Departure procedures

[JimPilot]

Greetings fellow simpilots,

I originally posted this to "Real Aviation", but I suspect they're just laughing at me right now...

Although not totally new to sim flying, I'm confused about some real life info... Being from the Boston area, I've decided to "follow" the Red Sox around this baseball season. In an effort to do so as properly as I can, I've been going to the FAA site to get airport diagrams and the like. Question: What is the reason for multiple DP's? Is it related to the direction in which you plan to go once in the air? The runway you're using? I realize the IAP's are for whatever runway you're going to use, but the DP's baffle me.How do you decide which one you want to use?

Thanks guys (and girls),
Jim

[-Crossfire-]

I believe it's mostly determined by what runway your using and which direction your flight is.

Make sure you read everything on the plate... some SIDs are RNAV and some are Vector... obviously if your aircraft is not RNAV equipped, you can't do that departure.

Also, check for Jet Aircraft vs. Non-Jet aircraft on the plate.  This one is self-explanatory.

[JimPilot]

Thanks for the reply.  After probing into some FAA publications, I think I'm starting to get it. Slowly but surely we learn...nothing wrong with that as long as we learn, right?

Thanks again,
Jim