Introduction Well, where to start? The P-51. Enough said? Well, possibly, but I’ll elaborate. The P-51 Mustang is manufactured by North American, and is a classic long range fighter. The Mustang originally entered service with the Allies during the middle of WWII, and now is one of the most recognizable aircraft on the planet. The major role of the Mustang during the war was its bombing sorties over Germany, and it played a major role in ensuring air superiority for the Allies in 1944. The P-51 also gained its name against the Japanese in the Pacific War, and in the Korean War with the United Nations prior to being replaced by jets before the conflict ended. Powered by a supercharged V-12 Rolls Royce Merlin engine, and equipped with six .50 caliber M2 machine guns, this was one machine you didn’t want to see crawling on your six! The Mustang was retired by the US in 1957, but was in service up to the early 1980s with some Air Forces – which justifies its dominance in the skies. Many of the P-51s were converted for civilian use, and are both privately owned and used for air races all over the world today. It is perhaps the world's most demanded warbird to this day, with the average restored Mustang selling for a mere $1 million USD The Authors This package has been developed by Warwick Carter and Garry J. Smith, both Australians. Warwick did the interior and exterior model, sounds and flight dynamics, while Garry did the artwork, inside and out. In my opinion, Garry is the most talented painter – and after checking out his website and looking at all the repaints you’ll know why. Warwick and Garry have previously worked on projects together, with Warwick providing the base of a quality model and Garry sprucing it up with a lovely paint scheme, this makes for top of the line freeware.
Installation and Documentation The package comes in a single ZIP file which is a small 7 megs. A friend mentioned to me what such a small download it is for such a detailed and quality package, I could not agree more! Inside the ZIP is an auto installer that is quick and easy. Once you’ve ran that, open the readme TXT file. There are a few quick tips you’ll need to know before you hop into the office of the Mustang. The readme covers all aspects to help you with the Mustang – mostly notes on operating the Virtual Cockpit, as there is no 2D panel in this package. Exterior Model Again, where do I begin? This is a simple case of “a picture can paint a thousand words”, but there are many features that screenshots cannot show. Warwick has done an amazing job at replicating the P-51. Like all my reviews – I take a trip over to Airliners.net and compare photos of the exterior with what I see in the sim. I could not find anything which separates the two. The model is just beautiful; any words I say here cannot do it justice. All the control surfaces move smoothly and just like the old warbirds, the gear retraction mechanism is unsynchronized. Everything you can expect from quality models is there, a moving pilot's head, exhaust effects and opening canopy. There are even a few switches in the VC which toggles on and off the pilot’s oxygen mask, sunnies and baseball cap
The textures are amazingly detailed. There are 4 texture sets included with the original download, all in Garry’s high quality DXT3 format to optimize performance and maintain good graphical detail. There are two RAAF fun schemes in there, and two real world liveries which were once worn by Aussie P-51s.
The Cockpit Warwick decided not to supply a 2D panel with this addon (he does recommend a freeware one in the readme) but with such a VC, there is no need for an original panel, as the VC and exterior model is very frame rate friendly. EVERY switch, button and lever is clickable and easy to operate in the cockpit. The interior has been painted again by Garry, and you can expect the same amount of detail and realism with the exterior colours as you can with the interior. Every labeled function in the VC is easy to read, so no zooming in to read what that particular function does. There are a few nice “Easter Eggs” included that are both handy and fun to look at. For instance, there is a panel on the left hand side which has ARM REST printed in a bold military font, click this and it will fold down. You can also open the canopy via the VC, so you can arrive in style as you taxi in after your display!
In some other freeware packages, the VC is merely there to look at and not entirely designed to be flown from. In this add-on, it looks fantastic and is easy to operate from within. This package will convert 2D panel lovers to VC flyers; I have no doubt! Great eye candy, plus 100% functionality – perfect! Flight Dynamics After checking the Mustang out on the ground, I was very eager to take her up into the big blue. During my test flights, I put the P-51 through its paces. I’m sure Warwick never intended the P-51 to be tossed around as much as I did! The first thing you’ll notice, once you have the Mustang’s engine prowling, is the tailwheel is locked into place. Just like the real aircraft, you must unlock this by pushing the stick forward. I found this a bit frustrating, as you have to keep the stick forward to keep the tailwheel unlocked so you can turn; realistic nonetheless. Although this thing is powerful once you’re in the air, you’ll need to drop the flaps a few notches to assist the tailwheel in getting airborne.
The P-51 quickly gains speed, so you’ll need to have the takeoff run carefully planned out. As the aircraft accelerates, apply forward pressure on the stick to get the tailwheel up. Once you’re at that stage, the P-51 easily climbs. With enough altitude under your belt to throw it around safely, you’ll find she’s very responsive and aggressive. You’ll notice that the Mustang handles well at fast and low speeds alike. It can be difficult to wash off speed at times, so you’ll have to appropriately plan your approach as overshooting is hard to avoid if you dive down onto the runway. The flaps on this plane provide a lot of lift, so if you drop the flaps entirely at once the airplanes nose will rise straight up into the air. You can actually feel the airplane as you extract the flaps as the Mustang is eager to fly and pulling out the flaps all at once will shoot her back into the sky.
Landing this plane is a challenge. This is no Cessna. You’ll have to gently glide right down and make sure the rubber sticks to the tarmac. If you attempt two point landings, be careful not to let her bounce back into the sky. I had some troubles with this and got frustrated. Landing this airplane properly takes a lot of practice, and I eventually found 3-point landings both easier and safer! Mastering the Mustang is quite a job. To get the full enjoyment of this add-on, you’ll need to be willing to spend a few hours practicing certain aspects of the flight envelope. Once that’s done, this girl is a lot of fun! It will bring a smile to your face as you lift off, and the fun only increases with the more time you spend flying her. Warwick did an amazing job at modeling the P-51! Sounds Oh boy, do I love the sound pack in this package or what! If you’ve never had the privilege of hearing a Mustang in real life – head on over to YouTube or Google Video, there are plenty of videos there that will give you a sensation as to how the P-51 sounds. From the minute the engine sputtered to life, I was having a blast. So calm and beautiful, yet so powerful. This sound package certainly has the authentic vintage feel to it. The readme says that the sound package is not entirely Warwick’s and he is unaware of who the author is for some of the files. Whoever this may be, it is an awesome sound pack! The Interview Warwick kindly agreed to answer a few questions – here is a transcript of the interview. JE: Why the P-51? In Closing What can I say? When a freeware aircraft with the quality such as this comes along its impossible to find anything that makes this an unworthy download. After all, it’s free! Interactive and fully functional 3D cockpits, lifelike and beautiful sounds, an extremely fun flight envelope – what more could you possibly ask for? This plane now has a permanent place on my hard drive, and that’s saying something. I only have a very small hard drive, few aircraft have the right to stay in my hangar and are not in fear of me hitting the ‘Delete’ key. Well, go download it now! I guarantee you will not regret it! Reviewer's Comments About Freeware In my book, I feel there needs to have more gratitude shown to freeware developers. In some cases, these guys put just as much time and effort into their projects as payware companies. The difference is that you can freely go off and download add-ons such as this without paying. A simple “thank you” email to the developer goes a long way. Show them that you appreciate their work and that it does not go unnoticed. I have done so to a lot of freeware developers and I know that it certainly is appreciated. You could even go as far as donating to them; some developers have an option to donate via Pay Pal. I encourage all simmers to get behind freeware developers and their work. They deserve just as much recognition as the big companies, perhaps even more. A very big thank you to ALL freeware developers! |
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