Cross Bar Flight Director Made Easy

[CaptLeslie]

Can anyone help me with a short easy 1 or 2 sentence description of how to use the crossbar flight director? (Or a link to a web site with a practical short explanation)

 

[flx757]

Don't try to fly it like an ILS. Follow it like a flight director. If it is telling you to bank or pitch, ie turn left or right, or pitch up or down, then bank or pitch until it is centered, then stop the bank or pitch at that angle until it starts telling you change the bank (like roll out of the turn you just entered) or change your pitch again.

It is not hard to get used to if you are used to another type of flight director (or no flight director at all). A little practice, and you will have it down.

 

[avbug]

The purpose of the flight director is to provide the pilot with a representation of how to manuever the airplane in order to accomplish a particular task.

The flight director is a representation that appears on the attitude indicator (or other appropriate instrument/display). If it is working correctly and used correctly, the pilot need only maneuver the airplane such that the little airplane on the attitude indicator fits against or follows the flight director. That's it. If the pilot has selected the heading and altitude functions of the flight director, then all the pilot need do is hold the little airplane against the crossbars, and the airplane will hold altitude and heading.

The flight director has multiple modes that may be selected, depending on what one wants to accomplish. A navigation mode will allow the flight director to follow the chosen mode of navigation. That may be a GPS signal, VOR, or input from multiple sources in a flight management system. The system may offer turn anticipation, in which the flight director anticipates when to begin a turn to roll out on a new course, or to intercept a radial, localizer, etc. The same is true of altitude intercepts and altitude holding.

The flight director is not a substitute for flying the airplane using basic instrument skills, but a valueable tool to assist in orientation and control of the airplane...when used on conjunction with traditional methods of aircraft control. It's value is in presenting a clear pictorial display of exactly what attitude functions a pilot must undertake to make the airplane do what the pilot has told the flight director he wishes it to do.

 

[dpilot_citation]

Get your nose in there!

As one of the best flight instructors I ever had said, "Get your nose in there and follow her every move" If you mean what I know!!!!

 

[CaptLeslie]

Thanks guys, all good answers....
I was actually trying to collect a few non-scientific quick fix explanations ... like dpilot_citations..

if anyone else have some other then please share....

 

[JediNein]

You don't "lead" the bars like an ILS.

I haven't heard that term before. Would you mind explaining what you mean by "lead" the ILS bars?

Thanks!
Jedi Nein

 

[SuperFLUF]

All the "cross bar" flight directors I've used have a little box in the center of the aircraft symbol that basically represents the nose of the aircraft.

Just do what ever it takes to keep the box pointed at the intersection of the crossbars.

Here's a link to a quick illustration:

FD commanding a climbing right turn.

In the illustration the flight director is commanding a climbing right turn. Climb and bank to the right to put the box on the intersection of the crosshairs and you are at the correct pitch and bank angle requested by the flight director.

One good thing about this style of flight director is that is makes it easy to ignore a pitch or roll command while following the other. For example: In the illustration above, if you want to remain level but follow the turn commanded just move the box over to the vertical line and keep the pitch level or vice versa.