Real ATR Pilot Tests MSFS

I used to fly the ATR for a regional airline in the US. I haven't flown one since September 2023, however. After learning that MSFS has the ATR available I was looking forward to checking it out and going through some procedures to see how it stands against the real world. On this stream you'll see me go through a preliminary cockpit setup, startup, taxi, takeoff, approach and landing. Keep in mind that the ATR is a two pilot aircraft and operating single pilot is a very heavy workload, especially on a home simulator.
Enjoy!
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[@IslandSimPilot]

@1:48:25 About flight instructors, I'm sure you will agree: you can be YEARS into your flying career (be it professional or private pilot) and have things come up where you can hear your instructor's voice in your ear. I get that not everyone has a good instructor, I've been fortunate to have nothing but good instructors. And they are literally invaluable. And never having flown with you, watching your videos I can say unequivocally: you are a superb flight instructor, Lew. The world needs a whole lot more of them.

[@paulphibbs5362]

I wish my flight instructors ( and I had many) felt like you. The reason I had so many was that they were all transitioning into the airlines. This prolonged my progress to getting my license. All the best doing what you love.

[@Skipper441]

Thank you for your stream. It's my first experience someone start up this aircraft from the exit door position :)

[@Airborneaway]

Top! Already liked your real stuff! Can finally learn to fly Binter between Madeira and Porto Santo! Cheers!

[@joshdenes6465]

Hey Lewdix. Firstly. thank you for all the great content. Secondly, please update the ATR in MSFS when you have a chance. It seems to have fixed the weird hydraulic issue, AC Wild. Airport elevation setting and other flight dynamics. The ATR is finally really airworthy now and you should have a much easier experience. All the best.

[@tboneisgaming]

Sorry I missed your stream. I have valued every person who has taught or mentored me. I qualified as a secondary school teacher as a result. I still love teaching others and learning new things. The reason I came out of school teaching was it felt like crowd control and administration. As I mentioned before, I'm a C1 controller for VATSIM UK. I tend to be on Heathrow Director, Manchester or Birmingham Radar. I would be happy to control for a stream or a video. Also I've rejoined a virtual airline in the UK. I will be setting off on a world tour. Perhaps we could fly together? Meanwhile, I'd recommend looking at the Fenix A320. It's a great aircraft especially with a Navigraph membership. Real world I have some experience flying gliders. I would like to get back into it and pass my solo rating.

[@pd3g]

I'm not in to flightsims, but like your videos, especially explaining what your are doing 👍

[@LewDix90]

I’m glad to hear it 🙌🏻

[@slo1383]

Appreciate your honesty about the airline pilot life.

[@LewDix90]

Thank you 🙌🏻

[@flyingturnip1]

Hey Lew! Not sure if it's implemented in the xbox version but for PC there are clickspots on the MFD's so you don't have to keep scrolling down to the pedestal panel, makes life a lot easier! Clickspot help can be found on the tablet (diagram showing you what does what)

[@paulphibbs5362]

I ran a workshop on flying the ATR for the pilots in my Group Flights. We all fly it single pilot and use the aircraft to automate all of the flight. After listening to you we must be doing well.

[@Bossmoney84]

great vid

[@B_D_R]

Lewdix, we would not be upset if you made a checklist for the ATR for flight sim! 😂😂😂

[@saren6538]

This was amazing thanks, was this made before or after the massive update they dropped for this last week ?

[@LewDix90]

This was before the update. I just did another stream yesterday with all the updates.

[@flysport_tedder]

thanks! was looking forward to watching you fly the ATR. I don't want to watch a simmer fly a sim, but it's great to watch you do your thing.

[@rtbrtb_dutchy4183]

I enjoyed the last part of your video, when you were answering questions. I don’t think you know enough about corporate to have a good opinion about if it’s good for you or not. Except for 5 years in part 135, the rest of my 31 year career has been in part 91. Everything you complain about in part 121 is exactly what I didn’t like either. But corporate is totally different. I usually fly less than 250 hours a year. Yes, there are trips when I’m gone for 10 days, but that barely happens. In December I was away from home for 6 days. In November I was gone 9 days and now in January, I’ll be gone 12 days, because I have a 10 day trip. On my 10 day trip, I work 4 days, with the longest flight being 5 hours. And yes, occasionally I do a 12 hour leg over to Europe from the west coast as well. But then you sit and wait. There is a lot of down time. So a lot of crew do something on the side. We got some guys who drop skydivers for fun. Some are doing real estate. Others fly contract for other companies. So you could always instruct. I was a CFI for 1500 hours and loved it. So I always continued to instruct. When I flew part 135 in learjets, I trained new hires who never flown a jet, till they were ready to upgrade as captain. Now in Part 91, I’m a training captain and I do 61.55 SIC checks with new hires. These are pilots who have never flown the type of aircraft we have and train them to be SIC. After that, I train them to become PIC on our trips. So yeah, I always continued to teach. So please keep an open mind. I’ve had friends who went to the airlines and every single one of them hate their job. I never hated my job. I actually don’t even feel like I have a job. I have a hobby and somebody is paying me for it. I get to spend a lot of time at home with my family. I’m one of the few dads you see at school as much as me to drop off or pick up my daughter almost on a daily basis. People have no idea what corporate flight departments do sometimes in regard to helping people. Oh and yes, you are still teaching pitch and power backwards. 😂😂😂

[@xb12stt]

Thx for the flight. Try your baby PA28 from just flight.

[@TTVKeaton12]

Great

[@benhalvorson3581]

I always miss your streams

[@LewDix90]

It's ok, you can catch up on the replay! One day you'll catch it!

[@joshdenes6465]

Oh...they also fixed the heading bug. It now centers when pushed.

[@JQNick]

When you go back to TO when selecting gear down, does the real ATR go back into 100% NP? Just seems to be something most turboprops do but noticed this thing doesn’t.

[@Durandalski]

Did you ever fly to KPNS with Silver? I see their planes in and out from time to time when I’m there for flight training.

[@LewDix90]

I operated in and out of PNS a lot

[@paulphibbs5362]

I was hoping you would use TOD to descend and show how the plane automatically descends. The whole process for dealing with TOD in this plane is interesting to say the least. You can't wind down the altitude until the vertical navigation bar displays, otherwise it moves the TOD point closer to the airport. It's a dance of 1) looking for the vertical nav bar on the PDF, then winding down the altitude enough to start the decent, then clicking on VNAV to commence the managed descent. Not sure the sim does it right.

[@briand9446]

I had the same problem starting it after the update today.

[@LewDix90]

Seems like they can’t quite get it right 😅

[@Scarebus_Driver]

Nice stream pretty much what i thought even though ive never flown the real ATR. To give you some idea how good a "great" addon is like the Majestic Dash 8 400 in P3D you could use it for type rating training. Similar to the FSlabs in P3D hi fidelity ddons are both in terms of systems portrayal and simulation AND flight model accuracy true to the real aircraft. MSFS has almost no addons of the fidelity of the P3D versions with issues in things like ground handling, flight dynamics either the feel or the actual measurable verifiable numbers as the flight model is still in need of major work. A sad state of affairs after 4 years that we still have addons that key fundamental things like response, engine dynamics cannot be simulated correctly.

[@I_Evo]

Where is the previous stream you refer to of you flying this aircraft in the sim, I can't see it under Live or Videos?

[@LewDix90]

I never made it to the flight because of some stream issues. It was pretty unwatchable so I stopped the stream and never published to video

[@mephistonAG]

Have you configured the throttles in the tablet (Options, Throttle Calibration)? May explain your issues if you haven't.

[@LewDix90]

I haven't. I will do though.

[@Sataniceasterbunny]

i love atr and the msfs atr is not bad at all and for a good price. But honestly i would prefer Blackbird continued their atr and make it better than this

[@Orpheaspanayiotopou]

If you want ground crew Check out GSX !

[@distinctgaming8717]

If your looking for the best planes in any sim fenix, pmdg, sws

[@philipjensen6442]

Was this the latest updated atr version?

[@saren6538]

Be a shame if it wasn’t as they added and fixed tonnes .. I’m looking to find out also

[@budguy21]

No it was not, he has a separate video.

[@angelofmercy6139]

Hey lewdix, what r your opinions and thoughts on the new MSFS 2024 coming out as it’s going to be better in physics,planes,activities,graphics and more

[@joseignacio673]

Don’t you think this ATR is somehow underpowered ? T/off roll is too long, try taking off trom a 4500 ft runway.

[@arthurletouriste5071]

Hey bud , where do you fly now ?

[@LewDix90]

I’m a flight instructor in Orlando.

[@arthurletouriste5071]

@@LewDix90 Awseome man . Send us some sun , im also an instructor but in Montréal !!! When are gonna go back to Airline ? Is that something you plan to do ?

[@chadvader974]

So expensive to train to be a pilot these days... way out of reach. :(

[@robbyyant6213]

Would you say this is a poopy rendition of the ATR or decent enough?

[@LewDix90]

Decent enough, but not perfect.

[@thatguy7085]

Real pilot testing… not sure what good that is. This sim doesn’t act like a real aircraft. You would need a full moving sim for it to be close. I actually found it hard to fly a sim with a single screen view unless it was an instrument approach using working instruments. Further, as a real pilot playing on a none certified sim, and not following real procedures, you could be developing bad habits that could endanger real flight. I do not recommend real commercial pilots playing on non certified sims.

[@LewDix90]

😂 It’s not that serious. I am type rated on the ATR. I wanted to see how accurate they had it on this sim. It’s as simple as that. Don’t get your mind into a muddle over it.

[@tiagowrec]

Actually flight sim has helped a lot of people to get their ppl. And even a certified simulator ain’t that realistic. I think you’re probably just too old for this kinda stuff, many older ppl I know struggle a lot with that. Maybe if you start to sim a little more you’ll get used to it

[@thatguy7085]

@@tiagowrec actually… I’ve been using sims longer than anyone alive, likely dead too. My first computer sim was on an IBM UNIVAC mainframe computer over 50 years ago. I have several setups now including Real Sim instrument panels and VR. Does it help someone getting real instruction… yes, but it also can cause habits that the instructor may not catch. I’m a life member of NAFI National Association of Flight Instructors and member of SAFE the Society of Aviation and Flight Educators I’m also a formed accident investigator for the FAA. I may be a little old… but that just means I’ve got to see many people die from these mistakes learned on a computer sim.