Autopilot etc. etc. stops working

[martinlest2 58]

For a couple of days now I have been having big problems with the PSS Airbuses. Before that, everything was fine and I am controlling the aircraft as I should be (after many posts I am sure of that now!) - setting up the FMC, using Flex etc. etc. As I say, until two days back everything worked just fine and I am not doing anything different input-wise..After take-off I set Climb Thrust and everything works for some minutes, but when I approach my flight path and push the HDG knob, nothing happens - the a/c carries on in a straight line. Even if I disengage the autopilot completely and try to turn the plane with the joystick - nothing happens, the a/c just flies straight.... Autothrottle works, but not lateral navigation.I am in mid-flight as I write this and have just gone back - and things seem to have freed themselves up. I can now turn the a/c after the sim was paused for a few minutes and pushing HDG engages LNAV. But since Sunday this has happened to every flight with these a/c. Any ideas what is going on anyone? I tried overwriting the PSS gauge file with my backed up copy, but no change. It's a hard a/c to troubleshoot, because I can never get the panel back as it was when I load a re-flight - all batteries/engines switch off and I have to start from scratch! (Is there a way to do this so that the panel reloads in a saved flight - as I can with PMDG for instance?).Martin

[martinlest2 58]

Later .. think it's because of FDC ("Live Cockpit") AP settings. Now I've changed them things seem to be OK. Will post back again if not...

[guy 24]

I fly the Pss Airbus in FSX now.I have seen happen what you describe also a couple of times. It flies straight ahaid and you have no control at all.The only thing to do in that case is to restart the flight. The best is to load first the so-called default flight, the Cessna 172 somewhere, to be sure that everything is wellinitialised. That is also what Pss recommended.Since I have done that once, I haven't seen the problem any more.You can restart a saved flight with the Pss Airbus! (at least on my PC).You must just re-initialise yourself the Mcdu (Fmc in Boeing terms) and the FCU.When I restore the flight, I have running engines.After Restore Push Immediatly the PAUSE button.To get the panel working you must first load the complete panel (Shift - 2).Then reinitialise the Mcdu , reintroduce or reload the flightplan (if you have saved it before), Introduce ZFW , Block fuel and Flightlevel.In the case of FSX Reinitialise also the "hidden" parameters of the Mcdu, PITCH and ROLL.Then Set ATHR and AP ON.Then on the FCU push the SPeed, HDG and ALtitude buttons.Then Release PAUSE.The Airbus will continue the interrupted flight.Happy flights.Guy

[martinlest2 58]

Hi, thanks a lot for the reply.As I say, I am pretty sure it's nothing I am doing, as until the other day I had been flying these a/c with no problem. To start a flight with a PSS airbus, I originally started up FS with the default flight, engines running and then changed to the PPSaXXX and turned engines off (so I start cold & dark). Important to save with cockpit in the 'full' view too. That then acts as a kind of 'template', so if I want a new route with a PSSa, I load that saved flight and then move to the airport I want, load the livery I want and save the flight as a new name (I start 90% of my FS flights from saved flt files - I have hundreds if not thousands of them. That has worked great for some three years now and I never had any problem with batteries running down or other..This new AP problem may (or may not) have been cured by my altering FDC parameters - got to test a bit longer to be sure, but the last flight I made did engage LNAV at least. On the other hand, I think there's still aproblem with my trying to take over manual control with the AP off. Very odd, never had this kind of problem before. I still can't reopen a flight saved by AutoSave and get the panel back though ...M.

[ubersu 78]

Hi, thanks a lot for the reply.As I say, I am pretty sure it's nothing I am doing, as until the other day I had been flying these a/c with no problem. To start a flight with a PSS airbus, I originally started up FS with the default flight, engines running and then changed to the PPSaXXX and turned engines off (so I start cold & dark). Important to save with cockpit in the 'full' view too. That then acts as a kind of 'template', so if I want a new route with a PSSa, I load that saved flight and then move to the airport I want, load the livery I want and save the flight as a new name (I start 90% of my FS flights from saved flt files - I have hundreds if not thousands of them. That has worked great for some three years now and I never had any problem with batteries running down or other..This new AP problem may (or may not) have been cured by my altering FDC parameters - got to test a bit longer to be sure, but the last flight I made did engage LNAV at least. On the other hand, I think there's still aproblem with my trying to take over manual control with the AP off. Very odd, never had this kind of problem before. I still can't reopen a flight saved by AutoSave and get the panel back though ...M.

Make sure that when you are in the default a/c prior to switching over to the bus, that you leave the avionics switch in the 'on' position - turning it off will cause the sort of problem you describe. I generally leave all of the electrical switches alone since I have configured the bus cold and dark via the configuration utility.DJ

[martinlest2 58]

My a/c always load with Avionics on. Thanks.

[martinlest2 58]

Still getting this problem. Just approaching airport and the AP stops working (it was fine until that point- why the sudden failure? I loaded the default a/c first). I disconnect AP, FD, AT .. the lot, but still can't turn the a/c. It twitches abit when I move the joystick, but it's as if the AP is still on.Any ideas? This a/c is so good to fly, but (as I've said before) I've never flown any a/c that has so many 'glitches' like this.M

[guy 24]

I have seen it also in FSX again yesterday with the A320.I had been (on autopilot) in SPOT View for several minutes, when the plane suddenly beganbanking left and right and the spoilers and ailerons began FLUTTERING.The control's didn't work any more. I had to interrupt the flight.I have made many, many flights now with the PSS bus in FSX and this has happened 3-4 times.It is possible it happened always in spot view, but I am not sure.Don't remember having ever seen this in FS9/FS8 but possibly my memory is failing.Guy

[martinlest2 58]

Hi Guy,This is in FS9 BTW, I never had the PSS for FSX (is it available now?? I fly mostly FS9 anyway). I was in cockpit view when this happened today.....I have set up my PSS Airbuses now with a batch script so that at one click I can change the panel to a non-PSS version. (I had to do this as the a/c panel doesn't reload properly - if I reload the flight (AutoSave) the batteries switch off and I lose all data: I am sure this didn't use to happen either, once upon a time). If this occurs again (and no doubt it will!) I can at least finish my flight with the same plane by just changing the panel. But I wish I could find out what is going on here!!M. :-)

[martinlest2 58]

Can no one help with this, please?? I have had this a/c for years and this is a completely new problem, starting in the past couple of weeks. I haven't changed anything with the aircraft or settings in that time - every flight now is ruined when the AP stops working. It's a devil to troubleshoot too, because the problem, although it most often occurs just when I am adjusting the heading to intercept the flight plan path, can occur much later - on approach at the destination for instance. It seems as if turning off the AP in the cockpit (or with the FS9 shortcut) has no effect - when I try to turn the a/c with the joystick it 'twitches', as if the AP were still engaged, but nothing will divert it from its straight line. If I change the panel to a non-PSS one, all is OK again, but that's just a stopgap of course.Totally spoiling my FS9 flights - will have to stop using the PSS Airbus until I can fix this.. Hope someone has some ideas!!M. :-(

[martinlest2 58]

OK - a lead (I hesitate to say 'a solution' so soon, as I haven't tested this more than a couple of times!!!). I have just found that if I switch off Avionics, the a/c AP springs back into life. I can then turn Avionics back on (this via my N52 keypad, set with the default FS9 keyboard shortcut - there is no Avionics switch on the PSS Airbus. Is there not one in the real a/c?) and set a heading, and after that, LNAV.Will try this again later and report back. Maybe someone else will be able to test it too (if they are getting the same problem)?M.

[martinlest2 58]

Yes, each time I have had this problem over the past few days (pretty much every flight - very odd, as it never happened before 2 weeks back), if I turn off avionics and straight back on, AP and all functions (LNAV etc.) are re-enabled, as well as control with the joystick. I've added an AB avionics on/off gauge to the cockpit to facilitate this, but it would be good to know why this has started happening.M.