Hi all;

I just got me the Eurofighter add-on made by AFS-Design and I'm most impressed.

I guess the superb HUD and cockpit layout must have been designed by a pilot. Aircraft handling and flight dynamics are perfect and the auto pilot modes have the capability of an airliner, including flight data calculations like range, fuel, time remaining etc.

The hook allows trap landings on carriers while the powerful engines get you off without catapult. This aircraft is a must for me!!!

However, the only bother are the bright HUD and cockpit lights at night and I can't find the dim knob.

May be someone has found it already? If so, please let me know.

Fly safe, Satchmo

Thanks for the tipoff re this nice looking fighter. I'd be interested re the night lighting too.

Hook? Carriers? Typhoon? What?

Hook? Carriers? Typhoon? What?

 

Just googled that, becaus it seemed strange to me, too.

In fact, them Eurofighters really have tailhooks between the engines, but just for emergencies/landin on very short "runways" (i.e. highways etc., but as far as I found out not for use at airports, not even thinking about carriers)

I have not found any hints that Typhoons might be used for carrier ops: Eurofighters don't have the ability to perform a catapult-assisted TO, due to the lack of a launch bar (not in the feature list of AFS-design). Besides, even the official Eurofighter website does not mention the capability for carrier operations.

 

Back to topic: Not sure, which particular EF you're talking about, but I've had the older EF add-on, but it was very dissappointing for me, so I didn't use it too often. However, I'm pretty sure there was no way of adjusting the HUD brightnessor cockpit lights (it's either on or off).

 

Regards,

Flo

For carrier ops, you need strengthened undercarriage, folding wings, all sorts.

 

I can't imagine the UK would be in the position of having carriers but no aircraft until the F-35 comes into service if the Typhoon could do the job.... Although perhaps we would!

I want the French Rafale.. anyone knows where to get a good one?

 

Manny

Misunderstanding??

I did not say Eurofighter has carrier operation capability!

I said the hook allows trap landings on the carrier and the strong engines get you off again. Obviously, without launch bar no launch; but short field take offs are a piece of cake for this bird. It's just a little bit of a challenge for me to trap this beauty onto a moving carrier correctly. My concern about the gear struts was minimal.

My default aircraft on FSX is the "F-18 Sludge Hornet Test Bird", and now the Eurofighter impressed me with its outstanding HUD and its sim-friendly cockpit arrangement.

Thank you Flo (OE-LAT) for your statement about the HUD lights and I am afraid you could be right. In case you are, I feel very sorry about cause and affect of this otherwise remarkable aircraft. My version seems to be somewhat newer than yours because its recommanded for Windows 7 and I bought it a few weeks ago.

May be someone else has tested the bird too and comes up with a more positive conclusion.

Thank you and fly safe, Satchmo

OE-LAT;

talking about launch bars I forgot to mention that the X-Plane 10 simulator doesn't use launch bars for carrier launches. They use a different catapult system which launches their good looking default Navy F-4 without launch bar engagement. Overall it is a brilliant simulator with tons of options and settings and crystal clear graphics. Take their default F-4, make a wire 3 landing on their default moving carrier and take a screen shot. The pic will look real!!

It looks like, X-Plane 10 is moving into another level of professionalism in the future simulator world.

Fly safe, Satchmo

...X-Plane 10 simulator doesn't use launch bars for carrier launches. They use a different catapult system which launches their good looking default Navy F-4 without launch bar engagement.

 

F-4 uses bridle hook instead of launchbar, so it's aircraft specific feature and not simulator's. And if you're speaking about level of professionalism, you should get some better aircraft and stop spending money on AFS-Design. AFS-Design is biggest pile of rubbish on addon market and if I were them, I would rather eat my own socks than want money for horrible products like that. Default C172 has better flight dynamics than all AFS aircraft combined!

F-4 uses bridle hook instead of launchbar, so it's aircraft specific feature and not simulator's. And if you're speaking about level of professionalism, you should get some better aircraft and stop spending money on AFS-Design. AFS-Design is biggest pile of rubbish on addon market and if I were them, I would rather eat my own socks than want money for horrible products like that. Default C172 has better flight dynamics than all AFS aircraft combined!

Must say that I agree. Bought their Airbus and had horrible experience, it had severe graphical glitches and developer went childish and refused to fix them as I wrote bad review about it... Thankfully I got my money back through store that sold me that product...

GeogeLKMT;

Thank you for boosting up my education on launch bar and bridle hook. I did not know. Thanks for the explaining pic.

Sorry to hear of your opinion about AFS-Design's Eurofighter. I have not come across yet any fighter with a better HUD or FMC and I rate my add-ons against the best realistically equipped bird, the PMDG 737 NGX from Aerosoft. I wish the same bird would be available for X-Plane 10 simulator.

I think its fair to say that the PMDG 737 NGX from Aerosoft is "as good as it gets". However, I may check into your suggested Default C 172; just to see their standards. I liked your screenshot flickr with a few well known birds. Thanks.

 

Manny;

Talking about add-ons; I have been shopping for some add-ons yesterday in about five different Media Mega stores in town and I got a no splash for your wanted French Rafale. In addition, they checked all available supplier lists and came up with a "nothing". Sorry.

Fly safe, Satchmo

Well it's not mine opinion about AFS, it's the fact (not being self-confident) and every guy who has been around simming for some time would agree with me. I'm not saying you have to stop flying it or something like that, but there are free products better than AFS junk.

PMDG 737 isn't from Aerosoft because it's from... PMDG. It's in the title, and these are two different companies. And default C172 was a joke, sarcasm. Default means included in package, already in FSX.

 

 

 

I want the French Rafale.. anyone knows where to get a good one?

 

 

Well... there was a payware Rafale from Rollus - the same guys who did that amazing freeware Mirage, but I'm saying "was" because I can't find it in stores anymore. Maybe it's discontinued for some reason, I don't know.

Then, there is a marine version of Rafale, freeware, looking good but it has no cockpit (only 2d panels aliased from some default plane). But you can couple it with Hornet VC for example if you want and if you have Acceleration pack. Pick it up over here

Well it's not mine opinion about AFS, it's the fact (not being self-confident) and every guy who has been around simming for some time would agree with me. I'm not saying you have to stop flying it or something like that, but there are free products better than AFS junk.

+1

As for the beautiful HUD, I looked at some screenshots of that particular version you're talking about, and I must say, I'm more impressed by the default (Acceleration) Hornet's HUD, modeling and texturing than any EF there is available.

Regards

Flo

PMDG 737 isn't from Aerosoft because it's from... PMDG. It's in the title, and these are two different companies. And default C172 was a joke, sarcasm.

Sure, PMDG and Aerosoft are two different companies. But my DVD with the PMDG 737 NGX version is made and sold by Aerosoft. Aerosoft's PMDG 737 NGX handbook mentions PMDG as the developer but all 95 pages show the logo of Aerosoft as well as the company name: Aerosoft GmbH. On page 16 you can read that some changes relative to the real 737 have been done by Aerosoft. So it is a PMDG 737 NGX version made by Aerosoft and it is perfect.

In the meanwhile I checked out the FSX default C 172 you put in comparison with Eurofighter made by AFS-Design, just to see for myself how good your joke was. At least not funny to me. Yes, the C 172 looks good and has a neat instrument panel but I have to question if you ever have heard the story about apples and bananas.

As for the beautiful HUD, I looked at some screenshots of that particular version you're talking about, and I must say, I'm more impressed by the default (Acceleration) Hornet's HUD, modeling and texturing than any EF there is available

I am not able to tell the difference of HUDs or CDUs functionalities just by looking at a screen shot. I had been testing quite a few fighters and I came across a HUD with multible modes and remarkable integrated electronic features on Eurofighter made by AFS-Design which suits me very much during specific tactical missions. So I do very much appreciate the brilliant work of the AFS-Design team.

The default FSX Hornet has the least developed HUD I have tested, while the Sludge Hornet (made by Sludge) and the FSXAB Hornet (made by Blue Angels team) are further developed and excellent HUDs. I have already expressed my appreciation to both designers at their flight sim club.

Fly safe, Satchmo

Aerosoft have not made any changes to PMDG NGX. They only publish the boxed version and print the manual, hence their logo in it. I don't own the boxed version, but I'm pretty sure they wouldn't have written the manual either and it will just be the same as the PDFs that come with the download version from PMDG.