Simviation Forums

Will having the de-ice on or off in the the game really do anything, I now in real flying it prevents ice from forming in and around very important parts of the plane, I am guessing around the engines and flaps and such, am I correct on that also???  Anyway in the game will it make a difference if you have it on or off???  Also what does the pilot heat do?????

I have noticed after a while of not using it, my airspeed gauge stops working. Coincidence? Possibly.

You will not see the ice forming on the wings or structure (unless you have Bill Lyons Apache.  His is the only aircraft I have seen that models icing).  However you will see the airspeed drop off to zero due to pitot ice.  That is what your Pitot/Static Heat are for.  I have noticed to that When flying in icing conditions that the aircraft performance will get progressively worse if you do not turn on the wing de-ice or if it is not available decend to warmer air.  

Create some conditions with severe icing in the clouds and you will see what I mean.  Don't turn on any de-icing equipment and see your airspeed become inoperative, and the plane progessively get worse in flying characteristices.  The latter takes longer to develop.

Iggy You are close there can be several deice switches;
one for the leading ede of each wing and elevater one for the pitot tube(s) & one for each engine. Not every planes has them all some have none. Which means you need to stay out of icy situations. The main concern is for the wings if they ice up it not only add weight but can prevent control surface movement. The other critical place is the pitot tube(s) if they ice up you loose your air speed indicator.

Im sure that I read in quite a few places that the structual de-icing switches dont do anything in FS.

To answer your pitot heat question...It is a tube filled that makes the airspeed indicator read correctly it is filled with liquid, which can freeze at sub freezing temps, which in turn will result in errant readings from the airspeed indicator

what does the pilot heat do?

To answer your pitot heat question...It is a tube filled that makes the airspeed indicator read correctly it is filled with liquid, which can freeze at sub freezing temps, which in turn will result in errant readings from the airspeed indicator

What?

Codered is correct, there is no liquid in the pitot tube.

It is in fact just a tube, as the name suggests.

if it is not available decend to warmer air.  

Also in many cases climbing too a higher altitude. Doesn't seem to make sense but a lot of times air can be warmer higher up.
This was a question I posed to a flight instructor, "What should you do if you notice icing and your pitot heat isn't working? " He said "Go too a lower altitude",  fair enough but "What happens if you suddenly find  a bank of clouds as far as you can see, below you, you have minimal instrument training (or they aren't working), more or less flying blind?"
He said he wasn't sure. So I got to doing some research (most instructors don't like me because of some of the senerios I come up with )
From my research I found that by climbing higher, in more cases than none the air will be warmer than at the "icing" altitude!
So I posed this info to a FAA Examiner and he verified that yes it would be true.

[quote]

Also in many cases climbing too a higher altitude. quote]

Yes this is very true.

The reason climbing works is because icing often happens when cold air mass and a warm air mass collide. The warm humid air carries a lot of moisture and somewhere where the two meet conditions can be cold enough to freeze this moisture. That's where you encounter icing. Since warm air is lighter than cold you can sometimes climb high enough to get into the warmer air and thus avoid the icing conditions. Of course that is only true sometimes. It depends on many factors. If climbing doesn't work you can try descending. If that doesn't work then a 180 degree course change is advisable. Just make sure you don't get too far into the bad weather to get back out again.

Also in many cases climbing too a higher altitude. Doesn't seem to make sense but a lot of times air can be warmer higher up.

It makes perfect sense if you're flying into an inversion where icing can easily result.

In its simplest form, it consists of a tube with an opening at  the  end.   The  small  hole  in  the  end  is  positioned  such  that  it  faces  the  flowing FLUID.   The velocity  of  the FLUID at  the  opening  of  the  tube  decreases  to  zero.   This  provides  for  the  high pressure input to a differential pressure detector.  A pressure tap provides the low pressure input.