Hi there IFC!! I thought of an incredibly helpful idea of a feature to add to IF. I have a very busy schedule, and I usually have a specific flight time that I seek. I can find out how long a specific route will take, but to do that I need to climb to cruise speed and direction and look at the “ETE to DEST at the bottom”. I think it would be incredibly helpful for IF to add a route time calculator or something of the sort before you load into the game. This would allow me and people with the same problem to know how long their route will take before loading in. There is no way for you to look at the in-flight map that is provided in-game.
I know that there are other ways to find the flight time, but one integrated into IF would allow more detail with the inclusion of the following:
Wind to calculate for drag and therefore a slower arrival
Anticipated cruise speed (Mach)
Route (WITH WAYPOINTS)
V/S for climb and descent
Climb speed
** The calculator should include the in-flight map provided so that all of the mapping is consistent in and out of game.
All of those factors would allow the “calculator” (if you will) to provide the most accurate flight time planning. Also, the tool should allow pilots to directly move their FPL from the calculator to the game (whence loaded in) without having to replace all of the points. I know this is similar to other websites outside of IF, but having it integrated into the game will allow for unparalleled efficiency and convenience. I hope my fellow members of the IFC feel the same way!!
As I said, I know there are many other alternatives to flight planning, but one integrated into IF with the same map as the one in-game and other universal IF features will make the feature incredibly helpful. I personally find Simbrief hard to use and I am confused with it. However, thank you for the feedback, as I know not everyone sees the need for this feature.
I think with the plethora of 3rd party apps and websites that do this exact function, it really wouldn’t be worth the developers time to add it. We should focus more on getting a better gameplay experience, rather than reinventing the wheel. Just my opinion 🤷🏼♂️
Sometimes, i want to have a flight and after i enter my flightplan (after loading in), it turns out that the flight’s distance/time is longer than i expected.
You got my vote.
Hey mate,
This is a great idea although I don’t think it would work as say it says 1h 30m ETE to DEST on loading but then you fly a little slower or faster, the second you do that the calculation will be off. So good idea but sorry, I don’t think it’ll work.
G’day I would love this as it would help me from not running near out of fuel of the Atlantic when I was flying the British Airways Airbus A318 to JFK from London City, you have my vote.
Hey all and @Patrick_Jennings,
Since doing my Around The World Tour I have found out that every square on the map is roughly 1 flight hour in a commercial airline.
I do understand this - this is why I said above that you could put in your climb and descent (speed V/S and Mach) to combat this. Therefore, your flight plan would be planned out enough that you could slow down (as planned for descent and climb) and it would still be factored in.
If you had to change, then that is an extra factor that you have created. The calculator would simulate a smooth flight, wheels up to wheels down, without diversions or go-around. I understand that not all flights will be this way, but the calculator can only do so much.
With regards to the weather, the calculator would use wind forecasts to scope out the weather and add possible extra time if necessary. Hope this helps clear this up!