Just trying to complete this landing challenge, and wondering if anybody has suggestions on how to handle it. Please note that I’m using an Xbox controller, which may make it harder than it needs to be.
I approach the airstrip at 45-50 knots, the plane becomes pretty hard to control because it’s bordering on a stall and the wind throws you around on top of it. The biggest issue though is the shape of that hill. I can’t believe there’s a landing strip there in real life. The surface is completely curved and you always end up falling to the side. It’s hard to tell even in which direction the “strip” is supposed to be going in order to line up with it. Most times I touch down only to immediately discover I wasn’t really going straight and I’m now gonna fall off the mountain.
Well, I haven’t tried that particular challenge yet - but (If you don’t already do this) I find that for the Xbox controller setting a sensitivity profile for classes of (and in some cases individual ) aircraft is essential and makes a huge difference to controllability- it might help you?
I have been trying to get an A on this one tonight and last night. Just checked my logbook and I have had 42 attempts. Best score is 980k (so close!) but average not is probably 600k. I’d say for my first 20 attempts my average was more like 200k
I think this has to be the hardest landing challenge. The points drop off of landing long or to the side seems a lot more strict than any others (makes sense since the runway is small but maybe they went a bit too far on this?). Only 30ft to the side at any point in your landing roll will make an A pretty much impossible.
I think for this strip nobody in their right mind would try landing there IRL in the weather in this challenge. The strong gusty crosswind makes it very hard to control at low speed but if you come in too fast you will likely end up rolling off the side or bouncing.
Anyway, my advice:
Go in a bit faster. I approach at about 65kts and use an aiming point maybe 10m before the blue marker. That extra airspeed makes the plane more controllable in the round out and flare. I drop the power back to idle when I start the round out so I don’t land too fast
Slip in. Right rudder and left aileron to keep the nose straight in the cross wind. Keep in mind when you bring the throttle back you will need less right rudder so be ready for that. I try to aim a bit to the left of the target to allow for some drift to the right just before touching down
The blue marker doesn’t line up properly with what appears to be the mown grass strip. Make sure you are in line with what the blue target considers the runway
I have been using a yoke and have been struggling a lot with this one. I can’t imagine doing it with an Xbox controller. I hope this advice is helpful to you and if anyone gets an A on this one I would love to see a recording of it! Best of luck
I would be careful about spending time completing this challenge, as your score does save, but there are no Top Ten listings or your position saved? ( at least on my sim ) so it may disappear.
Also, in the 747-8 challenge at Atlanta, I had an excellent score of 1.65 million or more, position 19, then I tried again and the Sim saves only your last attempt! ( this has happened on many other challenges)
It is indeed brutal. Interesting what you say about the speed. I was using the loading screen schematic as a guideline, where they recommend approaching at 50kts. I tried going in a bit faster and it’s easier to control, but the plane touches down like a missile and flips over half the time. This is likely due to the controller though, since it’s very difficult to fine tune your throttle (having the challenge of a lifetime with this on the Top Gun carrier landing) and maneuvers.
By the way, anybody notice that the storm formation right behind you at the start of the challenge moves forward after each attempt? Every time the challenge loads the cloud cover is further and further ahead, and after a few tries you start fully within the cloud. I imagine if you repeat it enough times the storm will eventually reach the landing site, to add to the complications.
Yes I had tried enough times that the storm reached the field so I was landing in rain and with lightning all around me. I had to go back to the main menu and start again to get the weather back to normal. Definitely seems like a bug
On about my 50th attempt I finally managed an A! I came in at 55 knots with full flap, aiming point just before and to the left of the blue square and tapdanced like my life depended on it once I was down to stay straight
I’m kind of beginning to accept the fact that landing here might not be possible with a controller. Well, landing might be, but getting anything better than a C is likely out of the question.
On my last attempts I was aiming for exactly the same spot you’re describing, but the plane consistently rolls to the right as soon as I touch down. Wind just pushes it that way (despite the loading diagram saying it blows from the opposite direction) and there’s little you can do to avoid it. I’ve been even trying to land on one wheel, with the plane slightly angled to the left to compensate for that push, to no avail.
I did get close recently following the advice from that video… but I got a “didn’t land on designated runway” message before I could come to a full stop. That’s the closest I’ve been so far. One heck of a challenge.
