Well I only have the carenado model, and there is no easy way to config the panel there. I've seen some people edit some things like put in a new gps or radio stack, but from what I read it's not that easy.

Got my Saitek yoke, throttle and rudder pedals yesterday. I haven't flown a real plane since February, but I didn't think I was THAT bad. Gonna take a little getting used to. Maybe it's the MSFS flight model, but I was having a lot of trouble holding runway centerline on final approach. TrackIR will be here on monday. Can't wait for that!

Got my Saitek yoke, throttle and rudder pedals yesterday. I haven't flown a real plane since February, but I didn't think I was THAT bad. Gonna take a little getting used to. Maybe it's the MSFS flight model, but I was having a lot of trouble holding runway centerline on final approach. TrackIR will be here on monday. Can't wait for that!

Which plane did you end up using? Also, what were the weather conditions like? Any add-on weather programs or wind smoothing enabled?

Didn't get any add-ons yet. Just the stock fs9. Deciding whether I should wait for the new computer or download some add-ons now.

These items may be of interest.Squawkbox / VATSIM (free) at: http://www.vatsim.net/FSUIPC (a free copy is available but better to buy) http://www.schiratti.com/dowson.htmlRealityXP (payware) for Garmin 430 / 530 (including WAAS approaches)http://www.realenvironmentxtreme.com/I might hold off on any cloud enviroment programs until REX for FS9 is released (hopefully soon) http://www.realenvironmentxtreme.com/Just my thoughts, but this goes "hand in hand" for a real pilot.Regards,Ed

Why not just play on vatsim? You are a real life private pilot so you should know the basics?

Got my Saitek yoke, throttle and rudder pedals yesterday. I haven't flown a real plane since February, but I didn't think I was THAT bad. Gonna take a little getting used to. Maybe it's the MSFS flight model, but I was having a lot of trouble holding runway centerline on final approach. TrackIR will be here on monday. Can't wait for that!

Someone correct me if I'm wrong but doesn't FS9 actually try to make you crash on your first flight sometimes? I mean, I must a have more then a 1000 hours in the sim and at least 400 in my Carenado C182 RGII. So I did a re-install awhile back and took a short test flight in the 182. During the test flight, the plane felt like I was trying to make it land in a tornado. I expected to see Dorothy flying past me at any moment and yet the skies were fairly blue with a limited amount of cloud cover. So I rebooted my PC again and took the exact same flight at the exact same time. I could have been watching an in-flight movie and sipping on a frosty while landing the plane the second time. It was that easy...Mark

Why not just play on vatsim? You are a real life private pilot so you should know the basics?

I'm not ruling that out. Would just prefer controller coverage everywhere, and not having the strict requirement of flight plans and staying in the cockpit when I'm just learning all the other aspects of fs9.Swoop...I've had fs9 loaded for a few years now. Just played it on occassion using a gamepad controller, so I don't think that's it.I now want to build a dedicated seat and 3 monitor setup since the yoke, throttle and rudder pedals are very cluttering to my desk and I don't think I'd like to break them down and pull them out all the time. Plus my seat is on wheels so that makes things rough. Almost like I need to take care of the Cessna AD for the seat rails.

Hi everyone. New to the forum and have a few questions. I'm a private pilot, but looking to enhance my flight simming to stay proficient since I should be saving money instead of burning it in the sky, at least at this time in my life.So, I plan on getting the Saitek yoke and rudder pedals, as well as track IR. I'm undecided on the Saitek switch boxes (radio, multi, switch) right now. Would be nice, but that can wait I think. 3 monitors would also be very nice, but that can wait for now as well.So I'm having trouble finding some good newbie FAQ's around here. I'm running FS9 right now and I want to know what add-ons I should start out with to enhance the realism. I'm thinking of the following:1) Flight1 172R...is this the best or most popular 172 add-on available? Just looking for a more realistic VC2) Scenery...I have no idea what all is out there. I would like to fly around the local area I'm used to which is the Philadelphia area, but I don't see anything available for that. Are there generic scenery enhancers that just improve the existing MSFS database to make it look more real (water, land, sky)?3) VoxATC...I think talking to ATC would add a whole new dimension to the sim'ing experience. I know this software is buggy, but other than vatsim (which would force me to fly near online controllers) I think this is the best out there?So thanks for any help, even if you just point me to specific forum. Alot to learn on here. Looking forward to it.

Hello, As everyone pretty much mentioned, i would suggest active sky and ground environment and flight environment for a major overhaul of ground and sky. as for aircraft if you are looking for something small i would suggest carenados cessna 206. if you are looking for something a little bit bigger and more complex i would suddest aerowrx king air b200(amazing aircrfat) and if you are looking for airliner type stuff definetly give leveld 767 a look at(also amazing aircraft)I myself am in your position, have my pilot licence but spruced up my fs9 as it is not the right time in my life to spending the big bucks in the sky, It sucks but it is the way it is. The way i see it for a few hours flying i could set myself up with quite the flight experience in my basment (add-ons, track ir, yoke etc.) and can use anytime i want with no hourly expense.Anyways enjoy your fs 9ing.Gerry

Well...trackIR arrived today. Wow...that really adds alot to the situational awareness! I haven't used trackIR and the saitek controls yet, because I'm now trying to figure out where to put this "cockpit". I don't want to clutter my desk, so I may put it all in the basement. Racing seat, 3 monitors and triplehead will be next. And I may need to throw the new computer in before then. This all definitely adds up quick. I'm still justifying it by saying it's cheaper than 4 flights with an instructor. Haven't even gotten to the add-ons yet, but I'm budgeting in $100 for that.

Well...trackIR arrived today. Wow...that really adds alot to the situational awareness! I haven't used trackIR and the saitek controls yet, because I'm now trying to figure out where to put this "cockpit". I don't want to clutter my desk, so I may put it all in the basement. Racing seat, 3 monitors and triplehead will be next. And I may need to throw the new computer in before then. This all definitely adds up quick. I'm still justifying it by saying it's cheaper than 4 flights with an instructor. Haven't even gotten to the add-ons yet, but I'm budgeting in $100 for that.

I got excited just reading you ordered TrackIr. Best sim "investment" I ever made. (Mom was mad when UPS showed up with my Trackir5)