THE SITUATION

You are an Air Traffic Controller at a busy international airport.  Literally thousands of lives are in your hands every day as you guide giant airliners and small private aircraft taking off and landing.  You try to stay relaxed under the intense pressure of your job, but you must always be ready for emergencies.
 

THE SET-UP

FINAL APPROACH(tm) is played by one or two players using the joystick controllers.  Be sure the power is off when you insert or remove the FINAL APPROACH cartridge from your video game system.
 

THE DIFFICULTY SWITCH

Placing this switch in the 'B' position will provide the easiest play.  It controls the speed of the aircraft on your radar screen as the game begins; slower in the 'B' mode, faster in the 'A' mode.
 

THE GAME SELECT SWITCH

Each time you depress this switch, you will select a new game variation.  The numbers of the different variations shown on the game menu in this manual will appear on your video screen at top center, with the number of players on the right.  (See VARIATIONS.)
 

THE RESET SWITCH

When this switch is depressed, the game will begin.  The variation and player number will change into a scoreboard, which will reflect the points you have received landing aircraft.
 

SCREENS

The first screen you'll use in controlling air traffic is the Approach Control Radar Screen (ACR), which will appear when you turn on the power.  The ACR screen shows you all the air traffic in the vicinity of your airport.  Use this screen to control your aircraft for landing.  When an aircraft is aligned with the runway strobes and is on final approach, you must then switch to the Ground Control Approach (GCA) screen.  Use the GCA screen to bring your aircraft in for a safe landing, monitoring altitude and heading.
 

THE JOYSTICK CONTROLLER

Hold your joystick controller so that the red 'FIRE' button is in the upper left corner.  On the ACR screen, moving the joystick will move a small black square known as the cursor around the screen.  To control the movements of an aircraft, position the cursor directly on the airplane and press the red 'FIRE button.  You will remain in control of the aircraft until you again press the red 'FIRE' button, releasing the cursor from the aircraft.  On the GCA screen, use the joystick to control the altitude and heading of your aircraft on final approach.  Control the altitude of your aircraft by pulling it towards you to reduce altitude, and pressing it forward to increase altitude.  Heading is controlled by moving the joystick left or right to keep your aircraft centered on the runway.
 

GENERAL PLAY

Aircraft will enter your radar screen randomly.  There may be up to four aircraft on the screen at one time.  When these aircraft appear on the screen, they will not be heading in any fixed direction, so you must take control to steer them in the desired direction.  Each aircraft will remain on the last given heading, so you must constantly monitor this heading and change it so that the aircraft are spaced out in a matter in which they can achieve a safe and expeditious landing.  The aircraft under your control must remain within the boundaries of your radar screen.  If you allow an aircraft to go out of the boundaries, it may reappear at any point on the screen, and you will lose points.  You must also insure your passengers' safety by keeping your aircraft spaced adequately.  Allowing two or more aircraft to touch will be considered a near-miss, and you will be penalized for a control error (that is, one life).

Your objective in controlling the aircraft on your runway screen is to steer it so that it arrives at the end of the runway strobes heading toward the runway.  From this position, the aircraft can make a landing on the runway if it is steered properly.  If you do not position the aircraft over the end of the strobes, the aircraft cannot land.  Once the aircraft has been positioned to start its approach, you must select the GCA screen to steer the aircraft down the glide slope (which shows the aircraft's altitude) and the localizer (which shows the aircraft's heading).

TO SWITCH from the ACR screen to the GCA screen, you simply move the cursor down to the lower center knob on your console, and press the red 'FIRE' button.  A successful landing is accomplished if your aircraft's nose is centered on the glide slope and localizer when arriving at the end of the runway.  As soon as the aircraft has touched down on the runway, switch back to the ACR screen simply by pressing the red 'FIRE' button. If the airplane was landed successfully, the aircraft will have already disappeared from the ACR screen, and an additional aircraft will soon appear at an edge of the screen.  If a successful landing is not made, the aircraft you attempted to land will continue to be displayed on the ACR screen.

Aircraft under your control may suddenly start flashing, and emitting a warning tone.  This indicates they have an emergency and must be brought in for an immediate landing.  Other aircraft must be cleared out of the path of the aircraft with an emergency, and it must be given priority for landing.  It will continue to flash until it has landed.
 

SCORING

You receive 25 points for each successful landing.  For every emergency landing you receive 50 points if you are able to land the aircraft with an emergency before any other aircraft.  You will lose 5 points every time you allow an aircraft to wander off the screen.  As the score increases, the speed of the aircraft on the screen increases.  You are allowed four control errors, such as allowing a near-miss or not immediately landing an aircraft in distress.  You will be allowed an additional control error every 500 points you earn.  The number of control errors (lives) remaining is indicated by the green lights at the top of the screen.
 

VARIATIONS

The FINAL APPROACH game variations include one and two-player games.  In the one-player game, the game is concluded when you have made four control errors.  In the two-player game, the game is concluded when you each player has committed four control errors.  Turns alternate on each near-miss or unsuccessful landing.  You may also select whether the maximum number of aircraft on the screen will be two, three or four.  In games 3 and 4, the game play is made even more challenging by the addition of crosswinds affecting your aircraft on landing.  Games 7 and 8 are particularly easy, designed for small children.
 

GAME MENU

GAME NUMBER             1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8

NUMBER OF PLAYERS    1  X       X       X       X
                     2      X       X       X       X

MAXIMUM NUMBER       4  X   X   X   X
OF AIRCRAFT          3                  X   X
                     2                          X   X

CROSSWINDS ON      YES          X   X

LANDINGS            NO  X   X           X   X   X   X