Obstacles & Landmarks from France VFR

Posted: Wednesday, May 11, 2011 - 1:01
While flying VFR, AVSIM staff reviewer Rick Desjardin avoids more than 500,000 Obstacles & Landmarks that FranceVFR have added to your french scenery for your navigating pleasure.

"Using this product as an aid for VFR navigation is one of its main features and you will truly appreciate what this package has to offer. Using the charts I was able to identify the objects that had up to now been absent from the landscape and use them to assist me in situational awareness and for navigation. Needless to say I was very pleased with the outcome. The addition of this product made a significant positive difference in every one of my flights."

Harrier GR3 And FRS1 From Wilco Publishing

Posted: Tuesday, May 10, 2011 - 13:07
Wilco Publishing releases their Harrier Jump Jet , features include :
fully detailed, accurate exteriors depicting the famous GR3 (RAF) and FRS1 (RN) from the Falklands War period.
Many detailed animations including retracting eyelids over the glass radar nose (GR3), jet nozzles, flaps and all flight control surfaces and landing gear.
Engine vents and central fan rotor are also animated correctly.
Animated windshield wiper is controlled from cockpit and interacts with real time weather conditions.
Selectable loadouts for weapons and external tankage.
Selectable refuelling probes (for visuals).
Animated pilot in fully detailed ejection seat.
Full ground set including chocks, flight flags and engine intake covers.
Fully modelled, switchable ground power unit trailer
Accurate weathered texture sets depicting various frontline and training units of the RAF and Royal Navy, low and high vis schemes used in the Falklands War.
Fully featured Virtual Cockpit with illuminated HUD and 3D gauges including engine set and tank selectors, navigation gauges, radios and weapons loadouts. Fuel dump function is also included.
Stunning night lighting effects in the cockpit with realistic instrument and switch back-lighting.
Fully functional Head Up Display : airspeed, barometric altitude, magnetic heading, flight path vector, radio-altitude, navigation information, target designation box, alert messages, G load factor, Mach number, bank angle.
Advanced radar showing AI traffic and other player aircrafts (if used in a multi-player session). It features three scanning modes and target information. The locked target can be displayed on the HUD.
Many detailed animations and a full set of functional switches and knobs. Just about everything in the Harrier cockpit is switchable and all controls are accurately reproduced for an immersive experience!

Bear Studios Releases J-10 for FS9/FSX

Posted: Tuesday, May 10, 2011 - 0:41
Bear Studios is excited to announce its latest release, the Bear Studios Chengdu J-10 for FSX and FS9. The Chengdu J-10 is a multirole fighter aircraft designed and produced by the Chengdu Aircraft Industry Corporation in China. Known as "Vigorous Dragon", the J-10 entered service in 2005 as a 3rd generation multi-role combat aircraft capable of all-weather day/night operation. In this product, Bear Studios simulates complex systems and operating procedures found in the real aircraft.

If you are an aviation enthusiast that likes to experience unique aircraft from around the world, the Bear Studios J-10 is a great selection, and a whole lot of fun to fly. There are too many features to list here, but some features include accurate modeling, detailed VC's in 2 languages (Chinese and English), advanced avionics, special effects, animations, and a whole lot more.

Photoreal Scenery of the Continental USA now in Avsim Store

Posted: Monday, May 9, 2011 - 16:51
Photoreal Scenery of the Continental United States of America by SimSavyy
"Photoreal America" is the first completed product in the Sim-Savvy "Massive Scenery Collection". The product contains photoreal scenery of the entire Continental United States for use with Microsoft Flight Simulator X (FSX).
A one terabyte USB external hard drive ($100 value) is included in the purchase price and will be shipped to you. Photoreal America comprises 400 gigabytes worth of data. The scenery loads directly from this supplied hard drive and does not fill up your local drive. This also leaves room on the supplied drive for future "Massive Scenery" releases and additions.
Unlike the default vector based scenery that comes with FSX, "Photoreal America" allows you to see the real view below. The scenery is generated from USDA NAIP 1 meter aerials that are taken every two years on a rotating basis. Student pilots can use FSX with Photoreal America as a training aid to practice between lessons. Veteran pilots can use FSX with Photoreal America as a flight planning tool. Imagine practicing a takeoff or landing at an unfamiliar airport you are scheduled to fly to. With Photoreal America you can see the real landmarks and runways below.

Visit the Avsim Store today.

F8F Bearcat from Vertigo Studios

Posted: Saturday, May 7, 2011 - 18:40
Senior staff reviewer Angelique van Campen looks at a WWII naval fighter from Vertigo Studios - the F8F Bearcat. "The Grumman F8F Bearcat (affectionately called "Bear") was an American single-engine naval fighter aircraft of the 1940s. It went on to serve into the mid-20th century in the United States Navy and other air forces, and would be the company's final piston engine fighter aircraft. Modified versions have broken speed records for propeller planes, and it is popular among warbird collectors.
The Bearcat concept was inspired by the early 1943 evaluation of a captured Focke-Wulf Fw 190 by Grumman test pilots and engineering staff."

"Do you like a fighter that’s an old-fashioned model, that flies like a rocket, that can carry bombs and rockets and if needed, an additional fuel tank and you are the pilot? Then this Vertigo Studios F8F is a must! It may be a small fighter, but it’s full of tiny details and I’m wondering if I’ve seen all of them. The aircraft itself with all the “accessories” is gorgeous to look at."

"I must admit Vertigo Studios told us what kind of masterpiece it is and it feels like every sentence is true. It’s really a marvelous virtual replica of the F8F. The external model looks great and it comes with a few high quality real world liveries. There may be no 2D cockpit, but what you get instead is a great looking Virtual Cockpit."

"The sound is awesome and frame rates are good although “your” actual frame rates will depend on so many other computer related items. It flies and feels almost like a rocket, keeping in mind the engine performance versus aircraft model/weight. You’ll also like the acrobatics."

KLAX from Blueprint Simulations

Posted: Saturday, May 7, 2011 - 4:36
Staff reviewer Roger Curtiss visits a very recognizable locale in Blueprint Simulations' KLAX airport. "There are a few ubiquitous airport identifiers, JFK, ATL, SFO, but perhaps none so as readily identifiable as LAX."

"Blueprint does make it quite clear on their website that animated jetways, moving traffic and advanced parking aids are not modeled in their airport sceneries, and probably will not be for the foreseeable future. Their focus is on highly detailed and accurate depictions of the primary airport structures and facilities and they make no apology (nor should they have to) for this philosophy."

"Blueprint has taken great effort to utilize the correct terminals for the airlines as well as appropriating specific gates for either single aisle or wide body aircraft. Nne cannot help but feel that you are seeing a highly accurate portrayal of the airport and can appreciate how the ramp and terminal areas have been maximized for ever increasing traffic numbers considering the airport is physically constrained from expanding by development and urban sprawl adjacent to it."

"Blueprint continues to make a name for itself specializing in high quality airport sceneries and KLAX is no exception to this goal."

AVSIM Opens 2011 FANCON Registration

Posted: Friday, May 6, 2011 - 0:03
We are pleased to announce the opening of our registration system for the 2011 FANCON that will occur during the weekend of October 14th through Sunday, the 16th. This will be the first national FANCON held since November of 2007, when we held the FANCON in conjunction with Microsoft's Flight Sim Developer's Conference. It has indeed been a long road since then and we are looking forward to this year's event. We have a great venue and program for the weekend, including the Reader's Choice Awards, the AVSIM's own Bravo Zulu Awards, the most prestigious in our hobby. We hope to see you there! The first step is to register, and you can do so at the registrations page. Please not that if you only plan to attend the daily exhibitions, you can register and pay at the door. If you plan to attend either the Friday night Social or the Saturday night Awards Banquet,or both, you need to pre-register using our registration system. Registrations for the Social and Banquet will close in September. Please register before then.

R C Simulations Flight Sim Products For 2011

Posted: Thursday, May 5, 2011 - 12:48
R C Simulations in the UK is delighted to announce that a brand new range of stainless steel helicopter controllers are now in stock. These controllers are designed by engineers, tested by pilots and manufactured by a robotics company. They are called the "Cadet" range of controls. They are suited to high end home use, cockpit building and training, visit the R C Simulations Homepage to see video of the new components in action.

Tower! 2011 by FeelThere is available at the Avsim Store

Posted: Wednesday, May 4, 2011 - 15:59
Tower! 2011 is part of the Air Traffic Controller Suite. Air Traffic Controller Suite includes Tower! 2011 and will include Tracon! 2011 and ATCC! 2011. Each module will be playable independently, or in multiplayer mode using an Internet connection. Tower 2011 has been developed from scratch. feelThere has received feedback over the past few years concerning air traffic control games and these suggestions have been implemented into this new simulation. The initial release includes three airports to challenge controllers of all skill levels. The smaller airport has been specifically selected to allow new controllers to learn the software and air traffic control procedures. After gaining experience the two major airports multiple runways and high traffic volumes will challenge experienced controllers. Your assignment is to guide aircraft of various sizes and capabilities to and from the active runway for landing and takeoff. As TOWER you must assure that it safe for a plane to enter or cross a runway, assign taxiway routes, when to stop and start movement, and clear aircraft for take off. Tower 2011 by feelThere provides you with flight strips, ground and air radar screens and top down view photorealistic background for the airport. Tower 2011 is no arcade game. With a complex command structure, advanced AI and speech recognition technology Tower 2011 will allow you to experience of the thrill of being a real air traffic controller.

Tower! 2011 is available as a single player or multi-player edition. Las Vegas add-on airport is also available for Tower! 2011
Visit the Avsim Store today.

FS Global Ultimate - Europe/Africa Released

Posted: Wednesday, May 4, 2011 - 14:39
PILOT'S has driven terrain design to a new edge. Last week they released part two of their FS Global Ultimate series. After "The Americas" this time they cover the continents of "Europe and Africa".

A completely new compiler allows for details never seen. FS Global Ultimate -Europe/Africa seamlessly fits into your existing FS Global installation of any previous version or can be installed stand alone into your FSX.

Included for FREE: AFM - Aerodrome Flattening Meshes. 48.000 micromeshes for FS 2004 and FSX to get rid of bathtub and aircraft carrier airports. Read more about FS Global ULTIMATE and see screenshots at their website.

FSGlobal Ultimate "The Americas" from PILOTS

Posted: Sunday, May 1, 2011 - 0:51
Senior staff reviewer Angelique van Campen looks at the geographic upgrades produced with PILOTS FSGlobal Ultimate "The Americas" in FSX. She uses a graphically intense review to show you the differences in the various genres of scenery, from default FSX to the changes with FSGlobal and what the real world picture looks like.

"The difference on paper between FSGlobal 2010 and FSGlobal Ultimate “The Americas” is big, but the best way to judge is to see it with your own eyes. FSGlobal 2010 covers the whole FSX/FS2004 world on six DVD’s, and their newest Ultimate “The Americas” product also comes on six DVD’s."

"I started this review proving that not only the LOD figure is important, but the combination of source material and LOD, including the processing technique. Since newer techniques after the release of FSGlobal 2010 are used, a more realistic output can be expected."

Reader Choice Awards Nominations

Posted: Friday, April 29, 2011 - 13:13
Avsim's Reader Choice Awards Nominations are now open, Commercial Aircraft and Freeware Aircraft are among the eight categories for Flight Sim Addons.

New this year is your Forum Member Nomination, has an AVSIM Forum Member helped you understand your hobby, shared their knowledge and overall, contributed to YOUR enjoyment of Flight Simulators?
If you have someone that has done that for you, nominate them today, read up on how to nominate your choices for Avsim's FanCon Reader Choice Awards and see if your Addon Developer of the year is nominated !

Cloud Based IFR Charts For Gmap

Posted: Friday, April 29, 2011 - 13:09
FSWidgets has release two new products in its line of Cloud Based Aero Charts. The US IFR Enroute Low and US IFR Enroute High products provide seamless, high resolution chart coverage for the US mainland. These Cloud Based charts do not require any downloading, installing or configuring because they are served up in the same manner Google Map tiles are delivered and are highly accurate. The Cloud Based charts are designed for use with the GMap moving map utility, which can also be used as a module under the FSWidgets Electronic Flight Bag for FSX, FS2004 and X-Plane. A free Cloud Based chart demo (Cuba/Puerto Rico WAC) is included in each copy of GMap 2.0 or higher. More details can be found at FS Widgets .

FlightSimTools Repaint Wizard

Posted: Friday, April 29, 2011 - 13:03
FlightSimTools.com is pleased to announce Repaint Wizard a new tool for painting FSX and FS9 aircraft that lets you view changes live in Flight Simulator! You can easily view paint schemes, create new ones and edit textures with your favorite image editor. Repaint Wizard automatically takes care of texture format conversions. A preview model shown in Flight Simulator displays the textures and updates them every time you hit the save button, allowing you to instantly see the effect of your changes. Repaint Wizard runs as a module inside Flight Simulator and supports all texture types used, including diffuse, specular, bumpmap, reflection, fresnel and night textures. The preview is always 100% accurate, because it appears as an actual aircraft directly in FSX/FS9! To check how your textures appear in specific weather conditions or at a specific time of day, simply set these conditions in FS. With Repaint Wizard, you no longer have to restart Flight Simulator frequently or guess how the textures would look like. To download a free demo or purchase this new product, please visit the Repaint Wizard Homepage.

Huey X from Aerosoft

Posted: Friday, April 29, 2011 - 6:20
New staff reviewer David Williard checks out Aerosoft's Huey X and says, "the product is put together well. It sounds like a Huey and as near as I can tell, it flies like one. The more I fly this helicopter, the more I like it."

"Included are seven liveries in two different models of the Bell 205, the civilian version and the UH-1. Stepping inside the cockpit it looks like a huey cockpit but this one is much cleaner. This model is virtual cockpit only where the main panel would be there is a startup screen which gives you the option of cold and dark or ready to fly. The gauges are crisp and easy to read. The overall interior looks good. You can see the quilted pads on the walls, the rough texture of the floors and those uncomfortable looking sling seats that anyone who has ever been in the military will cringe when they see them."

"If you are a Huey lover, you will fall in love with this aircraft. It has the potential to become simply the best, with a few tweaks. The likes and dislikes are purely my opinion but the bottom line is this is a wonderful aircraft worthy of its rotary
wings."

LatinVFR Releases Las Americas MDSD For FSX/FS9

Posted: Friday, April 29, 2011 - 1:22
Las Americas Airport is the Dominican Republic's capital city airport, its 20KM from the centre of the city of Santo Domingo, and is one of the oldest airports in the Caribbean. It's currently one of the most prominent airports in the Caribbean, handling more than 3 million passengers in 2010.
This airport receives many daily flights from Europe, North America, Latin America and the Caribbean.

FS Kneeboard For iPad

Posted: Friday, April 29, 2011 - 1:02
Inquisitive Graphics is happy to announce a new feature recently added to FS Kneeboard for iPad now available in version 1.38. My Charts is a tab that allows users to create sets of information, such as charts, checklists, manuals or documents to be viewed in the app via an internet connection. For example, a VATSIM FIR or ARTCC could create one of these sets for all the charts in their airspace, then place the file on their website.

FS Kneeboard users could then download the file, place it into FS Kneeboard and view them. This could be used for more than just charts as well. For example a virtual airline could make a Chart Pack for a certain route, region or event. This chart pack could include charts as well as flight manuals, time tables or just about any other type of web content too. FS Kneeboard for iPad was the first iPad app designed for flight simulation and can be found on the App Store in iTunes.

Updated PMDG 747 Video Training

Posted: Friday, April 29, 2011 - 0:24
Angle of Attack is excited to announce an overhaul on their online PMDG 747 Video Training. Now you can enjoy improved navigation, downloadable videos and a re-design. These improvements and more are being done in preparation for the soon to be released full redesign of the Angle of ttack website for the upcoming PMDG 737 video training.

Marshall Islands For FSX

Posted: Thursday, April 28, 2011 - 14:48
Ever wanted to fly or take a well deserved vacation in the Pacific Islands region but can't afford it in real life. Well, now you can, at least in FSX. Pacific Islands Simulation has just released the exotic islands and atolls of the Marshall Islands. As is typical of Pacific Islands Simulation, you get more airports (in this case 8) to explore in one package for a single price. Arrive on a Boeing 747, Airbus A340 or regional commuter and land on a very thin sliver of land call Majuro Atolls.

Marshall Islands International is one of aviation's fascinating airport wonders. Its 8,000ft runway straddles just over 500ft wide lime-coral piece of land that divides north-south rough seas of the vast Pacific ocean. Not only is the runway width slim, but arrive 10 hours from anywhere and you'd find yourself challenged by constant cross-wind and unpredictable monsoon-type weather. If that is not challenging enough, try one of the other 7 smaller airfields that share the same weather conditions with shorter runways.

LLH1 Challes-les-Eaux For FSX

Posted: Thursday, April 28, 2011 - 14:42
LLH créations is proud to announce its latest release for alpine flying, "LLH1 CHALLES-LES-EAUX" for FSX. A new platform for all mountain pilots with this airport close to CHAMBERY, France. More info and screenshots on the LLH website.