Aircrafts & Other Addons

[k1fox 1]

Hey guys. I've been away for some months. What's aircrafts have you been flying lately and what are the other new addons that have been keeping you busy in sim world?

[Captain Kevin 586]

I've pretty much been flying the PMDG Boeing 747-400, although I'm waiting for the QualityWings 787 whenever it comes out. Scenery, I can't say anything specifically since I have a lot of add-on scenery and pretty much fly where I have time to fly.

[scianoir 610]

Depends what class of aircraft you enjoy flying but if you want a great classic propliner the A2A Constellation or Stratocruiser are hard to beat (as are any A2A aircraft!). Manfred Jahn's great freeware C-47 is also excellent (and better than some payware). For a modern turboprop try the Majestic Q400 and a modern jetliner the iFly 737. Of course the PMDG products are also excellent as you might expect for the price!

As for other addons, the new weather software is amazing - I use a combination of REX Essential Plus Overdrive (for textures) and Active Sky 16 (for the weather engine) but there is quite a bit out there even by these two developers. If you are using FSX I would suggest consider getting SImStarterNG to give you easier control over your simulator and scenery configurations and reduce the risk of OOMs.

Bill

[HighBypass 2,339]

Black Marble and Night Environment revolutionise flying at night.

[k1fox 1]

Do you fly the heavies such as the PMDG 747 etc on long routes over multiple sessions? Also, I use OPUS for weather but do you guys think AS2016 is better?

[Captain Kevin 586]

1 hour ago, k1fox said:

Do you fly the heavies such as the PMDG 747 etc on long routes over multiple sessions? Also, I use OPUS for weather but do you guys think AS2016 is better?

I'll fly it in one go, but I don't fly very many long routes, either. As for the weather, I haven't used OPUS, so I couldn't tell you, but if you're going to use the weather radar for the PMDG Boeing 747-400, you do need Active Sky, which is why I have it.

[John_Cillis 2,406]

I like GA aircraft, my add-ons are all Carenado, which systems wise are not intensive, but visually they are all stunning aircraft and the later models have decent FDE's.  My favorite aircraft is the Mirage, I also like the TBM 850, the C337 and the C210.  For scenery I use the MSE v2 photoreal scenery, I have California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico and Utah.  For Colorado I made my own photoreal scenery which you can download here at Avsim, although it's a little large compared to MSE.  I also have my own ultralight Trike, which works nicely in P3d.  I created the gauges for it as well as the visual details, although some parts were ported with permission from other projects, such as the sounds, the pilot and the engine.  It's fun to fly, cruising at 45 mph, and since I've flown real trikes I was able to hammer the flight dynamics down to the real experience.

John

[k1fox 1]

2 hours ago, Cactus521 said:

I like GA aircraft, my add-ons are all Carenado, which systems wise are not intensive, but visually they are all stunning aircraft and the later models have decent FDE's.  My favorite aircraft is the Mirage, I also like the TBM 850, the C337 and the C210.  For scenery I use the MSE v2 photoreal scenery, I have California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico and Utah.  For Colorado I made my own photoreal scenery which you can download here at Avsim, although it's a little large compared to MSE.  I also have my own ultralight Trike, which works nicely in P3d.  I created the gauges for it as well as the visual details, although some parts were ported with permission from other projects, such as the sounds, the pilot and the engine.  It's fun to fly, cruising at 45 mph, and since I've flown real trikes I was able to hammer the flight dynamics down to the real experience.

John

I like GA too; jump in and go. However, the Realair Dukes are at the top of the pyramid when it comes to Flight Sim GA. Carenado only wins when it comes to variety.  I might go back to Airline flying however as I have been thinking about doing short airline routes with the Qualitywings 757 and then possibly re-getting and re-learning the PMDG 737. Airline flying keeps you engaged for longer due to the greater challenge and excitement of completing a realistic flight.

[John_Cillis 2,406]

1 minute ago, k1fox said:

I like GA too; jump in and go. However, the Realair Dukes are at the top of the pyramid when it comes to Flight Sim GA. Carenado only wins when it comes to variety.  I might go back to Airline flying however as I have been thinking about doing short airline routes with the Qualitywings 757 and then possibly re-getting and re-learning the PMDG 737. Airline flying keeps you engaged for longer due to the greater challenge.

Sadly I was unable to remember my sign in details for RealAir, so I wasn't able to reinstall the Dukes on my new system.  Been too many years ago since I purchased them.  But I still have plenty of aircraft to keep me occupied with P3dV4.  Just about every Carenado P3dV4 aircraft is installed.  For the flight levels the Carenado 525 is my favorite aircraft, followed by the TBM 850 and Mirage.  Except for the A36 I don't find myself flying the default P3d aircraft although I have taken the F16 up for a spin, quite a bit of fun.

John

[k1fox 1]

13 minutes ago, Cactus521 said:

Sadly I was unable to remember my sign in details for RealAir, so I wasn't able to reinstall the Dukes on my new system.  Been too many years ago since I purchased them.  But I still have plenty of aircraft to keep me occupied with P3dV4.  Just about every Carenado P3dV4 aircraft is installed.  For the flight levels the Carenado 525 is my favorite aircraft, followed by the TBM 850 and Mirage.  Except for the A36 I don't find myself flying the default P3d aircraft although I have taken the F16 up for a spin, quite a bit of fun.

John

Ok cool. I'm a FSX SE user and plan to keep it that way into the foreseeable future. FSX has been the tried and true flight simulator whereby everything has been made to enhance it since 2006. With the newer flightsims, you are limited to a handful of new addons. The graphics and effects of the new sims are nicer though - as to be expected.

Anyway would like to hear from everybody else about what you're up to in whichever FS world you're into. Join in!

[John_Cillis 2,406]

2 minutes ago, k1fox said:

Ok cool. I'm a FSX SE user and plan to keep it that way into the foreseeable future. FSX has been the tried and true flight simulator whereby everything has been made to enhance it since 2006. With the newer flightsims, you are limited to a handful of new addons. The graphics and effects of the new sims are nicer though - as to be expected.

I only went to P3dv4 and XP-11 because I had a new system, and they are optimized for newer systems.  My old system ran FSX fairly well, though performance was not as good as what I have now.  I think FSX had the longest run of any of the sims I have had, followed by FS9 which stayed on my old system to the very end.  P3d is better, but in subtle ways, some bug fixes and of course 64 bit code now.  I am picky with add-ons, fortunately all except the Carenado 550 work just fine.  I am waiting for Carenado to update the 550, should be sometime soon.  Scenery wise photoreal scenery works just fine.  Right now I am flying over photoreal Arizona, from Phoenix to Tucson, in Carenado's 337 which is great for VFR GA flight between 7000-9000 feet.  I find it very relaxing as I identify landmarks I've driven by often, like Casa Grande airport, home of the Copperstate Airshow which is next month.

John

[scianoir 610]

1 hour ago, k1fox said:

I like GA too; jump in and go. However, the Realair Dukes are at the top of the pyramid when it comes to Flight Sim GA. Carenado only wins when it comes to variety.  I might go back to Airline flying however as I have been thinking about doing short airline routes with the Qualitywings 757 and then possibly re-getting and re-learning the PMDG 737. Airline flying keeps you engaged for longer due to the greater challenge and excitement of completing a realistic flight.

Carenado/Alabeo have beautiful models and textures and are great to "jump in and fly" but with the unfortunate departure of Real Air from the scene, A2A are now firmly at the top of the GA pyramid in my opinion. I have their Cherokee, Comanche and Cessna 182 and they are all superb! They don't as yet have a GA twin available but there is a rumour that their next product will be a twin so we wait with bated breath for that! 

Although it comes in for some criticism, I very much like the QW 757 and do a lot of my airline flying in it. It may not quite have the ultimate system depth of the PMDG products but it is still very immersive and enjoyable to fly with a capable and pretty realistic FMC/AP combination.

Bill

[Chock 17,769]

On 9/20/2017 at 7:49 PM, k1fox said:

Hey guys. I've been away for some months. What's aircrafts have you been flying lately and what are the other new addons that have been keeping you busy in sim world?

It's a good time to be back after a flight sim hiatus, there's a lot going on, one might almost be tempted to say it's a bit of a golden age for flight sims at the moment. After years of trying to shoehorn performance out of FSX, we've now got numerous 64 bit sims to have a go at, DCS World, P3D V4, XPlane 11, Flight Sim World, AeroFly FS2, hell even Aerosoft have one in the form of Ready For Take Off, although that one is aimed at younger flight sim enthusiasts, but it is pretty good for all that. Granted, two of these mentioned are not fully released yet (FSW and Aerofly FS2), but even in their early incarnations they are usable, fun and actually both of them have DLC content available for them already. AeroFly Fs2 might not have a particularly sophisticated flight model in comparison to some other offerings at this point, but what it does have is hands-down the most blistering frame rate performance of pretty much any flight sim you can get, easily managing well over 150 fps on most people's computers whilst looking stunning.

Needless to say with all that to go at, and what with 64 bit sims being a relatively new departure, most third party developers are having a busy time either updating existing products for the newer platforms, or developing them from scratch. But there are plenty of worthwhile ones already.

If you're into GA aeroplanes, there are some great new offerings for P3D, XP11 and FSW, of these, ones I can certainly recommend worth looking at are: the Blackshape Prime Ultralight for XP11, which is an excellent representation of the real aeroplane. For P3D, the Piper PA-24 Commanche from A2A is highly recommended, I would say it has a good claim to being the best GA aeroplane for P3D, although if it is a bit steep price-wise for your tastes, the Just Flight Socata TB10/TB20 Trinidad and Tobago is a more palatable price for P3D and gives you two very nice GA aeroplanes for the money. Also from Just Flight is their Piper PA-28 Arrow III, which is the first payware aeroplane available for FSW, and it's a worthy addition to the sim for sure.

If you prefer airliners, both iFly and PMDG have 737 NGs and 747-400s for P3D. With these, you have a bit of a dilemma, you get more bang for your bucks with the iFly 737 NG since it includes all the NG variants and all the BBJs, and it is cheaper anyway, but you get a bit prettier modeling and texturing with the one from PMDG and that one has the beautifully functional collimated HGS, although as far as systems simulation goes, they're pretty close to one another. It's a similar story with the 747s from these two developers, however you do get a lot of variants with the PMDG 747-400, so it's perhaps more value for money. Currently most people who are into the big jets are awaiting the FSL A320 for P3D V4, since I don't think many people would deny that in its FSX form, the FSL A320 is without doubt the most impressive jet airliner simulation you can get for a home PC. another one people are waiting on is the Quality Wings Boeing 787, which will be for FSX and P3D, and is looking like it will be a fairly in-depth simulation of one of the newer generation of airliners. Ironically, you've also got an impressive A320 on the way for X Plane 11 from Flight Factors, who already make some impressive airliners with perhaps their A350 being the most exciting in that it too is one of the newer generation airliners, and so offers something a little different from the classic Boeings we're all familiar with. Going the other way and looking at older airliners if that's your preference, there are some excellent ones from A2A in the form of their Boeing Stratocruiser and their Constellation, and a similarly nice offering of the DC-6 from PMDG, which is available for XPlane and P3D.

From this you will have noticed that FSX is not getting much of a mention here, and this is because whilst it is still very much alive and well, and being used by many, it is fairly obvious that the writing is on the wall for it, with it being a 32 bit application, and in time it will doubtless be eclipsed by the newer offerings to the point where many people, certainly among those who frequent Avsim and other flight sim enthusiast places, and who stay on top of the latest trends, are already limiting the purchases they make for it. FSX has served us all well for years, and had some extended life breathed into it in its Steam version, but you will doubtless notice that is one of the biggest changes to have taken place in your absence.

 

[k1fox 1]

18 hours ago, scianoir said:

Carenado/Alabeo have beautiful models and textures and are great to "jump in and fly" but with the unfortunate departure of Real Air from the scene, A2A are now firmly at the top of the GA pyramid in my opinion. I have their Cherokee, Comanche and Cessna 182 and they are all superb! They don't as yet have a GA twin available but there is a rumour that their next product will be a twin so we wait with bated breath for that! 

Although it comes in for some criticism, I very much like the QW 757 and do a lot of my airline flying in it. It may not quite have the ultimate system depth of the PMDG products but it is still very immersive and enjoyable to fly with a capable and pretty realistic FMC/AP combination.

Bill

I really do like the realism and maintenance aspect of the A2A GA as well. However, because they're slow trainers I'm over them now. I wouldn't mind if their upcoming rumored twin is a Baron. Yay for the QW757 - Engaging, versatile, many liveries and fps friendly.

 

17 hours ago, Chock said:

It's a good time to be back after a flight sim hiatus, there's a lot going on, one might almost be tempted to say it's a bit of a golden age for flight sims at the moment. After years of trying to shoehorn performance out of FSX, we've now got numerous 64 bit sims to have a go at, DCS World, P3D V4, XPlane 11, Flight Sim World, AeroFly FS2, hell even Aerosoft have one in the form of Ready For Take Off, although that one is aimed at younger flight sim enthusiasts, but it is pretty good for all that. Granted, two of these mentioned are not fully released yet (FSW and Aerofly FS2), but even in their early incarnations they are usable, fun and actually both of them have DLC content available for them already. AeroFly Fs2 might not have a particularly sophisticated flight model in comparison to some other offerings at this point, but what it does have is hands-down the most blistering frame rate performance of pretty much any flight sim you can get, easily managing well over 150 fps on most people's computers whilst looking stunning.

Needless to say with all that to go at, and what with 64 bit sims being a relatively new departure, most third party developers are having a busy time either updating existing products for the newer platforms, or developing them from scratch. But there are plenty of worthwhile ones already.

If you're into GA aeroplanes, there are some great new offerings for P3D, XP11 and FSW, of these, ones I can certainly recommend worth looking at are: the Blackshape Prime Ultralight for XP11, which is an excellent representation of the real aeroplane. For P3D, the Piper PA-24 Commanche from A2A is highly recommended, I would say it has a good claim to being the best GA aeroplane for P3D, although if it is a bit steep price-wise for your tastes, the Just Flight Socata TB10/TB20 Trinidad and Tobago is a more palatable price for P3D and gives you two very nice GA aeroplanes for the money. Also from Just Flight is their Piper PA-28 Arrow III, which is the first payware aeroplane available for FSW, and it's a worthy addition to the sim for sure.

If you prefer airliners, both iFly and PMDG have 737 NGs and 747-400s for P3D. With these, you have a bit of a dilemma, you get more bang for your bucks with the iFly 737 NG since it includes all the NG variants and all the BBJs, and it is cheaper anyway, but you get a bit prettier modeling and texturing with the one from PMDG and that one has the beautifully functional collimated HGS, although as far as systems simulation goes, they're pretty close to one another. It's a similar story with the 747s from these two developers, however you do get a lot of variants with the PMDG 747-400, so it's perhaps more value for money. Currently most people who are into the big jets are awaiting the FSL A320 for P3D V4, since I don't think many people would deny that in its FSX form, the FSL A320 is without doubt the most impressive jet airliner simulation you can get for a home PC. another one people are waiting on is the Quality Wings Boeing 787, which will be for FSX and P3D, and is looking like it will be a fairly in-depth simulation of one of the newer generation of airliners. Ironically, you've also got an impressive A320 on the way for X Plane 11 from Flight Factors, who already make some impressive airliners with perhaps their A350 being the most exciting in that it too is one of the newer generation airliners, and so offers something a little different from the classic Boeings we're all familiar with. Going the other way and looking at older airliners if that's your preference, there are some excellent ones from A2A in the form of their Boeing Stratocruiser and their Constellation, and a similarly nice offering of the DC-6 from PMDG, which is available for XPlane and P3D.

From this you will have noticed that FSX is not getting much of a mention here, and this is because whilst it is still very much alive and well, and being used by many, it is fairly obvious that the writing is on the wall for it, with it being a 32 bit application, and in time it will doubtless be eclipsed by the newer offerings to the point where many people, certainly among those who frequent Avsim and other flight sim enthusiast places, and who stay on top of the latest trends, are already limiting the purchases they make for it. FSX has served us all well for years, and had some extended life breathed into it in its Steam version, but you will doubtless notice that is one of the biggest changes to have taken place in your absence.

 

Thanks for your very comprehensive report. Its good to see new simulators being developed so that flight simmers can have choices.