Navigation in Air Hauler

[adrians69 159]

I was wondering if there were any way to use proper IFR flight plans in AH rather than the slightly cheaty GPS  . When you try to access the flight planner in FSX when doing an AH job, the OK buttons are greyed out so you can't make your own flight plans.

 

Thanks

 

Adrian

[allardjd 1,853]

 

From the Useful Info and Top Tips thread in the JF AH forum...

 

FLIGHT PLANS IN AH

 

When you select a job or jobs to fly from the My Jobs screen and work your way through the Flight Planning screen to the Cargo Loading screen, AH creates a flight plan which it sends to FS when AH launches the simulator. When you arrive at the cockpit, the flight plan will already be loaded and will be available on the kneeboard and in the GPS, ready for you to use.

 

AH has no further interest in the route of your flight. It only cares that the cargoes for the jobs you selected before leaving the My Jobs screen are delivered to the correct destinations prior to their respective job expiration times. You may delete, edit, replace or totally ignore the flight plan that AH created and loaded in FS - AH will not know or care.

 

You may use the FS Flight Planner or a third-party flight planner to edit the AH plan or create a different one. The route of flight, speed, altitude or intermediate stops are a matter of complete indifference to AH.

 

MULTI-JOB FLIGHT PLANS

 

There is an important quirk of FS/AH in the use of flight plans for multi-leg, multi-job flights.

 

To give a simple example - If you accept two jobs which require flight legs...

 

A -> B

B -> C

 

...which require departing A, stopping at B, then proceeding to C. AH will create a single flight plan that reflects that. However, because of limitations to the FS flight planning engine, B will be treated simply as a waypoint. FS will not understand that you plan to land at B.

 

There are several ways to deal with this, but they boil down to these.

 

1) Don't use a flight plan

 

2) Use the plan as is but land at B anyway. The details of the plan will be incorrect, but the routing will be OK.

 

3) Create two separate plans, one from A -> B and a second from B -> C. You can create all the required plans during your pre-flight planning and save them or do them at your intermediate stops as needed. Load the first flight plan and use it to fly A -> B. Take care of your fuel and cargo business and return to the cockpit. Load the second flight plan and fly from B -> C.

 

If you enjoy the realism of closely following the FS Flight Plans in AH, you will need to create and load individual flight plans for each flight leg. It's not so terribly hard and mirrors real-world practice.

 

John

[Tecaty Express 0]

I use a third party addon for my flight planning. FSX flight plans are terrible to be honest and since I know where my flights are going its easy for me to save and load known flight plans. Plus I have the ability to use SIDS and STARS if required by Vatsim . 

[adrians69 159]

Thanks for the advice guys. I'll do that on my next AH flight. Up to now, I've been using the GPS plan but on arrival at B, cancelling IFR and continuing the arrival using VFR with flight following, then going from B to C under VFR all the way. 

[allardjd 1,853]

I make my own flight plans, one for each leg, and fly RW WX with Radar Contact (ATC add-on).

 

John

[brett 2,287]

I've heard PlanG is pretty good.  I'd be lost without it.

[adrians69 159]

I'm going to have to try one of these flight planning add ons!