Cal-calssic Propliners L1649A,1049,749's Freeware and excellent aircraft.

Have to agree Alan,

I used to drool for ages over Andy Summers Tele with the custom humbucker.

even though my primary instrument is bass (Level 42 head)

In the Freeware section I suggest:

 

1. Any of the David Maltbie planes, especially BAC 1-11 and HS 212 Trident. (do not let the piston head temp reach the red zone, or in a few seconds the engines will stop running, especially in the BAC 1.11, something not unusual when applying full power during the take off run). Made for FS9, they work perfectly in FSX.

 

They may be downloaded from:

 

http://www.dmflightsim.co.uk/

 

It is advisable that you create a folder called Aircraft in FSX, and direct the installer to that folder, beacuse it is there (the old aircraft folder of FS9) where the installer will try to install the planes. Or if you have FS9, just install it in FS9, and then copy and paste the folders to FSX. Thre is somwhere also a BAC-1-11 adapted for FSX, but I do not remember where is it.

 

2. The TU-154 B2. which has been recently released for FSX by Project tupolev available here:

 

http://www.protu-154.net/index_e.html .

 

Probably the best freware plane, but with some inconveniences. First, it is a Russian plane, with metric figures, and Russian language; however it comes with a very comprehensive (around 170 pages) English manual, Second, the procedure to start the engines is quite long, and requires going to and from many of the subpanels. There is no Control+E shortcut. You can though save a fliigh in flight (I mean not on the ground), and resume it with engines running, although this not always works. Third, the navigation system is Russian, and dificult to understand, at least by me. All those inconveniences are forgotten once you fly the plane, since its flight dynamis are some of the best of any airplane in FS.

 

You can see what I mean in the following link,

or in any of the many videos on the TU-154 for FS9 and FSX in You tube.

 

3 NAMC Y-11, another FS9 aircraft adapted for FSX. The FS9/FSX version may be downloaded from SIMVIATION

 

4. HS 748 by Ricks Piper. You can downlood the FSX version here: http://www.cbfsim.org/CBFS_HOME.php

 

5 Savoia Marchetti S73 and S81, Made for FS9, they work well in FSX. New versions even label it for FS9/FSX. downloadable from SImviation.

 

Look also Calclassic (for propeller driven aircrafts, especially their Constellations, and among them the L-1649) and Historic Jetliner Group (fot jets, especially their B737-200, and B707 with only 2D cockpit). Their are all FS9, but many include instructios to use them in FSX (although no suppoert is given for FSX.

 

I hope this helps

I forgot to mention Ready for Pushback, 747-200, also a FS9 plane, now freewear, that may be used in FSX, if you can leave with the warning "this file was made for FS98, and is not compatible. I have not noticed any effect in FSX.J In order to downloade it, just create the a folder called "Aircaft", in FSX (that is where FS9 Aircrat are downloaded; and the folder that the installer will be searching) and download it there. Then just copy and paste the folders in "Aircraft" to the appropriate folder in FSX (FSX itself and airplanes).

 

It may be downloaded from here:

 

http://library.avsim.net/search.php?SearchTerm=ready+for+pushback&CatID=fs2004ac&Go=Search

 

Wrning: there ia an FSX version in other places that use the VC and 2D panel from the FS9 version, but subpanels from the FSX B737 default plane.

Not really a lot of choices if you are looking for planes that are complete.

 

As noted above, the 727 from CS needs a lot of tweaks - and the FD does not work correctly. Instead of giving you a target to aim for as you fly the plane - it rises with the airplane. And never the twain shall meet.

 

The 707 is a good plane, but it is also in need of a flight director fix. The manual correctly states that the FD and the AP on the plane are not coupled - totally separate systems. Yet the FD does strange things when you turn on the AP. CS seems unwilling to fix. Also, the engines don't match published tables - so you can't fly with tables you find for the plane on the internet. You have to learn by experimenting.

 

Just an aside - if you are going to code a gauge incorrectly, why does CS choose to do so on the one that you look at the most?

 

The Just Flight 737 is terrible - horrible graphics. This company is the new Abacus of the FS world.

 

I think the Cool Sky DC-9 with the McPhat textures will be the best vor to vor plane on the market when it releases.

 

The very best of all was the Dreamfleet 727. However, that company is gone and there are no plans to release the 727 in FSX which is a real shame.

 

Colin