I usually avoid posting pictures, choosing to paint them with words. This time however, something so insignificant, has left me speechless. I was mucking about Manchester, trying to break the jet and happened to look over my left shoulder- this is what I saw. There is something hugely trivial, yet enormously magnificent about this picture. For the first time ever in my sim experience, I KNEW, beyond a shadow of a doubt what a 738 captain sees, hears and feels while flying low and slow over the countryside. The heating elements themselves are a joy to behold. You can feel their thinness, you know they are sandwiched between plates of laminated glass, you can almost visualize the electrons racing through them and warming the panes. The sticker is a thing of beauty- you can see the edges, see microscopic particles of dirt where someone's fingers, so long ago left their traces. The vista through the glass is beyond belief. They are visible enough, reflective enough, dirty enough, streaked enough, refractive enough- all so that when you look out- you are looking through the left side window of a 738, flying the line.Out of the corner of my eye, the circuit breakers (the left panel only mind you- lots to see on the FO's side as well) enthralled me. While not functional they are extremely realistic and many a Tech will marvel in disbelief. From the lettering, to the dust, from their raised forms to the dents and dings from countless removals and replacements- they microscopically illuminate the realism that PMDG has realized. Look at the stamped metal recess in the photo. Look at the layers of metal, the glory of light, the darkness of its nether reaches, the luminosity of the sun. With light moving (which it does, all over the cockpit, all over the glass, in-between the smudges and the streaks that leave this OCD (I deny it but my wife and son insist) person distracted- that cubby sums up the total package. I know people will wax over the way she performs pre-fight system tests (heck, I might later) or the way she slips down the glide-slope (a tad bit slipperier that my Fat Girl), or the way her engines burst into raucous yet sublime, all drowning buzz-saw- but this little cubby tells all you will ever need to know. Seen Boeing black? Flat yet alive, supposedly lifeless, yet vibrating with the effortless strain of flight? Well I have- and it looks just like this!

That's a great screen shot, Carl, and thanks for sharing both it and your enthusiasm!I have to ask...how does she run on your rig?

Out of the corner of my eye, the circuit breakers (the left panel only mind you- lots to see on the FO's side as well) enthralled me. While not functional they are extremely realistic and many a Tech will marvel in disbelief. From the lettering, to the dust, from their raised forms to the dents and dings from countless removals and replacements- they microscopically illuminate the realism that PMDG has realized.

Wao ! That really is impressive... it looks photorealistic, but in a REALLY good way (not in the "this part is so photorealistic and the other parts look so different to look good together" way or in the "photorealistic but flat" way that i hate). I mean, in this case, it fits nicely with the rest of the cockpit, it's a uniform 3D photorealistic look on 360 degrees, it's amazing. I'm speechless !Thanks for sharing this picture.

I could never get over how realistic the CB panel looked in one of the screenies PMDG posted, I figured the pic had to be doctored a bit. It looks like you proved my theory wrong. Stunning story as usual, but the pic just takes my breath away. Thanks as always Carl.

Love the stickers. Great shot Carl, thank ya.

Looks flawless.

Yeah that's all great and everything, When you first get in a real Jetliner after sim training you notice the little things after IOE it just becomes a high tech taxi cab..Maybe you should be PMDG's marketing consultant because you def know how to talk up a product. As long as it gets my virtual passengers from point A to point B without breaking apart in mid-flight then we are good to go . Thanks for sharing your photo thoughJamal

Awesome shot!!!! That was a great sneak-peak. Thank-you :) Those damn stickers and heating elements are sweet!!PS--Is the wing still visible from the vc when looking back?

Great post, thanks for sharing.

Looks nice, but didn't the J41 have those stickers (or similar) too?, can't remember and not at home to check!Ah, here we go from the pmdg website...This one shows the stickers, not actually transparent like the NGX's though..And this one the heating elements,,,They really add to the immersion factor!

I would call that almost a love letter :( Fully agree, these are the many little details that give full immersion of being there and to enjoy your ride with amazement !Thanks for sharing, Carl !CheersAlberto

PMDG's NGX?!.....Test flights outta Madchester?!..........Twistin' me melon man!!! :( :(

I love the heck out of the J41. If the NGX is anything like it we will all have our minds blown!

Thanks for the (mostly) nice comments. Unfortunately, the flight-deck of a 738NG (and the 744) is still a place I wish to spend time on- not a work-place that has lost its charm. I appreciate PMDG's commitment to not just the physics and science of the aircraft, but to the nuances that allow for the (willing) suspension of disbelief. I hope that in toto all the wide-beta posts have allowed for some insight into what will be a re-defining moment in FSX.

Cheers again Carl, this was the best wide beta screen I have seen so far as it shows off some of the extra detail they put in the vc and we have not seen that many side views...Thanks again for the great posts and this image in particular:) I'm sold:)