Tower Trainer question

[John Holt 811222]

First it looks to be a great program. Thank you very much for you time and effort in this poroject. Two quick questions. This is not like the other Sweatbox program (ACSIM)) were we up loaded the sector file. Do we have to create one from scratch? I started mine last night. How did you obtain the cordinates for the Rwy, Taxiways and Gates. I used the AFCAD file of the airport to find those points. Is that how you did it? Second question, reference to taxiways when you end a taxiway at a runway, do you use the point in the middle of the runway where it meets. (simular to the point that the Rwy meets all the taxiways) or do you use a end point short of the runway?

[Ross Carlson]

AFCAD is a good way, you can also use VRC. Type ".debug 1" and you'll see a debug window including the lat/lon of the mouse cursor.

 

I personally use a little program that I wrote that queries MSFS for your current position via FSUIPC. I then slew my aircraft to each intersection on the field and use this program to capture my current lat/lon, which I then paste into my airport file. I may polish and release that program at some point.

[John Holt 811222]

Thanks Ross,

 

I also had this question. When adding the Taxiway points, Do you end or start them on the runway where it intersects with the taxiway or at the end of the taxiway just before the runway (at the Hold short line)?

 

JH

[Ross Carlson]

Taxiways need to end at the center of the runway. If you were to end the taxiway at a hold short point, then TWRTrainer would not realize that the taxiway and the runway are actually connected. Try to think of all taxiways and runways as thin lines all connected to each other like a big connect-the-dots puzzle, and not as actual 75-150 foot wide strips of pavement.

[John Holt 811222]

Ross,

 

Thanks for the clarification!!!!

[Menno Alting 897707]

Dear Ross, thanks for this nice software, but i still got some questions.

Im trying to make an airport file for EHAM, and ofcourse an air file for it. So fas no problem, the planes show up at the Lon/Lat positions i want them to.

I'm on the frequency 119.22 in VRC and TWR trainer

 

I've got an plane at C18, thats near the runway 24/06. So i made the runway as specified in the manual. and i made an path from the intersection nearest to C18 to the first point of the runway 24 (as read in the forum). So far so good, no errors.

 

the next thing i want is to let the plane (KLM123) taxi via the B taxiway to runway 24. But when i Aselect the KLM123 and give the command taxi b 24, it replys to me "Not taxiing,holding short or in position" What am i doing wrong?

 

If i type ss to the KLM, then it pust his mode C in standby, if i type speed 10, it starts to move at 10kts.

 

second question, EHAM lies at an elevation -11, i put it in the apt file, but when is set an aircraft at that level, it gives an error. TWR trainer wont accept planes on the ground at an altitude -11. But if i type add v s p @C14 (specified in the file, but no aircraft on it) it puts an auto generated plane on C14, wiht an altitude -11

So i tried the function "generate an aircraft file" but when i tried to past it form the clipbord nothing happens.

 

Flying an pattern works fine, even when i tell it to enter final 6. It decents and lands on the runway, but when i tell him to exit to the left EL, it responds "Not on final or landed"

 

hopefully you or somebody else knows the anwser to my problem.

 

 

Best regards

 

Menno

[Ross Carlson]

the next thing i want is to let the plane (KLM123) taxi via the B taxiway to runway 24. But when i Aselect the KLM123 and give the command taxi b 24, it replys to me "Not taxiing,holding short or in position" What am i doing wrong?

 

If i type ss to the KLM, then it pust his mode C in standby, if i type speed 10, it starts to move at 10kts.

 

If it starts to move when you give it a speed, then I suspect you previously gave it a speed of zero? Is that true? Also, when you give it the speed and it starts moving, where does it go?

 

second question, EHAM lies at an elevation -11, i put it in the apt file, but when is set an aircraft at that level, it gives an error. TWR trainer wont accept planes on the ground at an altitude -11. But if i type add v s p @C14 (specified in the file, but no aircraft on it) it puts an auto generated plane on C14, wiht an altitude -11

So i tried the function "generate an aircraft file" but when i tried to past it form the clipbord nothing happens.

 

I have not tested TWRTrainer with negative elevations. I suggest you use zero or one for the elevation.

 

Flying an pattern works fine, even when i tell it to enter final 6. It decents and lands on the runway, but when i tell him to exit to the left EL, it responds "Not on final or landed"

 

Sounds like the aircraft has already touched down and selected its turnoff direction and exit taxiway, or has rolled out past the last available turnoff. What does the status show for the aircraft at the time you give it the el command?

[Menno Alting 897707]

Ross, after your reply i made a whole new one

 

This is my aircraft file

 

 

; 0 - callsign

; 1 - ac type

; 2 - engine type (P, T, J, H)

; 3 - fp type (V, I)

; 4 - dep apt

; 5 - arr apt

; 6 - crz alt

; 7 - route

; 8 - remarks

; 9 - squawk code

; 10 - normal or standby (N or S)

; 11 - lat

; 12 - lon

; 13 - alt

; 14 - ground speed

; 15 - hdg

 

VLM12S:F50/F:P:I:EHRD:EHAM:3000:DCT:/v/charts:4520:N:52.221230:4.567057:2000:180:060

KLM13S:F50/F:P:I:EHAM:EHRD:3000:DCT:/v/charts:4530:N:52.304180:4.765456:0:0:060

 

This is my APT file

 

icao=EHAM

magnetic variation=54

field elevation=0

pattern elevation=1000

pattern size=4

initial climb props=6000

initial climb jets=6000

jet airlines=AAL,ACA,AWE,BAW,BLR,BTA,CAL,CAX,COA,CVA,DAL,DLH,EAL,EIN,FDX,FFT,JAL,JBU,KAL,KLM,ML,NEA,NWA,QFA,SAC,SAS,SWA,UAL,UPS,USA,WWA

turboprop airlines=EGF,USA,COA,CJC,JZA,VLM

registration=P

 

[PARKING C14]

52.304180 4.765456

 

[RUNWAY 6/24]

displaced threshold=0/0

turnoff=left

52.287876 4.733362

52.292028 4.744314

52.295515 4.753576

52.296930 4.757565

52.299889 4.765433

52.302950 4.773497

52.303973 4.776287

 

[TAXIWAY A]

52.298004 4.752264

52.299117 4.754792

52.300366 4.758640

52.301635 4.762027

52.303355 4.766454

52.304456 4.769648

52.304913 4.770843

52.305647 4.772631

52.306246 4.774224

52.303973 4.776287

 

[HOLD S7]

52.304765 4.775665

 

The plane lands great, only 90 kts at 4nm final, i found it hard to believe for an F50, also do i have to tell the plane to exit left where i want to?, because it rolled out with 50 kts all the way to the end. And after i told it to taxi to the gate, he went with the same speed to C14

 

The departing plane was told to taxi a hs s7 24. Great, it worked, taxi speed 20 kts). After that i told him pos, but that wouldnt work, so i told him res pos, and he lined up 24.

So i told him cto 240 at 1000ft he turned left out of traffic heading

 

Thats how far im standing now. It works, but i need to find out some fine tuning, conserning taxi speed and so on.

Is there a way to make the plane fly an SID??

 

Best regards

 

Menno

[Ross Carlson]

Menno,

 

Please email me a zip file containing the following:

 

1) Your aircraft file

2) Your airport file

3) The sector file you are using

 

My email is ross at vatsim dot net.

 

As for the F50, you need to use an engine type of T for turboprop. Then it will use a higher approach speed. You have it set as P for prop, which will use typical piston prop approach speeds.

[Ross Carlson]

Is there a way to make the plane fly an SID??

 

I forgot to answer this before .... there is no way. I figured it wasn't important since the aircraft will generally be handed off to departure on wheels up so the SID isn't really TWR's responsibility. If it's important enough, you can always issue the turn and climb instructions manually using the "fh" and "cm" commands.

 

(Also, note that the issues Menno was having had to do with a missing taxiway definition and incorrect magnetic variation in the airport file.)

[Menno Alting 897707]

Ok, thanks

[Michael Pike]

So i tried the function "generate an aircraft file" but when i tried to past it form the clipbord nothing happens.

 

I'm not sure this is to do with the negative elevation at EHAM. I have had a similar problem at EGBB. I added 6 aircraft and clicked Generate Aircraft File and I was able to paste the contents into my file. Then I did some other things including copying and pasting. Then I went back and added some more aircraft (still in the same TWRTrainer session) and clicked Generate Aircraft File again but this time the clipboard still contained the last thing I copied - no aircraft data.

 

I've no idea why it worked one time and not the other.

 

Mike

[Michael Pike]

Got it now. Ross, it looks like you've taken the precaution of not allowing the Generate Aircraft File process to overwrite existing clipboard contents. You have to clear the clipboard first! On Windows XP that took some finding as well! - Start -> Run -> Open clipbrd -> Edit -> Delete -> OK

 

Mike

[Raffael WALTHER]

Hello

 

I've go the problem with "Not taxiing, parked, holding short, holding in position, or landed." as well.

It doesn't make any difference if I give a speed the the aircraft or not.

 

The command I give to DLH123 is: taxi M E @E1

 

I have uploaded the airport, aircraft and sector file here: http://www.swissfir.org/Raffael/TWRTrainer_LSZH.zip

[Ross Carlson]

Raffael, please send me an email at ross at vatsim dot net with a full description of the problem and attach all necessary files. Thanks.