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MSFS20 Is MSFS using Magnetic Variation tables. ?

Geoff_D

Geoff_D

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Since this forum is where the people know what they are talking about (as opposed to the MSFS Forum) maybe someone here can tell me where my thinking is wrong here... because I really hope it is just me being DUMB !!

Flew the ILS 1R into KIAD on MSFS. in C172

This is what I saw.

Sure looks to me like these is an issue with Mag Var ??

What I am looking at incorrectly ???

KIAD-ILS-1R-MV.jpg



Unless I am loosing it, it would seem that magnetic variation tables are NOT being used to make the compass a "magnetic compass" !!!


I hope this is just be having a Brain fart.. otherwise, its a Major FUBAR

If I did not know I had Intentionally set the winds to Zero, I would assume I had quite a strong cross wind coming from the East , making me have to have a heading +10 Degrees off the Approach Course -- and Guess what -- Mag var at KIAD is +10 degs




> GPS = 1 Deg
> Runway is 11 Deg magnetic (in 2020)
> Compass says heading 20 deg
>
> And there is NO WIND
 
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I should RTFM for the GN530 Duhhh.

The bearing it displays is the RELATIVE bearing to Station (or at least that is what the AS530 is coded to display)

So if all is good on the ILS that should be ZERO ?

That was a waste of an Afternnon, but "I hope I learnt something"
 
There's a magvar variable you can add in the airport XML, but I don't know how to use it.

<Ils lat="36.708185" lon="127.484131" alt="50.597" heading="232.184830" frequency="110.3" magvar="0.0" ident="ICHJ" width="5.0" name="LOC 06L">
For instance, how do I translate 8 degrees West into MSFS form? -8.0 perhaps?
 
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Well, it might not all be an Airport Issue with Mag Var.
Starting to look more like a Gauge issue.

The GNS380 RAD display would appear to be using the wrong variable ( a heading, not a Radial), so that would account for the display on the Garmin being "OFF"

I don't think the display is there to tell you want current heading to fly to the VOR. I think is there to tell you what radial you are on, so you can fly in a straight line, directly TO / FROM it.
 
If I look at the track you're on, it looks like it's 10 degrees off of the direction to the KIAD runway? It's hard to tell from the little map you have there.

I was so confused, I was thinking, huh, he's not showing the compass, what's he talking about? Then I looked closer and realized you were talking about the directional gyro, and that it's pointing at about 20. Yep, that's correct. You centered the needle on the Nav gauge to point to KIAD, so, yes, it's not going to agree with the DG. It's going to tell you what what the radial you are on is at that moment if the needle is centered, and it will drift to one side or the other as you fly off from that radial at the fix you've chosen to align it with if you center the needle with the OBS knob.

For instance, if you're trying to hit an intersection between two VORs, you dial in the radials for the intersection on the respective nav gauges, and when the two needles are centered, you're at the intersection. If you're going to a VOR, the needle will be to the left of center if you're right of track of the radial and vice versa if you're to the left of track, and backwards from that if you're going away from the VOR (the too/from arrows on the nav gauge tell you which direction the VOR is from you on the radial that's dialed in).

I was also wondering why you circled the altitude gauge instead of the NAV gauge next to it. What does altitude have to do with anything? (other than the fact you're 100 ft below the apparent assigned altitude at the waypoint?...tsk, tsk ;) ) (but, really, it's way better to be above the assigned altitude than below, especially if there are any obstructions in the area).

Now, granted, if I hit pause in msfs, the DG will get all screwed up and I have to hit "D" to realign it when I start flying again.

In fact, in real life, the DG can drift over time. FS actually models that if you turn it on. Depending on your experience with a particular gauge, you have to check it every so often against the compass to make sure they are aligned with each other. Or in FS hit "D" and it does it for you.
 
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