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AKULLA
APPROVED!
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"The
Forgotten Jewels"
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Well
here we go again with another selection of "Forgotten
Jewels" This weeks collection has been collated from my
deep delving into the library, and from what I can recall from
memory. It always amazes me the stuff that goes unnoticed or is
just brushed aside. I know its not possible for every single
file to get the recognition that it deserves, but none the less
as the saying goes "better late than never" This week I
have selected 3 of the 5 files to hold the "Akulla Approved"
award. So,
without further ado lets see what is in this weeks selection, and who
will get the accolade for the "Akulla Approved"
stamp. ...Akulla
Filename:
Embraer Super Tucano
Format: Fs98/2000
Added: 8th Jan 1999
Downloads: 8687
Author: Flight Sim Developers
Size: 3770kb |
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We have come to regard the FSD crew as one of the best freeware
manufacturers of Fs2000 aircraft in recent times, with the likes of
the Beaver and the Porter. Although we have not seen much of these
guys in recent months, they have a new aircraft due very soon.
Going back a couple of years, I have brought out the Embraer 312 Super
Tucano. The Tucano is a twin seat mid range trainer. Used
by many country's as an intermediate stage prior to progressing to
jets. It has a Pratt & Whitney, PT6A-68/3 which will enable it to do in excess of
300kts. The installation of this craft is very well documented in the
zip file, and a very comprehensive document on the aircraft is also
there for reading (and I recommend reading it). All the
surfaces are animated, and even a nice little speed brake is
included. A panel is included, which has a couple of interesting
features. A separate auto pilot can be brought up if desired. It also
incorporates a "Virtual Cockpit" for added enjoyment. The
package comes with two aircraft; It gives you the choice of flying the old RAF colours in red and
white, or the more recent colours of black and yellow.
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It is
quite evident from just looking at the pictures, that its sleek lines
means its a speed merchant.....And oh boy, are you in for some
fun with this little beast. Put away those bino's, leave the
flask of coffee at home and strap in tight for this ride! With the
size of the engine, she can be very twitchy on the ground, and too
much power will result in tipping her on a wing or almost doing a
cartwheel. A little practice and all will be sweet. Once in the
air it handled very well in conventional flight, but I had other
ideas in mind! Acrobatics are a pure dream in the Tucano. Tumbling
around the sky and low level high-speed fly bys made for some exhilarating
flying. The paint job is meticulous in detail and highlights the
RAF's colours very well. Although not a practical aircraft for a
VFR flight, as a stress reliever after a day at the office its hard to
beat. Download it... Give it a try...You'll love
it!!. ...Akulla
Editor's Note: See also Ian Pearson's January 1999 review "Embraer EMB-312H Super Tucano (Moving Parts) Aircraft."
Filename: CfgEdit
Panel Editor
Format:
Added: 27th
September 2000
Downloads:1702
Author:Ed Struzynski
Size:624kb
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How many times have you
downloaded a panel, and thought to yourself "If only I could swap
that gauge?" I know I did, and until about 6 months ago, I thought it was rocket science going about the task. Thanks to a
certain Mr Ed Struzynski this task is now made a complete doddle! Yep,
edit your favourite panel in minutes and have all those quirky gauges
you love fly with right in front of your eyes. The program itself
is small in size but packs a considerable punch. The installation
is straight forward with it being in .exe format. Once you have
installed it, open it up (from the icon that is created on your desktop)
and take a while to read the help files that come with the program.This
is not just a simple help file, but a comprehensive illustrated guide on
how to achieve your goal.
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The interface for the
program itself is laid out in a very user friendly way, and navigation
is a breeze. On going to the file menu, and choosing "Open
panel.cfg direct" you will notice that it puts you straight to the
directory where your aircraft are within Fs2000. After that its a
case of choosing the aircraft panel you wish to modify, simply by
opening up the panel.cfg. You will be greeted with a picture of
the panel and all the gauges in place. Simply by clicking on the
gauge it will highlight the area with a yellow resizable box. Hit the
delete key and you will be left with a void where it used to be.
Press the gauge icon on the taskbar, and scroll down the list until you
find the gauge of your choice. Press the OK button and the new gauge
will appear in the main window. Re-position it to your desired location,
and there you have your new gauge installed! Simple eh?? Ok,
there is more to it than the brief description that I have given, but I
am not joking when I say its easy. Its great to experiment with
and the finished product can be very rewarding. Just one word of
warning, if you intend to use the gauges from another 3rd party
panel, please email the author of the gauge (normally found in the
readme) and ask permission. They have spent a great deal of time
programming them, and its the decent thing to do. ...Akulla
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I
hope you don't think that I am
showing favouritism in these reviews by including another file by an
author who featured in my last installment <g> But credit is given
where credit is due! Bill Lyons is one of the few designers that has
adopted this approach to aircraft in Fs2000. His trait is his
ability to create an aircraft with a virtual panel and working gauges.
This is another fine example of his work depicting the Legendary
Stearman. If you haven't seen it before in Fs2000, you have
no doubt seen one countless times on the television. Bill has created
his model based on the Cannibal Queen, a modified 1942 Stearman Biplane.
The name comes from a book of the same name, and tells the story of a
man called Stephen Coonts and his flying adventure to land in all of the
lower 48 states of the US. Ok, back to the aircraft. The
installation is straight forward and is well documented in the
readme file.
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As already mentioned, this aircraft has
a virtual cockpit and not the conventional cockpit that we are used to,
and the inclusion of working gauges. Make sure to hit the "L"
key to activate the gauges. The aircraft has full animated surfaces, and
the textures are based on actual photographs. Check out the small flame
emitted my the exhaust when you advance the throttle! Flying the Stearman is
nothing but fun! Its flight dynamics are forgiving to the less
experienced flyer and makes it a great plane to learn the basics.
If like me your more of a VFR flyer, then you will have a ball with this
one. Bill has also included in the zip two map images showing the route
taken in the real Cannibal Queen. Why not start from the beginning
and see if you can recreate the actual flight? If you like
something that is a little unconventional then this package is something
you should consider. ...Akulla
Editor's Note: See also Bill Dailey's July 2000 review "'Cannibal Queen' Stearman for FS-2000."
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So
far in my mini reviews I have only included one other scenery of my own
county, so thought it was time to delve through my collection and see
what else was available. This scenery addition is by two gentleman
called Iain Gallacher and Alasdair Duncan and depicts Glasgow airport in
Scotland. Not being a huge airport and only having two runways, and a relatively
small terminal area Iain Gallacher and Alasdair Duncan have been able to
reproduce it to a high standard. Not only is the airport itself
created, but a lot of the out lying buildings, trees and a section of
the road system as well. The scenery has been designed in stages, adding
more detail like static aircraft by doing additional downloads to the
main scenery. The installation of this scenery is quite straight
forward. It includes a comprehensive readme file for the novice and has
a couple of exclude/flatten switches that need to be implemented after
the installation.
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After the installation was complete, I
positioned myself at the Domestic Pier stand #18 which is one of the 3
locations where you can position your aircraft. I used a DHC_6 Twin
Otter for my tour in the British Airways colours. The taxi ways
are nicely done, with bold yellow lines to follow to the hold. All
the marker boards for the taxiways and runways are included. The night lighting
is not the best I have seen, but none the less it doesn't affect the
overall quality of the scenery too much. The buildings and terminals are
nicely textured and really look the part. As mentioned in the opening
paragraph, this scenery was built in stages, and not as one big project.
There are additional downloads that you can add to include static
aircraft, and also a couple of patches to fix small problems. (this only
applies if you have the original download) Ian and Alasdair have
now combined all the additions they have done into one big final package
for ease of installation. Overall the airport is very nice, and is
on par with a lot of add-on scenery that you pay for. ...Akulla
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Filename:Viking
Hughes 500D
Format:FS98/FS2000
Added:3rd August 1999
Downloads:N/A
Author:Ian Steadfast
Size:258kb
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As long as I can
remember this has been one of my favourite helicopters. Along with the
jet ranger and the UH-1 (Huey) it is one of the most recognizable
helicopters in the world. This version of the 500, is a D model in the
colours of Viking Helicopters of Canada. Developed for the military as
a light observation platform. If your a helicopter buff, then you need
no introduction to the designer, and for those of you who are new to
the world of helicopter flying, you will very soon get to know
the name Ian Steadfast. Ian has been on the flightsim
circuit a number of years now, and is always providing us with many varieties
of helicopters in all classes. This is a complete package with sound
and panel included. The installation is very straight forward
and is accompanied by a detailed readme. If your new to heli flying or
still in the infant stages of learning to fly rotary wing, then this
little craft is a good learning platform. It has some great handling
characteristics, along with a little forgiveness.
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Once loaded up and
positioned on a runway you might find it will jump into the air and
then crash. I found the only way to cure this, is to add a
little collective and then drop it back onto the ground gently.
Once sitting pretty, raise the collective and she will pop quite
nicely into a hover. It reacts nicely to pedal inputs, and with
only a small amount of cyclic it will react quickly and smoothly. From
the spot view the animation on the rotors is very well incorporated.
The swash plate and connector rods and in place and spinning with the
main blades. From a top view, it gives you that stroboscopic effect
with the paint scheme that's been used. The panel that comes with the
model uses all default Fs2000 gauges, and is simple but effective in
design. If you are familiar with the sound of the 500 what Ian has
included is very close to that fast rotor sound quite distinctive to
the helicopter. The art work is colourful to say the least! and
the diagonal stripes add real character to it. Don't let the size of
the file fool you into the thought that it cant be much good. Size isn't
everything! (so I am told). ...Akulla
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