Other instruments

This section describes all the other instruments, located in different places of the panel.

Main Panel

- Barometric Setting
- Flight Director and Landing System switches
- Standby Instruments (Airspeed, Altimeter, Attitude Indicator)
- Landing Gear & Autobrake
- Clock
- Navigation Chrono
- DDRMI

Pedestal

- Radio
- Page Keys
- Transponder (XPNDR)
- Audio Selector
- Spoilers and Flaps
- Rudder trim
- Parking Brakes
- Throttles
- Engine Starters

Overhead

- Light switches and signs
- Anti-ice
- Eletrical panel
- Fuel pumps
- ADIRS
- ELAC computer

Barometric Setting

| This gauge lets you adjust the barometric setting used by the standard altimeter. It can display the setting in inHg or in hPa, depending on the position of the rotating switch. You can also set it to the standard setting (29.92 inHg or 1013.2 hPa) by pressing the rotating button used to adjust the baro setting. STD is then displayed instead of the pressure value. This setting must be used when you are flying using Flight Levels for altitude. This should be done as soon as you fly higher than the transition altitude (usually 18000 feet). If you fly higher than 18000 feet without STD setting, the value display will flash. Conversely, if you fly lower than 18000 feet with STD setting, it will also flash. This is VERY useful to avoid having your flight canceled by ATC because of a bad altitude.

Flight Director & Landing System

| Two buttons located under the barometric setting button activate the Flight Director and the Landing System on the PFD. The flight director shows the perfect flight path with 2 green bars, and the landing system is displayed on the PFD with 2 scales (vertical and horizontal) and 2 diamonds showing the glide slope and the localizer deviation.

Standby Instruments

| Airspeed This a very standard airspeed gauge. It shows current airspeed and maximum airspeed.
| Altimeter This standby altimeter shows current aircraft altitude. The interesting part of this gauge is the ability to have a barometric setting different from the standard FS2002 setting. You can have several altimeters with several baro settings, so they display different altitudes. This can be very useful: set the baro to the pressure corresponding to the airport altitude, and it will show the altitude above the airport, instead of the altitude above the sea level. This altimeter must be initialized by pressing the RESET button: it is aligned with the standard FS baro setting. Then you can adjust the baro setting using the Baro button (increase/decrease), in inches of Hg or in hPa. Select the mode using the "mode" button.
| Attitude Very standard attitude gauge.

Landing Gear and Autobrake

| Landing Gear 3 indicators show the status of the landing gears: green triangles indicate gear down and locked red sign show that the gear is unlocked (either retracting or extending) all lights off indicate that the gears are correctly retracted Autobrake Press one of these buttons to activate LO, MED or MAX autobrake. If you activate MAX autobrake on the ground, this will automatically select the RTO mode (Rejected Take Off). This is supposed to brake if you interrupt your takeoff, but I never could make it work in FS2002... When automatic braking is applied, a green indicator DECEL highlights on the corresponding button.

If your aircraft model does not have the auto brake function enabled, this feature will not work. You can easily change that by editing the .air file of the aircraft, with an editor like AirEd.

Clock

| This gauge displays current local time, and lets you change it by increasing/decreasing the hours. It also controls the time acceleration of FS. Using the rotating switch, you can switch between time and acceleration, and the increase/decrease button lets you change this setting. This gauge also includes a chronometer. Pressing the chrono button, you can start, stop and reset the chronometer.

Navigation Chrono

| The CHRONO button controls the chrono displayed on the navigation display. It is designed to be used for navigation purpose. Pressing the chrono button, you can start, stop and reset the chronometer.

DDRMI

| This gauge provides an additional display of navaid information: the distances from VOR1 and VOR2 (DME1 and DME2), and the direction of navaids. According to the corresponding switch, each needle can show the direction of VOR1, VOR2 or NDB. The gauge also displays current aircraft heading.

Radio

| This gauge lets you control all the radio frequencies for COM (COM1 and COM2) and navaids (NAV1, NAV2, ADF). This gauge displays the frequencies with all the digits (3 decimal digits). You can adjust the standby frequency of the selected navaid with the rotating button. The main switch in the bottom right corner is the Avionics switch. All the other buttons are fake and ineffective.

Page Keys

| The buttons on this panel are used to manage the SD (System Display) and E/WD (Engine/Warning Display) screens of the main panel. TO-CONFIG: makes the take-off checklist appear on the E/WD message area if the aircraft is on the ground. This button is also accessible by pressing Shift-T. EMER CANC: acknowldges an alarm, so that the Master Warning light stops flashing, and the alert sound stops. If an alarm is still present 1 minutes later, the warning light will flash and the sound will be heard again. ENG: displays the Engine page on the SD (page automatically displayed in case of an engine problem, or during engine start) PRESS: displays the Cabin Pressure page on the SD ELEC: displays the Electricity page on the SD (page automatically displayed in case of an electricity problem, or if the battery is discharging when engines are running) HYD: displays the Hydraulics page on the SD (page automatically displayed in case of a hydraulic alert) FUEL: displays the Fuel page on the SD (page automatically displayed if one of the fuel tanks is low on fuel) DOOR: displays the door page on the SD (page automatically displayed as soon as a door is opened). The right door and the rear doors of the Project Airbus A320 are also managed. WHEEL: displays the Wheel page on the SD (page automatically displayed when landing gear is operated, showing the animation of gear doors) F/CTL: displays the Flight Controls page on the SD (page automatically displayed for 10 seconds when the elevator trim or the spoilers are moved) ALL: Cycles through all the available pages. Press ALL key again to stop the sequence. CLR: clears the checklist on the E/WD to display standard messages. This button is also accessible by pressing Shift-C.

Transponder (XPNDR)

| This is a standard transponder gauge. You can enter the ATC code with associated keyboard. First type the C key to clear the existing code, and enter the 4 digits of the code. The rotating switch lets you select the mode: OFF: the transponder is OFF STBY: You can enter the ATC code XPDR: The XPNDR is fully operating and sends the ATC code when requested The ID button is used to send the ATC code the first time, when it has just been entered, to make sure that the controller will identify your aircraft immediately. This feature is pure simulation, because FS handles the ATC code as soon as it is entered.

Audio Selector

| This device lets you select the audio channel that you want to hear. You can select COM1 and COM2 simultaneously. This is very useful when you are in communication with the tower and you want to listen to the ATIS at the same time. The RESET button will bring back the default audio selection, which is COM1 and Markers. The VOICE button will give priviledge to the voice channels, by selecting COM1 and COM2, and deselecting all the other channels.

Spoilers and Flaps

| The Flap lever has 5 predefined positions: 0 (retracted), 1, 2, 3, FULL (fully deployed). Depending on the aircraft airspeed, the lever position 1 corresponds to the 1 (slats) or 1+F (slats + flaps) flap status.
| The spoilers are operated in a very standard way: You have 4 predefined positions, accessible by moving the handle or by pressing the Ctrl-Page Up or Ctrl-Page Down keys (refer to the Keyboard section for more details) To arm the autobrake system (to deploy the spoilers automatically when the aircraft touches the ground), you must move the lever to the ARMED position (above the RET position). You can also use the Shift-: key (default FS2002 key).

Operating the flaps

The best flap configuration is:

- 1+F or 2 for take-off
- 3 or FULL for landing

The flaps should not be extended with an airspeed greater than 230 kts, or you will have a CONFIG warning.
When you extend the flaps to position 1, you will obtain:

- Position 1 (slats only) if you airspeed is greater than 210 kts
- Position 1+F (slats + flaps) if your airspeed is lower than 210 kts

If the flap position is 1+F, they automatically retract to 1 when airspeed is greater than 210 kts.

| This automated behavior will work only if your aircraft has 6 flap positions (0, 1, 1+F, 2, 3 and FULL). This is true for almost all the A320 aircrafts, including the IADG A320 and the Precision-Sim Designs A320. The real aircraft also has 6 flap positions.

Rudder Trim

| This gauge is useful to adjust the rudder trim. It displays CTRD when centered, or the value of the left or right deflection. A reset button is available to automatically center the rudder trim.

Parking Brakes

| Parking brake command. Clicking the handle will make it turn to apply or release parking brakes.

Throttles

| It shows the position of throttle levers for both engines, and the elevator trim positions on the sliding scale. The two trim wheels are animated to show the movement of the elevator trims (especially useful when autopilot is armed).
| The throttle lever management is very specific to the Airbus aircrafts: When you move the throttle lever, you feel 5 hard points that define pre-defined positions: REV, IDLE, CL, FLX and TOGA. A sound can be heard to help you in localizing the hard points. The throttle levers do not move when auto-thrust mode is engaged.

Operating the Throttles

When you move the throttle lever into one of the pre-defined positions, a sound can be heard to make you feel the "hard point" that does not exist on your throttle device, and which exists in the real aircraft.
The throttles are supposed to be used in a very standard way during the different phases of the flight. The throttle mode is indicated on the FMA, shown on the PFD (see the PFD section for more information).

- For taxi, the throttle lever can be moved slightly to provide enough thrust for taxiing. If the aircraft model is realistic (like the Project Airbus A320), the aircraft should taxi with IDLE throttle as soon as it has a minimum ground speed.
- For take-off, move the throttle lever to the FLX (Flex) or TOGA (Take off - Go Around) position, depending on the power you need. If the meteo conditions and the runway length permit, you should use FLX to save fuel and optimize engine usage.
- After take-off, move the lever to the CL (Climb) as soon as you have reached the safety altitude (usually, 1500 feet above ground level)
- At this time, it is highly recommanded to engage the auto-thrust mode. You can use the selected or managed speed mode (see the FCU section for details). If auto-thrust mode is engaged, the throttle lever can stay in the CL position during the whole flight (the FADEC will manage the engine power), until the retard action for landing.
- At any time, you can disengage the auto-throttle mode. To do so, you can press the ATHR button on the FCU, or you can move the throttle lever to the IDLE position. An alert sound can be heard when you disengage auto-thrust.

| When you disengage auto-thrust, you should use the white and blue indexes shown on the E/WD. Move the throttle lever so that the white indexes are aligned with the blue indexes, then disengage auto-throttle. Doing this, you will make sure that the engine thrust remains constant during the disengagement.

Engine Starters

The Airbus aircrafts are equiped with a FADEC (Full Authority Digital Engine Control) system which will handle the startup sequence automatically.

| This gauge is composed of 2 levers (A320/330) for the fuel feeding of engines, and a rotating button which selects the engine mode: CRANK: This position is supposed to be used to start the engines with an external system. It is not used here. NORM: Normal position, when engines are normally running. IGN/START: Switch to this position to start the engines.

Engine Start Procedure

When engines are OFF, all the levers should be down, meaning that no fuel is provided to the engines.
To start the engines:

1. Move the rotating button to the IGN/START position, engine 1 should start immediately and the ENGINE page should be automatically displayed on the SD.
2. On the E/WD or the SD screen, watch the N2 value of engine 1 (if you look on the SD, purple indexes are shown on the N2 display)
3. When N2 reaches 20% (indicated by the purple indexes on the SD screen), push the lever for Engine 1 or press Shift-Ctrl-1. It should start and run normally. If engine 1 does not start at this stage, the FADEC starts engine 2.
4. Now watch N2 for engine 2 on the E/WD or the SD screen
5. When N2 reaches 20%, push the Engine 2 lever or press Shift-Ctrl-2.

When the startup sequence is finished, a beep sound is heard and the rotating button automatically returns to the NORM position. The WHEEL page should now appear on the SD.

Note: If you want to simlify the startup sequence without having to monitor N2 values, push the 2 fuel feed levers before beginning the automatic startup sequence. The engines will automatically start when N2 reaches 20%.

Engine Shutdown Procedure

Simply pull the 2 engine levers for fuel cutoff on both engines. You can also press Shift-Ctrl-1 and Shift-Ctrl-2 (refer to the Keyboard section for more details).

Light switches and Signs

| The external light switches are grouped on the bottom part of the overhead panel. They are all connected to the lights of the modeled aircraft.
| The internal light switches are located on the left of the external light switches. The panel light can be switched ON or OFF through this switch, or with the Shift-L key (by default). The Seat Bealts and No Smoking sign switches are located just below.

Anti-ice

| The anti-ice buttons are located above the light switches. Two of them are dedicated to the engine anti-icing, and the PROBE button is to be used to heat the pitot tubes.

Electrical Panel

| The electrical panel is located on the toppart of the overhead panel. It includes switch buttons that control batteries and generators, and 2 displays for the battery voltages.

Fuel Pumps

| The Fuel pump panel includes buttons that have both roles: switch a fuel pump on or off, and display the pump status. When a pump is switched off, OFF appears in white on the button. If the pump is in fault status, FAULT is displayed in orange. This happens when the fuel level of the tank is too low.

ADIRS

| The ADIRS display show the location of the aircraft provided by the 3 IRS of the aircraft.

ELAC Computer

| The ELAC computer handles the alpha-floor protection system. This system ensures the aircraft always flies within its flight envelope. The Alpha-Floor has several possible actions: Bank angla limitation: the bank angle is limited to 67°. In addition, if the bank angle is greater than 33°, the Alpha-Floor will automatically bring it back to 33°. Stall avoidance: if the aircraft is close to stall speed, the Alpha-Floor system will slightly push the nose down using the elevator trim, and will apply full throttle (TOGA). Switching OFF the ELAC computer will disable the alpha-floor system.