Keeping a wary eye on your gauges!

[Fozzer]

[quote]Psssst..

[jetprop]

it depends on the plane i fly.
if i fly planes withouth vc or if they're military jets i don't care about the gauges,even if i am going 1300 knots at 50 ft,i don't care.

if i fly a tube(wich i never do) i kind of check during takeoff,after a while its autopilot so...

but props like the baron,tiger moth(great aircraft,high realism),cessna or king air i always look at everything during takeoff,landing,the start of a climb and descen.
during cruise i look at the main stuff:speed,altitude and pitch(looking outside if necesary).
during startup and shutdown i follow the checklist EXACTLY.

i think this works well.

[Brett_Henderson]

[quote][quote]Psssst..

[Brett_Henderson]

I just searched and bumped a thread on this...

[Fozzer]

Referring to the analogy between starting a car off with

[Brett_Henderson]

[quote]Referring to the analogy between starting a car off with

[Strategic Retreat]

Above all....Don't panic!...Just remember, you are up in the air...and its a long way down! .......!

And most of all remember, it's not the descent that kills you. It's the IMPACT against something HARD, so choose wisely where landing that plane for the last time. Every landing you walk away from using your legs is a good landing, after all.

[hyperpep111]

If you suspect that a gauge is reading incorrectly then you must pay attention, and ascertain why it is, and what could be causing it...
(a) Your Air speed indicator/Altimeter is reading zero. Are the Pitot Tubes freezing up? Apply Pitot Heat.
(b) Your engine is running rough. Adjust Mixture? Carburettor icing up? Apply Carb Heat.
(c) Your oil pressure is dropping. Serious oil leak/cracked cylinder? Correctly identify the faulty engine on a twin, and be prepared to shut it down. Prepare to land.
(d) Battery not charging? Check Generator switches. Reduce the load.
(e) Check RPM gauges for correct speeds when changing Throttle settings (Engine and Propeller).
(f) Observe Manifold Pressure, and Fuel Flow Gauges for cruise performance.

A multitude of different things to be aware of, and precautions to be taken.

Above all....Don't panic!...Just remember, you are up in the air...and its a long way down! .......!

Paul.... ...!

As as Machineman states, many failures wont be obvious in the Sim, but applying the instructions given in the Pilots and Aircraft Owners Handbooks will aid your understanding of the correct controlling and safe operating an aircraft.

...and its educational....and fun!

You say adjust the knob and bush some buttons, I say
EJECT!!! EJECT!!! EJECT!!!

If you suspect that a gauge is reading incorrectly then you must pay attention, and ascertain why it is, and what could be causing it...
(a) Your Air speed indicator/Altimeter is reading zero. Are the Pitot Tubes freezing up? Apply Pitot Heat.
(b) Your engine is running rough. Adjust Mixture? Carburettor icing up? Apply Carb Heat.
(c) Your oil pressure is dropping. Serious oil leak/cracked cylinder? Correctly identify the faulty engine on a twin, and be prepared to shut it down. Prepare to land.
(d) Battery not charging? Check Generator switches. Reduce the load.
(e) Check RPM gauges for correct speeds when changing Throttle settings (Engine and Propeller).
(f) Observe Manifold Pressure, and Fuel Flow Gauges for cruise performance.

A multitude of different things to be aware of, and precautions to be taken.

These are my responses to your solutions. Lettered according to the above.

a) Yes. They are It needs burners. Now where did that pesky f-15 pilot go? [smiley=evil.gif]
b) They all go through rough times . Therapy should do it
c) Nothing a little duct tape can't fix
d) Yes you can drop off the annoying passenger called your boss
e) Correct speed. Hmmm Got to think about that one...
f)

...and its educational....and fun!

Fun education... Never heard of that before



But I serioussly cannot stress how important it is to mind your safety in real life. Such as always having your ejection seats armed, (The Vulcan crew wouldn't like that) and always carrying a parachute with you 8-)

[Aiden327]

Being a sim Airline pilot I am always cross checking my gauges. My Embraer 190 has nearly full Avionics simulation so just about every page is infallible on the MFD. I am constantly cycling through Electrics, Hydraulics, Fuel, Status, and Nav pages. Crosschecking the auto tuned nav frequencies with actually frequencies, and I try to fly with both Magenta Numbers and Green Numbers. Aka, one side of the cockpit is displaying the FMC nav data with the FD coupled to LNAV and VNAV while the right side of the cockpit is following the nav radios not the GPS and is manually tuned by me.

I also crosscheck the left gauges with the right ones and the standby's etc.

If I am forced to do a long APU start from the ramp with no ground power I am extra careful of fuel balance etc.

I enjoy trying to be the Captain and the First Officer at one. Sometimes I wish I was a real pilot which is why I take it seriously.

[Mr._Ryan]

At any given time I could tell you the speed of the car to +/- 1mph just by intuition.

And I'd bet you my pancreas you could do no such thing. That's completely preposterous.

As for watching the gauges, seems to me like a wise idea, unless you're treating the game like a true video game and not a sim.