Lesson 1 Action Guide This lesson is created for 2 types of people: 1. Flight Simmers, who want to learn more about flying 2. Pilots, who are beginning flight training, and want to use Flight Simulators to speed up their learning curve In Lesson 1 and Lesson 2 on YouTube I will be talking about how to utilize X-Plane or Microsoft Flight Simulator to learn more about flying and to save a significant amount of money on getting your private pilot license. I used Saitek’s X52 joystick that has the separate throttle quadrant (picture below left), The only real advantage to the X52 is that it has more buttons, and feels a little more realistic since it has the separate throttle quadrant. All you really need though is a basic joystick with a twist grip, and a throttle slider on it (below right, Logitech 3d Pro Joystick).

Takeoffs If somehow you stumbled across this guide without seeing my videos, first make sure you watch Lesson 1: Flight Instruments, and Lesson 2: Flight Controls. Lesson 1: https://youtu.be/DTELj_0skKg Lesson 2: https://youtu.be/re9HqmCvdaA 1. After you have watched Part 1 and Part 2, start up Microsoft Flight Simulator or X-Plane and pick any airport with the Cessna 172. One of the first things you need to know about airplanes is that on the ground you do not steer with the ailerons, you steer with the rudder. If you are using a joystick that twists, the twist feature moves the rudder. (You may have to assign it that feature in X-plane as it may not default to that) So while you are in the takeoff roll, twist the joystick left and right to keep the plane on the runway.

2. Both X-plane and MSFSIM default with the plane on the runway and the engine running. Release the brakes, add full power, and use the rudder to stay on the runway. Practice staying on the centerline of the runway.

3. During the take off roll, watch the airspeed indicator, and when it shows 60 knots,

smoothly pull back on the yoke. This is called rotating. It’s basically the point where you pull back on the yoke and the plane lifts off the ground. a. Be careful not to pull the joystick all the way back! If you do, the plane will pitch up so abruptly that it will lose airspeed and cease to fly! The idea here is to smoothly pull back (about halfway) until the plane lifts off the ground, and then to keep the plane pitched up to about 10 degrees 4. As you climb out, keep the throttle at full, and practice using pitch to maintain a constant airspeed. Try climbing at 70 knots. If your airspeed is slower than 70, you need to lower the nose to gain airspeed. If it’s faster than 70, then you need to raise the nose of the plane to slow down. Try and find a pitch attitude that will keep your airspeed at the desired constant (for example, 5 degrees of pitch up).

Straight and Level Flight, Climbs, Turns, Descents 1. As you’re climbing out from takeoff continue to practice maintaining a constant airspeed by using the airplane’s pitch while keeping the throttle at full. a. Next, try climbing at a constant rate of climb. Look at the Vertical Speed Indicator, and try and hold a 500 foot per minute (FPM) climb.

b. The tendency here is to “chase the needle”. There is a lag in response from the vertical speed indicator, which makes it easy to overcorrect and constantly chase the desired climb rate. i. What you need to do is again find a pitch attitude that will hold that vertical speed constant. Start with 5 degrees of pitch up; if you are climbing at 400 FPM, then increase the pitch to 6 or 7 degrees. You get the point. 2. Now look at the heading indicator. Pick a cardinal heading (North, south, east or west) and practice flying one heading while you’re climbing out. Try and hold your heading within 10 degrees of either side of the desired heading.

3. Pick an altitude to level off at, like 3000 feet or 3500. a. Tip: You have to start leveling off slightly before reaching your altitude. Rule of thumb is use 10% of your climb rate. If you are climbing at 500 FPM, then start leveling off 50 feet before your desired altitude. 4. Once you’ve leveled off, your airspeed will build up because you still have full throttle and you are no longer using that extra power to climb a. Let the speed build for a few seconds, then pull the throttle back to about 2300 or 2400 RPM (In X-Plane, I use about 2200 RPM, but the ultimate goal is that the airspeed will build to about 105-110 knots) b. Practice maintaining the same altitude and heading at the same time. i. Look outside the cockpit at the horizon, the dashboard should appear to be about an inch or so under the horizon, and the horizon parallels the dashboard. Use that as a reference point ii. The idea here is to develop a healthy balance between staring at the flight instruments, and looking outside at the cockpit. You should actually spend more time looking outside than inside. iii. Once you are comfortable with holding the same altitude and heading, practice level turns.

5. Try turning to a different heading while maintaining your altitude; make it at least a 90 degree turn. So if you are on north, turn at least 90 degrees to east, or 180 degrees to South. a. Again, keep it simple and stick with the cardinal headings. b. When you turn, you need to use the ailerons to bank the plane, but as soon as the wings are banked, you no longer need to hold in the ailerons, you can let go of the joystick and the plane will keep turning. i. Note: make sure you roll out of the turn about 10 degrees before you reach your desired heading.

c. Practice using 10, 20, and 30 degrees of bank in the turns (using the attitude indicator)

i. Do a 90 degree turn using 10 degrees of bank, then another using 20 degrees of bank, then another using 30 degrees of bank. d. Practice turns in both directions, while maintaining the same altitude.

6. After you are comfortable with straight and level flight, and level turns, start practicing climbing and descending turns. a. Let’s say you’re on a heading of North, at 3500’. Make a climbing left turn to West, up to 4000’. If you reach west before 4000’, then stop the turn by leveling the wings, but keep the climb going until you reach 4000’. i. When you start a climb, (if it’s more than 100 feet or so) always add full power. ii. Likewise, when you start a descent, reduce the power. How much you reduce it is up to you, it really depends on how fast (airspeed) you want to descend. iii. I usually use about 2000 RPM to descend if I want to keep my speed up, and I use 1500 RPM if I want to descend at a slower speed. b. Now try turning 180 degrees, and climb or descend 500’ i. This will almost completely guarantee you will reach your altitude before your desired heading. Level off at the desired altitude, but keep the plane banked until you reach your heading. c. Do climbing and descending turns in both directions. Take time to practice all these maneuvers, until you can hold your desired headings within +/10 degrees, airspeed +/- 10 knots, and your altitudes within +/- 100 feet. Again, if you take flight lessons, and you take time to practice using a flight simulator on your computer, I guarantee you’ll speed up your progress, and things will make more sense.

And even if you don’t ever take flight lessons, I’m sure this will make your flight simulator experience more enjoyable! Stay tuned in by subscribing to my YouTube Channel Flighttrajectory so you can keep up to date on new lessons as they come out! I hope you find this guide helpful! -Matt