Recent Posts

41

Flight Operations / Re: EHM Featured Destination - Manila, The Philippines

« Last post by EHM-1465 Dominic on October 03, 2022, 11:31:44 pm »

Hi Bruce,

I'm glad you enjoyed your approach into RPUB, it makes for an interesting flight, eh?

I've always used FSScreen for screenshots, I downloaded it years ago from Flightsim.com. I've just checked and it's still available there. It's very simple to use, you just open it when you start Flightsim, then press your Print Screen key on your keyboard however many times you want during your flight to capture an image. Works a treat for me

42

Flight Operations / Re: EHM Featured Destination - Manila, The Philippines

« Last post by EHM-2131 Bruce on October 03, 2022, 10:00:56 am »

Hi everyone, just completed the trip to RPUB., interesting approach, kept to the West of the mountains until nearly abeam of BG NDB, at 7000ft, could not see the airport until over the last high ground, at 10nm could see it, descended to 6000ft and manually descended for a straight in approach, Plenty of runway with no cargo and no passengers, set approach speed early and flaps and armed speed brakes so less to do on the approach, interesting little flight, flew the WSSS-RPll  flight too, sorry no photos  took some but did not save in my file,  Best Regards Bruce EHM2131   

Can anyone recommend an easy to use screen grabber with just a key press, tried one or too but not easy to use  Bruce EHM2131

43

Flight Operations / Re: EHM Featured Destination - Manila, The Philippines

« Last post by EHM-1465 Dominic on September 24, 2022, 05:33:29 pm »

I've tried to find charts for RPUB but with limited success! There is only the NDB (272 kHz) to use to locate the field and then a visual approach.

VATSIM Philippines has a couple of visual approach charts available HERE but they don't show you any detail, just the basic rules for joining the visual circuit. There is also an aerodrome chart with text about the airport and runways.

So, good luck, especially if the weather isn't very good 

EDIT - I guess it's worth programming the FMC with some pseudo waypoints (in the PMDG 738) to direct the aircraft over the NDB initially at MSA, then to follow the circuit onto the extended centreline at a suitable lower altitude until the field is in sight. A DIY RNAV approach, if you will... Worth a try for the inevitable low-vis approaches

44

Flight Operations / EHM Featured Destination - Manila, The Philippines

« Last post by EHM-1465 Dominic on September 23, 2022, 02:44:30 pm »

The Philippines is an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. It is situated in the western Pacific Ocean and consists of around 7,641 islands that are broadly categorized under three main geographical divisions from north to south: Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. The Philippines is bounded by the South China Sea to the west, the Philippine Sea to the east, and the Celebes Sea to the southwest. It shares maritime borders with Taiwan to the north, Japan to the northeast, Palau to the east and southeast, Indonesia to the south, Malaysia to the southwest, Vietnam to the west, and China to the northwest.



The Philippines covers an area of 300,000 km2 (120,000 sq mi) and, as of 2021, it had a population of around 109 million people, making it the world's thirteenth-most populous country. Manila is the country's capital, while the largest city is Quezon City; both lie within the urban area of Metro Manila. Manila is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populated city proper.

The location of the Philippines, as an island country on the Pacific "Ring of Fire", makes it prone to earthquakes and typhoons.  The Ring of Fire is a region around much of the rim of the Pacific Ocean where many volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occur; it is a horseshoe-shaped belt about 40,000 km (25,000 mi) long and up to about 500 km (310 mi) wide. The Ring of Fire contains approximately 850–1,000 volcanoes (about two-thirds of the world's total) that have been active during the current geological era; the four largest volcanic eruptions on Earth in the current epoch all occurred at volcanoes in the Ring of Fire.

To fully appreciate the dramatic, volcanic landscape of The Philippines, I invite you to fly from the capital Manila to Loakan Airport RPUB, which serves the City of Baguio.  Loakan Airport, the city's only airport, was built in 1934. Its short runway, frequent low visibility, and deep ravines at both ends of the runway continue to challenge pilots greatly, especially when it comes to landing. Runway 09/27 is 5,912 feet long at an elevation of 4,251 feet AMSL. The airport has been closed to commercial operators for safety reasons for some time, but is due to re-open in November 2022 following significant improvement work. EuroHarmony has been contracted to fly test flights in and out of the airport to verify flight safety in all weather conditions before November. These test flights are initially planned for Class 5 aircraft at light weight (no passengers) to establish the safety margin available for the runway length, before any passenger flights are authorised. Weather in the region can be very changeable, so be prepared. You can find some helpful information for approach planning at https://airportnavfinder.com/airport/RPUB/.



EuroHarmony serves The Philippines with Class 7 Division flights from several Hubs, and a daily Class 5 Main Division service from Singapore - you may wish to begin with the flight from WSSS to RPLL before taking your aircraft over the volcanoes and into RPUB. Addon scenery and mesh (to really appreciate the volcanic terrain) is available at the usual places. Please share your flight reports and pictures here so we can all enjoy the challenge!

45

Flight Operations / EHM Featured Destination - Aberdeen, Scotland

« Last post by EHM-1465 Dominic on September 11, 2022, 08:17:44 pm »

This week, following the sad death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, I invite you to visit Aberdeen, Scotland, the nearest main airport to Her Majesty's estate at Balmoral, which is reported to be the place The Queen enjoyed visiting the most, and the place where her amazingly long reign came to an end this week.



Scotland is a one of the four countries that comprise the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of Great Britain, Scotland covers an area of 30,000 square miles, including 790 islands. It has a population of about 5.5 million people. Although an integral part of the UK, Scotland has had a devolved Parliament since 1999, which is situated in the capital Edinburgh.

Aberdeen is a city in north-east Scotland, with a population of roughly 200,000 people. It is about 400 miles north of London and just east of the Scottish Highlands. Since the discovery of North Sea oil in 1969, Aberdeen has been known as the offshore oil capital of Europe. As a consequence of this industry, Aberdeen Airport EGPD includes one of the busiest commercial heliports in the world, with approximately 37,000 helicopter movements per year. The airport has one fixed wing runway, which is 6407 feet long and three dedicated helicopter runways.



EuroHarmony offers a range of flights to Aberdeen in Classes 1 to 5, from five of our Hub airports, from Scotland's capital Edinburgh, and also as one leg of the Class 1 route visiting many of the Scottish Islands. Helicopter pilots may also want to practice their skills with onwards flights in our Agusta 109 or Bell 407 to the various oil rigs in the North Sea! There is a list of default FS2004 and FSX oil rig locations on THIS WEBPAGE.

More detailed add-on scenery of Aberdeen Dyce airport EGPD is available at the usual locations (see week one of this series) and add-on offshore installations for FS2004 & FSX are available from the Offshore Development Group: http://www.fs-odg.com/forum/index.php. For X-Plane users there is a file called "b_uk_oilfields_1_4.zip" at Flightsim.com.

So, as a tribute to Her Majesty The Queen, why not fly to Scotland this week?

46

Flight Operations / EHM Featured Destination - Beirut, Lebanon

« Last post by EHM-1465 Dominic on September 05, 2022, 03:11:22 pm »

This week, I invite you to visit Beirut, in the Republic of Lebanon.

Lebanon is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus lies to its west across the Mediterranean Sea. Lebanon is home to roughly six million people and covers an area of 10,452 square kilometres (4,036 sq mi), making it the smallest country in continental Asia. The official language of the state is Arabic, while French is also formally recognized.

The earliest evidence of civilization in Lebanon dates back over 7000 years, predating recorded history. Modern-day Lebanon was home to the Phoenicians, a maritime culture that flourished for almost 3000 years. Lebanon was conquered by the Ottoman Empire in the 16th century and remained under its rule for the next 400 years. The country has suffered from political instability and violence for much of the last 50 years, including a devastating civil war from 1975-1990. Despite the country's small size, Lebanese culture is renowned both in the Middle East and globally, primarily powered by its extensive diaspora. Lebanon is a founding member of the United Nations and is a member of the Arab League, the Non-Aligned Movement, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie.

Lebanon's capital city is Beirut. As of 2014, Greater Beirut has a population of 2.4 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coast. Beirut has been inhabited for more than 5,000 years, and was one of Phoenicia's most prominent city states, making it one of the oldest cities in the world. The first historical mention of Beirut is found in the Amarna letters from the New Kingdom of Egypt, which date to the 14th century BC.

Before the Lebanese Civil War, Beirut was widely regarded as the "Paris of the Middle East", often cited as a financial and business hub where visitors could experience the Levantine Mediterranean culture. Beirut's diverse atmosphere and ancient history make it an important destination which is slowly rebuilding itself after continued turmoil.

Beirut–Rafic Hariri International Airport (OLBA) is the only operational commercial airport in Lebanon. It is located in the Southern Suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon, 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) from the city centre, in a stunning coastal location. It is the hub for Lebanon's national carrier, Middle East Airlines (MEA). It has three runways:- 03/21 at 12,467 ft; 16/34 at 11,138 ft; and 17/35 at 10,663 ft.

EHM offers several flight options to Beirut OLBA, including direct flights from Heathrow and Arlanda. We have also just opened a new Class 5 route from Zurich to Beirut and onwards to Seychelles International Airport (FSIA) in the Indian Ocean, and a Class 3 route from Athens to Beirut and then to Kuwait (OKBK).

So why not try somewhere new this week? And, if you do, please share your screenshots here on the Forum

47

Flight Operations / EHM Featured Destination - Quito, Ecuador

« Last post by EHM-1465 Dominic on August 28, 2022, 05:56:44 pm »

Welcome to a new feature on the EHM Forum, where we will explore an interesting city or region every week or so. These are randomly generated, and I hope they'll inspire you to visit places in the simulated world that you've never explored before.

Week 1: Quito, Ecuador


This week, I invite you to fly to Quito in Ecuador, South America.

The Republic of Ecuador lies between Colombia, Peru and the Pacific Ocean, in the north-western region of South America. Its territory also includes the Galapagos Islands, 600 miles west of the mainland in the Pacific.



It is a democratic presidential republic with Spanish as the official language. Our destination city this week is Quito, the capital city, which is only 25 miles south of the Equator. Quito is the most populous city in Ecuador with roughly 2.8 million inhabitants, and is situated on the eastern slopes of an active stratovolcano, called Pichincha. At an elevation of 9,350 feet, Quito is the second highest capital city in the world, after La Paz in Bolivia.

The main airport is Mariscal Sucre International Airport, with the current ICAO code of SEQM. In 2013, this new airport replaced the previous airport of the same name, which had the ICAO code of SEQU. The old airport was right in the middle of the city, among high-rise buildings, surrounded by mountains and was known as a really challenging approach for pilots.

The old approach into SEQU

Here is a fantastic YouTube video demonstrating the old SEQU approach, courtesy of PilotsEye.TV: - https://youtu.be/2gnSWCfPF3k

SEQU had been operating there since 1960 but its location meant it could not expand any further to accommodate larger aircraft, so the new airport was built 11 miles east of the old one, to provide safer & more modern facilities to the city. The old airport was closed and has now been turned into an urban park, although some local aviation still takes place there.

The new airport SEQM is 11 miles east of the city, and is at a lower altitude of 7,874 ft, making it slightly less challenging for the aircraft landing and taking off there. There are however mountain ranges to the west and east of the airfield, so IFR approach plates are essential in poor weather – these are easily accessible from a Google search for “SEQM charts”.

SEQM is not a default airport in FS2004, FSX or X-Plane but it is available by default in MSFS2020. Add-on sceneries for FS2004 & FSX are available for SEQM at https://www.freewarescenery.com/ or for X-Plane at https://forums.x-plane.org/. The old airport SEQU is an airport available by default in all sims plus there are add-on scenery files available to enhance the old airport at the same download locations if you want to try your hand at the really challenging historic approach shown on the YouTube video!

Our flight database only currently recognises the old ICAO code of SEQU (as this was the ICAO code in FS2004), but the Flight Logger will accept any flight to SEQM as landing at the correct airport even though your flight is planned to land at SEQU on the dispatch page, as they are close enough to each other. So you can fly to either of these airports, depending on how daring you feel at the time!

EHM has a number of flights available to SEQU in the timetable, some direct from Europe, but also a brand new Class 5 route we have just opened from KATL to SEQU (SEQM) and then on to La Paz, Bolivia SLLP (the highest city in the world) and then to Buenos Aires, Argentina SAEZ.

So, why not type SEQU into your Dispatch page and assign yourself a flight to adventure?


Ecuador flag and location map from Wikipedia; Approach photo into SEQU courtesy of http://www.thejabberwocky.net/viewtopic.php?t=1318

48

Screenshot Discussion / Re: What was your first flight like?

« Last post by EHM-1465 Dominic on August 26, 2022, 06:14:19 pm »

I'm really glad that worked for you Bruce - I still love FS9 with all the great quality add-ons that have been produced for it over the last 19 years

Enjoy the views once you get your sim fully updated - I'd love to see some screenshots here once you're in the sky again!

49

Screenshot Discussion / Re: What was your first flight like?

« Last post by EHM-2131 Bruce on August 26, 2022, 05:42:26 pm »

Hi Dominic, thanks for the link pointed me in the right direction , and now have fs2004 working on w10, now have the task of migrating  all my add ons across , fs2004 runs a lot cooler than fsx  on my rig and get better frame rates with most of the sliders to the right will look better outside the plane when l get the downloads on , thanks again for the link  best regards Bruce EHM-2131

50

Chit Chat / Re: How was your weekend?

« Last post by EHM-1465 Dominic on August 24, 2022, 05:30:08 pm »

You're right Trevor - the summery weather has got most of us out of the house a lot lately

But autumn will start fairly soon and then there will be lots more time to get flying!