From time to time I run Google Earth's flight sim.  Except for being unable to lock my left and right views (there may be a keyboard command but I haven't found it), I enjoy flying over the photoreal scenery and the 3-d rendered buildings.  I usually turn off the HUD by pressing the "H" key, makes for a better out the window view.  I am stunned by the fps in Google Earth, especially over dense cities.  Any other fans?  For a casual sim experience it is fun, although the aircraft seem untrimmable.

John

Edit:  I found out in a keyboard guide online that the aircraft can be trimmed by using shift+arrowup or shift+arrowdown.  Took a flight and it was much more enjoyable, allowed for hands-off flying in the SR-22.

I get my Google Earth kicks from FlightRadar... track an incoming plane, switch to 3D, and you see it in real time as the plane might see it, just rendered in G.E.!

How does that work, I haven't heard of it before?

John

You need a paid subscription now for this but it is not expensive.

https://www.flightradar24.com/CAL5322/ebae9d0

I have it as a phone app, I guess I paid for additional features at some point.

Just my opinion, but I don't enjoy Google Earth as even a basic flight sim because it's a fixed view under certain strict limitations for satellite imagery (no clouds, noon-time lighting).

With clouds and weather systems in a flight sim, I feel like I'm flying in a 3D environment and not just over a 2D picture of the ground. I also like to see the color of sunlight change on ground objects near sunset and just after sunrise, not just static noontime lighting all the time. So I prefer a flight sim that mimics how dynamic the real world is, with changing weather and changing lighting effects, even if the procedural modeling of what's on the ground (with landclass and OSM-based autogen) isn't as near-perfect as Google Earth.

P.S. I'm retired from a career in advertising photography, so I'm sure this has something to do with it. Noon sunlight is the most boring time of day for a photo shoot; we always avoided it like the plague. Give me that sexy "golden hour" light early or late in the day, and I'm happy. Same thing with flying in a sim; those are the times I like the best.

Yes, lighting is a limitation of google earth.  I enjoy late afternoon flying in P3d and XP11 because of the lighting, which adds depth to the scenery.  Even my Colorado photoreal scenery is influenced by the lighting.  Maybe one day google earth will add this and enhance the flight sim a bit.  Also you can't see the aircraft in Google Earth, for instance side views where you get a better sense of movement by panning to the wings.  It's meant to be a simple way to fly over the photoreal scenery, easy enough for anyone with a joystick to use.

John