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February 15, 2008 - February 26, 2008
Cheyenne X from Aerosoft/Digital Aviation
Posted: Tuesday, February 26, 2008 - 22:47
Staff reviewer Etienne Martin takes a look at a completed revamped FSX aircraft, the Piper PA31T Cheyenne X. "This is the second iteration of the popular Piper Cheyenne turboprop from Digital Aviation, published by Aerosoft. Updated for Flight Simulator X (including SP2) and Windows Vista, the Cheyenne X is branded as a new product altogether."
"Digital Aviation has delivered good models in the past, and the Cheyenne X is no exception. They have provided four versions of the Piper Cheyenne (I, IA, II and IIXL). Each version has its own model and flight characteristics. All liveries are high gloss and make the aircraft look spanking new out of the factory."
"Based on photographs of the real aircraft, it seems the exterior model shows nearly every exterior detail, from the wing light chrome covers to the contact points on the (functional) windshield wipers. The landing gear is presented in full detail, including inside the wheel wells. The windows and windshield are particularly well done."
"The Cheyenne X has a comprehensive set of 2D panels and has one of the most functional 3D environments to be found in an add-on, with almost every knob and switch functional. The 2D panels are, for the most part, unchanged from the original Cheyenne product for FS9 except for the addition of the weather radar. The 3D office in the Cheyenne X is quite the experience. As with the exterior model, the VC is very detailed and meticulously done. The Cheyenne’s cockpit is relatively small, and nearly all controls are accessible from the pilot’s seat, making the VC very relevant. I would expect very little time to be spent in the rather mundane 2D cockpit after experiencing the 3D cockpit the Cheyenne X has to offer."
"Exterior lighting effects include the navigation, wing light (left wing only), tail, nose and wingtip taxi/landing lights. The interior comes to life at night and gives the Cheyenne X a very convincing, almost photo-real night light for the cockpit, instruments and cabin. The Cheyenne X includes two main new avionics features, namely a multi-mode weather radar capable of displaying navigation and log data, the other, the Trimble 1000 GPS unit. The sound included in the Cheyenne X is recorded from the actual aircraft per the product specifications. The default turboprop startup sound is gone, replaced by a much more accurate turbine spool whine and a very satisfying low rumble, especially when props are out of phase."
Etienne's review contains an enormous number of screenshots to give you an indepth appreciation of this aircraft. He also gives you the low-down on it's flight characteristics as he takes it out for a spin. Concluding this review Etienne says, "Cheyenne X has the right mix of ingredients to duplicate an immersive feel of flight. Digital Aviation joins the ranks of top development teams by taking FSX to a new level with a very effective virtual cockpit and top exterior model. The aircraft itself lends itself well to casual VFR or the faster business of IFR, and as such, the Cheyenne X is a flexible high performance turboprop for anyone’s hangar."
Zurich X from FSDreamteam
Posted: Tuesday, February 26, 2008 - 3:21
Staff reviewer Jon Murchison heads off to Switzerland to review FSDreamteam's Zurich X. "(Flughafen) Zürich, also known as Kloten airport (IATA: ZRH, ICAO: LSZH) is an airport on the move, selected as Europe’s leading airport for the fourth year in a row (World Travel Awards) and with increasing passenger numbers (20.7 Million in 2007) Zürich has become one of the key European hubs."
"Zürich Airport is split into 6 main areas. I was immediately struck by how compact the airport is, a lot is located in a smallish area. One of the first things that comes to mind is ‘modern’. There is nothing 1940’s about this airport. Extensive use of glass in the main hall and midfield terminal mean this airport is very open, allowing the dramatic views of the alps in the distance to be a key feature for visitors, and this scenery is no different."
"I’ll say from the outset that this is a true FSX scenery package, no tweaking the FS9 version to make it work in FSX here. Every building features reflective bump mapped textures of a very high quality, and what really impressed me was the extensive use of transparent materials for glass. The external models for all buildings and facilities have been done to a very high level of detail; this is particularly evident in the main building frontage and the midfield dock, mainly because of the detail that has been built into these."
"One of the challenges in doing reviews of airports, when you have never visited or don’t live close by, is how do you actually know what’s real and what isn’t? It’s easy to say the main building ‘looks realistic’, but how does one say that with any credibility? In this case, I had the advantage of webcams located at Zürich which I was able to access through the official airport website (ZURICH Airport). Overall, I think FSDreamteam have developed a very realistic simulation of the real world equivalent, and have done so in a way that won’t bring your PC to its knees."
"Zürich is quite literally alive with animation. Whether it's the distinctive red airport buses moving throughout the airport grounds, security cars, vans or tugs, the activity levels right across the airport is extreme. Being an area of the world that experiences truly freezing winters, you also have the opportunity to interact with de-icing crews prior to departure."
Concluding his tour of Zurich X, Jon closes with, "Overall, I was very impressed with ZürichX. FSDreamteam have bought together all the elements and produced a scenery that is realistic, alive with animation, and allows FSX users to enjoy the enhancements the latest version of our favorite sim offers. ZürichX caters to machines of varying performance in terms of the ability to not only adjust scenery settings in-sim, but also adjust the config file settings with regards to autogen etc, through the Add-on Manager. If you are a regular flyer through Europe, this is a must have add-on to enhance your Switzerland stop-over’s."
Czech Republic For Condor Soaring Released
Posted: Tuesday, February 26, 2008 - 1:01
Czech Republic 0.5, the first part of Czech Republic scenery by Milos Koch "Cadfael", one of the most talented designer for Condor, is now available. The finished area of Czech Republic Scenery will be twice the size of the default Slovenia scenery. Most advanced techniques have been used to develop this add-on featuring an artwork style with subtle use of photos textures where relevant. Czech Republic 0.5 is a comprehensive and ready-to-fly scenery with a mesh, a realistic landclass and autogen, many custom 3D objects and airports, a complex network of roads, rivers and lakes. Cities are optimized for framerate and thanks to a new technology users can choose between two designs. The thermal map for the Czech Republic was created using a compromise between realism and usual Condor standard i.e. thermals are better than in the Slovakia scenery by the same author, but not fully unrealistic.
The package comes with bonuses: three PDA maps for pilots and a sample of 3D objects and textures for freeware developers. For more information and screenshots, please read this thread on Condor forum. To download the scenery, please visit the download site.
Latest Aerosoft Releases/Updates
Posted: Tuesday, February 26, 2008 - 0:48
TSR Autobrake - This downloadable module connects to FS2004/FSX via FSUIPC and is a near perfect simulation of the Autobrake systems that are standard in larger aircraft. Fully usable for cockpit builders, but also for the advanced flight simmer, braking will never be the same in FS if you have this installed. Land a heavy aircraft on a snowy runway and you will be surprised how short a runway can be. If you take your large airliners serious, this is one for you!
FSMap (Boxed version) - If you have not yet tried FSMap, download the demo file and see why so many simmers are trying to sell their paper charts at this moment. With the release of the latest version 1.02 Aerosoft started producing the box version which is Now available.
Venice X (Boxed version - Venice X has made people wonder why FSX scenery is supposed to be so slow, denser than any other scenery while using all the new features of FSX, it should get you a very solid 20 FPS overall. Having done very well in the download version, it is now available in boxed format.
Digital Aviation Piper Cheyenne X (Boxed version) - Now in the FSX version, Digital Aviation Piper Cheyenne X has become even better in graphics and is equipped with a fully new working weather radar. Up to now only available as download, the boxed version is waiting for you.
Updates - FSMap is now in version 1.02 and this update is advised for all users, including the people who now use the free demo. MyTraffic X has an update to version 5.1b that makes it fully compatible with FSX SP2/Accelerate. Last but not least FS Commander is updated to version 8.22, the last files solve some issues that were found in the 8.20 release. Get all your updates from the FAQ's/Updates section of Aerosoft's website.
AVSIM Server Upgrades, Complete And Continuing
Posted: Monday, February 25, 2008 - 0:48
As you are all aware, yesterday AVSIM took a giant leap forward in storage space and hardware. We are happy to report that the upgrades and repairs went very well. The new storage is prepped and ready. In coming weeks we will move the files to the new RAID Array.
Some folks have been asking us exactly what we did, so we wanted to share with you where all those donations have gone.
AVSIM invested over $15,000 in a highly-Available, dual-redundant RAID array. This array has redundant drives, hot swap backup for both drives and power supplies, as well as a fiber optic channel connection to the library server. In doing so, we doubled our available space. There is also room for 4 more drives as needed for continued growth of the library. In coming weeks we will announce a smaller outage to move the files to this array.
We also undertook a memory swap out in our main web server. One stick of RAM was bad and was causing mass errors on the web page front and forums. This has also been replaced, diagnosed and repaired. This will dramatically increase web speed and forum performance as the server processor is not having to deal with ECC memory errors any longer!
I would also like to take the time to introduce two new members to the technology team for AVSIM.
Brian Gefrich has been around the flight sim community for a while now, and not least of which was his visibility on the AVSIM forums. Brian is local to our operations center area and will become our "local" hands-on hardware and assist technician. Brian, as you may be aware is also one of the driving forces behind Squawk Box 4.
Alex Greenland continues our tradition of having a top-notch Linux Guru from London. Alex will be assisting Matt with the day to day and behind the scenes Linux admin duties. Alex has a lot of experience with massive systems and clients in the London area. I will let him tell you his story about a "little" explosion he helped overcome in the London area in 2005. Needless to say he worked wonders with his systems there!
This is just a brief into to our new folks. In coming weeks we will bio and introduce them further as they become key people in our continued technology efforts.
We welcome Alex and Brian and thank them for their help!
--John Binner
AVSIM Managing Editor
Trainz from Auran/Just Trains
Posted: Sunday, February 24, 2008 - 21:45
Senior staff reviewer Gene Davis steps into a cockpit of a different sort as he looks at Trainz Railways by Auran available from Just Flight/Just Trains. "Trains, what do we need trains for when we have a Flight Simulator? Many of us we use Flight Simulator, but for that railroad engineer in us I have found that Auran seems to fill that void with their product line of Train Simulators."
"I had a big misconception about Trainz Railways when I offered to review it. I thought that it would incorporate all of the features from the original and offer some new fluff to keep me interested in this sim. The first thing I found was that the new Trainz Railways only comes with 4 real trains and one tram for the Metropolis route giving you a total of 5 engines to plot and build with."
"The four engines that come with TC are the FL9 (my personal favorite), The SPW 2000, The Shore-liner and the P32ACDM, each of which are passenger based but you can take the FL9 and add a cargo consist and with a little effort you will be hauling goods instead. There is a fifth engine and it is the Tram for the Metropolis route and with a little creativity I think one could design his or her own route to use it on. The Harlem Line from New York covers over 40 miles of actual track. Cities and towns are laid out as they appear and all have custom scenery objects and buildings, as well as accurate landmarks."
"As for the Metropolis route, I was able to clear the schedule for one of the inner-city trams and operate it myself. What a ride! Watching ahead, checking speed and making sure the correct switches are switched is crucial to getting your passengers to their stop on time. Getting into the cab of a train doesn’t really appeal to a lot of people. What does a train driver do but just sit and watch the world go by. Personally, I think that is a big misconception of train operations because there really is a lot a train driver has to keep track of (no pun intended!). Posted speeds, switching tracks (mostly done with computers now) but in Trainz Classics you need to make sure all the tracks are switched properly, and most importantly, keeping time so that you don’t interfere with other train traffic is crucial."
Gene goes on to describe the scenarios within this sim as well as the ability to design your own rail world. Remember designing your own scale railroad on plywood in your basement? "I have to say that I really enjoy the Trainz series, I found that this reintroduced me to PC railroading. I have since spent more time with the Metropolis route and finished my virtual world. Train Simulating is a matter of choice, the design capabilities of Trainz is great and I recommend it to anyone that wants to get into this kind of sim."
3D Lights Redux For FS9
Posted: Sunday, February 24, 2008 - 18:36
Shockwave Productions has had a lot of requests to make their 3D Lights program compatible with FS9. Well, they finally figured it out and have re-released this add-on. This package includes new custom effects that install into all Microsoft FS9 aircraft including the older aircraft and the Boeing 777, 737, and 747.
There are over 40 new lighting effects including strobes, beacons, navigation, and runway lights. Fully-realized 3D landing lights actually cast light into space. The MS Acceleration Expansion pack is supported and it installs into all twenty-four Microsoft FSX aircraft or all twenty-seven FS2004 aircraft. Vintage, halogen, and modern xenon lights are included, plus an entire new effects suite which results in a stunningly realistic night time environment. Visit their website for complete details and some great screenshots.
CH-53A Sea Stallion from Alphasim
Posted: Sunday, February 24, 2008 - 1:58
Staff reviewer Brian Smith has his hands and feet full of controls as he takes a look at Alphasim's CH-53A Sea Stallion. "The CH-53 is a fantastic aircraft. If you ever have the opportunity to see one, you should take it. Just the sound of its engines gives you a sense of its power."
"The CH-53A from Alphasim comes with five paint schemes. The exterior textures are clear and well done as is the interior. The crew did an excellent job on the Virtual Cockpit, and it is evident they spent time getting the details right. The 2D panels in Alphasim’s helicopters are very good and are very clear and unobtrusive. The panels maintain a realistic look and feel without being overly complicated."
"I was really impressed with the quality of the sound recording for this product. The engine sounds give you a sense of power that is at your command. I tested the CH-53A at high-altitude in Colorado and found that it performed as expected. I think that Alphasim got it right here as well. The airfile makes it feel massive."
Summing up Alphasim's Ch-53A, Brian closes with, "Alphasim is one of the few developers in the Flight Simulator add-on market that provides quality military titles. Over the years I have purchased a number of payware CH-53 models. This one was definitely among my favorites. it will remain on my hard drive for a long time."
Live For Speed Online Races
Posted: Saturday, February 23, 2008 - 17:11
If you're looking for another genre of simming, there's always the road version. Live For Speed's online racing site has concluded their February race series and there are another 6 races coming up to collect "points" (like in the real racing world) to declare a winner.
After checking out their website, you can register for their next race on March 15. You can browse some screenshots of the last race while investigating this exciting genre of the simming world.
C-130 For FSX Completed
Posted: Saturday, February 23, 2008 - 16:51
Captain Sim announces the release of the Extra Pack II and the Pro Pack for 'C-130 X-perience'. A complete selection of four C-130 Packs is available exclusively at the Captain Sim web site.
ImagineSim Patches
Posted: Friday, February 22, 2008 - 13:13
Patches are now available for all of Imaginesim’s FSX airports. These updates will fix various display errors if you are using FSX with the Acceleration Pack and/or SP2. Full details can be found at ImagineSim.
Abacus New Mission Oriented Series
Posted: Friday, February 22, 2008 - 13:08
Abacus is proud to announce their new Mission Series. Jim Oldfield, Jr. of Abacus writes, "we're introducing "This Mission Series". Each title in the series contains essential elements at a low-price for easy download delivery. The launch title is Battle of Zeebrugge. Use your imagination as we take you back to World War I and the legendary Sopwith Pup. Your mission won't be easy as you'll be facing bombers and fighters in dogfights over the water." For more information on this and other missions, visit Abacus.
Round The World Race, New Champion
Posted: Friday, February 22, 2008 - 13:03
Once again this year three teams took to the virtual skies for the coveted title of Round The World Race Champion. Three teams gave it their all and went round the world one more time!
Matt Smith of the Race Committee writes, "It is my pleasure to announce the results of the 2008 RTW Race. In First Place: Sim-Outhouse. Second Place: Avsim. Third Place: Flightsim Congratulations to SOH, who have for the first time taken the "Tornado Trophy." This year's race was another very close contest. Congratulations to everyone who participated."
For more information, visit the Race Forums right here on AVSIM.
New From Golden Age Simulations
Posted: Thursday, February 21, 2008 - 12:12
Golden Age Simulations once again brings history to life with the release of their all new WACO F/F2 package for both FS9 and FSX. Relive the 1930's with three great models of this classic biplane. Featuring a fully functional virtual cockpit, unique sound package and detailed external texture's, this is sure to be a must have addition for your personel hanger. For additional information including screenshots, please visit Golden Age Simulations for more details.
First IVAO Real Flights Event of 2008
Posted: Tuesday, February 19, 2008 - 18:18
IVAO is please to announce the first Real Flights Event of 2008. Zurich – Kloten (LSZH) has been chosen as the host division by IVAO membership. The event is aimed at all members by offering a mix of both short and long haul flying and over 300 flights from which to choose. The popular Real Flights Event – now in its second year – has been designed to reproduce real world movements at the host airport during the given time slot. Full Air Traffic Control services will be provided at the host airport as well as nearby airfields and nearby Flight Information Regions in France, Germany, and the Netherlands to name a few. The Swiss division and IVAO would like to invite you to join them in flying on the 24th February 2008 – details can be found at IVAO
VeniceX from Aerosoft
Posted: Tuesday, February 19, 2008 - 3:10
Staff reviewer Allen Lavigne heads across the pond to review Aerosoft's VeniceX. "Did you know that Venice was built on 117 small islands, many of which are artificial? Being a walking and boating city, there is scant room for cars and even the public transit uses water buses."
"There are two custom airports included in this package: Teressa (LIPZ) is the main local airport, and San Nicolo (LIPV), a small island airport south of the city. It is suggested to approach Teressa via the Alps which are a visual treat in themselves, then to hop over to San Nicolo using your general aviation favorite."
" LIPZ is a package in itself with local terrain made from satellite imagery, this nice airport makes for a fine destination. LIPV is a smaller airport and has a tower, so you may want to follow procedures for a visual approach according to the supplied charts. The runway is grass and makes for a rough landing and bumpy when taxiing, but it is worth visiting."
Concluding his tour of VeniceX, Allen closes with, "This must be one of the more impressive packages I’ve reviewed lately. Covering the entire island areas of Venice, this was indeed a lot of work on the part of Aerosoft. The main airport is practical and makes for an interesting destination when flying around the European continent. This is indeed a work of art, as is the real Venice."
A-6E & EA-6B from Alphasim
Posted: Saturday, February 16, 2008 - 19:28
Senior contributing reviewer Alexis Esguerra takes a look at one of this Editor's favourite military aircraft, the A-6E Intruder and EA-6B Prowler from Alphasim. "They were a pair of naval warplanes born in the sixties, and yet to this day, they both remain pinnacle examples of their respective types. One maintains the bragging rights of being able to carry the heaviest weapon load off the deck of an aircraft carrier, while the other outlasted it’s competition to remain one of the military’s primary platform for its specialized kind of warfare."
"The base packs give numerous variations and appearances for both planes, and an available Expansion Pack exists for A-6E. They are based off of actual squadrons and equipment/weapon loadouts for each aircraft. With each base pack containing six differing variations apiece, there are certainly enough different Intruders & Prowlers to keep most simmers happy, and the existence of the Expansion pack with its additional five A-6s is surely a bonus for die-hard Intruder fans."
"Detailwise, both Intruder and Prowler are on par. All major components are present, and are nicely rendered. The exterior textures are well weathered as well; considering most of these planes are twice old enough to vote and the harsh sea environment they were built to work from, the highly-used look works well. me can be said for the weapons and external tanks when they happen to be attached."
"Visually, the VC cockpits for both aircraft nail down the general appearance of each plane in question. 2D-wise, I have no up-close reference material, but the panels do reflect the general feel of a plane from the late 60’s / early 70’s. Animations and special effects are also present here for both aircraft. The screenshots shows the good share of animations that are present, namely folding wings, opening canopy, and extending panels for the steps."
Summing up his checkride of these two military aircraft, Alexis comments, "there is little doubt in this reviewer’s mind that Alphasim’s A-6E and EA-6B are perhaps the best representations of both types out there on the market. Assuming you are a die-hard aficionado of these two types, then I would wholly endorse the A-6E and EA-6B. They are excellent in external appearance and flight modeling (once the weights are tweaked), which to me are the prime requisites for any add-on I might purchase."
Flight1 Euro X
Posted: Saturday, February 16, 2008 - 1:52
Flight One Software, in cooperation with Scenery Solutions, is excited to announce the immediate availability of one of their most anticipated titles: Ultimate Terrain X - Europe for Microsoft Flight Simulator X.
Ultimate Terrain X - Europe has been designed from the ground up to take advantage of new technologies in FSX, and provide you with an amazing depth of features that will give you a much deeper experience flying in FSX.
The following countries are included: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxemburg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, San Marino, Slovak Republic, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom.
Ultimate Terrain X features nearly all roads of Europe (with all major roads having moving traffic), several times the numbers of bridge objects (over 250,000), Highways, Roads, Streets, interchanges, two-way road traffic (even on undivided roads), roundabouts, landclass, waterclass, shorelines, coastlines, beaches, rivers, streams, Ultimate Terrains unique night lighting, railroads, specialized land textures, plus a lot more!
The beginner can jump right in after installation and start flying the new FSX world. Or if you are an advanced user, you can manipulate or tweak almost ever element via the Ultimate Terrain X Configuration utility. For more information, visit the Ultimate Terrain X - Europe Product Page.
Aerosoft "Brakes" For You
Posted: Friday, February 15, 2008 - 22:09
Aerosoft has announced their TSR Autobrake software. Aerosoft writes, "TSR Autobrake is an external program that connects to the Flight Simulator through FSUIPC and is a close simulation of the actual Autobrake systems found in all large aircraft. It knows about the runway condition by reading the weather and will make all braking distances fully realistic while giving the pilot the feedback of a slippery runway when that is appropriate."
TSR Autobrake features; default settings for B747, B737, B777 and all airbus aircraft, but adaptable for ANY aircraft, weather and runway conditions will affect braking performance and can cause skidding, and full modeling of brake pressure. For more information, head over to the Aerosoft TSR Autobrake page.
Space Shuttle Mission 2007™; TrackIR Support
Posted: Friday, February 15, 2008 - 18:33
Exciting Simulations is delighted to announce that with the release of Service Pack 1.21, Space Shuttle Mission 2007 now offers full TrackIR support. TrackIR is active in the Space Shuttle 3D Virtual Flight Deck and in the EVA First Person View which allows you to control Astronauts during their Extra Vehicular operations. You can find more information about TrackIR at the official NaturalPoint website.
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