6.18 How do I set the autopilot to fly a course with Nav 1.8?

From FlightSim

Q:

HOW DO I SET THE AUTOPILOT TO FLY A COURSE WITH NAV 1.8?

A:

NAV 1.8 will show the frequencies for the VORs on your route. If you create a flight plan with the program, you can show just the flightplan with the automatically assigned waypoints and print it out, or just let it run in the background of FS98.

Now, when you are airborne, tune in the first VOR on the NAV 1 radio. Turn on the autopilot master switch and set the altitude and turn on ALT hold. You can set the speed and turn on SPD hold also. Adjust the "course" value in the dial just under the autopilot master switch, until the "broken arrow" in the HSI aligns as one with the gray triangle in the center pointing up. Now turn on NAV hold in the autopilot and the airplane will turn to the course that you selected. As you near the first VOR, retune the NAV 1 radio to the second VOR. As you do this the NAV hold will turn off. Readjust the course dial to realign the "arrow" and turn on NAV hold again. There you go, to the second VOR. There may be times when the second or next VOR is not yet in range as you approach the first one. In this case you should turn off the NAV hold before you reach the first one, so you don't end up circling it, and continue on the same course until the next VOR shows up. You can switch back to NAV 1.8 and read the heading between the VORs there and manually adjust your heading and turn on HDG hold to take that course until the VOR is received. I usually tune in the next VOR on NAV 2 radio so I can determine if it is in range before switching over. If you have Real Weather, you can create a "flight plan" there by entering the VOR identifiers, finding them in the database, entering the altitude you expect to hold and moving the entry to the "list" area. When you have the whole flight plan entered, the A/P Update and Auto Switch switches will automatically update your autopilot and automatically switch from one waypoint to another, including your programmed altitudes, for the whole flight.

Bob Fiedler