Aircraft First Look

x+sim+reviews + 3 September 2012

Posted by chip on September 4, 2012
Posted in: Aircraft First Look, iPad Navigation software, Liveries, Scenery Reviews, Xplane 10 talk. 17 comments

I don’t know what it is exactly about the sky – and clouds! – that moves us so, but there’s hardly a day goes by that I don’t stop and stare at an interesting cloud formation, and every now and then I’ll go online and look for images of dynamic, threatening clouds. Who doesn’t remember as a little kid staring up at the deep blue sky and watching summertime cumulus clouds drifting overhead…maybe wondering where they were headed or getting caught up with the sudden shapes that sometimes appeared in them. “There! There! that one! It looks just like Mrs Dunsworth!” (my 4th grade teacher, by the by). Then there were those times when dad and I went up in the Bonanza and darted around and in-between clouds (this was the 1950s, so no, we weren’t breaking the rules…well, maybe we were bending them a little!). It’s something to be flying along on a hot summer day at low altitude too, when the cabin of a GA single over Texas can get incredibly warm, and then to fly into a big, puffy summer Q. It’s incredibly white inside, but instantly quite cold as chilled water vapor streams into the cabin through the little vent invariably pointed right into a eyeball – then poof! – out into the sun again, and back into that warm summer sun. We used to fly down to the Texas Hill Country to our farm, and the only way to cool off was to dip into a cloud from time to time. You’d putter along until the sweat got to be too much, then find a cloud – and poof!

Anyway, I love clouds, but it’s been a long time since I’ve seen a more interesting monster than this one, which I ran across last night. Apologies for the quality, as it’s just three iPhone images tacked together in Photoshop, but I thought it worth sharing.

Lots of energy in this one, too. It was a wild night, and today isn’t much better. The earthworms are having a blast, however.

+++++

McPhat Studios posted these new images of the CoolSky DC-9 [WIP only, for FsX] , and these are excellent looking images. We’ll have more soon, but please note that I’m not the only lunatic out here making dark images!

(insert long flatulent sound)

So there!

+++++

And here’s a gorgeous iPad/iPod based HSI to run in (of course) FsX (only), and it’s part of a similarly styled series of NAV/COMM/AP heads to run beside FsX on multiple iPads. You can change heading on this unit of course, and there’s an OBS knob, as well as ADF and DME functionality too. We were hopeful that devs would make instruments like this one for XP when these mobile devices first came out, but it’s yet to happen. Oh well, time waits for no one, but if you look on the downloads page you’ll note the dev states he’s making a universal MacOS version that will (insert drum roll here please) be compatible with X-Plane! Yeah! Awesome! I bought the thing just because! $3.99 at the App store, too.

Now let’s look at a few new files.

London 2012 “Olympic” livery + Carenado F33A +

download link

What a nice effort, and a fitting collectable for this summer’s games. Highly recommended.

+++++

PanAm + X-Plane Freeware Project Boeing 717-200 + gfxdesign

download link

The launch of a new series of PanAm liveries begins with the Boeing 717, nee MD 85, and this ACF has a rather simple 2D photo textured panel that is nevertheless quite nicely done:

Recommended livery at this point as there are no LIT textures, but we’ll keep an eye on this series. Fun stuff, and you’ll find a link for the ACF at the DM link. Note, the ACF we’ll need to be saved in Planemaker 9.70 before use in XP10.

+++++

UAL + 757-200 RR WL [xpfwp acf] + rjmf22

download link

Here’s a nice new United Airlines for the X-Plane Freeware Project’s perennial favorite, the 757-200. If you have trouble getting the 757-200 to work in XP10, open a copy in Planemaker v9.70 and save it, then put this modified  copy in to 10 and see if that doesn’t fix the problem. rjmf’s livery is well executed and worth having.

Remlap’s 767 paints might be of interest to you as well. You’ll find them here, and here.

+++++

revised: KBTR | Baton Rouge + frede

download link

frede’s KBTR + Baton Rouge, Louisiana has been revised. Additions include military vehicles, flags, and some taxiway improvements. Still a must have file, and seen here with SSG’s beta EMB170.

+++++

OSM | NA + Wyoming + Tom Knudsen

download link

I’m not too sure why an OSM file for Wyoming was needed. After all, the biggest cities out there are prairie dog towns, and Wyoming is just one of those places, if you know what I mean. You know…where men are men and sheep a scared. Civilization is a relative term out there. There’s Jackson Hole, then…not much else. Oddly enough, it’s also one of the most beautiful states in the lower 48, and is home to Yellowstone National Park and one of the most peacefully idyllic villages on earth: Hulett, Wyoming. There’s also an airport in Hulett (w43), and while it’s one of those towns where deer roam the streets (elk too) it’s also the closest town to Devil’s Tower, Wyoming.

The Tower is in a couple of the images above, and in Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and it’s truly a magical spot and as this is one of the most spectacular physical landmarks in the Americas I was hoping this file might add something to it.

It doesn’t.

OSM continues to leave me totally in the dark. These files eat framerates for breakfast, lunch and dinner but often give very little in return. I’ll keep looking them over, but I mean really. Wyoming? All them scared sheep and all?

+++++

revised: LPPT + Lisbon, Portugal + Petethalight

download link

This revision brings XP10 compatibility, notably lighting. Worth a download, but this one still has more detail off airport than on. Great bridges, especially.

From the same dev., LEVT + Vitorio is located in Basque Country, NE Spain, and is primarily a freight/cargo facility, but you’ll find it near several of XPFr’s Spanish airports, and worth including in your scenery folder. The terminal and ramps are a little bare, but that Carenado DHL cargo Caravan has a new place to play!

Here’s the locale:

+++++

Cassutt Racer + Matija Škerjanec

WIP file, preview images only

Seen flying over our own KMPI + Mammoth Yosemite, xx’s new Cassutt Racer is a kick in the pants, and fun enough to heat up any Saturday afternoon. Still a WIP, this little hot rod promises more than a little excitement, and perhaps as soon as this Fall. Right now there are the usual v9 jitters (the aircraft  just can’t keep still even when standing still!) but the motion cancels out as soon as throttle is applied. Also, the pilot’s head sticks up through the canopy right now (gotta mess up that hair in a hurry!), but all in all, for a 2D cockpit barnstormer this is a fun ride.

We’ll keep you posted on release dates and download locations, but so far this is a very promising new file.

Hopefully a 3D cockpit will make it into the final version, but if not…it’s still a tight handling ACF, and quite fun to fly.

We’ll have more on this bird soon, and it promises to be a fun little aerobatic scooter.

+++++

Look for word on the T7 soon.

Hasta later – C

Teaser video – Ramzzess’ Boeing 777 Beta

Posted by Simmo W on August 30, 2012
Posted in: Aircraft First Look, Videos, Xplane 10 talk. 17 comments

Since we heard the bad news about Philipp’s office being flooded out (yeah sure, no competitors were involved in that mishap!) and figure the imminent release of the bird might be delayed for a few days, I spent the afternoon flying her and marvelling at the wing components and that landing gear bogey assembly. An absolute dream to fly, and like most modern airliners, quite easy to perform a smooth, ‘skilled’ looking approach.

For some reason the replay feature is nerfed in my beta of x-plane, so all this footage was filmed live. If I’m outside the aircraft, I’m flying from that perspective. If the camera’s looking back, so am I while flying! That’s for you purists who’ll no doubt pick apart every second of this movie, criticising my technique. This is just a demo of her best assets.

Enjoy! Hopefully it’ll make your heart flutter like it did mine. The guys are doing a great job with an extremely complex aircraft, so if it’s not released on time, don’t fret, as it will be well worth the wait.

x+sim+reviews + 31 August 2012 + First Look: Carenado C208B SuperCargoMaster

Posted by chip on August 30, 2012
Posted in: Aircraft First Look, Liveries, News. 25 comments

Only a few new liveries to go over today, so maybe it’s just the calm before the storm? A new terrain system is on the verge of release too, and there’s that T7 lurking in the wings, ready to come onstage and steal the show, but first some news, then a little food for thought.

(above) Hurricane Isaac, breezing past New Orleans Wednesday, Kirk brewing in the mid-Atlantic.

  • Blogger Scott Spangler wonders what the next generation of aviation pioneers will do to follow in Neil Armstrong’s famous footsteps. “Inspired by a boyhood Ford Tri-Motor flight in 1936, Armstrong learned to fly at 15 not because he presciently saw his lunar future but because to him, it was more important than this driver’s license,” writes Spangler.
  • Astronaut Neil Armstrong began his fascination with flight at a young age. Armstrong flew in a Ford Tri-Motor as his first flight by the age of 5 or 6, and took his first flying lessons in an Aeronca Champ at a rural airport in Ohio. Throughout his illustrious career, Armstrong flew more than 200 types of aircraft. Wired.com
  • Kamala Shetty, a graduate student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, wrote her thesis on the decline of general aviation activity. She surveyed more than 1,250 Avweb subscribers for the thesis. “In the responses of the surveyed pilots, increasing costs, increased regulation, lack of public understanding of the role of general aviation, and the declining pilot population stand out as the biggest challenges that general aviation faces,” Shetty’s thesis concludes. AVweb
  • Business jets have flown into Tampa International Airport in Florida for the Republican National Convention, including Cessna Citations, Dassault Falcons and Gulfstream jets. Republican planners expect more business jets to arrive before presidential nominee Mitt Romney’s acceptance speech Thursday. Bloomberg
  • Lakefront Airport in New Orleans plans to stay open despite potential damage from Hurricane Isaac. The general aviation airport will continue to serve customers, unless its runways are blocked by debris or flooding. The airport is run by the Non-Flood Protection Asset Management Authority. The Times-Picayune (New Orleans)

So…a few days ago we ran this image of elanport’s elegant Corsair livery for the default 744, and landing at TNCM + Princess Julianna Airport. Red sky at night – sailors delight – and all that blather aside, take a close look at the image once again and note the scenery elements on the ground. Click to enlarge.

Now here’s the latest from Kevin Grimm. Same aircraft, same approach, apparently the same time of day – or close to it. Be sure to enlarge the image, then pick up your jaw off the carpet…

Kevin likes to tweak files. A lot.

Here’s what he had to say about these two images: “I wouldn’t fly X-Plane if my scenery looked like what I see in your image. I understand that you have to use what’s out there but… I can’t be the only one that strives for realistic airports as well as aircraft when I fly? I think the Wilmington scenery package is the best so far, but the tarmac around the terminal is brilliant white with little detail (that really bothers me).  There are also very little trees and shrubs to match the real landscaping at Wilmington. It’s details like that, which seem obvious to me, that really effect the realism. It seems that the planes are getting incredibly detailed and almost photo real but the landscape is not keeping up. Even with the enhanced abilities of X-Plane ten to handle realistic lighting and better scenery, there still seems to be a major lag in quality scenery packages, both payware and freebies. I’m still left having to build my own realistic world in X-Plane. (The image above is) what I see when landing at TNCM in the same plane and in approximately the same position as your screen shot. In my world, the buses are driving across in front of the beach and there is ground clutter and also a multitude vehicles driving all around the terminals. The lighting, both in the foreground and on the distant hills, plus all of the boats, really help with the visual clutter. Every square inch of the island (and water) is this detailed, that way I can land and take off from either direction and still fly over realistic scenery (driving a car around the island is pretty realistic also).”

I get the impression Kevin’s frustrated with the lack of progress being made towards creating really hard core über detailed scenery files for XP10. Obviously this professional artist and graphic designer has skills mere mortals will never have (a quick look at that image convinces me of that!), but nevertheless what he creates in these landscapes points the way to what scenery developers in XP need to strive for. We really have only a few developers in XP10 so far who are approaching scenery development with any sense at all of what CAN BE accomplished in XP – IF you take your time to work on creating truly plausible environments…not simply plopping down a few scenery library elements and calling it quits before moving on to the next cookie cutter airport.

Look at Kevin’s image a few times, then do some soul searching. What do you want out of XP? Why are we willing to settle for something so far beneath the capabilities and potentials that CAN be developed in the SIM with patience and care…and understanding. Do we really want broad swaths of upstate New York covered in airports that look as bad as bad can get?

Anyway…

Thanks Kevin, for pointing the way. Again. Now let’s look at some files.

+++++

The release of Carenado’s first Expansion Pak for X-Plane marks an occasion of sorts, and a good one, too, even if the meaning of the event slipped by you.

Careado has long made files, say like the Cessna 185 for MsFS, with float, skis, and wheeled versions sold separately via expansion packages. When Carenado released the 185 for XP all versions were included in the price, but we were made aware that this happy state of affairs wouldn’t remain for long, and that expansion files would soon make future variants available for new ACF. This makes sense, too. If you really don’t want a float plane variant, why should you pay for one?

With Carenado’s Caravan I almost immediately wanted a FedEX livery – even if it had windows, and because 99.9993% of all Caravan’s I’ve seen have been FedEX aircraft! Besides, they look cool. Well, Carenado might have made the two available in one product, but Carenado might soon go broke if they opted for that strategy. Besides, there’s a lot more to this ACF than just a few windows painted over. A lot more.

So…

Expansion Paks make sense. Good financial sense for Carenado, and good sense for purchasers who don’t want to pay for unneeded product. It’s a win-win situation.

With the just released C208B CargoMaster, Carenado heavily revised the interiors and exteriors of their basic Caravan object files, and in a very real sense you end up with two radically different aircraft. Yes, the windows are gone, and the interior is now a dedicated cargo hauler’s nightmare of boxes and nylon webbing, yet the panel remains much the same and the aircraft handles in a like manner. So, aside from that, only the aft rear doorway is gone and in a physical sense that wraps up the changes.

And yet  once again the whole is greater than the sum total of it’s parts! Take a look:

If this feels like a completely different aircraft once inside and looking around, well, that’s because it is. You’ll feel it, too, when you load this trash hauler up to MTOW. You’ll want to load DHL boxes into your DHL livery, and FedEX boxes into your purple CargoMaster, and then all of a sudden it’s going to be important to have DHL and FedEX facilities at all our airports! With AeroSOFT’s LSZH + Zurich, and with Scoobe’s static aircraft package installed, look what we’ve got!?

So, why no UPS? Or Midnight Express? Well…because there’s lot’s of room for new liveries on that blank while file supplied, so get out those paintbrushes and start making a few!

The purchase includes modified aircraft data reference sheets and checklists specific to the Cargo bird, and the low purchase price makes this a “no brainer”. Now Carenado Class quality is available for trash haulers everywhere, so cargo pilots – Unite! It’s time to spool up these P&Ws and start lifting those boxes. You’ll never build hours sitting in that smokey pilot’s lounge drinking three day old coffee!

The file is available here, by the by. Less than eight bucks, too. It’s a total must have file, with all the best parts of the normal 208B, plus a little extra added oomph!!!

+++++

Transportes Aéreos Portugueses | CS-TDA  + LeadingEDGE DC-3  + Leen De Jager

download link

A brilliant post-War livery from Leen De Jager highlights the day’s releases, and this Portuguese affair ought to go on your must have list asap. Excellent overall, highlights include period logos and text, crisp graphic elements, and a nicely weathered exterior. Nice panel, too. Again, great work here,  and a most highly recommended file.

+++++

SWISS  +  QPAC A320v1.1f  +  Hami

download link

The “old” SWISS paint complements the newer variety already released for this ACF, and Hami’s file is well executed generally, though the LIT tail could use some feathering and light details. Recommended.

+++++

Iron Maiden and SAS + 787 DreamLiner (payware) + ipsky84

download link

Two paint files in this download: Scandinavian Airlines System and an Iron Maiden WorldTour paint. There’s an SAS for this ACF already, and several Iron Maiden paintjobs for other aircraft, but what the heck! They’re both just swell, and recommended.

We’ll be back with more soon. Hasta later – C

x+sim+reviews + 23 August 2012

Posted by chip on August 22, 2012
Posted in: Aircraft First Look, News, Scenery Reviews. 3 comments

We have a few new scenery files to go over today, and a little news too, but first we’ve been green-lighted to post these images of a new payware ACF being developed by the Supercritical Simulations Group, who’ve brought us the 747/8i and 747/f files over the past year. That said, and as I’m sure you can tell, these are my images, not theirs, and I had a blast flying this ACF for several hours this weekend.

The SSG team is growing in both experience and designers, and bringing on new team members was a solid business move. Perhaps it was only a matter of time before SSG came out with a payware file…and that time is now…but they have a lot more in the pipeline. This is a group to keep your eyes on. We will!

The E-170 model is an +/-80-seat aircraft and is the smallest in the E-Jet family. The aircraft is powered by General Electric CF34-8E engines of 14,200 pounds (62.28 kN) thrust each. The E-170 directly competes with the Bombardier CRJ-700, and even with the Bombardier Dash-8 Q400. Embraer also seeks to replace the market segment occupied by earlier first-gen RJs like the BAe 146 and Fokker 70.

SSG’s choice of aircraft is timely. There are as yet no finished EMB-170s or -190s in XP, so the market is ready for this aircraft, and as you’ll find in the images below the work done so far is excellent. Keep in mind these are not representative of final work and their is still a list of items to complete, but after flying this aircraft file for a couple of hours two things stand out.

 First is a compellingly solid flight model, and the ACF handles with a combination of solidity and nimbleness that inspires confidence, and to go along with these traits you’ll find a well equipped cockpit that takes you nicely into the realm of RJ OPS. As the version tested wasn’t yet complete all I can say is that most of the elements are already in place for a nicely modeled RJ flight environment. How “deep” these systems are going to be remains an unknown at this time.

Let’s take a look at what’s finished now, in the third week of August 2012:

So…first impressions?

  • gear and flap detail is excellent
  • general panel layout excellent
  • basic lighting controls produce crisp night lighting, easily read gauges
  • good exterior detail generally, such as looking in windows
  • interiors of wing structures visible with flaps deployed, and appear well textured

Below, the cockpit, and many of the panel lighting controls are already in place so you’ll have a good idea of what’s in store in the completed aircraft.

I took the -170 from KMMH + Yosemite to KSFO + San Francisco International under VFR and flew the take-off and climb-out by hand, cruise phase under A/P, then let down and approach by hand again. Handling was positively solid, and while I’ve popped off a couple of stalls out over the Nevada desert (with zero problems) I’ve not yet done any engine out routines or simulated other major failures (not all systems are complete), but what I felt left me with a very favorable impression.

To cap it all off, SSG have a solid and ambitious – yet realistic new ACF development roadmap laid out, so don’t consider this -170 to be a one off deal. This is a development team we need to get behind and support, and we’ll have more on this exciting new ACF soon.

+++++

  •  The business-jet industry is improving as more companies turn to the convenience of private travel. “Commercial air is more cost-efficient, but private is a massive time saver,” said Mark Dowley, an executive with a private-equity firm. Flight Options, a fractional-share company, says it “had a 53 percent increase in new fractional owners last year,” this feature says. The New York Times
  • The Cirrus and the Cessna Corvalis TT are part of a new crop of small planes that offer a smarter way for corporate travelers to make the short trips that can take hours on commercial aircraft, this feature says. “For trips under 600-800 miles, it can beat airline times by a huge margin; and on 100-200 mile flights, you’ll be in close competition with corporate jets for performance and a big winner on efficiency,” Mark Patiky writes. Forbes
  • Gulfstream Aerospace is expanding support for its aircraft in Latin America. “We have established our first factory service center in Latin America in Sorocaba, Brazil, and this will become an increasingly important hub for us,” said Larry Flynn, president of Gulfstream.Savannah Morning News (Ga.)
  • A hover vehicle from Aerofex that resembles a flying bike from science-fiction films such as “Star Wars” has completed initial rounds of flight testing. “Think of it as lowering the threshold of flight, down to the domain of ATVs [all-terrain vehicles],” said Mark De Roche, an aerospace engineer and founder of Aerofex. FoxNews.com/InnovationNewsDaily

+++++

So, ready for some files?

Nic Maurer has done her research and rolled out the development livery used by MBB when the BK117 was still the new kid on the block. Consider this a very rare bird indeed, and a must have file.

+++++

Here’s a new idea.

Take one of AeroSOFT’s existing Global Edition airport (the free, default files in XP10 – like LFMN) and then tweak the Dickens out of it. Add static ACF, ramp lighting, ramp equipment, more facilities for helicopters and super jumbos like the A380 – anything you can think of.

All of a sudden what was once a nice if bland airport file is now crawling with activity, and what was once an interesting if uninspiring airport is now a total must have facility that you’re bound to love using.

Interested?

Well, this about sums up letibo’s addon for AeroSOFT’s LFMN Nice v1.0. This is a must have file, but watch those settings! Dial objects up tooooo much and it’s time to call out the crash trucks!

+++++

Tom Knudsen is plugging away at the OSM grindstone, and has tweaked his Washington State OSM package to v1.1. Building textures are addressed in this revision. If you like these files it seems a worthy upgrade.

And that’s about it for the day. We’ll have more soon, and hasta later – C

XsimReviews : Carenado Baron 58 next up for X-Plane

Posted by flightime56 on August 20, 2012
Posted in: Aircraft First Look, Developer Updates. 2 comments

How could you follow up the Cessna Caravan?

Brilliant in every respect, In fact it is becoming very hard for me to chose already of which great GA Carenado aircraft to use between – The Caravan, the Seneca II and the Bonanza.

Now we have another aircraft to drool over.

The Beechcraft Baron 58.

Another great twin to choose from.

No interior pictures yet, but expect the Baron 58 to be up to the usual Carenado/Klaue standard.

Be nice to have a few liveries T-42A Cochise which is is a military version of the Baron B55, I know the B55 is not the B58, but it is close enough – right.

When we know more then you will too (which means the release date)

More at -> Carenado
A very nice start to the new week that was now, wasn’t it.

Flightime56
FT56©2012

x-sim-reviews + 15 August 2012

Posted by chip on August 15, 2012
Posted in: Aircraft First Look, Liveries, News, Scenery Reviews, Xplane 10 talk. Leave a Comment

Well, it’s been a long dry spell from XPFr but we’ve finally got a new scenery file from this group, and it’s a nice one. We’ve also got a few x737 liveries to run down from the EADT site, a new paint file for Peter Hager’s A321, as well as a couple for the QPAC A320, including a first time livery effort. With the XPFr write-up, we’ll also take a look at a new ACF from Hydroz, and it’s a STOL performer if ever there was one, too!

Now let’s look at some news:

  • Cirrus Aircraft’s shipments of its planes rose in the second quarter, compared to the first quarter of the year, according to a report by the General Aviation Manufacturers Association. The aircraft manufacturer based in Duluth, Minn., shipped 60 single-engine piston planes in the second quarter, compared to 45 of the planes in the first quarter. Duluth News Tribune (Minn.)
  • A news helicopter spotted a man being circled by a shark in the ocean off Leeman, Australia, last week. “We managed in our helicopter to try and drive the shark away from him,” said reporter Grant Taylor. Rescue crews picked up the man, who had been fishing with two companions. The Daily Telegraph (Australia)
  • Three Florida residents are holding a fly-a-thon to raise money for victims of the recent movie-theater shooting in Aurora, Colo. Retired Marine Corps Col. Jack Howell II, founder and president of Teens-In-Flight, spearheaded the campaign to raise money by flying 1,310 miles from Florida to Colorado. “We are all committed and excited to help the victims and their families in Colorado,” Howell said. The Daytona Beach News-Journal (Fla.)
  • The Pentagon is looking at plans to replace Air Force One, the presidential jet, sometime after 2020. Air Force One is actually two VC-25A Boeing 747-200B aircraft, which were purchased in 1990. The Pentagon also plans to replace presidential helicopters. Bloomberg

+++++

From the EADT livery pages, a bare metal, Polynesian, Philippines and SpiceJet round out todays showcase efforts. The 737 seen above is above is departing Ushuaia, and Remen updated his Chilean, Araucanian, and Patagonian files once again late yesterday. Ushuaia will be found in Remen’s Patagonian collection of Google pins, and is a must have effort.

+++++

EK-Fly revised his FALE + King Shaka International in Durban, South Africa this morning, adding more buildings and tons of ground support vehicles. The effect is visually much more compelling, and frames weren’t badly effected. Charts are now included in the download as well. Many thanks!

+++++

Now let’s look at XPFr’s latest!

ECBF + Cerfontaine is located is SW Belgium, and this grass-stripped airfield is home to all kinds of ultra-light and sport-flying schools. Marking this indelibly, XPFr has emblazoned the effort with a half dozen or so parachutists descending downward towards the ramps, and as they swirl around and down it’s hard not to conclude that this just may be the ultimate “visual chaos” one could include in a scenery file! You’ll also want to note the night textures here, as they’re subtle but excellent. As always, charts included, and this is simply another grand XPFr classic, and a must have download.

Seen in the pattern above ECBF is HYDROZ’s latest, the Zenith CH650 (click on the aircraft image on that page to go to the download link). This is a deceptively simple little aircraft (I want one, badly, now!), and the panel is really quite well done with dual glass panels and a Garmin 430, all interfaced, all functional, and finished out as complete 3D objects.

In the image below, the highlighted button “A” will take you through the various engine and NAV pages on the main display…

…while the highlighted buttons below (“1″, “2″, and “3″ in the next image) set your NAV freqs on the 430 and set your OBS lubber line on the main panel. Don’t forget to map CARB HEAT to your stick, and then you’ll be good to go.

And “GO” is a good word to use here! This is a nimble GA ride, but you’ll want an easy hand on the stick as the flight model is very, very tight. The aircraft responds instantly to easy input, and if you’ve been out driving A380s all day long the feel is remarkably different. Refreshing is a word that comes to mind. And FUN!

STOL performance is simply wicked-kewl. Unbelievable, for that matter. If there was a way to stop and get out and measure stopping distance with a tape measure…I surely would have! Hit the numbers with full flaps and hovering just over stall, then stand on the toe pedals and hang on! I’d guess this thing screamed to a stop in less than 200 feet.

Like I said…I want one, and if I were 10 years younger I’d get one ASAP.

And as this is the next best thing, I’ll take it! Most highly recommended for some outrageous weekend flying, and don’t forget…this one is freeware…so have a go at it and don’t forget to buy the Hydroz Catalina in order to support ongoing efforts to keep the real bird flying! The new 650 and the freshly revised Cat are both Must Have files, and we think you’ll enjoy this new 650 for all your GA adventures off the beaten path.

+++++

Every now and then Leen de Jager cranks out a perfectly timeless design, one well above his usual general excellence, and today’s Iberia for the Leading Edge DC-3 is such a classic. I keep thinking of “the sum is greater than it’s parts” when I look at this one, too.

All the classic detail is there, too, from the “Iberia” script on the nose to the tail roundel, and colors are of course perfect. When combined with the crisp modeling on the Leading Edge ACF you end up with a work of extraordinary beauty.

And click to enlarge the panel view below. Note the color of the panel and, in daylight, the quilted cockpit covering. Then take in the logo above the mixture levers… Yes, it’s this level of craftsmanship that shows X-Plane off to best advantage, and this is simply a Must Have file.

+++++

Now let’s look at some new Airbus paints, starting with one for Peter’s A321.

(above) This Egyptair A321 is Andy’s second livery effort (his first a Royal Jordanian for the A321), and this is another well executed effort, and with an excellent LIT tail to round it out. A Must Have effort, too.

(above) xpglegg’s jetBlue for the QPAC 320 v1.1f is generally excellent, but no working LIT tail mars an otherwise excellent effort. Still, conditionally recommended for now.

(above) And first time livery painter james767-300 offers this edelweiss for the v1.1f QPAC, and while it too didn’t have a working LIT tail it’s just too otherwise good not to conditionally recommend.

And that’s about all for today. It’s hump day, and the weekend isn’t too far off – so hang tight – and Hasta later…C

New Aircraft Alert + Boeing 777-200ER + Ramzzess and Philipp Münzel

Posted by chip on July 21, 2012
Posted in: Aircraft First Look, Developer Interviews, Liveries, Xplane 10 talk. 27 comments

Time waits, as I think we mentioned last week, for no one – and it now appears that “other developers” have decided to move ahead with their own 777 project. What impact – if any – this will have on the XPJets storied Trip-7 program remains unclear, but it’s fair to say that the market for add ons for X-Plane is – relatively speaking – a small one, and how many people will want two of these large Boeings is anyone’s guess? The answer to this question will, I think, be decided on two key points: how good the “other” file is, and exactly how such intangibles as “brand loyalty” play in this market. My guess? There’s always room in any market for excellence, and it’s nothing new for a market to have almost identical products competing for market share. It happens in FsX all the time, does it not?

That said, whenever any big payware file like a Boeing or an Airbus is released, the event is a BIG DEAL in our little community. When a prominent developer releases his first big Boeing, this becomes a VERY, VERY BIG DEAL – just by virtue of the novelty of it all. But when an über-talented FMS/plug-in developer joins the team, the dimensions of the program takes on even more importance. And finally, when an FsX hardware developer is convinced to port an existing hardware FMC to X-Plane so it can work in this new ACF, you have the recipe for a genuine “mega-hit” release, one that could very easily shake up the entire market as new hardware possibilities emerge. The FMC will be available a few months after release, by the way, but we’ll be keeping a close eye on this development.

Well, that “other developer” is Ramzzess, and he’s no stranger to the ultra-competitve X-Plane marketplace. His Sukhoi Superjet has been one of the most fun, and certainly one of the most engaging aircraft files in X-Plane over the past year or so, but he has growing experience making a wide variety of other ACF for our market too. We’ve interviewed this ultra-talented designer in the past so we’ll not spend a lot of time on the preliminaries here other than to mention that images about his pending 757/200 were featured prominently in that interview.

Also on stage is Philipp Münzel on plug-ins. By now you ought to know this name, but if not please note he’s the other half of the JRollon CRJ200 team, and he’s the one who pulled that file out of the fire and got it to market before we all just about died and had a collective hissy-fit when the CRJ was “cancelled”. Yeah…it’s THAT Philipp…one of the most cherished technical gurus in all X-Plane.

Okay, have we got your undivided attention now? You’re sure? Good, because if so, when Philipp reveals a few of the interesting new features in their new T7 ACF, you know you can take this guy at his word.

So anyway, we thought the best thing we could do to get this show on the road was update our previous developer interview, so without any further nonsense from the peanut gallery, let’s see what’s what!

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xp+10+reviews: We think a lot of people are going to be surprised by this release. Could you tell us a little about the development of this ACF? Roman, did you start work on the file at the same time as work commenced on the 757?

Roman B (Ramzzess): Actually I was planning to make a T7 (777) even before I made the SSJ v5, but it seemed too much trouble, and too complex. I began working on it just before the 757 project started and left it basically at an early start stage when 1-sim project started. Then, when the 757 was put on hold, for reasons that I don’t want to discuss now, I got back to the 777 and started working on the 3D model, then the basic systems.

xp+10+reviews: Philipp, when did you “come on board” with this project, and what did you hope to accomplish when you set out?

Philipp M: On March 24th there was the 10th annual German Flightsim Conference in Munich, and I was there as a speaker to show X-Plane aircraft. Of course I showed off the CRJ but I had also asked other developers if I may show their aircraft, so it was natural to ask Roman for a copy of the Superjet for the presentation.

So when I was talking to Roman about the conference, he hinted at some project being in his backlog for quite some time, and if I might be interested in a cooperative venture. So I took a look at the 777 and found what he had made so far to be so inspiring that it only took me a day to decide I wanted to be on board. So on March 26th we exchanged a few emails and by dinner time the next big alliance in the X-Plane world had been founded: Ramzzess Aviation Design with Philipp Avionics.

Of course I had something on my agenda as well: At the conference I had spoken to Frank Willfeld, who had been the German distributor of X-Plane in the days of X-Plane 7 and 8, and who now works for Lufthansa Systems. By the way, Lufthansa Systems and Aerosoft have formed an alliance for publishing navigational (AIRAC) data for flight simulation, and with the contact person at LH Systems being an X-Plane enthusiast, it was only natural that we needed a great X-Plane aircraft as showcase for the new data. The quality of this navigational data is outstanding, too. It allows us to do so many things we couldn’t do before, like initializing the IRS based on your gate position at the airport. And it allows for perfect vertical guidance and RNAV approaches, much more sophisticated IAPs, so it’s simply fantastic.

But now there was this problem for me: The CRJ was not the ideal candidate for showcasing the data quality of the Lufthansa material, as that aircraft has no VNAV capabilities. With the 777 however, this problem was solved overnight: the 777 has a sophisticated autoflight system, autothrottle, and everything you need for full-authority VNAV, right down to the ILS or, in case of a GPS approach, right down to your MDA.
So initially I thought of the 777 merely as the vehicle to show off this excellent data, but I learned to really love the aircraft the longer I actually worked on it.

xp+10+reviews: Does the 777 present any unique challenges from a designers standpoint? Aside from sheer size, what are some of the hardest parts of making an aircraft of this “type”?

RB: From the 3D point of view concerning this model, I am not hesitant to say that it has more detail than anything else currently on the market. I mean if you thought the SSJ had nice graphics, you have not seen squat – yet! We have dynamic reflections on the screens, I mean real ones which move when you move your head, real 3D type reflections, which move when you move the object being reflected, and even separate reflections of lights sources like backlighting. Also, we have outstanding paint jobs done by Hartmut Krüger and Dan Klaue. We have pilots and a stewardess, a pushback truck, airstairs, GPUs, a fuel truck and many more unique visual features. Of course, you’ll find pop-up menus and other cool features. We have also installed a map/chart display which can display up to 60 pages of charts. All you need do is convert your .pdf charts into separate .pngs and drop them in a special folder. Another interesting feature is the PA system. It is similar to what I had in the SSJ – only now more sophisticated! It has many more voice messages and some are really cool; it can even tell you (or rather, the passengers) the actual weather when you land!

PM: The 777 has a lot of “magic” going on behind the scenes that makes it impossible to simulate most systems with the stock X-Plane instruments. For example, most of the switches in the overhead don’t have an “on” or “off” logic, but rather the positions “do it automatically – by magic” and “I think the magic is broken, just don’t do anything”. So you can’t program buttons to turn systems on or off, you first have to program all the magic and then add a button to turn it off. And it’s actually quite hard to get every button working right, because sometimes even a real pilot doesn’t know exactly what happens. “I don’t know, because we never do that on our airplanes. I’ll have to ask a mechanic” is an answer that you typically hear if you ask what happens if you use one of the “magic disablers”.

In the end, the user will notice only very little of that, because the 777 is designed in such a way that you simply leave all buttons in the AUTO position throughout the entire flight. But once you watch the beautiful system synoptic screens that Roman designed for this ACF, you will get an idea of what is actually going on.

xp+10+reviews: What about the plug-in architecture…did you decide to go with SASL or did you create custom plug-ins, or both? Can you tell us a little about the plug-ins used?

PM: We use the best from both worlds, as there are tasks were SASL is a great tool, and other tasks where nothing beats a native plugin.

So we decided very early to split tasks between two plugins. SASL is an ideal tool for doing things like simulating electrical or hydraulic systems. It’s less than an ideal tool for procedurally generating a custom drawn nav display in real time. That’s where a native plugin working directly with openGL works best.
So we split the work according to what is the best tool to get the job done, agreed on some interfaces, and then Roman went off to program his systems in SASL, and I sat down and designed a new FMS and nav display in C++.

xp+10+reviews: What can you tell us about the real 777s systems that are included in the file? Which systems are modeled, and how completely?

PM: Everything you need for normal operations is there, and it all works. But we also took great care to make you feel “alert” when something doesn’t quite work right. For example, you will see (and hear!) the pilot getting cold if you misconfigure the air conditioning controls. Or you will notice you can’t load the APU indefinitely, because it will fail on you if you do. Manual engine start is modeled, and you can get nasty engine fires if you don’t follow procedures. There are custom failures too, like the fuel system can get leaky.

The best way to see what is simulated and what is not, is to look over the manuals. Because those are real licensed Boeing manuals, we simply annotated the things that are NOT simulated. So you can read about the real thing, and if find there is no annotation you can safely assume it works just like that in our plane. We did change a few things to make the plane easier to use in the simulator. For example we moved a few buttons on the autopilot so you can reach them easier, because not everyone has a 32 inch screen for simming. Also, we decided to make only one FMS instead of two independent ones, because it doesn’t really make sense if you only have one pilot flying the plane. Note that it’s not done by just having two independent CDUs, because things start to get nasty when you have to think about stuff like cross-filling and cross updating, not to mention what happens when you fly split configurations, as you do for polar operations. Speaking of polar operations, the 777-200LR – being a “world liner” especially suited for pole routes – we have been able to simulate grid tracks in the FMS for that purpose.

You see, it is easier to say what is not simulated than to make a comprehensive list of what is simulated.
Here’s the list of major items NOT simulated:

  • split FMS operations, as we don’t have two independent FMS
  • split ADIRU operations for the same reason
  • degraded FMS operations, such as alternate LNAV or one-engine VNAV
  • offpath descent energy management
  • RTA calculations
  • QFE operations
  • degraded electrical when the plane is powered from unsynchronized backup generators
  • electrical load shedding reconfiguration for LAND3 conditions, where the plane configures the electric for more fault tolerance
  • weather radar tilting and ground clutter or terrain reflections, we use X-Plane’s radar image
  • predictive windshear warnings
  • interactive checklists, we have all electronic checklists, and you can navigate through them, but they don’t automatically navigate for you
  • HF radios, because neither X-Plane, nor IVAO nor VATSIM simulates them
  • SATCOM and company datalink, because that would require infrastructure with the virtual airlines, which no one has
  • air data source switching
  • ALTN EEC backup or split autothrottle

RB: Just to add to what Philipp said, the Operations Manual, Pilot’s Handbook, General Manual and the Non-Standard Procedures Manual, all which are included with this model, amount to about 1000 pages of text, so get ready!

xp+10+reviews: So, you had access to proprietary flight and development information from Boeing while working on this file. Can you tell us about this, and how this has helped develop systems and your flight model.

RB: When we started Boeing had sent us some drawings and even a 3D model. I was really excited and though I might get off with using a Boeing made 3D model of the entire plane. Boy was I surprised to find out that it had 40 million polys in and didn’t even have a landing gear, but the pitot tubes where excellently modeled – with 20 000 polys each!!!

PM: Having a Boeing license through the org allowed us to use the official material as documentation. For example, we had a 6000 page training manual used by mechanics that we could use for learning about systems. Remember what I said about pilots not knowing details beyond the automation? That’s where the manual for the mechanic comes into play! In this manual you have a sketch of basically every single valve, contactor, pump and breaker in the plane. We use that to figure out how systems behave when you inhibit part of the automation. Also, you learn how the communications between the subsystems of the plane work when you study that manual. For example, when you use the FMS, you will notice just a tiny bit of delay when you switch to another page on the CDU. That split second of darkness is not because the plugin is slow, but because the CDU communicates with the FMS using ARINC739 datawords, and we model the delay that it takes to get all data for the new page from the ARINC429 bus. Or take the radios. When you tune a new nav radio, you will notice it takes some time until you see the identifier on the nav display. That is because it takes some time to decode the signal, and occasionally the decoding will go wrong and you will see wrong information for a short time.

xp+10+reviews: Who is your target audience for this file? Experienced operators only, or will casual “simmers” still be able to enjoy this one?

PM: Sure, casual users will be able to use the 777! As I said, the 777 is an highly automated plane where a lot of things “just work” without pilot intervention. So if you don’t want to learn all the crazy details, just leave all buttons in the auto position, uncheck the option for “Custom failures” and simply fly the plane! Should you then become bored during the cruise phase, you can flip through the manual and try some more things.

xp+10+reviews: What about liveries? Will these be available “as usual” from the Org, and free, or is another method being planned to distribute these files?

PM: We have an incredible amount of liveries for the plane, I think 70 of them now, including really beautiful special liveries like the “England” paint of British Airways. In fact, we have so many liveries that we broke X-Plane 10′s UI for the aircraft selection. It would just not display them all! So I called Austin and said “hey, X-Plane 10 can’t display more than 54 liveries on a plane for selection!” and he was like “what the heck? How did you find that? I can’t believe someone would have so many liveries for one plane!”, so I had to send Austin a copy of our plane and all liveries so he believed that he must improve that on X-Plane 10.

Of course, not so many operators in the real world use the 777-200LR, but we wanted to have a lot of beautiful airline paints even if they only fly the -300 or the -LRF in real life – or even no 777 at all. So some of those liveries are fictional, but I think they are so beautiful that I hope some airline managers will rethink their fleet policy and buy some 777s for them!

The liveries for the European airlines were done by the famous FSX artist Marcel Felde, who is the creator of the Aerosoft Katana and Dornier aircraft, and I convinced him to seriously look into X-Plane now.
All those liveries are produced under our license, which means we can provide a constant quality across all of them.

We make all those liveries available through the .org store at a symbolic price of $1/livery. I think that is justified given the incredible job our painters did.
You miss a livery that you’d like to produce and also put on the org store for a dollar? No problem, just talk to us!

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By the by, here’s the initial list of liveries to be available for sale on release of the ACF. It’s our understanding here at the blog that they’ll be made available in regional groups, self-explanatory in the lists below:

North American Pack

Delta Airlines
Southwestern
Air Canada
United Airlines
American Airlines
US Airways
JetBlue Airways
AeroMexico
WestJet
Omni Air
Continental
Alaska
Star Alliance

EU Pack 1
Air Austral
Air France
Alitalia
Austrian Airlines
British Airways
BA ‘England’
Euro Atlantic
KLM
Turkish Airlines
Lauda Air
Air Europe

EU Pack 2
Lufthansa
Air Berlin
SAS Group
Swiss
TAP Portugal
Finnair
Iberia
Malev
Lot
Sabena

Oceania
Air New Zealand
Virgin Australia
Virgin Atlantic
Qantas
Hawaiian Airlines
Air Pacific
Aircalin
Garuda Indonesia
Air Niugini

Far East 1
Air China
Air India
All Nippon Airways
Asiana Airlines
Biman Bangladesh
Cathay Pacific
China Southern
EVA Air
Japan Airlines
Jet Airways
Korean Air

Far East 2
Malaysia Airlines
Pakistan International
Philippine Airlines
Royal Brunei
Singapore Airlines
Thai Airways
Vietnam Airlines
Lao Airlines
Air Macau
Mongolia

African
El Al
Ethiopian Airlines
Kenya Airways
TAAG Angola Ailines
South African
Royal Air Maroc
Air Algerie
Tunisair
Arik Air
Air Mauritius

USSR Pack

Orenair
Transaero Airlines
Aeroflot
UTAir
S7
Rossiya
Aerosvit Airlines
Ukraine International
Azerbaijan Airlines
Air Astana
Kyrgyzstan
Tajik Air

Okay, a side note here, but all images in today’s post were provided by Ramzzess, and they’ve been posted elsewhere. We’ll start to post our own images as we work our way through the beta file.

Exterior detailing, from these angles at least, appears well done in these images. We’ll get in close and look at those wings and gears closely as soon as we have the file onboard!

And just peeking at these interior images, it appears even the pax cabin has details that ought to bring a smile to your face, and perhaps a frown or two to a few other developers.

Of course, we’ll be putting this one through a fairly lengthy review process. As you know, these types of files just don’t come along every day, and this one holds significant promise as the Trip-7 is one of the most popular, and significant airliners extant today. The hardware FMC option alone could be transformative for a lot of developers and end-users, and once again, we’ll be watching developments along these lines quite closely. Some questions already come to mind, such as: will the hardware be Windows only; will it be readily adaptable for use in other ACF; and what kinds of systems will we need to take fullest advantage of this new option?

On the ACF? Will systems depth indeed make take OPS into the realm of true “Procedures SIM” depth while, as Philipp states above, still being easy enough for newbs to use. What will the framerates be like? How immersive will the cockpit really be…at night…or in daylight? How hard will it be to program systems – for an experienced user…or for those just wanting to take a quick look around?

So yes, we’ll be busy working through this extraordinary new ACF…all of us…to get the answers out to you. If you have questions already, fire away. We’ll see if we have an answer on hand, and if not perhaps we’ll be able to dig up some meaningful information for you.

So yes, a lot of ground to cover, but again, we’ll be dedicating our resources to getting the answers out to you as quickly as we can. That said, we’re off to do some flying…

As always, thanks for coming along with us today, and we’ll see you again soon. Hasta later – Chip

xp+10+reviews + 15 July 2012

Posted by chip on July 15, 2012
Posted in: Aircraft First Look, Xplane 10 talk. 2 comments

Oh, surely it was the best of times, and the worst of times? This long “overdue” v10.10 revision has been out a few days and  already a quick release is in the works, for as Ben predicted, it’s been a rough ride for many folks. Still, we can make out a rough heading now from what we’ve seen, and things are looking very interesting indeed. I went ahead and, after several bad crashes, made a complete new install and then updated, so had fresh pref files and no plug-ins to interfere with the latest code, and I still had no HDR (the weird one quarter screen effect), but I was able to get the UAL 744 to load. I then made a nice circuit over Seattle and was stunned by how good the revised landscape lighting looked down below – even with HDR “OFF”! Here are a few highlights (and large, dark images, so click to enlarge): First thing to note: the three runways at SeaTac seen above the 744 in the image above. The approach lighting is really much more visible now, and much more in line with my experience. v9 lighting is overkill, way too bright, while the first versions of v10 went to the polar opposite and lighting was simply too dim to be useful, and was patently unrealistic to boot. The urban landscape in early version of v10 were dismally unrealistic as well. Suburban housing everywhere, “downtowns” devoid of appropriate buildings…and very dim night lighting as well…all conspired to make downtown areas look dreadful.

Even roadway lighting was too dim in the first versions. Well, as you can plainly see (above), runway lighting is much improved… …and the downtown area, as well as Interstate 5 running through the area, all look much better now. And this without HDR! Still, issues remain for me on Godzilla: The mountains along the far horizon are now an annoyingly iridescent blue, and the effect persists obtrusively into the night. The new Columbia 400, as well as the Beech KingAirC90 looked like simple Planemaker models, and opened with errors. I seem to be one of the very few experiencing this error so have to think it’s a GPU driver issue related to Mac Pros. We’ll see.  So, we ought to have beta 2 in hand very soon indeed. Where will that take us?

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Well, first stop today will be to look at some fresh in-SIM images of the JARDesigns A318. And these are my images, not there’s. I’m assuming you know what that means, right?

Yep, the 318 is in Beta! Here are some very early images of the ACF on the ramps, cold and dark, at BIKF Keflavik:

Yes, young Jedi, this is a freeware 318 with a brilliant 3D panel!

Exceptional detailing all over the cockpit, and a wonderful talking checklist to run you through the proceedings is an early standout feature.

Note below, left, the pop up for accessing checklists, push backs, and more…

And below, before it slips my mind, opening pax doors and baggage compartment hatches!

And right off the mark, several useful liveries:

So, from the looks of things I’d say the panel is looking good – while there remains a few weeks work on the exterior. Lighting? Exceptional, but the An148 has some of the best LIT textures ever. Systems? They look fairly deep for a freeware file, but we’ll take a look at these as we work through the file.

This looks to be an exceptional freeware offering, and in keeping with the JARDesigns efforts to date, there’s a lot to be excited about in this ACF. We’ll keep you posted.

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 It’s been a while, but having recently updated my Q400 AND been using blumenmann’s EDDW+Bremen the thought crossed my mind that a new Q-Flight might be in order. The staging is about right for a flight of about an hour and a half – not too long for a weekend afternoon – and there’s varied terrain to deal with, including some nearby fjords and a modest over-water crossing. But first, just what are these Q-Flights we keep yakking on about?

Well, last fall we started using the “new” Fly-J-Sim Dash-8 Q400 to make short sectors in and around the Norwegian fjord-lands (and we posted in-depth reports on about five or six flights, I seem to recall), then we expanded the reach on to Oslo and a few points south. We presented these flights with all kinds of chart data (the most relevant link for Norwegian charts is here) then set ‘em up and flew the runs – and we did so in order to highlight really nice (if older) airport files in the area while making use of the Q.

The latest version 2.1 of Fly-J-Sims Q discards an earlier plug-in architecture and adopts SASL, and the benefits have been immediate and obvious. Some twitchy low speed behaviors have disappeared (Simon and I both thought these intermittent demons were plug-in related) in the process, but the overall effect on the aircraft is that it has only been enhanced. This is an able, entertaining file, one of the best small tubeliners in XP.

What a lot of people like about the file is it’s simplicity. It offers a sweet looking cockpit environment without going into total “procedures SIM” complexity. There’s enough “eye candy” on board to immerse you in the moment, but the ACF is tailor made to make quick flights – though you CAN go deeper if the need arises. In the end, what’s won over so many people to the ACF is it’s accessibility. The aircraft is ubiquitous, seen all over the world, and as many have flown in one there’s a great deal of curiosity about the ACF. So the FJS Q400 is a natural in this regard – yet a casual simmer can take this one up and have a blast. There’s enough fidelity to the real bird to impress real Q pilots, but you don’t have to get bogged down in heavy procedures to enjoy this file.

Seen above just climbing out of ENZV, the Qs cockpit impresses with immersive detail and lighting…

…while the new revision incorporates a few nicely improved exterior elements, such as the prop-disks.

And the overall effect is simply wonderful. There are few commercial ACF in XP offering better exterior quality.

OPS are straightforward and reliable, and there’s decent documentation on hand to easily get at all the features.

Flying into EDDW and letting the AP handle the chores was almost too easy, but gratifyingly fun to watch over. The a/c coupled onto final and flew a gentle approach, and handoff on the flare was non-eventful.

I flew the Q around the airport for a few touch and goes as well, and noted that low speed handling now seems very benign compared to earlier versions. The aircraft, the real one, of course has limits. You don’t push this aircraft hard at low speeds, and bank angles in particular need a gentle hand below 150 kias; the Fly-J-Sim ACF models this faithfully, and as far as I can tell, realistically. Appropriate audible warnings sound-off when you push this aircraft out of it’s safe envelope, another nice feature.

There are now dozens of excellent liveries available for this bird, too. All in all, the Fly-J-Sim Dash8 Q400 offers an exceptional experience for both casual and more experienced flyers, and we highly recommend this latest v2.1 file.

The ACF is, by the way, now available at the AeroSOFT e-store for immediate download, as well as from the Org and Fly-J-Sim. Current price at the AeroSOFT store is approx 32USD.

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We’ll have more up for you tomorrow, sooner if things develop in the interim. We’ll see you then, and have a nice weekend. Hasta later – C

xp+10+reviews + 11 July 2012

Posted by chip on July 10, 2012
Posted in: Aircraft First Look, News, Scenery Reviews. 7 comments

A little frustration in our comments received after yesterdays mention of XPJets’s torturously slow-to-develop Boeing 777, some comments bleeding over into the continuing lack of documentation for the WED suite of scenery tools, and the mounting delays surrounding the next RC of XP10. Frustration is to be expected I guess, though as we keep reminding folks – time waits for no one out on the Trail. Early birds get all the juicy worms – or so it’s said – but frankly Scarlett, I don’t give a damn. Here at Chaos Manor the Warning Wind is starting to howl, I mean a screaming through the rigging type of howl, and yes, there’s some big news coming.

And no, I don’t mean about our absurd site/hosting change, either. No, not at all. In fact, things could get real interesting, real fast. Yep. Time waits for no one.

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So yes, things change. We adapt. Landscapes shift, new players emerge, there’s sometimes even a passing of the guard. Yet we still have the day to day to cover, so let’s jump on into the news, then look over some neat new files:

  • The Federal Aviation Administration’s tight regulations and lack of resources are becoming a huge stumbling block for airplane manufacturers struggling to get their new products approved in a timely manner, this feature says. The amount of paperwork, time and effort needed to approve aviation products needs to be changed, manufacturers say. “They can’t continue to do the old way of doing it if they don’t have the resources,” said Walter Desrosier of the General Aviation Manufacturers Association. Desrosier said the FAA should focus on “safety critical” areas instead. The Wichita Eagle (Kan.)
  • The manufacturer of the Total Eclipse and the Eclipse 550 jet has unveiled a promotion called the “Total Eclipse = Total Savings” program to help spur sales of the aircraft just in time for AirVenture 2012. Eligible buyers may receive upgrades such as an extended warranty, a premium interior and a satellite phone system at no extra cost. “The benefits of owning a Total Eclipse are incentive enough to purchase the aircraft,” said Mason Holland, chairman and CEO of Eclipse Aerospace, which makes the airplanes. “This program is simply icing on the cake.” General Aviation News
  • The General Aviation Expo at Minute Man Air Field in Stow, Mass., will showcase hot-air balloons, free airplane rides for children and career presentations from the National Aviation Academy and other organizations. Several businesses will also be on hand to display their products and services for flight training, aircraft maintenance and aviation software. The expo is scheduled for Saturday. Wicked Local/Stow, Mass.
  • Sikorsky Aircraft will provide Black Hawk helicopters to the U.S. Army, Navy and Air Force for $7.3 billion in a deal that stretches over five years, sources say. The contract includes several variants, including the H-60, of the helicopter. “The Black Hawk series has become the poster child for multiyear contracts,” said aerospace analyst Richard Aboulafia. “Guaranteeing procurement numbers for five-year blocks has been extremely effective in bringing down costs.” Reuters
  • Unmanned aerial vehicles could be used for more than battlefields and borderlands within the next few years. Aviation experts predict that as many as 30,000 UAVs will be in U.S. skies within the next decade. “This is very uncharted territory because there is no pilot on board to operate see-and-avoid procedures,” said Heidi Williams, vice president for airspace issues for the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association. The Arizona Republic (Phoenix)
  • Rockwell Collins’ latest Pro Line Fusion integrated flight deck is being picked up by more companies in the air transport market. The flight deck will be installed in new Boeing 787s, Embraer military tankers and the upcoming Airbus A350 XWB. AIN Online
  • Every first Saturday of the month from May to November children in Watsonville, Calif., can ride through the skies for free thanks to the local chapter of the Experimental Aircraft Association. Each child gets a 20-minute ride on a single-engine aircraft. “We’re showing them what you can do if you work hard and stay focused,” said pilot Richard Yee. “They learn about how the plane works, how the plane turns. I enjoy seeing the kids get excited about flying. I like to spread that around.” Santa Cruz Sentinel (Calif.)
  • Hawker Beechcraft is being sold to a Chinese company, according to the Financial Times.

Okay, let’s move on. After all, time waits for no one…not even… X-Planers!

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Bamboo Cougar’s latest will look right at home for those of you looking to get away from it all…WAY away from it all. Cougar’s PXX0 ”Just Enough Lake” isn’t exactly a million miles from civilization, but it sure feels like it, even in XP, so get out them Otters and Beavers and go have a look see!

After looking over information at the Org, and then looking over the cabin (above), we thought it best to resist comments about Beavers, DeHavilland or otherwise, but frankly, the whole idea of a bikini clad gal standing on the porch in those latitudes fills me with foreboding. Hasn’t anyone heard of frostbite? Get her out of those wet things and by the fire…fast!

So…anyway…below you’ll see the area in XP10 without the requisite scenery libraries, while up above you’ll find the file in all it’s naked glory – in XP9.70. Oops. Sorry. Kinda slipped out.

Ahem, yeah, so right, where were we? Oh yeah, scenery libraries. Lot’s you’ll have to have installed for this one to look right, list on the download page guides the way, links there too, and if you’ve done everything right you’ll end up with lakes, cabins, a tie down area, a helipad, and a seaplane zone. Who knows, maybe some beaver in them thar ponds, too. Salmon guaranteed, or so it’s said.

So, if you want to do some, uh, bush flying…well…der Bamboo Cougar has you covered. Recommended for all kinds of fun, day or night. Beavers optional.

+++++

Tom Knudsen continues his work with OSM derived building placement, this time in South Africa/Lesotho. As with his just released Scandinavian package (reviewed yesterday), his SA3D package partially replaces XP10′s autogen scenery with appropriate buildings derived from OpenStreetMap sourcing, and the results are generally excellent, and always interesting – night or day.

We checked out the file’s impact around Cape Town, South Africa, and here’s what we found. Top image is with the file installed (the LH A321), and the SAA A343 is flying over the default XP10 rendering:

Generally, trees and buildings are much more densely placed with the OSM derived rendering, and to my eye looks a bit nicer at typical flight altitudes.

Even areas with sparse vegetation seem less repetitive in appearance.

All told, another “must have” file, particularly if you fly in the region. Framerate hit seemed negligible, BTW.

+++++

McArena (catchy name!) presents an early beta of his makeover of the Vic Kaberniq modified default Piaggio P180 Avanti Alterna (Evolution). At least I think it’s the Kaberniq mods I see in those lighting controls? Oh, I guess it doesn’t matter. Anyway, this oft overlooked hotrod is a blast to fly, especially now that all that nasty torque steer is gone from the file. Open her up – hot, of course – on the runway and slam those throttles to the stops and hang on for the ride!

This is one of those “default” files I’m glad wasn’t messed around with too much when 10 was released – it didn’t need much, if anything, to make it markedly better – or so I thought. Well, so much for that. Here’re the tweaks from the change log in the included read me:

small tweaks
—————
[plane maker]
[[2D panel]]
- moved the flight dir rotary switch to the copilot side of the panel where the flight dir display button is
- replaced the GPU request button function by a click on the lowest left annunciator (it displays “ext power” when in use) / works only if some electricity is running (simulates radio call to ground)
- changed the driving dataref for the cabin door opened warning to “canopy open”
- navigation lights button renamed POS
- ice annunciator (was gear mute button in alterna)
- gear mute button moved to the unsafe button (this is a departure from the real plane, IRL the mute button is on the right side of the power levers)
- HSI now displays distance > 99.9 NM (not sure it is realistic but it looks better to me than displaying only two digits when distances still > 99.9)
- moved the brakes sign/pushbutton below the landing gear command (parking handle position)
- fuel & hydraulics analog gauges ranges tuned
- prop overspeed left and right button (note that overspeed is activated for both engine due to xp limitation)
- clicking on center of heading select button selects current heading

[[plane]]
- standard/viewpoints/ext lights
– taxi lights moved between the landing lights (IRL the 3 lights are on a moving part in front of the front landing gear)
– tail light changed to nav tail (was taxi)
– strobes lights are the top tail and the bottom one (fixed)
– strobe (ground) on the top of the fuselage (fixed)
- standard/systems/warnings
– warnings & cautions (those available in plane maker 10.05, we still miss a lot of them)
- toga button (zone that you can click on) near the left of the top of the left power lever

new (not so small tweaks)
——————————
[[2D panel]]
* lights panel complete rework *
- fasten seat belts / no smoking 3 positions button
- taxi & landing light trap door annunciator (annunciator shows “LTS DOOR OPEN” in green if taxi or landing lights are switched on)
- recognition light button
- wing inspection light implemented (spotlight in the left nacelle to inspect wing condition visually)

* audiopanel new instrument *
- added 2 Baker audiopanels (you can now select audio COM1&2 called VHF1 & 2, NAV1, NAV2, ADF, DME, MKR)
- added speed placard on the top left

*-de-ice systems complete rework-*
- the 7 different sub-sytems of xplane susceptible to ice are now “de-iceable”
- boots de-ice indicator (LE and RE indicators light when inflating the boots, 5 sec every minute – its every 3 minutes in the real plane)
- all advisory annunciators working

* fuel management *
- firewall valves not linked anymore to the cutoff of the condition levers
- intransit time of the firewall valves implemented
- crossfeed revised
- crossfeed intransit time implemented

*-annunciators panel complete rework-*
- rebuilt, annunciators now match the POH (as far as i can go with the current xplane limitations)

* bigger swicthes *
- bigger switches are now bigger (bleed air, fw valves, starters, hydraulics, bus disc)

[[plane]]
- added the wing inspection light on the left engine nacelle (does not yet light the wing due to xp limitations but visible anyway)
- added rear-oriented white nav lights at the end of the wingtips (still visible from the front of the aircraft due to xp limitations)

[[sasl plugins]]
- button with 3 positions for off / taxi / landing light
- button with 3 positions for off / ground / air collision light
- button with 3 positions for fasten seat belts and no smoking
- sound for fasten seatbelt 3 position button
- fuel management reworked (added fw valve logic, xfeed and intransits)
- oil cooling (buttons actionnable + annunciator active but no effect on oil temp)
- starters are functional (action starter then set condition lever to Ground idle when > 13% NG)

[[autopilot]]
- buttons visuals reworked
- logic reworked to implement modes closer to real plane (CLM, DSC, SPD)
- reworked autopilot annunciators to match real plane (~90%)
- Go Around trigger zone left of the topmost position of the left power lever

[[electrical]]
- bus tie disconnects when both gen amps below 10A for more than 3 seconds
- bus tie can be manually disconnected
- bus tie emergency can be selected when both gen amps below 10A (battery should empty fast in that case)
- inverters now necessary for gyros, A/P and torque indicators (also setup for radar but it does not seem to work in xp10.05)

[[misc.]]
- center of the heading rotary button is now pushable to set the target heading to current

[[EADI]]
- fixed the speed display (used to display plane attitude)
- added most of the autopilot annunciator messages
- added target speed display
- added radio altitude when < 2500ft

So, well, there’ve been a few changes made…some obvious, some not so, but what gets me is this is all being done, even the SASL plug-in work, by a first timer. A newbie to PlaneMaker.

Impressive, neh?

I haven’t worked through all the changes yet, but this has always been a moderately complex cockpit, nothing to break out in a sweat over but enough challenge to keep things interesting, so I’d imagine OPS will be inline with prior experience. Documentation is basic, but informative.

So, we’ll be keeping an eye on this one, and that’s why this was imaged at KBTR | Baton Rouge. Gotta keep up with the changes there too, don’t ya know. If and when this file warrant a full write up, we’ll get it out there; until then, it’s worth a download as is. There are some nifty improvements over stock, so take her out for a spin or two and see what you think.

And big storms are rolling in, literally, with nice lightning out the window, so that’s all she wrote for today. We’ll seeya soon, and thanks for dropping by. Hasta later – C