Carenado PC-12 - unloading baggage possible?

[Ray Proudfoot]

I'm trying to configure the two doors on the Carenado PC-12. Both are on the port side with the pax door forward of the wing and the baggage door aft of it.

Passenger Door #1 is configured as 'Door without open/close checks' and operates with Shift + E, 1. It's the only passenger door.

The baggage door is configured as 'Door without open/close checks' and operates with Shift+E, 2.

Could someone please explain how best I can integrate GSX with this aircraft? Is it possible to have a vehicle turn up and for someone to unload the cases?

A vehicle does turn up for the passengers and takes them away. I'm not able to see them of course.

[virtuali]

How high these doors are, especially the baggage door ? We don't have a vehicle that can go very low, which might explain why you don't see the vehicles.

[Ray Proudfoot]

Hi Umberto,

I would estimate the bottom of the door to be about one metre off the ground. It’s a six seater single engine aircraft so tiny in comparison to commercial airliners.

Might it be possible for a handler to remove bags from the aircraft and place them on a baggage vehicle? Then again, perhaps the passengers would be expected to remove them themselves.  . I’m not sure how far GSX can model every aircraft.

[virtuali]

I would estimate the bottom of the door to be about one metre off the ground.

That's around the threshold of the lowest the belt loader can go, which is 0.9 meters minimum. Try to be sure the door is configured to be higher than that, with maybe a few centimeters spare, in order to account for different heights due to different loading.

[Ray Proudfoot]

That's around the threshold of the lowest the belt loader can go, which is 0.9 meters minimum. Try to be sure the door is configured to be higher than that, with maybe a few centimeters spare, in order to account for different heights due to different loading.

Thanks Umberto. I’ll try adjusting the bottom of the door using the customisation feature in GSX.

[cptbambi]

Just an idea to throw at you guys at FSDT, I've got a similar problem with one of my aircraft, would it be possible to have an animated person manually loading cases by hand when it comes to really low doors?

Say like a van drives up, driver gets out and loads cases or parcels for cargo planes by hand?

[Ray Proudfoot]

That's around the threshold of the lowest the belt loader can go, which is 0.9 meters minimum. Try to be sure the door is configured to be higher than that, with maybe a few centimeters spare, in order to account for different heights due to different loading.

I've increased the height to 1.1 metres which is plenty I guess. This is what now happens...

I turn off the engine and set p/brake. Request deboarding and  select handling operator. Within 15 secs I see a message saying baggage unloading is complete. But I haven't opened the baggage door and I haven't seen anyone turn up.

Around a minute later the small transit van turns up for my pax and then drives off. But I haven't opened the pax door.

I don't quite follow the exits named as Door with open/close checks as FSX Door #n where n is 1-4. Given the pax door opens with Shift+E followed by 1 and the baggage door opens with Shift+E followed by 2 shouldn't GSX ask me to open those doors at the relevant time?

I've read the manual but still don't understand how this aspect works.

[Ray Proudfoot]

An update... Unloading Baggage isn't started until I've pressed Shift+E, 2 so that's better. But the pax door remains shut and I see pax deboarded message then transit van drives off still with the pax door closed.

Pax door is identified as Pax 1 in GSX. Why don't I get prompted to open Pax door like I do for Baggage door?

After everything appears to be done I bring up the GSX menu and it states "Passengers deboarded. Baggage unloading in progress".

[Ray Proudfoot]

Just looked at the manual and on P41 it states "Currently, GSX doesn't use the 3rd exit". The 3rd exit is my Baggage Door (Shift+E,2) and does respond to GSX requests to open it.

But the "baggage loading" status remains for ever in the GSX menu when requesting boarding. Looks like this bit of GSX is not working as it should.

[Ray Proudfoot]

I think I know what’s wrong. It’s probably me trying to define a pax door as a baggage / cargo one. The GSX aircraft diagram showing the various exits is a little misleading because it suggests you can’t have a cargo door on the left side of an aircraft.

Well I’m going to try and configure a cargo door on the left tomorrow and see how it goes.

[Ray Proudfoot]

I have configured Cargo Main Door as the Baggage Door on the PC-12 but although the ramp vehicle arrives and the baggage (all 3 cases!) slides down the ramp and is loaded onto the baggage vehicle it never drives away. The handler just stands there. See attached picture.

When configuring an aircraft the stock image is that of a 737 / A320 type aircraft. I accept that is a reasonable depiction as it covers so many types of aircraft. But is there any way of showing an aircraft that looks like the one I'm trying to configure with a fewer numbers of doors?

I've changed the ULD Code for the Cargo Main Door to Auto and that does result in the baggage vehicle arriving and departing. But when I bring up the GSX menu it still shows Passengers deboarded. Baggage unloading in progress.

Why isn't the Baggage unloading shown as finished?

[virtuali]

I have configured Cargo Main Door as the Baggage Door on the PC-12 but although the ramp vehicle arrives and the baggage (all 3 cases!) slides down the ramp and is loaded onto the baggage vehicle it never drives away. The handler just stands there.

Maybe you changed the Timings in the GSX Setting / Timings page ? Also, the loader will never drive away, just because baggage loading is done, and this is made in order to have the loader in a known position, one that is unlikely to conflict with other vehicles arriving, like catering.

It will go away when you select Departure/Pushback.

When configuring an aircraft the stock image is that of a 737 / A320 type aircraft. I accept that is a reasonable depiction as it covers so many types of aircraft. But is there any way of showing an aircraft that looks like the one I'm trying to configure with a fewer numbers of doors?

That's not normal. The airplane shape changes depending on the number of engine so, you are supposed to see the single engine image with that plane. The number of doors, of course, must be all the doors that GSX will ever support, since the whole point of configuring the airplane in GSX, is that you might eventually add doors not specified in the airplane.cfg.

Case in point, the default 737/A320/747. In the [Exits] section of the aircraft.cfg, there's just ONE cargo door and ONE service door, even if you see two or more of each type, but that's just because, since all cargo doors share the same variable, the [Exits] section will list only one of each, with the other being just a part that is animated from the same variable. But of course, in GSX, they are then separated, with vehicles going to each one, even different vehicles.

This means, if we tried to do what you are suggesting, displaying only doors that are specified by the plane, you would lose the ability to have more "logical" GSX doors than the number of "real" doors supported by the airplane.

This just with default airplanes, or 3rd party airplanes that use only default door variables. It would be impossible trying to enumerate doors on a 3rd party airplane that use custom variables, so the only way to do it, it's exactly as it is now: showing all doors that GSX can use, and let users Enable/Disable them.

I've changed the ULD Code for the Cargo Main Door to Auto and that does result in the baggage vehicle arriving and departing. But when I bring up the GSX menu it still shows Passengers deboarded. Baggage unloading in progress.

It should complete.

[Ray Proudfoot]

Maybe you changed the Timings in the GSX Setting / Timings page ? Also, the loader will never drive away, just because baggage loading is done, and this is made in order to have the loader in a known position, one that is unlikely to conflict with other vehicles arriving, like catering.

No, timings were the same as for Concorde but I did try increasing the time for each pax to 0.8s for deboarding and boarding. How do you know how many passengers an aircraft has? I found I had none because the weight for each pax seat was 0. So I added 180 to each seat for around 6 seats until MTOW was exceeded. But this hasn't changed anything regarding events. Is the pax number stored somewhere else?

I've just landed at EGPH and requested deboarding. I was told to open Baggage door but even as it was opening the GSX message said Unloading baggage was complete. How can it be? I reset GSX and tried again. Message appears to open Baggage Door followed by small vehicle pulling a baggage cart. I open baggage door and after 3 secs the baggage vehicle moves away. No-one is handling bags. Is that right?

Message then appears to open pax door. I do that but no vehicle arrives. But displaying GSX menu states Passengers deboarded. Baggage unloading in progress. No, I had a message saying it was completed. I'm confused.

That's not normal. The airplane shape changes depending on the number of engine so, you are supposed to see the single engine image with that plane.

Yes, sorry, my mistake. The appearance is of a single engined aircraft.

This means, if we tried to do what you are suggesting, displaying only doors that are specified by the plane, you would lose the ability to have more "logical" GSX doors than the number of "real" doors supported by the airplane.

Understood. The PC-12 only has two which both work but I take your point.

It should complete.

Sorry Umberto but it doesn't. Can I provide any logs that will help? Next week is fine considering it's the weekend.

[virtuali]

How do you know how many passengers an aircraft has? I found I had none because the weight for each pax seat was 0. So I added 180 to each seat for around 6 seats until MTOW was exceeded. But this hasn't changed anything regarding events. Is the pax number stored somewhere else?

This is explained in the manual. GSX estimates the number of passengers by dividing the total weight of all load stations by 220 lbs, which is an industry standard for the average weight of a passenger + luggage.

I've just landed at EGPH and requested deboarding. I was told to open Baggage door but even as it was opening the GSX message said Unloading baggage was complete. How can it be? I reset GSX and tried again. Message appears to open Baggage Door followed by small vehicle pulling a baggage cart. I open baggage door and after 3 secs the baggage vehicle moves away. No-one is handling bags. Is that right?

That's normal, if GSX (see above) estimated the number of passenger was very low, or even 0.

[Ray Proudfoot]

This is explained in the manual. GSX estimates the number of passengers by dividing the total weight of all load stations by 220 lbs, which is an industry standard for the average weight of a passenger + luggage.

Woops! Must have missed that. My Payload is 1132 which if divided by 220 = 5 pax. I have 0.8s per pax but minimum time of 15 secs for boarding and deboarding. Are these global settings or per aircraft? If per aircraft I might increase them.

That's normal, if GSX (see above) estimated the number of passenger was very low, or even 0.

See above. Probably because of the very low number of pax.