18-03-2006, 09:24 AM
I've just finished an addon program for FSP which Dan has allowed me to upload to this site. I hope to have it in here in about a week or
so - just have to finish the data files and do some more testing.
Basically, it is like Airliner Pilot but a bit more simplistic and designed to work with FSP. Here's the outline:
You start by making a new pilot - enter name, select difficulty settings and salary multiplier. These will determine how much you get paid
each flight, how much cash you start with and also adjusts the required hours for future job opportunities.
Once in the program, you can get certified on various aircraft. Each aircraft requires a certain # of hours on that type (SEP, MEJ, etc.) for
an immediate certification, however, you can, "take the exam" at any time. The fee is deducted from your account and then, the program
determines whether or not you received certification. The more hours you have logged on that type, the better your chances for getting
certified. This will give you the ability to find jobs flying not only that aircraft but also, any others in the family. For example, certification on
the A319 will also give you access to the A320, A321, etc. However, more types per family may equal higher fees for certification.
When you start out, you have no certifications at all. There are only a few that you can start with, namely the basic SEP's like Cessnas,
Mooneys, Pipers, etc. Just like in FSP, you must start out small (Note: you should use this program while in Career Mode in FSP).
The program tracks your total flight hours as well as total hours flying each class of aircraft, your pilot rank and your bank account.
Once you're certified, it's time to get a job. There are two sections of job listings - Entry Level and Internal. Internal jobs only become
available when you've spent some time with the same airline. For example, you may have to fly 50 hours with UA before you will be
considered for long haul flights, etc.
Entry Level jobs are just that - a foot in the door. These will give you the flying time and the cash to gain further type certifications and
seniority within an airline. When you choose a job, you are assigned to a specific airline flying a specific aircraft in their livery and at a
particular base. For example: Skywest, CRJ2, Delta Connection, KSLC. All flights are shuttle style, meaning you fly out and back. Once
hired, you can view the stats on your career - past jobs, aircraft types certified on, current job, total hours and flights, current salary, etc.
If you don't like the jobs being offered, you can click, "Skip Day" to refresh the job openings list.
When you're ready to fly, you can click on Next Flight and you will be given an assignment. The initial offerings may give you limited
variety. You may sign up with Colgan Air flying in and out of KBOS with your SF34 to about 6-7 destinations. As you work your way up the
ladder, you can quickly find yourself flying fo AA out of KDFW on a number of routes up to a maximum of 300 per base city.
Once you commit to a flight, the program locks you out until both runs are completed and logged. To log a flight, simply run the program
and select your pilot. You will be taken to the Log Flight screen where you will enter, from your FSP End of Flight Report, the block time for
each flight (Out and Back) and your current Rating. You're stats are updated and you can proceed to fly another flight, gain certification or
change jobs.
The job postings are randomized based on a chance value that is directly proportional to the aircraft type, salary and size of route network.
At present, I haven't written the very short routine for getting fired but that should be in shortly. In the event that your rating drops as a
result of poor performance during an FSP flight and that brings you below the minimum requirement of the current airline job, you will be
fired and have to find a new job.
All files will be editable so that you can customize the aircraft list, flightplans, etc. In Airliner Pilot, each flightplan was very specific and
included waypoints, etc. This setup is meant to allow you to easily grab a timetable and pump the data into the grid. Here is a sample
line from my Southwest flightplans:
Southwest Airlines,Southwest Airlines,United States,B737,KGEG,6,C6,50000,100,45,KSEA,KPDX,KBOI,KSLC,KOAK,KLAS,
Southwest Airlines - Airline
Southwest Airlines - Livery (Mainly used for commuters serving several majors)
United States - Region
B737 - Aircraft Type - Boeing 737-700
KGEG - Base airport - you'll fly all your flights from and to this airport.
6 - the number of destinations available
C6 - rank required for job availability
50000 - annual salary
100 - hours required - this is an internal job, requiring 100 hours with Southwest Airlines before being offered
45 - % chance of job offer
KSEA, etc. - these are the destinations served by the base at KGEG
So far, I've programmed most US based airlines into the sim. It's as easy as grabbing a timetable and just plugging in the destinations
according to aircraft type listed. A bit time consuming but not nearly as much as the other.
FSP still does all the ratings, performance reviews, etc. This is simply to give you the feel of receiving assignments to fly and then FSP
takes over.
Anyway, that's that. Again I hope to have it in the downloads soon - I'll post up when it's in there.
so - just have to finish the data files and do some more testing.
Basically, it is like Airliner Pilot but a bit more simplistic and designed to work with FSP. Here's the outline:
You start by making a new pilot - enter name, select difficulty settings and salary multiplier. These will determine how much you get paid
each flight, how much cash you start with and also adjusts the required hours for future job opportunities.
Once in the program, you can get certified on various aircraft. Each aircraft requires a certain # of hours on that type (SEP, MEJ, etc.) for
an immediate certification, however, you can, "take the exam" at any time. The fee is deducted from your account and then, the program
determines whether or not you received certification. The more hours you have logged on that type, the better your chances for getting
certified. This will give you the ability to find jobs flying not only that aircraft but also, any others in the family. For example, certification on
the A319 will also give you access to the A320, A321, etc. However, more types per family may equal higher fees for certification.
When you start out, you have no certifications at all. There are only a few that you can start with, namely the basic SEP's like Cessnas,
Mooneys, Pipers, etc. Just like in FSP, you must start out small (Note: you should use this program while in Career Mode in FSP).
The program tracks your total flight hours as well as total hours flying each class of aircraft, your pilot rank and your bank account.
Once you're certified, it's time to get a job. There are two sections of job listings - Entry Level and Internal. Internal jobs only become
available when you've spent some time with the same airline. For example, you may have to fly 50 hours with UA before you will be
considered for long haul flights, etc.
Entry Level jobs are just that - a foot in the door. These will give you the flying time and the cash to gain further type certifications and
seniority within an airline. When you choose a job, you are assigned to a specific airline flying a specific aircraft in their livery and at a
particular base. For example: Skywest, CRJ2, Delta Connection, KSLC. All flights are shuttle style, meaning you fly out and back. Once
hired, you can view the stats on your career - past jobs, aircraft types certified on, current job, total hours and flights, current salary, etc.
If you don't like the jobs being offered, you can click, "Skip Day" to refresh the job openings list.
When you're ready to fly, you can click on Next Flight and you will be given an assignment. The initial offerings may give you limited
variety. You may sign up with Colgan Air flying in and out of KBOS with your SF34 to about 6-7 destinations. As you work your way up the
ladder, you can quickly find yourself flying fo AA out of KDFW on a number of routes up to a maximum of 300 per base city.
Once you commit to a flight, the program locks you out until both runs are completed and logged. To log a flight, simply run the program
and select your pilot. You will be taken to the Log Flight screen where you will enter, from your FSP End of Flight Report, the block time for
each flight (Out and Back) and your current Rating. You're stats are updated and you can proceed to fly another flight, gain certification or
change jobs.
The job postings are randomized based on a chance value that is directly proportional to the aircraft type, salary and size of route network.
At present, I haven't written the very short routine for getting fired but that should be in shortly. In the event that your rating drops as a
result of poor performance during an FSP flight and that brings you below the minimum requirement of the current airline job, you will be
fired and have to find a new job.
All files will be editable so that you can customize the aircraft list, flightplans, etc. In Airliner Pilot, each flightplan was very specific and
included waypoints, etc. This setup is meant to allow you to easily grab a timetable and pump the data into the grid. Here is a sample
line from my Southwest flightplans:
Southwest Airlines,Southwest Airlines,United States,B737,KGEG,6,C6,50000,100,45,KSEA,KPDX,KBOI,KSLC,KOAK,KLAS,
Southwest Airlines - Airline
Southwest Airlines - Livery (Mainly used for commuters serving several majors)
United States - Region
B737 - Aircraft Type - Boeing 737-700
KGEG - Base airport - you'll fly all your flights from and to this airport.
6 - the number of destinations available
C6 - rank required for job availability
50000 - annual salary
100 - hours required - this is an internal job, requiring 100 hours with Southwest Airlines before being offered
45 - % chance of job offer
KSEA, etc. - these are the destinations served by the base at KGEG
So far, I've programmed most US based airlines into the sim. It's as easy as grabbing a timetable and just plugging in the destinations
according to aircraft type listed. A bit time consuming but not nearly as much as the other.
FSP still does all the ratings, performance reviews, etc. This is simply to give you the feel of receiving assignments to fly and then FSP
takes over.
Anyway, that's that. Again I hope to have it in the downloads soon - I'll post up when it's in there.