Beginners guide to starting the PMDG Boeing 737-800 from cold and dark in Microsoft Flight Simulator 

Yes now I do after writing it down I followed your URL and found your page of checklists Are you going to add more ??

@@jayteeaitch yes - I write up the checklists for any moderately complex aircraft :)

It's not a massive issue at all, but rather I don't really think the FMC's data being out of date's an issue to do with not having a navigraph subscription (it could be maybe since not got the link software running right now, but I have a navigraph subscription and the FMC says its out of date lol. Btw love your videos, you take things back to their basics which I really enjoy!

@@jonbeckett Just a quick question the last digits most but the very left digits on the GPS L and R aren't exactly the same, does that really matter at all, though its like one digit different lol.

@@jonbeckettit makes me pay money to get the checklist is that normal

Welcome to the channel :)

thanks jonathan!

Please could you tell me your specs and which monitor

You're welcome :)

:) There's a lot more in the aircraft than the checklist covers - it really is the absolute bare bones.

You're welcome :)

You're welcome :)

Glad it helped!

This was a purposely shortened procedure that doesn't include everything a real crew would do - I state that several times. You're actually wrong about a couple of things. Strobes don't go on until you're on the runway in the real world. The last thing aircraft taxiing or ground crew need is to be blinded. Barometric pressure is set to STD as you pass through the transition level - not 10,000ft. The transition level varies all over the world.

@@jonbeckett Right, no problem. As I said, it's all good, just wanted to mention these few things. And also, thanks for the insight, seems like I got it wrong regarding the strobe lights and the baro pressure. Now I know it better, I'm still learning all the procedures flight by flight 🤓

mate strobe lights go on when you are waiting to get cleared for take off and you need to have auto brakes on max bafoooooon

Glad it was helpful!

You're welcome :)

Glad to help :)

try the Fenix a320 😮

The checklist I did is just a starting point - there are lots more tests and checks you can do :)

If you visit the link in the notes, you can download the procedure and print it out :)

I don't quite understand why so many people held back until the 800 was released - the other Boeing 737 models are functionally identical. It is nice to see so many newcomers though.

Cheers!

If you're adding everything back in, you may as well use the real checklist - if you search online, you can find the pilot manual for the 737 for free download.

You're welcome :)

Oh yes :)

Good base to start on. Airbus seems almost unrealistically easy to fly after learning Boeings 😅

@@kronos711 I've been having great fun with it. I finally took some time and messed around with the control sensitivity for my Extreme 3D Pro and now it feels amazing. It was a bit skittery with default sensitivity but now it hand flies beautifully.

@@Jbay2608 yeah me personally I'm still using mouse yoke (what a scrub Ikr) until I can get my hands on a good HOTAS. Still very very fun if you can get the sensitive tuned just right.

The only thing I've learned about this is the multiple glitches and bugs that it holds.. they need to fix that asap.. as far as xbox version

Glad it was helpful!

Glad I could help!

Absolutely. Quite often in my videos I might choose a mode to show that it's there, and how it works. If you use the more automated modes such as FLC, there's nothing to talk about :)

@@jonbeckett Well there is everything to talk about in that particular information u gave to use V/S while climbing. Its just not about automated modes. While u were explaining u had no clue why the aircraft would not go to your set speed of 220 while climbing at a V/S of +2500. "probably something wrong with my throttle". Well mate if u are gonna give out wrong information like that and not correct it when someone points it out then that says a lot. People are gonna follow this and start putting in high V/S for climb with low speeds and the speed keeps bleeding off to a point where the aircraft stalls and just falls off head down to the ground and they'll be left nothing but a lot of questions again. I was hoping someone pointed this out in the comments and there u were with a smart reply not even trying to analyse if whatever u said in ur video is right. Well its been 7 months since u made this video I am sure u would have known this by now.

If you figure out how things actually work, you've got half a chance if they go wrong :)

@@jonbeckett now thanks to you im an expert at this plane, one that seemed impossible and confusing to fly from the start. You definitely earned yourself a sub, keep up the great content.

@@Pilot_Jeff Cheers!

That's the idea :)

Glad it was helpful!

Keep at it :)

You're welcome :)

Heh - cheers. On the beginners videos I cut a LOT of functionality out that you might use in "real-world" procedures. Notice I also didn't program all of the wind and temperature data into the FMC. It's always a balance to show enough but not so much that the video ends up being 2 hours long :)

nice age lol

Yep - it's a bit of a hidden "feature" :)

Yes - I found that out shortly after recording (and reading the documentation lol).

Glad it was helpful!

Glad it helped

I didn't show it in this video, but I know the Boeing 73 series very well. I regularly fly it for group flights with ATC (which are not on this channel). I have recorded a number of videos showing some of the deep and dark depths of the FMC programming - doing things like custom waypoints, abeam waypoints, parallel tracks, and so on. Don't presume people don't know things based on one video :)

@@jonbeckett dark depths is spot on haha. Sorry. I think I was being ornery. Sorry if I was bit harsh. We’re flying we a lot of low time pilots to this category airplane and it’s helped me to even more about the depths of the FMC and systems. I’ve flown the 737 for a bit now and actually love it. I mean i loved the A320 more but alas I fly what they tell me. Your content is very good!!!

LNAV generally needs a flight plan without discontinuities, flight directors on, and the IRS system aligned and ready-to-go.

If you don't switch the packs on, you don't pressurise the cabin - or heat it. If you switch the packs on BEFORE starting the engines, you won't be able to start the engines.

Glad it was helpful!

I disabled the parking break for the 737 - it doesn't work with the Airbus Quadrant. The 737 has a unique arrangement that is simulated accurately - you have to apply pressure on the foot brakes before the parking brake lever in the cockpit will work.

Glad it helped!

Thanks for the visit

Me too. I thing PMDG are ripping everybody off quite badly.

You're welcome :)

You're welcome :)

That means either the IRS hasn't aligned, or the FMS is not configured.

My pleasure!

The more accurate aircraft report the expiry date on the nav data :)

Could be something else interfering with it ? Or you've accidentally turned the brightness down on the pilot side ?

Search my channel for 737 flight planning www.youtube.com/@jonbeckett/search?query=737%20flight%20plan

I use a mixture of LittleNavMap (free windows app), and Navigraph.

The USB causes the throttles to move.

@@jonbeckett oh dear!!!!!

Glad you like them!

You're very welcome!

You're welcome!

Did you start the plane already running?

Go back into the FMC and change the state of the aircraft in the PMDG menu. To activate the FMC with no power, hold the menu button on.

No.

APU takes a while usually.

The hum is the fans behind a lot of the electronics.

@@jonbeckett ty

It's exactly the same as the others - just bigger and heavier.

@@jonbeckett can't wait to experience it myself.

Xbox version is absolutely terrible. Nothing works right.

You use a torch :) quite literally, in real life and in the simulator! I think the shortcut key for this in fs2020 is Alt+L ✌

That will be because you have not finished filling out the FMC correctly and/or not switched on the flight directors.

All the best

Check the nose wheel steering axis is configured.

You can set the default start state in the FMC.

The PMDG aircraft take no notice of the world map screen flight plan - you have to do it "in the cockpit" like the real crews do it (there is a form of simbrief integration though too).

@jonbeckett Thank you, I experimented last night and I would always get an overlap of my arrival or departure route. I tried it just like you said and got a perfect route. I knew this but the last time I flew PMDG was 2-3 years ago on FSX. Flight Simulator X flight planning was a bit different than this.

If left on "realistic", it's because IRS takes about 8 minutes to align. You can manipulate it in the FMC - under the PMDG menu.

@@jonbeckett I'm doing something weirdly wrong. I discovered the thing about setting it to realistic. Weirdly though, when I set it to realistic despite obviously having to wait 8 mins (which realistically I'm not going to want to do all time) it actually aligned, when I set it to 30 secs it never aĺigns for me .

@@jonathandesmond8697 how strange !?

They are only 25 miles apart :) You wouldn't need any procedures lol