This week I learnt about radio navigation and successfully navigated to Berry Head’s VOR/DME using my Cessna 152.
However my attempts to connect to the VOR/DME at Lands End have been met with failure, it doesn’t seem to be in the sim. I can hear the morse code for Berry Head, but nothing for Land’s End.
I also tried connecting to the ODB’s at St Mawgan and Plymouth using the Cessna 152’s ADF but I coulnd’t get it to work.
Am I just confused or do these beacons and nav aids not work in the sim?
In the Global Planning screen, you can enable Navaids legends to view them and see if it exists.
So it does exist on the map but entering the frequency 114.2 Mhz it doesn’t detect it. I’m doing it correctly as Berry Head’s VOR/DME comes up fine and I can navigate to it.
Also, when I get the nav working I hear this annoying morse code that I can’t seem to shut up. I keep pressing all the buttons on the radio, Nav 1, Nav 2, DME, etc but nothing turns it off, any ideas!
You may need to get closer to those stations. Low-altitude and terminal VORs have a shorter range than high altitude VORs, can be less than 30-40 miles.
The Nav buttons on the radio is to turn on/off the morse code.
other things that can produce beeping is when your within range of an runway, there’s a beeper for 5 miles and another one at 2 miles.
Ah, I was trying to tune to it whilst still on the runway at Exeter airport. I think it’s about 120 miles between the two airports so maybe that’s why.
I was pressing the Nav buttons and it didn’t stop the morse code, but it did stop after a few minutes on its own so maybe that was the beepers I was hearing?
I#m going to load up a flight now from St Just and see if I can detect the station from close to it.
Also, I notice from the MSFS map screen that runways often have NDB or VOR/DME next to them, Is it possible to tune to them so that I can be properly aligned to the runways?
Currently I’ve turned off all aids and often get completely lost trying to find runways, flying around multiple times before I see them, especially in bad weather!
VFR is all about knowing the surroundings , which will be hard if you never been there before , so i suggest fly in nice weather first getting to know the landscape and routes to an airport then throw in some nasty weather and test yourself 
as for radio useage , msfs has a nice flight lessons section, go follow the last 3 parts of it or do em all …
I’ve just purchased the FS Academy VFR and IFR courses as well, so intend to go through them. I’m loving it so far, every time I think I’ve found a bug it turns out to be accurate modeling by MSFS.
if your looking for VOR/DME and or IFR frequencies for runways , go check this site , at top right you can enter the ICAO code for an airport and you’ll get all available info for that airport :
https://apxp.info/
it’s normal even in RL , when you get to a ‘new’ airport for the first time is to fly over it till you see it then make a nice loop and land and not try to land in the first go.
that’s why the ATC asks you to report , runway insight…
VFR also means don’t try to land in foggy weather , if it’s foggy reroute to other airfield…
Started a flight at Lands End and the VOR does indeed pick up now, so obviously it was just a range issue. Thanks everyone!
P Gatcomb does very nice YouTubes on VOR navigation
I see you have obtained a navigation course - that’s very good, as instrument flight requires some understanding. I would point out that there is quite a difference in how a VOR station works as compared to an NDB station (non-directional beacon).
In order to read a bearing to an NDB, you need to use the ADF (automatic direction finder). It is basically a needle that points to the station and gives you a bearing - that’s it. If you fly the indicated bearing (and there is no wind), it will take you directly to the station. If there is any kind of cross-wind, you will be blown off course and your flight to the station becomes a large arc, so you have to know how to compensate.
To properly fly any instrument approach you need the appropriate approach chart, and that includes NDB approaches. You cannot fly an NDB coupled with autopilot like you can VORs or an ILS. However, you can lighten your work load a little by using the AP in Heading mode, so that you can lock in a heading that keeps you on the proper bearing.
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