ILS landings are a piece of cake... Very Simple and fun when you understand the principles....
1. ILS will NOT land for you. It only takes you close enough to see the runway then you turn off AP and land manually....
2. Approach 20 miles out stright into ILS runway, at 3500 feet(above airport)... I assume you have the AP on.
3. Slow DOWN... drop gear, flaps,, let auto pilot stabilize airplane.
4. You must be within +or - 3 degrees of the beam. The HSI should indicate you are close.. BE sure to have the runway direction set on the HSI..
5. AT 12.5 miles out hit the APR button, make sure the ALT is off. BE sure to turn the NAV/GPS switch to NAV. You should be at 3500 ft. Check the vertical beam indicator on the HSI. The mark on the left is the airplane, the mark on right is the beam. The beam is fixed, so if the left is below the right than add power to gain altitude. Left is high backoff power and trim down slightly. A good approach will have both indicators alighned all the way down.
6. Let the APR "find" the correct approach angle... Watch the beam alignment indicator on HSI it should be moving toward alignment.... If you don't line up by 10 miles out you got a problem.. It is correctable but takes some experience.
When using the Garman GPS approach. There can be a problem with approach angles. If the angle is more than 90 degrees to the beam then the plane cannot turn sharp enough to line up. I switch the AP from NAV to HDG and use the HSI bug to steer the plane past the airport and make approach toward airport at 25 miles out then switch the GARMAN to approach mode. Then the plane will line up and at 12.5 miles out switch to APR on the autopilot.... (NOTE: the Garman in approach mode will indicate the distance to next checkpoint NOT the airport).
In Alaska many airports don't have ILS but GPS/DME. You use the same procedure as ILS but there is no slope indicator on the HSI. You must know the altitude at 10, 5, and 2 mile for your airplane. You keep the airplane on the checkpoint altitudes then you will see the runway to land manually... I do this often as there is lots of fog in AK...
The FS9 ATC is flaky. So I don't use the ILS flt plan function. I call in at about 20 miles and give a postion and runway. This prevents ATC from landing a jet right in front of me or right after me before I can clear runway. Hopfully FSX will fix this problem....
TIPS:
Too fast airspeed is biggest problem in ILS approaches... SLOW down to landing speed and SET flaps for your plane, before APR is engaged....
Before takeoff:
1. Set the target runway heading on the HSI before takeoff.(note: on a ILS diagram the runway approach heading will be a few degrees different . If you know it use that on the HSI....)
2. Set the VOR 1 radio to the localizer(ILS) beam frequency of target.
3. set the VOR2 radio to the closest VOR to target.
4. set the target ADF freq if one is available... Most airports in AK have ADF lined up with the ILS runway. When the ADF needle matches the HSI runway needle, you are dead on to the ILS beam... The APR will make some minor corrections and you will be good to go....
Many ILS beams are "offset" in AK to allow seaplanes to use the beam and to clear mountians.... So you MUST be ready to go manual and correct heading to land as soon as you get a visual....
I've no problems getting lined up horizontally with the airport using ILS.....but I'm confused about the descent part. How does the ILS control your descent? Or does it? Or is that something that I still need to manage by adjusting the throttle, etc?
If it's the latter, that's fine....I'd just like to stop overflying the airport and land on it instead.
Your ILS mode will take you down to the white squares on the runway ,providing you have set your auto throttle and set your landing speed beforehand, including flaps down and wheels down, at about 160 to 180 Knots depending on the type of aircraft you are landing .And ,of course, you have set the ILS freqency when the ATC tell you the runway in use
I've no problems getting lined up horizontally with the airport using ILS.....but I'm confused about the descent part. How does the ILS control your descent? Or does it? Or is that something that I still need to manage by adjusting the throttle, etc?
If it's the latter, that's fine....I'd just like to stop overflying the airport and land on it instead.
If your getting lined up horizontally then you've got the hardest part done. Assuming your making an approach to a RW that has both a Glide Slope and a Localizer (Horizontal Beam) otherwise you will have to consult the RW approach chart which will show you the Glide Slope (GS) in increments toward the threshold, from a waypoint such as an NDB, VOR, or Intersection. And finally you can use the RW approach lighting as you make your minimums.
Ok to get back on track, you will notice when your horizantal with the threshold you will have lower purple indicator on your display in the center. On the right you will have a purple diamond with represents your position relative to the Glide Slope. You should enter capture the GS at about 3500 (10nm) out, assuming this would be a MSA for the airport and runway your flying to. At this point in time you will notice the right purple diamond (GS indicator)at the top of display indicating the GS is above you. Maintaing this altitude and you will notice the indicator will start to move down. Likewise to the Localiser indicator when its centered you are established! At this stage I like to hit APP and let the manage the GS for me while I complete final checks.
Sorry if I rambeled on a bit but i figure other people might learn too.
Just remember if the diamond is above you so is the GS your too low.
If the diamond is below you, your too high - hit the speedbrakes or you will go around!!
Another point to note not all ILS Runways have a GS so be careful.
Also while the Localizer becomes active between 25 and 30nm out the GS will not normally show until about 7 - 10nm out. If your flying with ATC they will instruct your decents, otherwise you should have your chart handy.
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