How can operate the Autopilot without the Flight Director engaged?
Don’t think that’s possible as you need the FD to operate the AP. However you don’t need the AP to operate the FD, but that’s still inop at this moment (FD working independently from AP engaged that is)
I always thought the FD is just an overlay display on the PFD. And that the autopilot is always working whenever it’s turned on regardless of whether the FD is on or off.
I’m not sure what you’re trying to do here.
Generally speaking the flight director is the “smarts” that tells the autopilot what to do.
So presumably you are wanting to turn off the FD display of what it is doing rather than turn it off completely.
But what’s the benefit of turning off the FD? I mean, if you want to fly manually, you turn off autopilot. If you want to fly on auto, you turn on the autopilot.
Doesn’t the “smarts” will always apply whenever the autopilot is on? If the “smarts” is off, then what’s the autopilot doing?
What i want to do is: 1) Turn of the FD. I don’;t want to use it. 2) Fly manually (except) use the Altitude Hold on the AP. In my “real airplane” I do not have a FD - only a 3 Axis autopilot so i can choose any of the 3 functions.
I don’t see why it shouldn’t work… sounds simple enough. Were you having trouble with the AP even when the FD is off?
OK - I figured that was the case. Wish I could disengage the FD and then use only the AP as I do in my “real” airplane. Sometimes I go sightseeing and use only Altitude Hold and fly the rest manually.
Well you can definitely turn on just the altitude hold in the Mooney with the gn530.
So are we talking about aircraft in game that enable both wing levelling and altitude hold when you turn on the AP and you want just altitude hold without the wing leveller ?
I fly the C-172 in the sim. I want to use only Altitude Hold in the AP. But, when I turn on the AP, the FD automatically engages. I can’t decouple those two in this plane. Maybe have to request that from Microsoft.
So if you turn off FD, the autopilot or altitude hold automatically disengage as well?