Map and dead reckoning problems

I don't know how to remove your aircraft from the map but may I suggest using a real map. You can purchase them from: www.sportys.com/chartdoctor/. Now that's realistic! 🙂

Yea, it would be very realistic🙂 good idea, but i think i must find a bit more afordable way. taking screenshot from google earth maybe...
just popped into my head right now, thanks for leading me on the right way CRJCapt🙂 (running google earth at the same time as fs9 will hurt my frames to much i think).

too bad i will still see my plane when im checking airport and tower frequences and stuff like that on the default map 😞

can you not turn the plane off in map mode?

if you know anything about basic coding you could either make a map (like your screenshot idea) and place it as a 2D panel pop up, or edit the keys.htm (i think) in the aircraft folder to show your image - it would then pop up on your knee board in place (or above if you wish) of the key controls.

just a thought.

morten123 wrote:

Hi

Anyone know of a way to remove your own plane from the default map in fs9?? Im planning to fly some old style dead reckoning, but each time i look at my
map i see exactly where my plane is , and i feel its kinda cheating. I need the map to navigate. But its no fun when its functions as a gps.

First, I don't know how to remove your plane from the map. Early navigation of aircraft involved piloting as well as dead, or ded, reckoning. Visual references on the ground like intersections, towns, land features are all used to verify the ded reckoning plot on a more or less continuous basis. Even today many GA pilots use a combination of piloting and ded reckoning to estimate their position. GPS tells you exactly where you are but you should still have an idea how to get where you are going, or where you came from, using ded reckoning if your GPS fails. Over the space of a couple of years I made many trips to the Bahamas from Savannah, GA, usually doing more of the flying than the owner, with a friend who had a Piper Cherokee Six to go diving. he followed I-95 to West Palm Beach and then flew a compass course to West End and followed the coast to Freeport. He had VOR but usually did not turn it on. I had an uncle with a Beechcraft Bonanza who flew all over north GA looking for sand to mine. He had a successful business selling sand to golf courses, playgrounds, and anyone who needed high quality, white sand. He flew almost entirely using heading, time, and landmarks. You are deprived of those landmarks in FS2004. Some are present but most are not. When I flew around Savannah, GA in the 80s I used highway intersections, bridges, towns, anything recognizable from 3,000 to 5,000 feet. Trying to use older methods of navigation in FS2004 is admirable but I'm not sure it is reallly possible. In my own homage to older days I am flying around the country using just VOR. I think your best bet is going to be printed charts. Good luck anyway.

thanks for the reply folks, ill check into the keys.htm when i get home from work..

I know finding landmarks and stuff is difficult in default fs9
But for Norway, where I come from, I have downloaded i really accurate mesh and a scenic update, so i can now see allmost every lake, pond, road in the country, all the mountains is at right height. its realy cool.
The country is totaly changed. (You can find the files at flightsim.no if you want to have a nice time flying in norway.)

I have tested the elevation accuracy with local maps of several small lakes and waters, and evryone have only been about 3 meeters off, and many of them where dead on.

So i think i could manage, or at least try to fly old school in Norway, (but not the rest of the world)

You could use the add-on FS Navigator. It is possible to turn off the aircraft and stop the map following the aircraft during flight but still have the ability to manually move the map view. It would be basically the same as using a chart. It's payware but it is a one tme payment and would be less expensive than buying charts. Currently 35 Euro.

There is a trial download that allows 20 sessions.

I don't think turning off your aircraft position on the map is going to be very realistic, because the FS09 maps are so bad-- there are no place names, no elevations, no manmade features, except airports, nothing that might be useful for navigation. And even with the aircraft position turned off, you know when you open it that you're right in the middle of the map.

I have tried to do a couple of trips in FS09 with no help from GPS or VOR, and it's not easy. I think the most easily identifiable landmarks in FS09 are lakes and rivers. The course of rivers and shorelines of lakes are reasonably accurate, so if you can find a readily identified feature of either near your destination, you may be able to find your way there.

Personally, I have done it where I kind of "pretend" I don't know where I am on the map-- I just don't open the map until I find the landmark I'm looking for, then I open it and say "Aha, here I am. Now on to the next landmark" and I close the map again.

Not as realistic as buying real charts, but it keeps me amused. 😂

Ed