ATC Assistance

[jamese777]

Newbie here. I get no instructions from ATC for landings. I file a flight plan and fly an IFR course but when I approach my destination airport nothing ever happens except "cleared to land runway..., well once, landing at Halifax, Nova Scotia I DID get ATC instructions, but other than that...nothin'
What am I doing wrong????
Thanks

[Nexus]

Weird, to say the least.
You write that you got the landing clearance, which means that you hade contact with the Tower. Which also means you HAD contact with Approach before that, etc...unless you canceled the flight plan and used the "select airport option"

It's hard to explain what you do wrong when you don't even say WHAT you are doing in the first place  :)

Just follow their instructions from take off to landing and that should be a wrap

[hiflyphil]

Hi

Just a thought, are you increasing the Simulation rate?  If so, you could miss some ATC instructions and if that happens they will abandon you and leave you to navigate on your own.


Phil

[Lethal.Ambition]

Also, make sure you select to have the landing instructions because if you select visual landing they will just clear you to land. The other option they tel you heading and altitude.

[Nexus]

Also, make sure you select to have the landing instructions because if you select visual landing they will just clear you to land. The other option they tel you heading and altitude.

...But not the SPEED
This is something that bugs me quite a bit. In crowded airports the approach will always give you speed directions also, so they can control the traffic more efficcient. That is none existant in FS2002 (is it the same for FS9?)

[jamese777]

Thanks for the replies. How do I request landing assistance?
For example, right now I'm flying a triple 7 and I'm preparing to land in Vienna. I just requested a full stop landing and ATC told me to fly left downwind for runway 16.
If everything goes as usual, the next and only time I will hear anything else from ATC is when I'm number one for landing on final.

[Nexus]

You request a full stop and landing?
Then  you're not flying your assigned IFR flight...that is your problem. Or you might've cancelled it or the ATC terminated the IFR flightplan.

[jamese777]

You request a full stop and landing?
Then  you're not flying your assigned IFR flight...that is your problem. Or you might've cancelled it or the ATC terminated the IFR flightplan.

Ahhhhh I'm beginning to see the light! Yes, every time I get close to my destination I have been requesting a full stop landing! I guess you are saying that I should just wait until ATC gives me instructions before doing anything. I think in the past I have tried that and flown straight over the destination airport with no instructions but I'm going to try it again. I have gotten cancellation of IFR flightplan messages before, but only rarely.

[zcottovision]

If you make all your flight plans IFR, ATC won't even give you the option of requesting a full stop landing. They'll direct you straight to the localiser for an ILS approach, and all you have to do is hit the APP button!

As for IFR cancellation messages...if you obey the ATC's every commands, they won't try and cancel you!

[jamese777]

Hmmm, puzzled again. I believe that I DO obey their commands and I still get no instructions. Now one question does "Obey their commands" mean answering every handoff? Sometimes I miss a handoff and have to request flight following.

[RollerBall]

Sometimes I miss a handoff and have to request flight following.

There ya go then. Explains everything.

Why don't you set up a small IFR flight in let's say the 737 - say from Heathrow to Stansted at 3500 ft. You will be under ATC instruction the whole way and you won't have a chance to miss any handoffs. Only takes about 20 mins.

Set the wind at 070 deg 8 kts so you fly straight out and straight in and put the ILS settings into your autopilot before you take off (always a good idea anyway) ie CRS 048, NAV1 frq 110.50

Put in your alt of 3500, a speed of 240 kts and a HDG of 090 ready for when you take off at Heathrow.

Get your IFR clearance at Heathrow, taxi out and take off and go onto autopilot and autothrottle with HDG, ALT and SPD selected at say 500 ft .

Then follow ATC instructions. Use HDG on the autopilot to turn the plane and as you approach Stansted use the ALT to descend as instructed by ATC. They will set you up at around 2100 ft on a heading of something like 018. When the localizer bug on your HSU* starts to move, just select APR and it will all happen. All you need to do is get your approach speed down, your gear down and your flaps on.

DO NOTHING ELSE - follow instructions!!!!!!!

You can't go wrong (can you! )

*typo - I meant HSI of course!

[jamese777]

Yessir! Will do. Actually thanks so much for the precise instruction. I had downloaded the tutorial on ATF flying from this forum and folllowed it explicitly but I guess it didn't cover everything that I needed. I'm sure the help offered in this thread is not just for me but many other lurkers as well.
I have tended to concentrate on very long flights where it is easy to miss a handoff and on flights with clear weather. These factors seem to be the reason ATC gives up on me!

[Lethal.Ambition]

"N700MS turn left heading 125"

"N700MS did you hear my last transmission?"

"N700MS did you copy?"

"N700MS, ATC services terminated. Good Day"

OR

"N700MS please expedite your descend/ascend to 7,000"


"N700MS please expedite your descend/ascend to 7,000"


"N700MS please expedite your descend/ascend to 7,000"

"N700MS ATC services terminated. Resume Own Navigation, Frequency change aproved. Good Day"

Harsh but they warn like 3 times every time. NEVER leave ATC hanging, never!!!!!!LOL