Elevator trim 3-4 degrees up.
Navigation lights on. By night: Panel lights on.
Full throttle and RPM. Takeoff is easy at approx. 90-100 kts according to weight.
(Expect a takeoff run of approx. 45 seconds)
When safely airborne reduce to 36 in MAP and 2450 RPM. Let the aircraft accelerate to a climb speed of 105 kts.
Reduce MAP to 35 lbs, 2350 RPM. Adjust climb rate to keep the speed around 105 kts.
MAP between 30 in Hg (economical cruise) and 32 in Hg (fast cruise), 2200 RPM. Reduce RPM as fuel burns off to keep the speed constant.
Economical cruising is 120 kts indicated airspeed, at 5000-7000 ft this is a true airspeed of approx. 140 kts..
The service ceiling of the Martin 130 was about 17000 ft, but if you carry passengers do not exceed 12000 ft. for more than 30 minutes at a time. The cabin is not pressurized.
Flight Simulator includes “runways” for flying boats in some parts of the world (particularly in the U.S.A.), but elsewhere you are on your own when landing. Reduce altitude to 1000 ft, and find a suitable place for landing against the wind. Taxi to the shore to let the passengers out. (Press SHIFT +E to open the doors, CTRL+SHIFT+F1 to shut the engines down)
The gauge has infinite range and is inerrant. Actual hfdf had about a 1200 mile range and had an accuracy of 3-10 degrees either way - on a good day.
Pan Am navigators would use bearings from the departing station to the half way mark and the arrival station from then on. The Clippers used the bearings to home in on the station the last few hundred miles of the run, and as a check on celestial observations and ded reckoning.