The Finalists ...

With new development tools for FS2000, this was the year planes developed specifically for FS2000 arrived in quantity. We've enjoyed further refinement of flight models, much smoother and more authentic external views—and of course ever greater attention to detail. "Moving parts" technology is now ubiquitous. And the especially good news is that we're seeing even more complete integration of panel features with underlying aircraft system functions.

So here's our finalists, in order by Aircraft title.

Air Canada L-1011 - Project Freeware Group (AOE)

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Standing in the terminal looking out onto the tarmac we see a sight that makes time stand still. An L-1011 in Air Canada colors. We take a trip back to a time when these magnificent tri-stars ruled the skies. One of the earliest aircraft we reviewed this year, this Air Canada L-1011 combo package (for FS98) from Project Freeware was developed by Chris Grall; the panel was created by Darim Rahmatallah of the Freeware Flight Group. As you’ll see from the screen shots, the colors are excellent, as are the textures. Is that real metal we see there? Christine Derksen did an outstanding job on the flight dynamics and incorporated "active" flaperons to assist in turning. One thing you won’t see on this aircraft unfortunately is moving parts.

The first thing you’ll notice about this aircraft (and the others PF creates) is the outstanding attention to detail. Bleed through? Very little to none. Eye candy? Tons. Let’s take a nice close look around so we can point out some of the eye catching elements. First: The engines. Notice the work on the nacelles? Even better is when we take a closer look into the engine. When the engines are running you can even see the fan blades in motion.

The overall stability of the aircraft is remarkable. Turns are slow and steady. We performed a left-hand turn and to maintain altitude you have to use rudder inputs—very realistic. Another fun test is to pull up on the control yoke and see how long it takes for the aircraft to center itself. The aircraft is very stable in all aspects of flight from steep climbs to rapid decent. Big, heavy and old is how she feels.

Overall, this is probably one of PFG’s best ever projects and will leave a mark on all those “classic airliner” lovers. Take her up for a spin and let the old lady show you just how much spunk she has. This aircraft can be downloaded from the Project Freeware website.

Cessna 120 - Bill Lyons (Project Freeware Group)

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Every once in a while, something comes along that is a breakthrough in design, and certainly one is the new Cessna 120 aircraft and panel combo by Bill Lyons—available in conventional, float and ski versions—with an accompanying scenery set by Tom Constantine (see the companion Luckey's Landing scenery).

When you start Flight Simulator, and knowing there is a float plane, you can set your airport to, say, Fairbanks Airfield in Alaska, and slew to the central waterway (to test before going to Luckey's Landing). When you load the plane you're greeted with a splashing sound and a bobbing aircraft. You also are greeted with a panel the likes of which we doubt you have ever seen before in Flight Simulator. The first thing we suggest you do is use the pan and look around the cockpit. Experiment a little here, as it will no doubt be a totally new experience for you! There are many surprises that await you! For example, press the </> key and see the windows open.

When you have the 120 float version sitting on the water, and ready for take off you will be in for another pleasant surprise. As you advance the throttle you will see out of the side windows a water spray appear. Now is that cool or what? The sound files that are also included are great. When you initially start the 120 up, you get that lovely spluttering and gurgling sound before the engine fires. As you advance the throttle the speed increases and you start to lift off the water; the wake effect will stop. And the propeller effects are magnificent. With engines off you can see a lovely wooden prop, and with the engine running you get a nice stroboscopic effect. Check the virtual panel view and you'll see working gauges! Using the pan controls to view around the cockpit of the aircraft, you can see the dedication and skill that has gone into creating this masterpiece. Both the yoke and pedals are animated for extra realism. Bill has even adorned the cockpit with a "body" that moves in conjunction with the yoke and rudder.

As we are sure you will agree, landing on water is far more exciting than land! This is not the easiest of disciplines to master; it can give you a false sense of height, so good judgment and handling is imperative. The tail rudder is connected to small paddles that are attached to the floats—Bill has also animated these for our enjoyment. A selection of pre-configured flights is included within the package. One of these starts you on a glacier in the "ski" model C120. Again like the water, landing on a glacier is something that takes practice. The wheeled version is just as much a joy to fly as the ski and float versions. It also comes with a test flight that you can choose, placing you at the Detroit Lakes Airport. You can download the Cessna 120 and Scenery from the AVSIM Library here.

Douglas C-47 MATS - Flight Sim Developers

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If you want to experience flying like it was in the past, the Douglas C-47 MATS is a great aircraft to fly! This plane's produced by Flightsim Developers team members Jim Goldman, Larry Teele, Robert Kirkland, Steve Small, Gerry Schmidt, Mike Hambly and Reoland Ludoph. The C-47 is very well detailed with all moving parts. We had the opportunity to talk to one of the creator's, Jim Goldman. He told us about the large texture files for this aircraft—they were made to exhibit as much realism as possible for the visual effects when you look at the C-47 in different view modes! Made specifically for Microsoft FS2000, it can be run in either the standard or professional series of the flight simulator.

In addition to moving parts and a visually stunning aircraft, the flight dynamics are very good and highly realistic. In a word, this C-47 handles like a dream! Another great part of this add-on is the sound files Mike Hambly and Reoland Ludoph created for this aircraft. I enjoy realism in all aspects of the simulator, and the sound is just as important to the feel of realistic flight as well as everything else! This sound package is complete with smooth realistic sound for engine start and cut-off, engine run up at take off, as well as the landing gear, wind sound, the deployment of the flaps and touch down.

You can find the Douglas C-47 MATS Full Upgrade Version (C47fsdup.zip) at the Avsim Library.

Douglas DC-861-72 - The DC-8 Project Team

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Selected from one of our 'mini-reviews', we picked a DC-8 (by Michael Verlin) as one of our weekly "Top 5 picks." Basically we're looking at the same aircraft and the same original designers here, but this time the DC-8 Project Team included more liveries, incorporated panels, and packaged 8 different aircraft into a single bundle. The actual list of individuals involved with this team" is a rather lengthy one, but we would be remise if we failed to mention Brian E Cooper, who was responsible for all of the repaints... Boy do we like the looks of that Delta and Eastern paints... and Michael Verlin for the modifications of the panels. It was Kim Simmelink that originally designed the base aircraft, Dee Waldron doing the animation, and Paul Nichols handling the flight dynamics, just to name a few. These aircraft fly smoothly and are very stable. You may be tempted to quit your job and have all the time available you need to fly these wonderful and nostalgic aircraft!

If you look over these aircraft very closely, you will notice some small detail improvements over the earlier releases, especially when you look at the accuracy applied to the wings and engines. Brian explains how by using actual photographs gained from the internet he was able to fairly accurately duplicate many of the outside textures and details for each airline. The end result is very pleasing, not just to the eye, but in the feel when you fly any of these aircraft! They're available in the AVSIM Library here.

Lockheed SR-71A "Black Bird" - Phoenix Simulation Software

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Every once in a while something different comes around for flight simmers to enjoy! Other than the usual genre of Airline aircraft of all makes and models, comes the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird for FS2000. This one's created by Graham "Dotcom" Waterfield and the Phoenix Team. The SR-71 is very different to the feel of flying a conventional airliner. With its fast take off speeds, you get the feel of g-force pushing you back in the seat, and reaching 85,000 feet within a few minutes! The sounds that came this file are nothing short of great—especially due to the super sound handling in FS 2000—these engines sound very close to the real thing which lends to the realism of the aircraft. However, it doesn't include a panel, so you'll have to search for one if you want to stay with realism (see link address below for a recommended SR-71 panel).

This plane's texture files are awesome and have to be seen to be appreciated. With your thrust at maximum, check out the blue flame coming out of the engines! The Blackbird handles very well, and lands easy—a little faster than an airliner—so this takes a little practice to get use to. All and all, the SR-71 "Blackbird" is a great addition to your aircraft files as well as your flight sim experience. We've rated it highly for Phoenix's excellence in design, flight dynamics and sound. You can download aircraft here. And you'll enjoy their recommended panel, Phil Perrot's sr71pnl.zip.

Pilatus Porter Pc6 B2-H2 - Flightsim Developers

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(Selected from one of our weekly "Top 5 picks" 'mini-reviews'.) There occasionally comes a time when an available freeware download file is so good, it goes almost beyond words to describe. The FSD PC-6 Porter aircraft and panel combo is most certainly one of these. Over the past couple of years or more, Flightsim Developers have been responsible for some very excellent aircraft. Its only been a few months since FSD joined forces with Dreamfleet and gave us the finest and most accurate Cessna 172 humanly possible (also reviewed here); now they've done it again—only this time they developed the panel on their own. The fellows responsible for the obvious hard and dedicated work on this aircraft are FSD's Jim Goldman, Steve Small, and Marco Rensen; and collaborating authors Yannick Lavigne and Fred Banting—all names very familiar to those of us that use FS2000 and have ever downloaded a high quality add-on aircraft!

Everything about the FSD Porter PC-6 is as near perfect as is most likely possible within the constraints of the programming of FS2000—or within any available PC based flight sim for that matter. From this aircraft's fully reversible prop (while airborne) to its fully working (compressing) gear struts... wow... this is too much fun! The night lighting, the texturing, the air file, the sounds, and the panel are all perfect! And you have to see the panel for yourself; everything on the panel works. Works the same as in the real PC-6—and after only a couple of minutes you'll almost forget that this is a flightsim panel and aircraft! You can download this remarkable aircraft/panel combo from the AVSIM library here.

Vought F4U Corsair - Roger "Airbuddha" Dial

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The Corsair was such a successful and potent aircraft (with, according to many, the finest overall performance of any World War 2 fighter), that production continued through to December 1952, and during the Korean War, Corsairs were among the most effective ground support and night fighters in the fleet. this F4U is something spectacular, at least visually anyhow. When you download it you'll see that it also contains an a complete set of sounds and some background information on the famed pilot of this actual aircraft, Major Gregory "Pappy" Boyington, and textures that round it all off by being a virtual cockpit.

The first thing that'll strike you is the attention to detail, visually. Nothing has been spared and everything is included, from a 3D engine cowling to the 3D radiators buried in the wing roots. Another feature worthy of mention is the pilot in the seat is Pappy Boyington himself. As you move the rudder, he moves his head in accordance. Naturally, with all of the detail, this model boasts full moving parts, such as gear, sliding cockpit canopy that's linked with the flaps, rudders etc.

Roger has also spent a great deal of time with the textures. It's a very detailed paint job that has a "used" feel, rather than looking like its come straight off the production line. As for the sounds, shut down the engine and start her up again. It's absolutely spot on. The igniton and then the splutter as it roars into life really is excellent.

The panel again is excellent, simple, clear and uncluttered. All the gauges and dials look original and authentic. As we have seen on other packages, Roger has included very high quality virtual views. One panel feature that we most liked, and one that is a really excellent little touch, can be seen when you use the outside view at night time. As you maneuver the camera around the plane, if you look into the cockpit, you can see that the panel is lit up with a green light and nicely represented.