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Weather causes aircraft to turn


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Hello,

 

Yes, I know this seems a strange problem from the title, but I have an issue in FSX using weather. When I start to taxi at high speed, or start a taxi off roll, the aircraft turns hard towards the direction the wind is coming from. I can keep straight but only with full rudder applied. This effect continues in the air too, so isn't ground-looping or anything similar.

 

If I do a high speed taxi down the runway, I get hard left turn. If I turn around and go the other way I get hard right turn. Turning weather off causes this problem to stop. Disconnecting my joystick and using the keyboard gives the same results so this isn't the problem.

 

Yes, I'm using the FSX default weather and yes, I'm planning on upgrading this, but don't want to spend the money if I'm going to have the same issue with other software.

 

For reference, I'm operating FSX SP2 with an I7 4.8k processor, 16Gb RAM and a GTX970 graphics card.

 

Thanks for any help you can give.

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Welcome!:D A 4.8k processor seems pretty slow....I bet you meant 4.8Gig (If that's possible!) Is this happening with all aircraft? Have you checked a chase position shot while taxiing to see if the rudder is actually deflecting? What are the wind speeds while this happens?

Still thinking about a new flightsim only computer!  ✈️

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Sorry, yes, 4.8G processor. Just got the PC for the purposes of flight sim.

 

With the weather, I have experienced this with a 6 kt crosswind, and also a 10 kt wind from about 20 degrees off from the runway. Yesterday I was connected to VATSIM with a friend, both from the same runway, both with real world weather loaded. Mine displayed this symptom while his did not, and I have set him up the same way as mine.

 

As for the rudder, it doesn't appear to be deflecting at all (I just tried it) so maybe it's just the wheels?!

 

So far I have shown this with a Cessna 172 and a Beech 58 (FSX default aircraft).

 

Thanks again for your time and help.

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That sounds normal, on the ground. A wind from the right blows against the vertical fin of the aircraft, pushing it to the left, thus a right turn; vice versa for a wind from the left, of course. Once airborne you shouldn't have a problem with that, but the wind will cause you to drift downwind, thus requiring you to turn (not throw in rudder) to set up a crab so you can establish the desired ground track.

 

So perhaps you need to take the lessons in the sim to learn a bit more about how aircraft actually fly, and about ground handling.

 

However, if I have misunderstood your explanation of the problem, then perhaps you can elaborate, but your description does sound to me as if you need some lessons.

 

Larry N.

As Skylab would say:

Remember: Aviation is NOT an exact Science!

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Check out the shape of a weather vane & an airplane. Do you see the similarities? This affect is much more noticeable at ground speeds. But it also applies in flight. When told by ATC to hold a course of say 275*, you might well have to point your nose at say 280*+/- to stay on that course line. Or if the wind at your tail you might be indicating 200 kts. indicated air speed while your GPS indicates your speed over ground is 215. Same deal.

 

Don't turn the weather off. Learn to adapt to it. That's just another variable to make sim flying fun & life like!

Being an old chopper guy I usually fly low and slow.
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Thanks for all the replies on this one. I'm assuming as a new member on here, my replies are being moderated.

 

To clarify, I'm a real world pilot so know about the dynamics etc. I would expect some effect, as in the real world, but nothing like this. Full rudder in a twin for a 6kt crosswind just isn't realistic, and is not replicated in my friends PC when flown in the same conditions.

 

This has only just started occurring, but I haven't added anything or made changes to my setup to cause the issue.

 

I'm interested that the first reaction from some is that I must be new at this and so need lessons...... - not this time.

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No insult intended by any of us I'm sure! But the crosswind issue is a question that is brought up from time to time by people who believe a plane or a boat should handle like a car.

 

I'm fascinated by the "this has only just started" aspect. I've not heard of that happening to others.

 

Good Luck! And please advise as to what you find out!

Being an old chopper guy I usually fly low and slow.
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OK, With the next few posts I think the moderation will be over and your posts will go through quickly. Now back to my question about trying different aircraft like the 737, CRJ700 and so forth to see what affect the weather has on those. Try some taxi practice using the Locked Spot view chase position and see if there is any rudder flopping about or any other strange happenings.

 

Are you using only default aircraft or 3rd party addons?

Still thinking about a new flightsim only computer!  ✈️

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It may be that your default flight got saved with Yaw Damper or the autopilot on. Try CTRL+D for the yaw Damper and Z for the autopilot and see what happens.

 

Just a thought...

Pat☺

[sIGPIC][/sIGPIC]

Had a thought...then there was the smell of something burning, and sparks, and then a big fire, and then the lights went out! I guess I better not do that again!

Sgt, USMC, 10 years proud service, Inactive reserve now :D

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Flight modeling is complex and the limitations of the sim makes understanding flight dynamics harder than the real world.

 

"To clarify, I'm a real world pilot so know about the dynamics etc. I would expect some effect, as in the real world, but nothing like this. Full rudder in a twin for a 6kt crosswind just isn't realistic, and is not replicated in my friends PC when flown in the same conditions."

 

Sounds like you are flying a turboprop? Which one? Default? Add-on?

 

A few comments:

New FS simmers often believe every aircraft they download or install is correctly modeled. This is not correct. As a real world aviator, when the weather conditions are fully understood and you are watching the wind using the shift-z text, and are still convinced the model is not behaving correctly, it may not be. The comparison you made to a friend with Active Sky is a valuable insight, but not directly.

 

To make accurate weather comparisons, you need to know the metar for the time and location. You can easily do this in Active Sky, but cannot in default FSX weather.

Comparing even the same location and day minutes apart can have dramatically different results.

 

Understand the built in weather FSX generator is primitive on purpose. Bare bones.

Active Sky being payware is much more sophisticated. However, your comments seem mostly related to taxi and take off in cross wind. It's in the air where the default FSX weather and AS are more different.

 

In your real life flying experience, were you accustomed to having your rudder coupled to the ailerons? If not, you may want to explore disabling auto-coordination to give you more control.

 

The MOST MISUNDERSTOOD FEATURE OF FS when it comes to aircraft model accuracy:

YOUR CONTROLLER IS A RUBBER RULER.

The developer of the aircraft model likely did not program the model using your controller and sensitivity settings.

 

G forces:

As a real world pilot, you FELT the wind acting on your plane and controls. This is missing in FS which can cause forces acting on your plane to be ms-interpreted.

Since the sim is 100% visual and you are seeing the world through a port hole, you need to re-train your brain to accept the sim's limitations.

 

When in doubt, fly a DEFAULT model which most closely resembles your test aircraft (in this case try the default Beech King Air which is modeled very well) under the SAME EXACT conditions. The default models (although some people will complain about them) are reasonably modeled and will behave closer to real world than a lot of freeware claiming to be better.

 

To make sure you are comparing apples to apples, when you encounter a doubtful modeling condition, PAUSE and SAVE the flight, then turn off ALL real time download weather. Restore the saved flight and switch planes to a default and fly. Restore again and fly the test plane. Compare back and forth.

 

Throw away any bad freeware/payware models you encounter. They are not worth the effort.

 

A lot of models are created by people who have never flown a plane in their life, and many more models are created by people who never flew the particular model in question in real life.

 

Just because the modeler punched in some real world data into a flight model does not mean the model behaves the same as the real world.

 

Over-correcting and under-correcting are the two most prominent errors new simmers make. Even those with flight experience because the feel of the forces is missing. If the model you are flying is one you are married to (do or die) then the process is not one of trying to get the plane to feel like it did in the real world, but one of re-training your brain to understand how this particular model controls and feels in the sim. There are probably dozens if not hundreds of other models to download for the same plane. Try others.

 

-Pv-

2 carrot salad, 10.41 liter bucket, electric doorbell, 17 inch fan, 12X14, 85 Dbm
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