adf activation

[norco1]

unable to consistantly get the ndb needle to activate. is there more to activation than simply switching the adf light on. please advise

[ToddNicholson]

Switching the light on only turns on the morse identifier signal. For the ADF to work, it needs to be tuned to an ADF frequency through the radio panel.

[Lou_Betti]

...and you must also be within range of the NDB that you are tuning in. ;-)

Regards,
[link:www.dreamfleet2000.com|http://www.dreamfleet2000.com/gfx/im...nners/LOU.gif]
[font size=1][font color=blue]Can you pilot a plane, instead of programming an FMC to do it for you?[/font color= blue][/font size=1]

[tgibson]

Hey, just like the real thing! NDB's were notoriously unreliable, especially in bad weather. :)

Take care,

[Lou_Betti]

I don't even have one in my plane, anymore, Tom. There's a Strike Finder in its place!

So, they took ADF technology (sort of) and made it reliable for finding bad weather! :-lol

Regards,
[link:www.dreamfleet2000.com|http://www.dreamfleet2000.com/gfx/im...nners/LOU.gif]
[font size=1][font color=blue]Can you pilot a plane, instead of programming an FMC to do it for you?[/font color= blue][/font size=1]

[sanyok]

currently flying the whole route on NDBs only (no VORs on this route):

http://www.flightsim.com/dcforum/Use...9f600222b9.jpg
http://www.flightsim.com/dcforum/Use...b4600a2185.jpg

[Lou_Betti]

Do you have much cross wind there? If so, I hope you are not just following the needle. ;-)

Yeah, I still sort of like like NDBs (especially when they were tuned to popular AM radio stations back in the 1970s), and did my share of training with them, but once you replace one with a GPS it is no contest.

It seems that NDBs are still popular in FS, and outside the USA where, for some reason, they are still relied heavily upon. I suspect that in FS they are popular becuse folks think they are easier to use than VORs- they are not, if you want to remain on course.

While I do not always agree with the FAA, it is nice to see a move here in the USA to more modern forms of navigation (WAAS GPS), and once you have GPS, and if lacking panel space, you are wise to save the weight, and replace the ADF with something else, as I did with the Dakota.

We already have GPS / WAAS enabled approaches here (at certain aiprorts) that can give us accurate ILS-style guidance where an ILS never before existed. Go try that with an NDB!

Hopefully, in time, we'll see something like this at my home airport of KCDW, where we only have a LOC approach right now.

However, I WILL say this: If you can fly an accurate NDB approach with a x-wind, while staying on course, that is an excellent sign of your flying skills. Then again, do some lazy 8s, or turns about a point to sharpen skills. Given the choice in IMC of an NDB approach or a GPS approach, there's no competition between the two.

Otherwise, with NDBs, if you have x-winds, and are just following the needle, you are not using the NDB correctly, as you should compensate for winds to remain on your course line.

So, these days, replace the ADF with something else, and use satellite radio for music, as all the AM radio stations have turned all talk! :-lol

Regards,
[link:www.dreamfleet2000.com|http://www.dreamfleet2000.com/gfx/im...nners/LOU.gif]
[font size=1][font color=blue]Can you pilot a plane, instead of programming an FMC to do it for you?[/font color= blue][/font size=1]

[norco1]

thanks guys. i'm ready to takeoff. norco1

[sanyok]

I always thought of crosswinds' effect on NDB navigation, and always wondered how they figured out the wind correction.

In my case above, NDBs are 20-30 miles apart (that's their range anyway) so they were too close apart for winds to be of any problem.

I almost never fly by NDBs (I don't like it), unles I am forced to. Last time I flew an airliner by NDBs was over a year ago, Miami to Mexico City (Braniff DC-8), there were too few VORs southwest off Miami.

edit: a trick I came up with: I tune ADF2 to the next NDB on my flight plan. If the angle of ADF2 pointer is more or less constant, then my path to closest NDB (ADF1) is more or less non-drifty. Otherwise the pointer of ADF2 would show a different angle.

[FlyingColin]

Hey guys, here's an awesome page that should help anyone with any questions regarding NDB navigation:

http://www.navfltsm.addr.com/ndb-nav-adf-1.htm

Good luck and happy flying

- Colin