Wonder about this

[rich12545]

I've been flying fs9 for a couple of years. Like to fly about 3-4000 ft above ground level. Problem I've always had was knowing how far up I am. Altitude gives above sea level but how do you tell how far above ground when flying in hills or mountains? There should be some easy way I guess.

[OBIO]

There are gauges that let you know how far off the ground you are....usally only up through 2000 feet or so. Radar Altimeters I think they are called. There are a number of them around...Piglet's L29 comes with one, got a slew of them for CFS2 jets. If you can't find one, PM me with your e-mail address and I will send you a copy of one of the gauges.

OBIO

[Moparmike]

Sectional charts will have ground elevation data on them...as does the FS map feature for mountain peaks and airfields.
You might be able to pickup some outdated sectionals from an FBO at your local airport. They're updated semi-annually so most places might have a few old ones laying around. If you call a few flight service outfits and let them know that you're planning on using them just for Flight Simulator use, you might be able to score some outdated ones for the cost of a trip to the airport.


There are also radar altimeter gauges out there that you can add to your aircraft's panel too. Like the real ones, most of these top out at about 2000-2500' above ground level (AGL).

[rich12545]

I can see the point in those gauges. You don't want to get too close to the ground when flying. And they can help with landing. But they don't do anything for telling if you're 6000 ft agl or 3000.

Sectionals don't tell much either if you're flying in the Alaskan mountains.

Looks like there really isn't much available.

[Lionheart]

Hey Rich,

I am sure someone has done a gauge out there that has actual altitude on it. Do a search in AVSIM and Flightsim and see if you find anything good.

You can add the guage as a popup and view your altitude that way.



Bill

[Moparmike]

You pretty much have to fly FS like you do in real life...know the terrain you're flying into and plan your flight around the terrain accordingly. If you're flying in the mountains, use the flight planner tool to get a preview of your flight path (much like you would do if you were planning your flight with a sectional). Also, the flight planner tool should automatically set a minimum ASL altitude that will carry you over the highest terrain you'll find on the flight path.

BTW, the sectional charts will give you all the ground elevation info that you'll need to avoid the mountains. Attached is a bit of the Anchorage area sectional showing the area around Denali. Elevation info is available even when you get "way out in the sticks" away from the airports too.
www.avcharts.com (http://www.avcharts.com) is where I found this sectional...it's one that I don't have on paper.

If you pull up the GPS gauge and click on the TERR(ain) button, then you can get a semi-useful colored topo view of where you're flying. It doesn't give any elevation numbers, but it will give you somewhat of a warning that you're approaching mountains.

If you're flying VFR, then it's just "keep your head outside the cockpit". But if you're flying IFR it does require a little more planning to avoid those "granite clouds". :whistle:

[srgalahad]

For IFR, there are two sets of numbers available
Minimum Enroute Altitude (MEA) is the lowest published altitude between radionavigation fixes that assures acceptable navigational signal coverage (see MRA) and meets obstacle clearance
and the MOCA (minimum Obstacle Clearance Altitude)

http://www.flightsimaviation.com/aviation_theory_17_Enroute_Charts.html

IFR charts are updated frequently so a pilot may be willing to share his old ones (again, if you explain it's for study and simming only)

You might want to look at this:
http://www.dauntless-soft.com/products/SimPlates/
Although it's 'terminal' as opposed to enroute info.

Rob

Oh.. safe is nice, but some of the real enjoyment is being low enough to see but not bring home branches in the landing gear. That's VFR!
For some good mountain flying practice, take a look here
http://www.sim-outhouse.com/sohforums/showthread.php?t=1281
( and don't think about 'thousands of feet of terrain clearance):wiggle:

[rich12545]

Bill, I searched on flightsim and found a small file called altspeed.zip. This looks like a great program. It's a small window that shows your speed and height agl. Thanks for this idea. I should have thought of it but really thought there was something I was missing in fs itself that gives the info.

I'm more of a casual flyer just doing vfr in areas I want to see. And doing premade flights. Haven't learned ifr yet but probably will. So I'm not really interested in going through a lot before a flight. In fact I use fsdiscover for my flight plans, it's really easy and fast. And I use the terr in the gps when in mountains. I want to get into bush flying and srgalahad will try your program.

[srgalahad]

Rich, remember that a radar altimeter reads the terrain BELOW you, not what's about to bite your nose... in mountainous terrain if you see scary numbers or get a warning on the rad. alt. it may well be too late ( too many real pilots have found this out) ... preflight the terrain, then keep your eyes outside! Even a good state map or hiking map will give you some good elevation data if you only fly in a local area.

[Brian_Gladden]

If you want payware. Get the Reality XP Sandel 3400. I put it in nearly every plane I have in my FS9 hangar. Gives you a moving map, TCAS and TAWS. Shows graphically where you might hit something on the map and also verbal warnings. Has altitude call outs for landing and even works as an RMI.

I've got almost all of the RXP gauges and the 3400 is the one I use the most. Followed closely by the flight line T gauges.

http://www.reality-xp.com/flightsim/st3400/index.html

Brian

[rich12545]

Heh, if I get another payware anything my wife will have a major cow. I have the reality xp 530 which I use mostly for vfr following roads. Much fun. And I use the default gps with terr to fly in mountains to see what's in front of me. This altspeed file will be great for staying at about the right altitude for vfr flying which I like to keep at about 3-4000 agl.

[edmoore235]

Rich, perhaps FID 3 may work for you. See below:

FS2004 (ACOF) - FS2004 Panels FS2004 Flight Information Display 3
[ Download (http://flightsim.com/kdl.php?fid=87437) | View (http://flightsim.com/zview.php?cm=list&fid=87437) ]
Name: gafid3.zip (http://flightsim.com/kdl.php?fid=87437) Size: 195,453 Date: 04-03-2005 Downloads: 1,552
http://flightsim.com/k/gafid3.gif FS2004 Flight Information Display 3. A gauge that shows important information about fuel, time, temperature, speed, wind and altimeter settings. New is a page for Nav and Com frequencies. Also more flexible installation instructions and a button for main panel to toggle the extra panel. By Georg Aubele.

I have it installed and it works very well. Both as a popup and as an icon of the panel....

Hope this helps.

ED :applause:

[rich12545]

That's a very nice deal although I'm not sure how it shows agl. Thanks for sharing.