[Note: So, as we now patiently wait in anticipation of the unknown(?)....I think I need to go over to those MSFS2020 Forums to see what's the latest news over there...!]

Anyway back to this post: Long before there was any Payware, the continuous flow of (new) Freeware (be it aircraft, scenery, or misc.), had nurtured and sustained our interest in FS9/FSX, and helped build our community. To this day, I sometimes wonder, why someone would spend hours and hours of personal time, and offer something to us (say an aircraft) to fly, enjoy, and, to enrich the experience & broaden the knowledge derived from our hobby...for free...when I, myself, cannot find a few hours a week just to fly! The primary motivation for such individual contributors, I think, must be a combination of pure love, passion, and affection for a certain aircraft, and, of course, the willingness to share their work...! In fact, when, the very first time, I saw, in their README, the customary condition of use: "Enjoy but don't make money of it"...I said to myself, that's easy (and too kind)! So, no matter how much PW we collect and own, any FW, that we may, alongside, happen to find and like, whether it rivals some PW offerings, in its quality, or it is just the first effort of a simple offering of a simple plane model - it always carries a special meaning! Because, we know, creating a new model (and prototype) of anything does take time - here, personal time!

Anyway, please find, here, a collection of images of 20 different (FW) aircraft, that I've selected from my Freeware Archive (which has not been visited in recent years since my break), for you to take a look. And, perhaps to help us appreciate the gradual evolution of aviation technology, I've arranged these aircraft chronologically based on their date of first flight. I've also provided the names below, and they are in the same sequential order as the appearance of their images in the post (assuming no error on my part!). All pictures are taken at or around KSEA. I hope you enjoy these pictures, and have a bit of fun viewing this diverse set of aircraft collected together in one place. These aircraft may lack full fidelity of a PW, but, there is no question, each one, has a unique story of its own to tell! Thanks for your interest. [FW(Aircraft)/Orbx(PNW)/REX]

(1) Ford-Trimotor/American Airways (2) Ju-52/Lufthansa (3) He-51/JG135 (4) Texan-T6/Navy (5) Noorduyn Norseman/USAF (6) Avia-57/Fishing Buddies (7) Martin B-26/Big Bird (8) Aeronca/Hughes Flying Service (9) CV-440/Braniff (10) Lockheed Electra-188/Northwest (11) Lockheed P-3A/AeroUnion/FireFighter (12) HS-748/SAA (13) Fokker-28/TAM (14) IL-76/Aeroflot (15) Do-228/PNG Express (16) Emb-120/Skywest (17) An-74/Ka Avia (18) CRJ-200/Delta Connection (19) CL-415/Quebec (20) Erj-135/United Express.

Edited September 29, 20196 yr by P_7878

Thanks for putting together a great portfolio of memorable craft that money couldn't buy! And that Convair 440 looks beautiful!

John

A fine post there! Well said. You've also reminded me that I was going to investigate obtaining an An-74 for FSX,  

John: Appreciated the nice comments! And, "...craft that money couldn't buy..."...How aptly put! I too love the Convair models...

Mark: Thanks for the kind words! Yes, the An-72/74 are indeed interesting-looking planes...

What a pleasure to watch these planes. I'm sure that almost every simmer has as least one of them to declare as a part of his/her personal simming history...

I do love digging through freeware files. So many hidden gems. Just yesterday I spent 45 minutes trawling freeware aircraft for interesting things to fly and now the list is as long as my arm. I love recreating RW flights but I have the challenge of flying every aircraft in my library at some point. 

What a superb collection, P_7878. Well put together. Sadly many of my beloved FS9/FSX freeware planes cannot be used anymore in P3D 3.4, so they collect now virtual dust in my virtual hangar 😊