Virtualcol A220 Released!

[b1bmsgt 206]

I realize not everyone will care, but Virtualcol has released it's Airbus A220! I am in the process of downloading it right now. I'll have a little review after I have checked it out!

 

Russ

[okupton 308]

Nice thanks for the heads up 

[okupton 308]

Where did you buy it from? Can’t find it on simmarket 

[SunDevil56 183]

Looking forward to your review because I may have some questions.

[Wise87 1,275]

1 hour ago, okupton said:

Where did you buy it from? Can’t find it on simmarket 

https://www.virtualcol.com/products.php?kcmdlnk=productoinfo&id_prod=133

They have a where to buy section.

Edited March 22, 2019 by Wise87

[okupton 308]

Cool thanks 

[b1bmsgt 206]

51 minutes ago, Wise87 said:

https://www.virtualcol.com/products.php?kcmdlnk=productoinfo&id_prod=133

They have a were to buy section.

I always buy it from the Virtualcol Store directly. Smooth tranaction and it makes it easier to get updates when they come out.

 

So, I took the a test flight on the A220 from my Flight Test Center at Wendover, Utah (KENV) to KSLC via the FFU transition to the  Rwy 34L ILS. No surprises during the flight, but there was a constant morse code identifier sounding during the entire flight, no matter what I did. Changed the Nav1 frequency, played with the radio switches, etc, but nothing shut it off. I'll try another flight tomorrow, and will file a support request if it recurs.

Overall, I like the aircraft. Virtualcol has really improved their VC's compared to their previous products such as the E Jets. Very nicely done. The textures on the exterior model is somewhat better, but could still use some improvement. A nice effort on their part, though.

I prefer aircraft like this over a so-called study level plane, actually. I have a few of them, such as the PMDG 737 and the Aerosoft CRJ, but the simpler type such as the Virtualcol's allow me to overcome my lack of intense training and thousands of flight hours and learn to operate the aircraft and be comfortable in it in a minimum amount of time. Seems like a good tradeoff to me!

 

Russ

[environmental_ice 238]

How does a payware A220 get developed and released before other projects that have been worked on for over 2+ years 😂

[environmental_ice 238]

1 hour ago, b1bmsgt said:

I prefer aircraft like this over a so-called study level plane, actually. I have a few of them, such as the PMDG 737 and the Aerosoft CRJ, but the simpler type such as the Virtualcol's allow me to overcome my lack of intense training and thousands of flight hours and learn to operate the aircraft and be comfortable in it in a minimum amount of time. Seems like a good tradeoff to me!

Im with you on this. I like maybe 2 planes max where the learning curve is steep but for the rest of my fleet I just want a solid looking model that I can get up and running rather quickly since I wont be in it as much as my main aircraft

[snapshot21 254]

Never tried virtualcol products and I have a few questions about the FMS.

does it do SIDs and STARs?

Updateable database?

 

[HighTowers 1,434]

I'm guessing the 21.90 price tag and the quick development relative to other high end projects indicates the systems are rather simplified and perhaps default and its just the aesthetics that are there to look like the A220.  Looks decent, but I do like buttons and switches to actually have an effect on the systems with purpose.  

[SunDevil56 183]

12 hours ago, b1bmsgt said:

I always buy it from the Virtualcol Store directly. Smooth tranaction and it makes it easier to get updates when they come out.

 

So, I took the a test flight on the A220 from my Flight Test Center at Wendover, Utah (KENV) to KSLC via the FFU transition to the  Rwy 34L ILS. No surprises during the flight, but there was a constant morse code identifier sounding during the entire flight, no matter what I did. Changed the Nav1 frequency, played with the radio switches, etc, but nothing shut it off. I'll try another flight tomorrow, and will file a support request if it recurs.

Overall, I like the aircraft. Virtualcol has really improved their VC's compared to their previous products such as the E Jets. Very nicely done. The textures on the exterior model is somewhat better, but could still use some improvement. A nice effort on their part, though.

I prefer aircraft like this over a so-called study level plane, actually. I have a few of them, such as the PMDG 737 and the Aerosoft CRJ, but the simpler type such as the Virtualcol's allow me to overcome my lack of intense training and thousands of flight hours and learn to operate the aircraft and be comfortable in it in a minimum amount of time. Seems like a good tradeoff to me!

 

Russ

I concur, a nice little add on at a good price. Did a brief test flight and there were no surprises, everything works as designed as far as I can tell, but i'll dive in to this more thoroughly as my time permits. And I agree that the virtual cockpit is a big step up from past Virtualcol offerings. All things considered, for $25 this is a nice aircraft.

I'm not having the morse ID issue that you noted, as a matter of fact the "ID" button above the frequency tuning knob seems to have no effect at all for me, but you can hear it click, so I assume it's intended to be functional.

One thing I did notice... The GPWS altitude callouts don't begin until 400 ft. AGL, and I would prefer to have them start at 1000 feet minimum. It's no big deal though, and I may have a workaround for it by adding Rob Barendregt's P3D v4 compatible freeware GPWS, but I assume if add that i'll get duplicate callouts from 400 ft. AGL until touchdown, but I can live with that I suppose.

I would also like to see some repaints, with just 8 liveries included in the just released package, there is certainly room for some expansion here.

[AnkH 2,233]

Well, regarding screenshots comparing them with the real world planes, they did a OK job, not more and not less. Windows are way to big, especially on the -100 variants, this looks completely off and rather ridiculous. And the VirtualCol model suffers from a phenomenon I haven't seen for a very long time, something that was very common back in the freeware addon days: the gear struts are to long, means the plane looks like being on stilts. Slightly disappointed on the second view. I could easily live with basic flight dynamics and systems, such as Carenado, but at least Carenado almost always gets the optics right and provide brilliant 3D models. VirtualCol planes look and are always some kind of amateur 3D modelling style...

Edited March 22, 2019 by AnkH

[SunDevil56 183]

I've carefully compared screenshots I took myself with hi res images of the A220 100 and 300 from airliners.net, and whatever it is you are seeing, i'm just not seeing it, not even close...

The windows and gear struts look fine to me, but I get it, not everyone's visual perception is the same, that's why a few people describe the QW 787 HUD as "sluggish" or "slow rendering" when most people, including me, perceive it as just fine.

[kingm56 1,023]

I agree with the sentiment that these aircraft represent a fair value; to that point, I own the Dash 8, ERJ V2, CRJ V2, and SAAB V2.  However, I NEVER fly them; while the visual quality continues to improve with each release, the flight dynamics are simply atrocious.  It's the latter that absolutely kills the immersion and makes these planes un-flyable. For example, on approach it feels like you're going 45 mph...it almost 'feels' like they use the same .air file for every aircraft.