A look inside the ACS files (must read)

[Christopher Serio 823884]

In my opinion, it's much faster to use notepad or excel etc to create aircraft situation files but in order to do so, you have to know what all of the fields mean. Here's some description spelling it out:

 

Here's what it looks like in the file

UCA5230,3246,41.954,-71.610,90,7000,230,1800
I,B190/F,450,KALB,1000,1015,FL210,KBOS,0,45,KJFK
ALB.GDM2
Phone number on file

 

Here's what it means

callsign, squawk code, lat, lon, heading, altitude, airspeed, climb/descent rate
type, ac type, cruise speed, origin, etd, act dep time, cruise alt, dest, hrs enroute, min enroute, alternate
Route of flight
Pilot Remarks

 

It's VERY IMPORTANT that you format yours the same way. There should be 4 lines for each aircraft and the lines should begin and end with the same fields as the examples above.

[Wayne Higgins 838379]

Hi Chris;

 

I setup a few scenarios in ACSIM and tested the water. Wow! Yes it is an amazing add on! Thanx to you and the software team who designed it.

 

Having more than 10 a/c is horrific for any sane instructor! - You become the pilot, the mentor, the critic and also the adjacent controllers, let alone picking up on the student's failings. If we dont have enough pilots to fly, where can we get more INS?

 

My big stress is converting the co-ordinates in the "FPL". May I suggest that the starting position of the a/c is entered as a FIX/Stand/Bay/Gate (on the sector file) rather than this tedious process of entering Metric Lat/Long coordinates

 

All said - My students love it! Thanx

[Andy Cleeremans 828954]

While I'd like to see this as an option, it's impossible to create the same MIT seperation that you're looking for. However, since I can't get random Lat / Long Coordinates using ASRC (and I'm too lazy to use the other program) I would like to see that as an option maybe?

[Andreas Fuchs]

Hi guys!

 

Since Raffael Walther is my FIR's chief he gave me the advice to use his program SectorEditor. To know what we are talking about have a look here: http://forums.vatsim.net/viewtopic.php?t=6790

 

Install and start the program. Open the sector file that you need to have for your training and move around with the cursor to the required position. You can either read the coordinates at the lower left side of the screen or - which is more convenient - pretend that you create an item, e.g. a VOR. If you now move the cursor to the requested position, hold down the CTRL-key and press the RIGHT mouse-button you can copy the coordinates of that point to the VOR-definition on the right of the screen and then type them into your ASC-file, although you still need to convert them into the format for it.

[Dan Everette]

While I'd like to see this as an option, it's impossible to create the same MIT seperation that you're looking for. However, since I can't get random Lat / Long Coordinates using ASRC (and I'm too lazy to use the other program) I would like to see that as an option maybe?

 

I'll admit, that is the most difficult and time-consuming part of creating a really good scenario. As I mentioned in my post in the VATUSA TA forum, I used FSNav. Not the slickest method (since VRC wasn't around yet), but pick where you want your first a/c. Then double click and drag (to get the measurements) out your desired heading and MIT to the next a/c and note that's position. Takes some patience, but you only have to do it once

 

Another method is to choose the first aircraft's position, then mathematically determine the remaining lat/lon's with a given azimuth/distance.

[Paul Byrne]

Hi,

 

Just a suggestion to making positions easy to place in the situation file would be to take a leaf from the Boeing FMC. In this, you can [Mod - Happy Thoughts]ign place bearing distance(PBD) waypoints. With this you would enter the code "GDM280/10" This would place a fix on the GDM 280 Radial, 10NM from GDM.

 

Maybe this sort of system can be used for placing aircraft in situation files much easier?

 

Cheers!

Paul.

[Ross Carlson]

Another method is to get into flight sim, dial up the VOR you want to position the aircraft relative to, slew to the appropriate distance on the

appropriate radial, and then record your coordinates. The coordinates are shown with Shift-Z across the top of the screen.