Autopilot questions

[Maulkin]

My initial conditions is cruising at 5000ft going 340knts

 

1) I set the Alt. Selector Drums to 10000ft and then set the AP master switch to on (green). Then I press the "Selected Alt. Hold button" and the yellow AFF light turns on. I then press the button again and it turns off. I am not able to get it to engage and climb to 10000ft.

 

2) But this is not always the case! Sometimes I can get it to work once (and only once) if I perform this action after taking off from a runway but when I press the "Selected Alt. Hold button" the first time it skips the yellow AFF and goes straight to the green ALT. Once it reaches the 10000ft it disengages and the Alt. Hold button lights up green. If I disengage the AP then I can never get it to work again.

 

3) On the HSI there is a "Selected AP Course Indicator"....how do I move that indicator to a different value other than 360 degrees? How do I get the AP to use it?

[PiedDroit]

As far as I know, the altitude capture mode doesn't make the aircraft climb, you have to make it climb (or descend - everything I write below also applies to descent).

Here's how I used it so far:

- Set the drums.

- Engage AP, climb (use trim commands to initiate and adjust climb while in AP).

- Press AFF, the button will turn yellow.

 

It will stay yellow until you get within 1000ft (or maybe less) of the target altitude:

When close to the target altitude (as you climb), [AFF] ALT will become green and the aircraft will start reducing vertical speed, it is now in capture mode.

 

When the target altitude is reached, the AP will switch to ALT (altitude hold).

 

3. I don't know about the AP course mode sorry

Edited January 5, 2017 by PiedDroit

[Maulkin]

OK that helps a lot thanks PiedDroit! That explains why sometimes I could get it to work after takeoff because I would set about 3000ft which is about 1000 ft above when I would engage the AP.

 

I will test that out tomorrow morning.

[Steph-JJ]

My initial conditions is cruising at 5000ft going 340knts

 

1) I set the Alt. Selector Drums to 10000ft and then set the AP master switch to on (green). Then I press the "Selected Alt. Hold button" and the yellow AFF light turns on. I then press the button again and it turns off. I am not able to get it to engage and climb to 10000ft.

 

2) But this is not always the case! Sometimes I can get it to work once (and only once) if I perform this action after taking off from a runway but when I press the "Selected Alt. Hold button" the first time it skips the yellow AFF and goes straight to the green ALT. Once it reaches the 10000ft it disengages and the Alt. Hold button lights up green. If I disengage the AP then I can never get it to work again.

 

3) On the HSI there is a "Selected AP Course Indicator"....how do I move that indicator to a different value other than 360 degrees? How do I get the AP to use it?

 

 

To 3)

You must use the trimbutton left and right. ;)

[myHelljumper]

All the AP functions are described in the manual, you should check it ;)

[PiedDroit]

To 3)

You must use the trimbutton left and right. ;)

Oooooh that one :megalol: it was pretty late for me my brain didn't make the connection

[Maulkin]

All the AP functions are described in the manual, you should check it ;)

 

Please dont assume that questions precede the manual. Have you read it? I have....many times now. Just to show you I will copy and paste it here:

Selected Altitude Hold.

1. Select the desired altitude by clicking on the selector drums. Minimum altitude is

1,000 feet.

2. Click on the button. The light turns on indicating that the

system is armed. (this happens)

3. Click again on the button. The light turns on and the

aircraft will level at the selected altitude. (this does not happen and it does not mention you need to trim for climb)

 

And that procedure does not work. Which is why I am here...asking the questions.

 

Guys,

I have been on this forum for a really long time. I very rarely post. For the first time I thought instead of struggling I would just ask on the forum so I opened a series of threads, one question topic per thread. I am saddened by the number of times people dont really read the question but just assume I didnt do my homework and "go read the manual". And I dont just see this with my posts. I have seen this with several others as well which is why people will hesitate posting.

 

But even if someone didnt read the manual...does it really hurt that much to help? It could be that the person didnt understand what they read, or they simply missed it. Typically I will copy and paste the information directly from the Flight Manual into a reply (with page number) so they know where to look for the next time. Just saying "go read the manual" is not helpful at all.

Edited January 5, 2017 by Maulkin

[Maulkin]

To 3)

You must use the trimbutton left and right. ;)

 

Thanks Steph! At first I thought you must have been joking. That is not at all how I expected that to work but I kind of makes sense now with the how trim works with Select Alt. Hold.

[Maulkin]

I just found this gem by Creative Fun which I had started watching but I must have gotten interrupted and never saw more than the first 25 seconds:

 

 

This might prove useful to anyone else who is trying to learn the autopilot.

Edited January 5, 2017 by Maulkin

[Azrayen]

Hi

 

The ALT AFF mode works as intended (on principle) in the sim now. Precision needs tuning ( for next update, see CptSmiley's recent posts in pending updates thread) but the principle is OK.

 

The current manual is OTOH outdated on this point. I'm sure Razbam will update it, but this may take some time.

 

Fly safe

Az'

[S D]

Its just understanding the sequence of doing things and the limit of the each step i guess.

 

If i'm in a position or airspace where i dont have to worry about threats. I generally engage auto pilot once i'm in a steady climb and cleaned up. I pretty much continue on auto pilot, commanding turns and climbs/descents with the auto pilot trim input.

 

Generally i'll set whatever altitude i need into the barrel select before the climb/descent, then command the climb/descent with the auto pilot trim input down/up.

 

Once you get used to it, it saves such a load on the pilot, when doing an IFR approach for example. I really like the way the system is designed.

Edited January 5, 2017 by Shadow.D.

[PiedDroit]

Yup, once the sequence is figured it is super intuitive and helpful :thumbup:

 

Please dont assume that questions precede the manual. Have you read it? I have....many times now. Just to show you I will copy and paste it here:

[...]

Easy, easy, just pay attention to what's useful to you and ignore the rest - in return, be useful to others ;)

[jojo]

As far as I know, the altitude capture mode doesn't make the aircraft climb, you have to make it climb (or descend - everything I write below also applies to descent).

Here's how I used it so far:

- Set the drums.

- Engage AP, climb (use trim commands to initiate and adjust climb while in AP).

- Press AFF, the button will turn yellow.

It will stay yellow until you get within 1000ft (or maybe less) of the target altitude:

When close to the target altitude (as you climb), [AFF] ALT will become green and the aircraft will start reducing vertical speed, it is now in capture mode.

 

When the target altitude is reached, the AP will switch to ALT (altitude hold).

 

3. I don't know about the AP course mode sorry

 

Just a small correction:

you don't need to start climbing before selecting "ALT AFF".

- set the drums (you can even do that on the ground before take off)

- select "A.P" + "ALT.AFF"

- start the climb/ descent (the easier way is with trim up/ down)

 

Then you just have to monitor your speed and adjust throttle (no auto throttle on M-2000C). This is easy thanks to energy chevron > <

[PiedDroit]

Just a small correction:

you don't need to start climbing before selecting "ALT AFF".

- set the drums (you can even do that on the ground before take off)

- select "A.P" + "ALT.AFF"

- start the climb/ descent (the easier way is with trim up/ down)

 

Then you just have to monitor your speed and adjust throttle (no auto throttle on M-2000C). This is easy thanks to energy chevron > <

 

Yep, right, I should have mention that there is no particular order, thanks :thumbup:

Selecting AFF first makes more sense, as one might be so close to target altitude that he misses it if he climbs first.

[Azrayen]

I really like the way the system is designed.

Me too.

In fact, the aircraft is designed to be flown with AP engaged most of the time.

Only "dynamic" phases (attack run, air-to-air close engagement, air refuel, take off/landing) are flown AP Off.

[S D]

In fact, the aircraft is designed to be flown with AP engaged most of the time.

Only "dynamic" phases (attack run, air-to-air close engagement, air refuel, take off/landing) are flown AP Off.

Yeah that does make a lot of sense, i have found myself using it alot more now i can fly and fight with the airframe comfortably. I can concentrate on the general picture and any small details, planning ahead for freq changes, INS inputs etc.

 

It really does become just a joy to fly. I appreciate it even more after doing 3 days of IFR approaches and landings with diff wind states/visibility in the Mirage, without the projected runway.

 

I switched to the F-5E yesterday to do the same thing, the workload is insane.

 

But i figure if i can crack it, then i should be able to cope with almost anything.... Maybe :)

Edited January 6, 2017 by Shadow.D.