Using X-Plane 11 VR and VATSIM for IFR Practice?

[Tokirbymd]

I built a gaming machine awhile back and recently purchased an Oculus Rift + Touch Controllers to go with it.

I got my Instrument rating back in July and fly my own Cherokee Six 300 about once a week.

That said, it’s been fun using the game machine to launch X-Plane VR, login to VATSIM, and practice approaches at unfamiliar airports.

I realize it doesn’t count for currency, but with the VR, simulated GTN 650, Aspen 1000, plus Navigraph data, I get a very close approximation of the real thing.

I thought using VATSIM would be daunting, but it turned out to be relatively simple since I’m already an IFR pilot.

Anyone else doing this? Maybe we can use this thread for tips, tricks, favorite plugins, etc.

Do you have an Aspen simulator PFD for the Six? I have the Carenado Saratoga that I modified the settings on to emulate my 6-300 and added the gtn650. However I am installing an Aspen next week and would like to add this to my panel for practice.

 

[thebruce]

Not to hijack the thread, but how long does it take to get proficient enough with the simulator software? I'm interested in using pilotedge during IFR training, but I'm worried I'll just be crashing my simulated Cherokee at the departure end before I get to the useful part.

 

[FLEXCopMNPD]

I use XP11 and Pilotedge as well. Can't beat the combo. I try to stick to planes that I am familiar with in RL, or similar, so it makes flying them in the sim a little less stressful. Depending on what you fly IRL it's usually easy to find a payware aircraft of the same type with similar avionics to purchase. That way there is less to learn. You can fly offline until you feel comfortable with the differences between the real plane and the sim before adding PilotEdge to the mix.

 

[labbadabba]

Not to hijack the thread, but how long does it take to get proficient enough with the simulator software? I'm interested in using pilotedge during IFR training, but I'm worried I'll just be crashing my simulated Cherokee at the departure end before I get to the useful part.

There's a bit of a curve but as long as you realize the control inputs are very different than real life it's not so bad. Helps to have a decent AP in your sim plane, it will help deal with some of the trim issues which I find very tricky to fine tune. But as others have said, Sim + Pilotedge can't be beat for in-home proficiency. I flew just last night KSNA-KOXR down to mins at night in the marine layer. The controllers are VERY good. They're polite and helpful but they will also let you know when you screw up...

 

[GRG55]

Hi Jim,

Welcome to X-Plane! It’s extremely powerful, but there are a lot of knobs and dials. But, hey, we’re pilots!

Once you install the Reality XP GTN650 sim (http://www.reality-xp.com/) for X-plane, you can access it’s menu via X-plane’s plugins menu. Any stock X-plane aircraft that supports their built in 430W simulator should now be swappable with the GTN650. You may be able to “pop up” the GTN even if the airplane doesn’t have room in the panel. Since I run with 3 screens, I always keep the GTN “popped out” and on the right screen as it’s easier to see.

If you’re using a plane with an HSI, you may need to experiment with the RealityXP settings to make sure course data is being sent correctly. Those are quick on/off toggles in their config menu.

Warning: Once you’ve experienced the GTN sim, it will be extremely hard to go back to the 430W. Just the simple process of loading a flight plan into the GTN’s FMS is super fast with the touch screen.

I’m thinking about also buying the GTN 750 sim as I’d like the additional screen real estate, but the 650 is still very usable.

Buck

Hi Jim,

Welcome to X-Plane! It’s extremely powerful, but there are a lot of knobs and dials. But, hey, we’re pilots!

Once you install the Reality XP GTN650 sim (http://www.reality-xp.com/) for X-plane, you can access it’s menu via X-plane’s plugins menu. Any stock X-plane aircraft that supports their built in 430W simulator should now be swappable with the GTN650. You may be able to “pop up” the GTN even if the airplane doesn’t have room in the panel. Since I run with 3 screens, I always keep the GTN “popped out” and on the right screen as it’s easier to see.

If you’re using a plane with an HSI, you may need to experiment with the RealityXP settings to make sure course data is being sent correctly. Those are quick on/off toggles in their config menu.

Warning: Once you’ve experienced the GTN sim, it will be extremely hard to go back to the 430W. Just the simple process of loading a flight plan into the GTN’s FMS is super fast with the touch screen.

I’m thinking about also buying the GTN 750 sim as I’d like the additional screen real estate, but the 650 is still very usable.

Buck

We just added ATIS support to PilotEdge a few days ago, it seems to have been received well.

For instrument pilots looking for scenarios, I'd suggest checking out the I-Ratings and Sky High Charters programs. The I-Ratings is a series of 10 IFR flights, whereas the Sky High Charters program is a new scenario each month (we're up to 8 so far).

For those who are looking to manipulate the GPS in hardware, the Desktop Aviator unit is a low-cost option. One step up from that would be the RealSimGear Garmin 430 or 530 (or hell, the G-1000 PFD/MFD for that matter): https://realsimgear.com/collections/all

The difference is build quality and the fact that it has a working display.

Not me...I'm using it for ^^^ "buttonology^^^ also. I've got some decent flight controls, a couple of large TV's, and a 15" touchscreen that I view/interact with the GTN's on (the software actually uses the 'real' Garmin Trainer package in the background, and so far matches touch for touch). Last year I built ver 1.0 of a 'Cessna single' switch panel, and working right now on ver 2.0. When it's too crappy to fly, I go to the basement.

Jim

PS- I also use the capability Xplane has to 'talk' to Garmin pilot, and run Pilot in the sim on the same tablet I use in our 182.

I just did a benchmark on your AMD processor with integrated AMD Radeon graphics.

An older generation NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 dedicated graphics card is over 60X faster than your built-in AMD Radeon. I would say that the 1070 is probably the minimum you'd want to run X-Plane 11. I have the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 and am already looking at the newer generation of cards, which are 2x faster than mine. With a 1070 or better NVIDIA card, you can upgrade to VR later.

A previous generation Intel i7-7700 processor is 2.6x faster than the AMD A10-6700 in your system. This processor may be OK for X-Plane, but I would seriously looking at upgrading to at least a fast Intel i5 processor.

Memory is cheap and I'd recommend at least 16GB to run X-Plane. I have 32GB on my system and am not running into any issues.

This may be a situation where it's cheaper to by a new system configured the way you want it. When I do that, I tend to max out things like the processor, graphics, and memory so she'll last a good long time. Compare this to renting an aircraft at $150/hour and spending a little more money on a competent sim is well worth it.

Cheers!

The COVID-19 future of General Aviation (maybe commercial aviation too!)
Can't wait for X-Plane to add a feature to bring along your virtual family and friends, to get around the social distancing problem in our metal planes.

 

[Doering]

You see the outside and the virtual cockpit all in 3D. It is a beautiful perspective. If you browse the videos on the Flight Simulator forums, you will see how good it is.