Well, just after sending my previous reply, the block happened on start-up for the first leg. I must have taken too long writing, maybe a bit more than 10 minutes.
At the gate APU running, Ground Power on. Upon pushback Ground Power off. Engines wouldn't start. Funnily enough, after pushback, I decided to reengage the Ground Power supply from the menu. This did the trick.

Just to throw my 2 cents into the unified conversation here.

I tested all of this as follows:

1. CLEAN install.  Uninstalled 1.0, deleted any remaining files I found (including saved flights), then re-installed.
2. I loaded the Cold & Dark flight from within FSX.
3. I began the checklist at that point.  I did not go into any menus, did not change the aircraft, did not use Shift+Z to clear the sim info.  I only used Shift+A to move around the flight deck and +/- to zoom in/out.

(* = OK, X = discrepancy from checklist, @ = doesn't make sense to me)

* BATTERY switch - Guard closed
@ DC Meters - on BAT, positive indication on DC Amps
* AC Meters - on APU, Flat
* GALLEY POWER switch - ON
* STANDBY POWER switch - Guard closed
X STANDBY PWR OFF light IS ON
* BUS TRANSFER switch - Guard closed
X TRANSFER BUS OFF light IS ON
X BUS OFF light IS ON
* APU - Start
* APU GENERATOR switches - ON
* BUS OFF lights - extinguished
* TRANSFER BUS OFF lights - extinguished
* LOW OIL QUANTITY light - extinguished
* APU LOW OIL PRESSURE light - extinguished
* APU HIGH OIL TEMPERATURE light - extinguished
* APU OVERSPEED light - extinguished
* AC Meters - on APU, power indicated.
@ DC Meters - on BAT, negative indication shown on DC Amps.
* DC Meters - on STDBY PWR, indications correct.
* AC Meters - on STDBY PWR, indications correct.
* STDBY PWR OFF light - extinguished at this point.

From here, I did the following (I know, it deviates from the checklist)...

WINDOW HEAT - All ON
PITOT STATIC HEAT - Both ON
ENGINE HYDRAULIC PUMPS - OFF
ELECTRIC HYDRAULIC PUMPS - ON
APU BLEED AIR - ON
ENGINE BLEED AIR - Both ON
Left AC PACK - ON
Right AC PACK - ON

NAV1 is already tuned to the SEA VOR.  In this condition, the avionics will fail in about 8 minutes on my machine.  The overhead electrical panel will not change in anyway.  APU is running and indicates power, STDBY PWR indications are correct, BAT will continue to should a negative indication on DC Amps.  Engines will not start.

If I turn off the APU, that's all she wrote.  Nothing in the aircraft will work.

Note: This applies to ground power as well (for me anyway).  If you skip all of the APU items and only use ground power, you will see the same electrical indications and the avionics will fail in the same amount of time.

UPDATE: I verified that under both APU and ground power, leaving window heat, pitot static heat, the electric hydraulic pumps and a single AC pack OFF still results in a failure, but it takes longer.  Roughly 12-15 minutes instead of 6-8 minutes.  Less power drain, I guess.  So, following the checklist to the letter does not resolve the issue.

My original posts are here and all deal with the 1.0 version...http://www.captainsim.org/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1335135522

X STANDBY PWR OFF light IS ON
X TRANSFER BUS OFF light IS ON
X BUS OFF light IS ON

Those are correct. They should illuminate as soon as the Battery is switched on.

Then, when you engage the first Apu gen switch it should extinguish both TRANSFER BUS OFF lights and the BUS OFF light corresponding to that switch, then the second Apu gen switch ON will extinguish the remaining BUS OFF light.

Currently the first Apu gen switched to ON will extinguish all four amber lights, and I can't tell if that's merely a visual bug or an actual electrical error.

BTW, Mark are you certain you don't have FSUIPC infinite battery selected or the electric_always_available=1 in the .cfg?

I only ask because at one time you had the dead battery issue and now you don't, and also you stated that you can run forever on just battery power alone, which should be impossible without some sort of infinite battery value assigned.

bud7h7 wrote on May 7^th, 2012 at 3:00am:


That's fine.  I'm just saying they do not match the checklist.  It's entirely possible the checklist is wrong.

Anyway, with a clean install and no other add-on's or modifications, the process I detailed reproduces the problem every time on my machine.

Mark, do you have the default AI aircraft or 3rd party add-on?
It happens that the parameter "electric_always_avalable=1" works, if there is a AI plane in which it exists.

Markoz wrote on May 7^th, 2012 at 9:13am:


Well, I certainly didn't think you were angry or rude.  I was confused by your post, but I see that my post was confusing.

OK, so, my copy of the Normal Procedures says:

* BATTERY switch - Guard closed
* STANDBY POWER switch - Guard closed
* Verify that the STANDBY PWR OFF light is extinguished.
* BUS TRANSFER switch - Guard closed
* Verify that the TRANSFER BUS OFF lights are extinguished.
* Verify that the BUS OFF lights are extinguished.

As we see, though, the lights that should be extinguished are on.  So, that's why I was saying the actual behavior is different from the checklist.

In my post from yesterday, I said that the behavior may be correct and the checklist wrong.  However, I thought about the 757.  Both the 737 and 757 have an AUTO position for the STANDBY POWER switch.  In the 737, it's set to AUTO with the guard closed.  In the 757, if the switch is in AUTO, standby power is available with just the battery.

If I open the guard and move the standby power switch to BAT, I get standby power.

Now, I'm no Captain Lou, but it seems like the checklist is correct and the aircraft behavior is wrong.  Whether or not that has anything to do with the battery drain, I don't know.

slakr007 wrote on May 7^th, 2012 at 3:52pm:


I don't think so. On the real 732, those lamps operate as they do now on the CS732, except for the possible discrepancy with the Transfer Bus OFF lights and Bus OFF light when the APU gen switches are switched on.

DC amps should also be negative with the selector on BATT.
Should be positive with selector on APU or GRD PWR.

slakr007 wrote on May 7^th, 2012 at 3:58pm:

I was originally thinking, when I saw you say that the DC Meters showed a negative reading (power draining) when the switch is in the BAT position, that this was the cause of your loss of power. But mine does it too, without losing battery power after 2+ hours, so that can't be the problem. When I did do that Battery only test, and could still start the APU, the first thing I looked at was my setting FSUIPC, just in case I had turned it ON, but forgotten about it. It was not the case.

After sitting around for 20 minutes with the APU running and not losing power (still able to start the engines), I'm at a loss for why you (or anyone else) have the problem while I don't. Why did it happen to me (twice) back then, but not since? I sometimes think that it must have been something I did to cause it. Something in the way the switches were set or the order I did it. I honestly don't think I was doing it any different to back then. This all happened before the Part III - Normal Procedures manual came out, and I have changed to doing it accordingly, but it still won't drain the power and prevent me from continuing a flight.

Mark