All I do is press LOC (or APP if I can see that I am below the GS).
If I am above the GS, I use VSPD to get the 777 below it.
Once I have captured the Localizer, I start slowing down (unless it is a short final, then I start it earlier), lowering the flaps once the speed has reduced to speed reference on the Flaps Limit list (near the Landing Gear Lever).

Once I am 10 miles out, I normally have the 777 configured for the landing (Landing Gear down and flaps at 25 or 30 degrees, depending on my selected APPROACH REF (flying at approximately 160KIAS if flaps are at 30 degrees), I will then slow down to VREF + 5 + headwind/2 (headwind divided by 2). So with a 20 knot headwind, my airspeed will be VREF + 5 + 10.

During the arrival, I monitor the 777's descent, if it's looking like it will be too high to capture the Glide Slope, I will control the descent using VS/FPA button on the MCP.

Due to the 777 levelling of to reduce speed, this can cause the 777 to be too high at the time when you need to capture the GS. The VS/FPA switch will get used if I need to use it.

I've never right mouse clicked the VNAV button, let alone twice, so I have no idea what that's all about.

VNAV tends to follow (or at least it tries to) the manual settings I have made to the waypoints (LEGS Page).

I did a flight from MEL (YMML) to SYD (YSSY) in P3Dv2.

This was the route: RWY16 DOSEL8 Y59 RIVET RIVET1 ILS34LY SY - SID DOSEL8, no TRANS. STAR RIVET1, no TRANS. Approach ILS34LY, TRANS SY.

( 984) ROKDL SALLY DOSEL EBONY ARRAN NONUP TARAL CULIN RIVET TAMMI BOOGI DUDOK NASHO VECTORS SY D178N (INTC) SY/16 SOSIJ FF34L RWY34L (500 ) (3000 )

I then went to LEGS page 4/5, copied SOSIJ (LSK L5) to the scratchpad, then pasted it over VECTORS on page 3/5 (LSK L5), then activated & executed the route.

The Takeoff was fine. The Climb was fine. The Cruise (FL400) was fine and the descent to waypoint TAMMI (the second waypoint in the STAR). From that point on, it was a mess. The 777 never descended below 8000 feet and I ended up being 4000 feet above the G/S upon arriving at waypoint SOSIJ! So I did the stupid thing of turning the A.P OFF and manually landing (JUST!) on the runway threshold. Common sense says I should have done a Go Around, THEN returned to capture the ILS/GS and land! If the passengers had been real, they would have wated to murder me for such a sh*tty job on the landing!

Anyway. That was a case of messing with the STAR/TRANS for the approach and landing, and the 777 did not like it at all!

So I redid the flight with a slight difference. This: RWY16 DOSEL8 Y59 RIVET RIVET1 ILS34LY - SID DOSEL8, no TRANS. STAR RIVET1, no TRANS. Approach ILS34LY, I did not select TRANS SY for this attempt!.

( 984) ROKDL SALLY DOSEL EBONY ARRAN NONUP TARAL CULIN RIVET TAMMI BOOGI DUDOK NASHO VECTORS SOSIJ FF34L RWY34L (500 ) (3000 )

I did NOT change the route at all (no copying, pasting, or overwriting the waypoints). Everything worked very well during the second flight! Because the second route had the VECTORS after NASHO, and before SOSIJ, so I used HDG HOLD, then HDG SELECT to turn towards SOSIJ after about 1 minute on the VECTORS heading (154 degrees).

By the time I reached BOOGI, the 777 was at ~7200 feet, by NASHO it was at ~5200 feet, and by the time I reached SOSIJ, it was actually at 4000 feet, exactly where it needed to be. The only inputs to the MCP were setting the ALTITUDE  to 9000 for TAMMI (/9000B), the 6000 for BOOGI (/6000A), and then 4000 for SOSIJ (/4000A) and also slowing down to 230 knots just prior to reaching SOSIJ, which doesn't have a speed constraint, only an altitude constraint. These were the exact same inputs to the MCP as I had done on the first flight which had failed miserably.

I wanted to share this to show that just following the route works fine. I recorded the second flight with FRAPS, and hope to put it up on YouTube later tonight. It could be a LONG video (about 1 hour), unless I can figure out how to speed it up, or cut out, the cruise portion of the flight.  

THE FOLLOWING VIDEO IS NOT A TUTORIAL FLIGHT! But feel free to make use of any info you find helpful for flying the 777 Captain for P3Dv2 (and FSX).



Note. Sorry about the quality, it's not very good. I messed with FRAPS settings and reduced them too much.

Great video Mark - thanks for sharing it buddy   

Mark wrote:

I remember reading somewhere on the internet, a long time ago, that the approach speed should be as I stated I do it. I wrote it down so I would remember what to do, and it did not say VREF+5+1/2 the headwind speed if it is gusting. So if the headwind is, for example, 20 knots, I add 10 knots to the equation. Embarrassed

I take it you fly like you did as a pilot, which means you only add the 1/2 the headwind speed if it's gusting?

The idea of landing (and taking off) into the wind is to shorten the landing or takeoff roll as you well know. The VREF will be the same whether there is no wind or 20 knots. The only thing that changes is the ground speed. If your VREF is 135 knots and the wind is calm the ground speed is also 135. If you have a killer side wind like 90 degrees off to one side at a steady 30 knots you would look at a crosswind chart and see what the resultant wind component would be. With that kind of wind you might want to add a few knots to the VREF since you will be either crabbing or slipping to the landing. We would fly VREF+5 knots for every landing unless there was a gusty wind.

This is a quote from the 767 flight handbook: Example - VREF is 130 and the wind is reported as 10 knots gusting to 30. We add 1/2 the gust so the approach speed would be: 130 + 5 + 10 = 145

130 VREF + 5 knots standard for all approaches, then 1/2 the gust which = 10 ( 10 gusting to 30 )

Remember, for every extra knot on approach it takes at least 50 feet of extra runway to stop. If your 10 knots fast at touchdown that's 500 extra feet!

There is a big difference in the 727 vs the big wing planes like the 767 & 777. The 727 had a very swept wing and high wing loading so a few extra knots on landing made a big difference in flare whereas the 767 and the 747 were much more civilized and we never added very much extra speed.

I am still thinking about getting P3D v2  
I like you do not like WIN-8.1, but I'm stuck with it for now.
I seldom get a CTD anymore and FSX is running pretty well.

Thanks again for all your wonderful help on this forum.

Lou