A Flight Sim Enthusiast's Notebook
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Tutorial Videos for Garmin Smartwatches such as the D2 Charlie and the D2 Delta
Unboxing the Garmin D2 Delta PX Titanium Aviator Watch
Garmin D2 Delta PX Titanium Aviator Watch Setup GuideI came across some official Garmin tutorial videos for the D2 Charlie on YouTube. They were quite good, so I’m posting them here to share.
D2 Charlie: Updating Airport Information This video will show you how to update the aviation database via the flyGarmin website to keep the airport information on your watch up to date.
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Kansai Airport in a Super Typhoon
Updated September 5, 2018 Starting at 6 AM this morning, thousands of passengers stranded at Kansai International Airport can take ferries to Kobe Airport, which was largely unaffected by the disaster. Each ferry carries 110 people, with departures every 15-20 minutes. Checking NOTAMs revealed that nearby Kobe Airport and Osaka Itami Airport were not significantly affected by the typhoon and may be able to absorb some of the passenger traffic from Kansai Airport. Media reports suggest that it may take six months to fully restore the road and rail bridge to its pre-accident capacity, but airport flights are expected to resume within a week. By 8 AM, passenger transport via buses across the road bridge had begun. By 11 PM, the airport operator officially announced that all 7,800 people stranded at the airport had been evacuated (except for 25 people who wished to continue waiting at the airport).
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Photographing the F-35 Lightning II at the Royal International Air Tattoo
F-35 Lightning II is arguably the most advanced fighter jet in existence today. Seeing it in person for the first time, I was initially struck by the sheer sound of its engines. When the P&W F135 kicks in the afterburner, you can hear a unique metallic roar; In terms of noise, a single engine feels louder than the three-engine Trident airliner.
USA - Air Force Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II 15-5164 <img src=https://imgproc.airliners.net/photos/airliners/9/0/7/5157709.jpg?v=v42b38a6e3e4 referrerpolicy=“no-referrer”> I also managed to get this photo of the USAF F-35A, taken on the third day of the Air Tattoo, featured on A-net. Thank you so much!
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Introduction Video for X-Plane 11.30
At FLIGHTSIMEXPO 2018 held in Las Vegas this June, Laminar Research provided an outlook on X-Plane 11.30. Recently, the video was published on YouTube.
These new features were introduced in Chicago scenery in X-Plane 11.25 and the future product roadmap, but watching the video might make them easier to understand. However, keeping up with Austin Meyer’s extremely fast English is not easy, especially when he explains the aerodynamic models, it is quite difficult to understand without specialized knowledge.
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Waypoints Named After Häagen-Dazs Ice Cream and Shiroi Koibito Cookies
We have previously introduced waypoints named after cars and food and waypoints named after beers, but it looks like we can continue this topic. This time, the waypoint names introduced are from the famous ice cream manufacturer Häagen-Dazs and the Hokkaido Shiroi Koibito (White Lover) chocolate.
Looking at the ILS Z or LOC Z RWY08 Arrival procedure at Nakashibetsu Airport (RJCN/NAKASHIBETSU), the Intermediate Fix (IF) is named HAGEN, and the Final Approach Fix (FAF) is named DATZU. Although the spelling is inconsistent (Häagen-Dazs), when put together, doesn’t it sound like the Japanese pronunciation of Häagen-Dazs?
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X-Plane 11.26 r2 is not very stable
With nothing to do on the weekend, I upgraded X-Plane 11, only to find that the latest version is already 11.26r2.
I didn’t see any new features in actual use, so I checked the official release notes, X-Plane 11.26r2 - Let’s Try This Again X-Plane 11.26 and WED 1.7.1 X-Plane 11.26 Release Notes
Looking at them, there weren’t any major improvements,
XPD-9355 - Aircraft position jumps by 1 DSF tile at scenery shift. XPD-9246 Updated translation files. XPD-9065, XPD-9292 Fix for renaming runways in X-Plane's vec_apt struct.
Maybe there were just more translation content, and some improvements regarding airport positioning. I don't know if the issue of runways not being aligned, which netizens asked about before, has been fixed.For the test flight, I chose Gibraltar International Airport, ICAO code LXGB. Gibraltar International Airport is one of the few Class A airports in the world, and is famous for a public road crossing the Runway. On one side of the airport is Spain, and on the other is British territory. When there are no planes taking off or landing, general cars, pedestrians, and bicycles can all cross the Runway freely.
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Case of Ground Personnel Stealing Aircraft and Crashing
The other day, the incident involving a Horizon Air employee stealing an aircraft and crashing it caught my attention. Here are some related reports:
US aircraft stolen and crashed, authorities have not released the identity of the thief
An aircraft at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in the US took off without permission. The aircraft has crashed after being intercepted and tracked by fighter jets. According to US sources, there were no passengers on board at the time.
According to the official Twitter of Tacoma Airport, an airline employee took off in an unoccupied aircraft without permission. The aircraft crashed in the southern part of the local Puget Sound.
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Photo of 787 at Farnborough Airshow Featured by Official Airliners.net Account
Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner - Untitled (Biman Bangladesh) - N1015B <img src=https://imgproc.airliners.net/photos/airliners/9/9/2/5116299.jpg?v=v442cdc863cd referrerpolicy=“no-referrer”>
N1015B is a Boeing 787 test aircraft, that occasionally changes its livery when participating in various airshows. For example, the All Nippon Airways (ANA) livery used at Farnborough two years ago, but this time it features the Biman Bangladesh Airlines livery, which is quite refreshing.
This N1015B is renowned at airshows for conducting high-maneuverability demonstration flights, often dubbed by the media as “a fighter jet among airliners.” I witnessed it on-site this time, and it was truly an eye-opening and spectacular sight.
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Farnborough Airshow and Royal International Air Tattoo Planning and Preparation
Here is the translation of the aviation knowledge content.
The prerequisites for great aircraft photography, in my opinion based on priority, are:
- Selection of the shooting location,也就是做计划
- Praying for good weather
- Understanding the light
- Good lenses
- A good camera
- Photographic technique
- Post-processing skills (Many people think buying a good camera is enough to take good photos, but actually, its importance only ranks third from last)
Generally speaking, steps 1 and 7 take the most time. Here is a summary of the planning phase, for friends interested in the Tattoo and the Farnborough Airshow. <img src=https://imgproc.airliners.net/photos/airliners/1/9/7/5116791.jpg?v=v449ae37e977>
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Prologue: An Aviation Enthusiast's Journey
If you are traveling to the UK, say around London, Most people will definitely go see the Queen’s Buckingham Palace, the British Museum, St. Paul’s Cathedral, and other famous spots, Or maybe go for afternoon tea, or shopping at Harrods, right? But how would an aviation enthusiast plan a trip?
For instance, this time after landing at Heathrow Airport around noon, Getting off the British Airways plane, finishing exit formalities, Coming out of Terminal 5 and walking 10 meters with a camera on my back, I started snapping photos.
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World Cup Widget on Garmin Smartwatch
Due to the time difference, I didn’t watch much of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia. However, after the group stage and entering the knockout rounds, I sometimes wanted to know the future schedule.
I accidentally found this World Cup widget, “FIFA World Cup Russia 2018” I downloaded it immediately to check it out, the startup screen looks like this.
Then press the D button in the upper right to start downloading the schedule,
It turns out there will be a match between Uruguay and France this Friday. -
Recent a-net photo submissions
They are just ordinary photos, nothing to speak of in terms of beauty, But noticing that the China Southern aircraft at Haneda Airport recently are very new, I checked their manufacturing dates.
Currently, China Southern Airlines’ Guangzhou-Tokyo route CZ385/CZ386 primarily uses the A330, (Guangzhou 09:15 - Haneda 14:20 / Haneda 15:40 - Guangzhou 19:25) For example, Airbus A330-343 B-1063 <img src=https://imgproc.airliners.net/photos/airliners/5/7/5/5034575.jpg?v=v4e3f9bc9e45> This one rolled off the assembly line this March; a brand-new airframe just looks pleasing to the eye.
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Chicago Scenery in X-Plane 11.25 and Future Product Roadmap
The official website introduced Chicago airports in X-Plane 11.25. X-Plane 11 Landmarks: Chicago, USA accompanied by many exquisite screenshots. Let’s take a look below.
Chicago skyline at dusk
John Hancock Center
Chase & Willis Tower
Willis Tower
Exelon Center
Cloud Gate
Just a reminder, this scenery is free and can be used simply by upgrading to 11.25.
Actually, besides the scenery, the most important part is that the official team released the future roadmap. An X-Plane Road Map From FlightSimExpo For example, 11.30 will include a new AutoGen scenery engine; Improvements to aerodynamic models for prop wash, downwash, and ground effect; Research mode for flight models; Crew and passenger oxygen systems; Anti-icing; Propeller feathering systems; New autopilot settings; Particle effects system that can be used to simulate failures like smoke, etc. Additionally, after 11.30, new sceneries for New York and Washington DC will be released.
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X-Plane 11.25 Las Vegas Scenery
X-Plane 11.25 Beta 1 Released, X-Plane 11.25 Beta 1 Available Feeling that this Las Vegas Scenery is excellent, KLAS Additions in X-Plane 11.25
The above are the introduction images from the official website.
Additionally, in 11.25 XP has added many airport ground markings,
I believe this has significantly improved the Scenery realism.
By the way, it’s been 10 years since I last went to Vegas, Looking at the Scenery, there are quite a few buildings I don’t recognize, I really want to find another chance to travel there.
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Paired a Charging Cable with Garmin D2 Charlie
The original charging cable for the Garmin D2 Charlie has a very unique shape, so I was always worried about the inconvenience if I lost it. Also, I always need a backup cable when traveling for business or leisure, so when I saw this product on Amazon US:
[2-PACK]TUSITA Charger For Garmin Fenix 5 5S 5X/Forerunner 935/Approach S60,X10,S10/Quatix 5,5 Sapphire/Vivoactive 3/Vivosport/D2 Charlie/Impact/BarkLimiter 2,2VT USB Data Sync Charging Cable Cord
And the price was less than $7, much cheaper than the original, so I bought it immediately.
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American Airlines' First Boeing 787 Passenger Aircraft N800AN
Featured on the official website again, posting here to commemorate. Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner - American Airlines N800AN <img src=https://imgproc.airliners.net/photos/airliners/9/3/3/5027339.jpg?v=v48a8379d484>
As the caption says, “Nice afternoon light,” The soft light before the winter dusk is exactly the target every photographer pursues. Even more coincidentally, I caught the landing of American Airlines’ first Boeing 787 passenger aircraft, N800AN, and the timing was perfect.
Additionally, the shadow cast by the main wing on the fuselage is very clear, and the shape of the deployed Flaps can be seen very distinctly.
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List of Individuals Seriously Discredited for Civil Aviation Restricted from Taking Civil Aircraft Published
A few months ago, I introduced taking civil aircraft and the social credit system. This system has now officially launched. Today, I saw on the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) website the Announcement of the List of Seriously Dishonest Persons Restricted from Taking Civil Aircraft (No. 1, 2018):
Based on the administrative penalty records of public security organs, 86 individuals were subjected to administrative penalties by public security organs for engaging in behaviors that violate the provisions of the "Opinions on Appropriately Restricting Specific Seriously Dishonest Persons from Taking Civil Aircraft within a Certain Period to Promote the Construction of the Social Credit System" (Fa Gai Cai Jin [2018] No. 385), and have been recorded in the civil aviation records of seriously dishonest persons restricted from taking civil aircraft in accordance with regulations.
The publicity period has now expired, and the involved persons are prohibited from taking civil aircraft for one year, calculated from June 1, 2018.
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Garmin D2 Charlie Titanium Aviation Watch Firmware Updated to 4.00
Unboxing the Garmin D2 Delta PX Titanium Aviation Watch
Garmin D2 Delta PX Titanium Aviation Watch Setup GuideAbout half a year ago, when I introduced how to update data and apps on the Garmin D2 Charlie Titanium Aviation Watch, the system version was 3.2. Recently, I noticed that version 4.00 has been released, so I connected it to my computer to complete the upgrade. The entire process took about 1 minute.
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Real-world Flight Plan Database Websites
I found a great UK website, which provides over one hundred thousand real-world flight plans submitted by professionals. Although there is a lot of outdated data, it is still highly recommended. Real World Flightplan Database
You need to register for a free ID before using this website. The process is very simple and takes about 1 minute, so I won’t go into details here.
After logging in, click the Search section in the link bar on the left side of the website, and fill in the required information. For example, if I want to find a flight plan to Beijing Capital International Airport, I enter ZBAA in the Destination ICAO field.
Then you get the search results: -
Headline on Airliners.net Homepage TOP 5 OF THE LAST 24 HOURS
The most prominent section on the homepage of www.airliners.net is the “TOP 5 OF THE LAST 24 HOURS,” which features the 5 most viewed photos in the last 24 hours and is updated every hour.
Because this Singapore Airlines A350 was recommended by the official account, <img src=https://imgproc.airliners.net/photos/airliners/5/5/5/5003555.jpg?v=v4fc6c7c0cad> it ranked first for the first time, so I took a screenshot to commemorate the moment.
Actually, this photo was taken nearly a year ago. Aside from the good lighting, I didn’t think there was anything special about it. It’s just a standard spotting side shot, pretty incredible… Anyway, thanks for the recommendation from the official site.