Just got done a really long MP session with DirtyCajun and some new random guy HippoPotatoMess (nice guys btw). Set the weather to isolated thunderstorms and set out from HNL with a heading to PHUP.. Well we ran smack dab into one of of those isolated pockets. Definitely a convergence zone. WOW.. I have never felt such convincing wind shift variants.. I was sitting there watching the nose of my aircraft get knocked around like a boxer being paid to take a dive... *woof* nose does violent right yaw, 2 seconds later *wooof* huge left yaw.. Then out of no where *woof* my nose gets shoved down HARD. I was in full deflection for a full 2 seconds trying to counter it with little to no effect before the burst ended.. It felt like a elephant had fallen on the nose. I was watching my airspeed indiactor do violent shifts from 80-120 in a split second or from 120-50 in the same time frame.. DirtyCajun was actually thrown right into a stall and forced roll from the shifty and violent bursts.Was one of the most incredible weather experiences I've ever felt in any sim.. We finally climbed out of it around 12,000ft but it was a long and violent climb. Has anyone else been in one of these pockets of awesomeness?

Wind 39 knots gusting to 93 knots. Yeah. It's rough. I was in an Icon at the time. :DHook

Yes. Caught something like that on a final approach once.... Definitely one of those OMG - glad this only a sim - moments...

yep, similar during a clandestine mission, winds were worse then law enforcement, flying below 1000 AGL gives you little space to recover in a stall/spin. was really forced to have my hands on the controls all the time, not that I was sweating but glad I had no passengers in the back, they would have needed a 'flight bag' for their meals :-)

I don't know why, but I always think that winds are nuisance. One of the things I love are crosswind landings :unknw: Change of tastes I guess. Will have to try harsh weather next time :)

It's been a common topic in MP sessions but without a doubt we need a way to get weather information for airports. Turning on the HUD just to figure out what the wind is doing is highly inconvenient. Flying into any of the major airports is a complete guessing game at what is the active runway. It's usually not until you start your glide show do you really get a slight sense of what the wind is doing. Then you waste your time pulling out of your approach and coming in the other way. Me and Oracle sat there once trying to locate the windsocks at Hilo.. We never found them by actually looking for them. We both found two by complete accident. One was right next to runway but unless you buzz it at like 300ft they are 100% completely and utterly useless and impossible to see.

Yep, FLIGHT's wind/gust model is unique right now.FU2 and 3 had great weather models too, as a matter of fact, they're probably up to the quality of FLIGHT's weather model (or the way around...).There are many other aspects of FLIGHT that turned me into a real fan of it, although even before being made available I was confident it would be, at least, interesting...Now, I like honest guys, with the balls in the right place - sorry madams.... if any reading this :-) - and those who can change oppinion if the opposite of what they thoughtis finally proven to them. Simon, the author of the most active XPlane Blog, is one of those guys....Not by far trying to start a xplane vs FLIGHT war! NOPE They're both great, although I don't like xplane for a few basic but rather annoying reasons IMHO, but, take the time to read Simon's last post on his Blog:http://xplane10.wordpress.com/2012/03/16/xp10reviewstime-to-broaden-our-coverage/

What I am missing from FU2 is the way rain drops interacted with the windscreen according to the speed. That took my breath...

What I am missing from FU2 is the way rain drops interacted with the windscreen according to the speed. That took my breath...

I was looking through various files for Flight and came across raindrops as they'd appear on your windscreen. Things to come, maybe. Heck, I only just recently saw them in FSX, in the 2D panel in the Piper Cub.Hook

take the time to read Simon's last post on his Blog

I just did. explains why Simmo W is around here so often :-)

turbulence/wind shifts around mountainous areas seem to be nicely modeled, also!

turbulence/wind shifts around mountainous areas seem to be nicely modeled, also!

Indeed is has been! Thanks to MS Flight I now approach these areas with caution and before entering make sure I always have a `oh crap' exit strategy.. On more than one occasion was I flying along fine around a cliff face or inside a deep ridge and all of a sudden it was as if I had a total lose of lift and full power application was futile. I now see the signs before I'm in trouble and get out instead of trying to overcome it.

Was one of the most incredible weather experiences I've ever felt in any sim.. We finally climbed out of it around 12,000ft but it was a long and violent climb. Has anyone else been in one of these pockets of awesomeness?

I sure have and while not as severe as the one it sounds like you experienced, I too thought - wow that was incredible!They certainly have done a great job in this area for sure.

turbulence/wind shifts around mountainous areas seem to be nicely modeled, also!

Here's hoping this will lead to a decent simulation of ridge lift and thermals! So far, Flight Sim hasn't even tried to do that right.

Was one of the most incredible weather experiences I've ever felt in any sim.. We finally climbed out of it around 12,000ft but it was a long and violent climb. Has anyone else been in one of these pockets of awesomeness?

Yeah, I've run into those a couple of times. The first time was doing a medevac and the PAX were not happy! They can get very violent.The winds, that is. Well, the nurse, too, but at least she waits until you get her safely back on the ground before she starts smacking you around.