Flight Sim & Aviation User Stories

Hello I wanted to share a unique chapter of my times as a commercial passenger. There are a select few number of people who can say that they have flown the Boeing 747-400, known and loved the world over, and thanks to one flight back in 2004, I can say that I am one of them. Back in 2004, I was only 8 years old, barely two years away from starting middle school. Most of the flight is blurry but I remember making the connection to San Francisco on Southwest Airlines and waiting for the plane. Once in San Francisco, we made our way to the international terminal of the airport to wait for our flight. At some point, our plane arrived, and I distinctly remember the…

In the 1990s I worked for the largest manufacturer of GA antennas as the QA manager. One day we had a meeting set in Arizona and decided to have the president of the firm fly us in his V35. (When our firm was located in a hanger in KSMO he flew into work everyday) Just as we spotted our destination the engine sputtered and died. No fuel. We were at 10,000 '. "Oops." While the three of us passengers were sitting quietly, white as sheets he made a perfect landing in a furrowed field about a mile from the airfield. The prop was bent and some damage to the landing gear was sustained. When the first responders showed up they found us fine and smiling, a…

Hi Everyone, I’m an avid flight simmer and I love the 737-800 and the PMDG iteration so much that I decided to take it for it a trip around the globe. I used a fictional BMI livery found in the Avsim library with the fictional registration G-BVZX, the real G-BVZX is a single engined GA prop which I wouldn’t want to take around the globe! To begin with I set off from my local international airport, East Midlands EGNX in G-BVZX. At this time BVZX did not have winglets and was equipped with analog backup instrumentation and used the older Honeywell MCP and had eyebrow windows (which I have kept). My first flight with this iteration of BVZX took me from EGNX to KSWF, New…

Hi I just made a flight from CYYZ to KDCA in FSL A320x. The plan was to land using STAR NUMMY2 and RWY 01. I am using Navigraph cycle 1803. I was touched and moved to see the last few waypoints of the STAR. They are: WeWil NEVVR FORGT SEP11 ALWAYZ. Try it. Bill

So, I finally finished the World Tour. 207 capital cities 180,164nm 479hrs 21mins in the air Whenever I get around to uploading all of the pictures I'll post a link here, so stay tuned! Cheers, Barry

Lets pretend i ''bought'' a new plane to do this as i find it easier in a Piper cherokee PA-28-160 for the sake of realism. Finished leg 2 really windy and bumpy El Prat- Toulouse As i spent nearly 10 minutes in the El prat airport i spent no time getting out of the airport to get to Toulouse in time made a nice landing, it was fun cause i got to go sightseeing in the mountains between rance and spain I will be posting legs from time to time cause i dont have the time to write all of theese down Pictures/flickr:https://www.flickr.com/photos/138321776@N04/ Mark

So as im a Latvian and currently live in Spain i decided to do a tour from my local airport in Spain located roughly 600-300km from gibraltar to the air field in my hometown (Talsi) in Latvia. (I downloaded FS2004 scenery so i might have to land at Rīga intl or Liepāja intl) as i hope to get a sponsor for this tour (i will accept any and put it on my plane it will cost though) for now i will be using the default aerosoft DHC6 twin otter liveries Begining the tour leg 1 i spent roughly 3 minutes at San Javier just to get out of there as fast as possible. I spent 1:30 hours in the air with just enough fuel to make it. I managed to land at El Prat, spent 10…

This week took me to 15 capital cities and covered 8398nm over 37hrs 5mins in the air. You can view the album here - BTE World Tour '17 - Legs 81 through 95 Album ~or~ Check out the slideshow below if it works. Until next time, happy landings! Barry

A busy week in the air took me to 18 more capital cities with over 34 hours of flight time covering more than 8,400nm. BTE World Tour '17 - Legs 61 to 80 Album Accumulated flight time - 132hrs 34mins Accumulated distance - 28,479nm

Here are my pictures of my journeys from June 27th to July 2nd. My stops included Tehran Iran, Baghdad Iran, Damascus Syria, Beirut Lebanon, Amman Jordan, Jerusalem Israel, Cairo Egypt, Tripoli Libya, Algiers Algeria, and Rabat Morocco. Album link - BTE World Tour '17 - Legs 50 through 60 Accumulated flight time - 99hrs 10mins Accumulated distance - 20,045nm More pictures to come next week. Until then, happy landings! Barry

The tour continues. Links below to the Legs 36 to 50 album and a convenient slideshow. BTE World Tour '17 Legs 36 to 50 Album

I find there are times where I am in that VC and those virtual controls seems like all that matter at that moment, and the world beyond its cabin windows is the world in which I feel my immediate experience exists. But that bubble always pops within moments of its origin, and I'm back to sitting in a chair in my simpit setup. This might sound like I am going crazy, but this is one of the things that keeps me coming back to FS. I can't say I get this suspension of disbelief very often, nor am I obsessed with it (well, maybe a tiny little bit), but am I thankful that I can get those precious distractions to escape the stress and mundaneness of everyday life...too bad we all…

For anyone interested in trying their hand at a round the world flight or two, but having no interest in biplanes (as my signature shows, I've had an interest in that area myself), the Alabeo Piper Aztec is now out. Some of you may remember that in the 60s and 70s the Aztec was flown by two daring/crazy pilots on incredible round the world flights that just beg to be recreated. Max Conrad flew around the equator in his, and then circumnavigated the earth from pole to pole, unfortunately he failed to take off from the South Pole in his little twin after he clipped the ice with his wing, and his Aztec was buried in the ice by the staff of the base, where it remains tod…

Wow. Just over 1,400nm, almost 7 1/2 hours in the air, and 9 city capitols spread out over 2 days. It doesn't sound like a lot but it sure felt like a marathon. I even did my first (of many to come) touch and go's on a short 24 minute leg. I think I'll be doing a lot more of that on the shorter flights between cities. Legs 27 through 35 took me to Romania, Bulgaria, Kosovo, Macedonia, Greece, Albania, Montenegro, Serbia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina over June 12th to 14th. Accumulated flight time - 54hrs 2mins Accumulated distance - 10,720nm At last check, I have 174 capital cities to go. Click the link below to go directly to this album or (if …

I'm finally getting around to posting another set of legs flown June 4th and 5fn. What can I say? #RealLifeHappens These flights took me from Copenhagen to Helsinki. Then on to Tallinn Estonia, Riga Latvia, and finally the Lithuanian capitol of Vilnius. Accumulated flight time - 41hrs 19mins Accumulated distance - 8235nm The pictures are loaded into a separate album. Below are the links to the album and a slideshow (doesn't work in all browsers). Enjoy, and until next time, happy landings! June 4th and 5th Album June 4th and 5th Slideshow

Another four legs of the world tour in the books this weekend. These trips took me from Vilnius Lithuania to Chisinau Moldova with stops in Minsk Belarus, and Moscow Russia along the way. Total capitals visited - 26 Accumulated flight time - 46hrs 34mins Accumulated distance - 9318nm Legs 23 to 26 STATIC ablum (in case the slideshow below doesn't work) I'm hoping to get another leg or two in tomorrow but who knows what will happen? #RealLifeHappens Until next time, happy landings! Cheers (or should I say norok), Barry

Leg 18 May 28-17: Kastrup (EKCH) to Bromma (ESSB) 283 nm, 1 h 24 m, Low Altitude 11,000ft Weather - Wind Direction and Speed 245°M, 11 kts, Temperature 23°C, 73°F, Pressure 29.94 inHg, Visibility > 20 nm Stokcholm bound at 619pm local 419pm UTC: Beautiful downtown Stockholm from 2,200ft: Touchdown at 702pm local 502pm UTC clear the runway taxiing to GA parking: Wheels up - 6:19pm local 4:19pm UTC Landed - 7:02pm local 5:02pm UTC Flight time - :43 Accumulated flight time - 38hrs Accumulated distance - 7654nm

Leg 17 May 28/17: Gardermoen (ENGM) to Kastrup (EKCH) 283 nm, 1 h 24 m, Low Altitude 11,000ft Weather - Wind Direction and Speed 228°M, 8 kts, Temperature 18°C, 64°F, Pressure 29.91 inHg, Visibility >20 nm Waiting to cross a busy runway 19R in Oslo: Norwegian Air Force F5 Tiger parked at ENGM: In the air at 8:16am local 6:16am UTC: Final approach runway 22L at EKCH Copenhagen: Parked and fueled and serviced at EKCH: Wheels up - 8:16am local 6:16am UTC Landed - 10:11am local 6:11am UTC Flight time - 1hr 55mins Accumulated flight time - 37hrs 17mins Accumulated distance - 7371nm Th…

I flew these legs on Friday. I'm going to try to get a couple more in today or tomorrow. Leg 15 May 26/17: Okecie (EPWA) to Brandenburg Intl (EDDB) 278 nm, 1 h 23 m, High Altitude 22,000 Weather - Wind Direction and Speed 60°M, 7 kts, Air Temperature 17°C, 63°F, Pressure 30.03 inHg, Visibility > 20 nm In the air and on the way to Berlin at 831am local 1031am UTC: Climbing out of EDDB: Crossing the borer between Germany Poland 8,000ft over the Oder River 47nm from EDDB: Tower east of Petersdorf from 2,200ft: Wheels up - 8:31am local 6:31am UTC Landed - 9:47am 7:47am UTC Flight t…

Leg 13: After some rest it was time to get in the air again. I was hoping for favourable wind and weather so I can knock out at least a couple more legs today. Leg 13 May 22-17, M.R. Stefanik (LZIB) to Ruzyne (LKPR) 164 nm, 0 h 49 m, Low Altitude 21,000: Waving goodbye to Bratislava heading for LZIB runway 13: In the air and on the way to Prague Czech Republic: Down safely at 1041am local 841am UTC: Landed - 6:22pm local 4:22pm UTC Flight time - 1:30 Accumulated flight time - 29hrs 52mins Accumulated distance - 6,317nm Leg 14: I was on the ground longer than I wanted to be in Prague but I finally got going again after severa…

A continuation of Saturdays flights, here are legs 11 and 12. Leg 11: After lunch it was time to knock off another leg of the trip. A short run to LHBP in Budapest, Hungary. Leg 11 May 20-17 Schwechat (LOWW) to Ferihegy (LHBP) 116 nm, 0 h 34 m, Low Altitude 7,000ft: Underway for the third time today, wheels up at 211pm local 411pm UTC: The Danube as it runs through Budapest on LHBP approach for runway 13R: On the ground in Budapest setting up for the next leg: Landed - 2:50pm local 4:50pm UTC Flight time - :39 Accumulated flight time - 26hrs 24mins Accumulated distance - 5750nm On the ground in Budapest setting up for the …

I was too busy flying 4 legs of the tour to post yesterday but now that PC-12 is all tucked in for a day or so, I'll finally get these up. Leg 9: After a day and a half of R&R and managing to avoid some of the major temptations in Amsterdam, it was time to continue the tour with the 9th leg taking me to Luxembourg. I got to EHAM around 8:00am local and had the engine wound up shortly after. Leg 9, May 20-17 Schiphol (EHAM) Luxembourg (ELLX), 171 nm, 0 h 34 m, Low Altitude 5,000 ft: Boeing B77W parked outside the KLM hangars at EHAM: Airborne at 841 local 641 UTC: Flaps going up, gear going up, climbing out: Telephoto shot of a Air F…

I forgot to post after my flights yesterday. Anyway, here's legs 7 and 8. After spending a couple of days in London it was time to continue the World Tour. I managed to get to Heathrow around 8am local and after the pre-flight I fired up the PC-12 and was ready for my IFR instructions. Leg 7 May 17 2017 Heathrow (EGLL) Parking 618, Ramp GA Medium to Brussels National (EBBR) 192 nm, 0 h 46 m, Low Altitude 11,000 Weather - Wind Direction and Speed 260°M, 6 kts, Air Temperature 16°C, 61°F, Pressure 29.95 inHg, Conditions Rain, Visibility > 20 nm: Holding short, runway 27R for the Kuwaitti Airlines BOEING, B772: Wheels up - 806am local 906am UTC: …

After the last three legs, this 1 hour jaunt across the Irish Sea from Dublin to London was a breeze! It was raining a little when I first fired up the PC-12 but it had stopped by the time I rolled onto the runway. Dublin Intl (EIDW) Parking 27, Ramp GA to Heathrow (EGLL) 256 nm, ETA 1 h 01 m, High Altitude FL250 Weather - Wind Direction and Speed 198°M, 18 kts, Air Temperature 16°C, 60°F, Pressure 29.84 inHg Conditions Rain Visibility > 20 nm: Shamrock A320 from the cockpit: Shamrock A320: Wheels up - 3:05pm local 2:05pm UTC: From the cockpit a DeHavilland Dash 8 a mere 1nm away and 1000ft below me over Barmouth Bay at FL250: D…

Yesterday, it was off to Ireland. I found myself having a hard time adjusting to the time change. I can't call it jet lag so I'm calling it prop lag. I finally dragged myself to BIRK around 8:30pm local/UTC. Reykjavik (BIRK) E Parking 17, Ramp GA Small to Dublin Intl (EIDW) Flight plan distance - 1119nm Cruise Altitude - FL290 Weather - Wind Direction and Speed 155°M, 15 kts, Air Temperature 12°C, 53°F, Sea Level Pressure 29.50 inHg, Visibility > 20nm: Reykjavik Ground, Pilatus C=12BT2 IFR to Dublin, ready to copy: Wheels up - 9:19pm local and UTC May 14 2017. Goodbye Reykjavik: Glasgow Scotland from from FL290 170nm remaining to Dubli…