IPACS

Copilot and Assistances

Aerofly FS simulates a copilot that can take the controls pretty much at any time during the flight. It offers functions from basic speed and attitude stabilization to fully automatic features like takeoff, landing, flying a full traffic pattern to flying the entire route for you. You can sit back and relax and enjoy the views or release the controls to get a cup of coffee. The copilot will keep flying for you.

You can engage the copilot via the copilot overlay on screen or with your assigned key or button (default key is “c”).

Basic Hold

Basic Mode

In the basic mode the copilot stabilizes the attitude but keeps the aircraft as is. In this mode copilot won’t engage the aircraft’s own autopilot and the copilot also won’t interfere with any of the aircraft’s systems. In this mode you can still manually set flaps for example.

  • Speed: Does not change throttle setting unless there is an overspeed or stall condition
  • Press the left/right buttons to step the bank angle
  • Press the up/down buttons to change the target pitch angle
  • Press and hold the buttons for continuous changes

Fully Automated

Takeoff

The copilot can perform the takeoff for you.

  • Line-up with the runway
  • Press the takeoff button to engage the takeoff mode
  • Press the takeoff button again to abort the takeoff

The copilot automatically manages the retraction of the flaps and landing gear for you. After finishing the takeoff the copilot will level off and switch to the cruise mode. If you have a route programmed the copilot will switch to the route mode and follow the route to the destination. The assistance is also available for winch launch and aerotow!

Landing

The copilot can fly a complete traffic pattern and land at the nearest airport or at the route destination.

  • Fly towards the airport that you want to land at. As soon as the nearest airport in the top right corner of the flight info bar is indeed the desired airport and the landing button is visible you can press it to engage the landing mode.
  • You can also align yourself with the runway you want to land at and engage the copilot with this button to land the airplane for you.
  • The landing mode engages automatically when you are in route mode and close to your destination, the copilot then selects the destination runway as defined in the flight plan.

Cruise Mode

Press the cruise mode button to select a target heading and altitude.

  • Faster/Slower buttons change the target airspeed
  • Left/Right buttons adjust the target heading
  • Up/Down buttons change the target altitude

In the cruise mode the copilot manages the flaps for you and may or may not engage the autopilot of the aircraft. If you decrease the selected speed enough it can automatically extend flaps as needed and if you select a higher speed it retracts them.

Route

A navigation route has to be set for that the copilot to follow.

  • Press the route button to let the copilot follow the route.

This function lets the copilot fly back to the route, track the planned route to the destination and land there. The copilot will automatically change the flaps and gear as necessary and use the autopilot of the aircraft if possible.

Optional Assistances

The Aerofly FS Copilot does many features for you that are not controlled via the copilot interface but through the assistance settings. For example it can automatically trim the aircraft when you are manually flying or arm the spoilers for landing and takeoff. Some of these features can be enabled or disabled in the control settings of the mobile version.

Auto brakes

When you are stopped and hold the brakes full the copilot will latch the brakes for you so that you can let go of the button. It also holds the brakes for you when you start the flight so that you don’t roll away unintentionally on idle thrust.

  • Fully hold the brakes when the aircraft is stopped to engage this feature.
  • Advance the throttles for a brief second to continue taxi.
  • Set/release parking brake to disengage this assistance

Auto rudder

With this option enabled the copilot uses rudder to fly a coordinated turn. This is ideal for beginners who are not yet familiar with adverse yaw, p-factor or gyroscopic effects of the engine and just want to fly straight without using a lot of manual rudder inputs.

Auto gear

When this option is enabled the copilot automatically retracts the gear after takeoff or lowers it when you are descending towards the ground.

  • If you manually change the gear position the assistance is passive until the flight phase changes

Auto flaps

With this assistance the copilot automatically extends or retracts flaps for you when the airspeed changes or when you transition into a new phase of flight.

  • If you manually change the flap position the assistance is passive until the flight phase changes

Auto trim

Most aircraft need manual trim inputs in the air to allow the pilot to fly with low control forces. Some aircraft have a fly by wire flight control system that automatically trims the aircraft for you. With this option all aircraft have it.

Auto landing lights

This option manages all exterior lights automatically for you. For example: if you roll onto the runway it will set the landings lights and strobe lights on and switches them off in the flight when appropriate.

  • You can manually change the lights at any time and the assistance goes into standby mode until the flight phase changes

Auto warnings

When there is something wrong with an aircraft system or the aircraft is not configured correctly there will be a master warning or master caution triggered in the aircraft. With this option the copilot automatically mutes the warning sound after a few seconds so that you are not annoyed by continuous warning sounds. This affects all aircraft system caution/warning sounds, gear warning, overspeed warning, altitude alerter, GPWS too low terrain, pull up warnings, etc.

  • You can also manually mute the warnings or use the recall button to bring them back up.

Auto tuning

With this assistance the copilot automatically tuned nearby VOR, ADF and ILS stations or appropriate navigation aids along your planned route. This is perfect if you are flying around and fly towards a runway - then the copilot already has dialed in the ILS frequency and course for you, so that you can track the ILS to the runway.

  • If you manually enter a frequency the assistance goes into standby mode

"Auto cockpit" assistances

Arming auto-spoilers

During landing and during a rejected takeoff the spoilers extend automatically if the auto-spoilers have been armed. The assistance for this is active when the option “Auto Cockpit” is enabled and if the slider on the screen is moved or when a controller is used.

Propeller rotation speed

For takeoff and for landing the propeller rotation speed should be at maximum to allow for the maximum power output of the engine. When the user doesn’t have a joystick axis assigned to the propeller rotation speed then this assistance kicks in to set the appropriate propeller rotation speed during flight.

  • If you manually adjust the propeller speed in the cockpit the assistance goes into standby mode

Altimeter pressure setting

This assistance automatically sets the correct altimeter pressure and switches between QNH and STD pressure above the transition altitude for you and also sets the pressure unit depending on the area you are flying in.

  • With this setting enabled manually changing the pressure setting on one side automatically set the same pressure on all other altimeters
  • After adjusting more than one altimeter pressure setting this assistance is disabled for the flight.

Cabin pressurization

Modern airliners manage the pressurization automatically for you as long as the destination airport is known. But this is not always the case in the sim, especially if no navigation route is programmed. This assistance suppresses caution messages when the automatic pressurization fails in the aircraft or when the pressurization system needs to be managed by the pilot during flight.

  • Manually adjusting the pressurization cruise altitude or landing elevation disables this assistance

Autothrust auto-retard to idle

In Airbus aircraft the thrust levers do not move automatically and remain in the position where the pilot puts them. During landing the aircraft has an audio callout “RETARD RETARD” to remind the pilots to pull the thrust levers back to idle. Failing to do so disables the ground spoilers, auto-brakes and the engines spool up to maintain the airspeed that was commanded. With this assistance the thrust levers are automatically set to idle, if the user doesn’t do that at before reaching about 5 feet above the ground.

  • Manually moving the thrust levers shortly before landing or moving them at the appropriate time (20 feet before landing) puts the assistance into standby mode

Autopilot altitude capture

In aircraft like the Q400 the altitude capture has to be armed manually by the pilots. This assistance does this for you, so that the Q400 autopilot automatically captures the altitude each time.

  • You can still manually disable the altitude capture, which puts the assistance into standby mode.

Vario volume

This assistance effectively mutes the variometer sounds during winch launch and aerotow, because it is distracting in this critical phase of flight, but switches them back on when appropriate.

  • Manually adjusting the variometer volume in the cockpit disables this assistance for the flight.

Assistances for missing controller inputs

Auto tiller

This assistance automatically deflects the nose wheel steering tiller when you input rudder commands as long as the ground speed is low and the steering disconnect button is not active. This means you usually don’t need to assign the tiller at all but you can still taxi easily.

  • If you have a separate free control axis for the tiller you can assign it in the control settings. Then that assigned axis is used and the assistance is disabled.

Note: Do not assign the same axis for rudder and the tiller. Remove the tiller assignment to use this assistance.

Auto tailrotor

Helicopters have a tail rotor to compensate the torque on the rotor shaft which would otherwise spin the helicopter around the vertical axis. Even with the tail rotor the effects are not fully compensated and helicopter pilots need manual pedal inputs to do so. This assistance automatically does this for you, so that flying a helicopter becomes much easier, especially with a twist grip joystick or on your mobile device.

  • Select the “Expert mode” when loading a helicopter to disable the automatic tail rotor.

Auto rudder

If you have no rudder axis assigned then the rudder is automatically controlled for you based on your aileron input. During flight the assistance automatically coordinates the turn and on the ground you can steer the aircraft with just the aileron inputs.

Glider airbrake

When no glider airbrake axis is assigned then the throttle inputs are used instead.

Collective lever

In the controls settings the helicopter collective lever can be assigned separately. If no axis is assigned however, the throttle lever controls the helicopter collective.