I’ve been using the Career mode flying Private charters in the TBM recently. I always file an IFR flight plan and when possible, there is a filed approach to a published procedure. However, when loaded into the GPS, it shows the last enroute waypoint separated from the first approach waypoint. When I used to fly biz jets in FS2020, this was often represented by a discontinuity in the flight plan to allow changes in the approach but if you wanted to confirm it, you could simply delete the discontinuity and then the full flight plan would be connected. I don’t see such an option in the TBM flight plans. As such, ATC will end IFR flight plan at the last enroute waypoint and tell me to go VFR from there even in full IMC. I figure there’s something I’m missing here but can’t quite figure out what.
Does anyone know how to join the enroute and approach phases seamlessly in a TBM flight plan?
Is there by chance a MANUAL or MANSEQ entry before the discontinuity? If so, you would need to delete that before you can remove the discontinuity.
Don’t see anything like that.
This is common in the Garmin Avionics, even though it loads the approach you still need to go into procedures and activate it when ready to fly the approach. If you activate the approach it will basically direct, enter, enter you to the first fix on the approach and bypass your flight plan so I wouldn’t do it until you’re there as it doesn’t take into account terrain. Plus I think the idea is that ATC will either clear you to a fix on the approach or clear you for the approach, then you activate the approach and continue.
Some Avionics like the GTN750 you may have a MANSEQ point which you can delete and it will fill in to the first point on the approach but be aware that you may get some weird circles or double backs in your flight path. Since the flight plan usually has the dest airport as the final fix and if you scroll down further you’ll see your approach. So it’ll try to go to the airport then back to the IAF. Activating the approach before you get to this point will bypass all that and go direct to the first point on the approach.
Not activating the approach will also sometimes cause issues like not capturing and following the glide path for the approach.
Chances are, the approach is set to:
Vectors-To-Final
instead of a Transition Approach.
That would automatically enforce a gap in the plan because the assumption is that after the last Enroute waypoint, ATC would vector you to the approach. The stock sim is incapable of that of course, so your option if you wish to keep the VTF is to use HDG mode or handfly to intercept the approach line.
If you wish to automate this through Coupled Autopilot, the best way is to remove the selected Approach, repick it but select an appropriate Transition Point - it could be one waypoint before the IAF or the IAF itself. Referring to the chart for the Destination field helps envision from a top down which points are the most appropriate given your approach direction.
Note that a MANSEQ may be present after repicking, but it’s easily selectable now for deletion in the FPL page. Once deleted, all things considered, the FMS draws a leg between the last Enroute and the Transition point that LNAV can guide on.
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