept is relatively easy to perform. You can automate the line up of the runway and the final descent using the APP mode of the AP after tuning in the ILS frequency.

 

If you want a challenging approach, choose the VOR (or even more challenging) the NDB approach. Those often involve procedure turns, DME arcs, or other more technical maneuvers. They cannot be automated.

 

And if it's a nice day I often choose the Visual approach, which is fun because you're looking out the window, not putting your head down into the cockpit.

 

Hope this helps,

Thank you

I update the fixes so I can use today's charts. Download each are you want to update and place the bgl files in your addon scenery folder. You will keep the default waypoints and you will add updated waypoints which come in handy for today's charts. I do this in FS9, FSX and FSX:SE.

MQYTN, I uploaded and installed the FS9 Intersections. We'll see what happens. It seems from reading the PDF of the FS9NAVS, it can cause major problems with the FS9 Flight Planner, am I not right? I'm not quite sure I wan't to mess with that, I use it often. Are their problems? I just couldn't read the entire pdf. Thanks

I have had no problems with the intersection updates. I'm a heavy user of the built in flight planner in FS9, FSX box version and FSX:SE. I have intersection updates in all 3 sims.

No, the pdf of the fs9 nav updates say the nav updates can cause problems with the flight planner. Are there problems that exist?

No, the pdf of the fs9 nav updates say the nav updates can cause problems with the flight planner. Are there problems that exist?

 

I can not say. I have not used the NAV update.