P3D v4 Xtreme Prototypes Lear 25 v3 Mini Review

[ryanbatc 12,812]

This is a realistic flight from Skagit KBVS to Redding KRDD in the Xtreme Prototypes Lear 25 SE v3.0.  I'm still using P3D v4.5 so unfortunately I wasn't able to check it out in v5 with the nicer skies /atmosphere.  If you don't like reading lots of words, my recommendation is to buy the plane right away haha....it hand flies beautifully and accepts the Flight1 or Reality XP GTN units in a few different configurations.  It's also very powerful and cruises at a respectable .82 mach (MMO).  I found no real issues with performance either.

Moving on to the mini review....

This is version 3 of the Xtreme Prototypes Lear 25... I've owned all of them, and the changes in this warrant the price for the upgrade - especially the dense manual and the numerous liveries.  I can understand though, why some users think it's a little high.  I'm currently quite active in P3D and XP11 (and the other thing hah!)  Sometimes actively using both sims, with payware addons, makes you appreciate the wonderful options we do have.  This Lear is one of them.  Anyway, I hopped into the Lear 25 sitting on the ramp in Skagit WA (Orbx), and I had to review the manual for startup.  I was spoiled with the simplicity of the small GA props I've been using lately.  The lear is a pilot's plane - there are many switches to flip just to get her in the air.  Routing was KBVS SEA J65 LMT KRDD at FL410.  The lear can go higher but I picked a typical business jet altitude.  FL450 is the service ceiling but the absolute is FL510!  You'd have to be very light with just the right conditions and step climb for that to happen.  Once started, I program the GTN's - just love entering waypoints in those units....so simple - if you don't have the RXP GTN, I highly recommend it!  Then I taxi out to runway 4. 

With covid, air traffic is quite diminished, so ATC initially gives me a climb to FL230.  I hand fly the entire climb (albeit with FD enabled) - 250kias under 10k is just an insane climb rate - I really have to push forward and trim heavily.  I breathe a little sigh of relief passing 10k, where I nose over slightly gain airspeed to 280 kias for the rest of the climb (I used mach .70 up to FL410).  There are no autothrottles on the Lear.  A note about the SPD-P climb mode on the autopilot.  What I initially thought was this mode was similar to FLC in modern aircraft.  Apparently this is not so, and verified by the actual Lear pilot who tested with XP.  The SPD-P mode was very unreliable and so unfortunately in this older aircraft, VS is the preferred mode of pitch change.  I had some issues using it in P3D as well, and opted for VS mode in climb and descent.  I've never flown a Lear (but have a small amount of turbine time) - the aircraft feels great with my controls, heavy but stable, yet controls are responsive.  Hand flying is a real pleasure.  I did engage autopilot for duration of cruise (I'm pretty lazy ha - but the idea of me holding the yoke for that long sounds terrible).  Aside from the mode above, it's a pretty typical autopilot, it's got your lateral NAV/HDG/LOC/APR modes and the VS pitch mode, along with ATT which just holds pitch when pressed.  You can change pitch in this mode with the command wheel on the lower center pedestal.  You'll see a SPD and MACH button as well - these aren't true to the aircraft but user requested speed hold modes.  Pressurization is simple to operate as well - nothing real different from other jets/king airs.

Happily at FL410, I'm doing about mach .81 - .82  - and nearly 500 knots over the ground.  In a little bizjet that's pretty fast!  I can think of maybe one or two other bizjets that would go faster for this size.  The Falcon 20 with a MMO of .86 and I think the original Lear 23 did about the same.  Up here I'm thinking about the ATIS at RDD, and I'd like to shoot the RNAV (GPS) Rwy 16 via WARSU for practice.  The Reality XP GTN 750 easily handles this - I Direct To WARSU after passing LMT, and ATC gives me a "PD" pilot's discretion descent to FL170.  I use VSR (vertical speed required) on the GTN to see how to efficiently descend into KRDD on the approach.  I'm setting pressurization for field elevation, and for descent, having to definitely pull back the power levers!  I get approach clearance from ATC.  Passing WARSU, the IF, I'm getting vertical navigation from the WAAS receiver on my GPS, this RNAV 16 approach has LPV minimums, so the glide slope balls appear on my HSI, and I just follow it down like an ILS.  Speed-wise, after WARSU I'm still doing 250 kias but starting to slow to 200, for flaps 20 and gear, near the final approach fix I slow further and put gear down and flaps 40.  I'm not certain what touchdown speed is but I held 150 kias till short final, then bled off speed for about 135 kias touchdown.  Much past that and she drops like a brick.

What else can I blab about?  Modelling is exquisite in this bird - the instruments and textures, the exterior and cabin look great.  The panel lighting is impressive, with a few different flood types, map light and gauge backlighting.  It does use dynamic lights and they look superb from the exterior.  There was one thing I was a little bummed about - no PBR textures on the exterior.  I can understand how creating them could be time consuming - I've done a few repaints in the past and it took forever lol.  Still though I just love the extra touch of realism external PBR brings to these old birds!  The sounds are amazing as well (I almost forgot to mention them).  From the clicks, to engine spool up, to cruise and touchdown.

Overall the addon is impressive!  I'm a bizjet lover and a GA lover - so this is a no-brainer!  Hopefully this helps some of you on the fence and here's a few shots from the flight.  Additional products used on this flight: Reality XP GTN 750, Orbx BVS and RDD (and the regions), Active Sky, ENVTEX//SHADE.

Untitled-2 by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

Untitled-3 by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

Untitled-4 by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

Untitled-5 by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

Untitled-6 by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

Untitled-10 by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

Untitled-12 by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

Untitled-14 by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

Untitled-15 by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

Untitled-16 by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

Untitled-17 by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

Untitled-19 by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

Untitled-22 by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

Untitled-24 by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

Untitled-25 by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

Untitled-27 by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

Untitled-28 by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

Untitled-29 by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

Untitled-30 by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

Untitled-32 by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

 

 

 

 

[JLuis 409]

Nice review. Thanks.

[odourboy 1,288]

The instrument panel/VC looks like its seen quite a few changes, is that the case? Does it still have the 8 track? ☺️

Edited June 26, 2020 by odourboy

[FPStewy 538]

Is that a weather radar  ? and does it work with AS ?

would it be possible to just post a pic of the cockpit with night lighting.

[ryanbatc 12,812]

Still got the 8 track lol - and yes about the VC textures and overall textures.

It's the REX/Milviz Wx radar

Here's some night pics - you can run any combo of these

1) Instrument backlighting

2)pilot/FO floods

3)what I would call emergency lighting or full cockpit lighting

lear_backlite by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

learflood by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

lear_fulflood by Ryan Butterworth, on Flickr

Edited June 26, 2020 by ryanbatcund

[odourboy 1,288]

One more Ryan; are any of the VC lightening levels variable or on/off?

[Dean33 69]

Nice review Ryan. Great aircraft.
 

No the lights are on/off. 

[xxd09 68]

Ryan

What version of Win 10 are you running?

xxd09

[ryanbatc 12,812]

1 hour ago, xxd09 said:

Ryan

What version of Win 10 are you running?

xxd09

Windows 10 Pro I don't think I've got the 2004 update yet.

[Wink207 78]

Hi guys

This is indeed a beautiful aircraft. I own it, having purchased it some years ago. Probably an early version. My only negative comment, as an FSX user, is that the version I own brought a heavy VAS burden. It was flyable, but only just.

Beautiful aircraft though.

[FPStewy 538]

23 hours ago, Dean33 said:

No the lights are on/off. 

that's kinda sad, that's on carenado level, and on such a beautiful aircraft, that's one thing I really like about the 310R is that it has TrueLight or even the NGX or A2A for example and many more.

[GBee777 8]

Hi all.

Nice pics.

 

How is the framerate performance in P3D ?

 

Thnx

[ryanbatc 12,812]

22 hours ago, GBee777 said:

Hi all.

Nice pics.

 

How is the framerate performance in P3D ?

 

Thnx

Fine for me.... I've got an older CPU: 4790K but with a powerful GPU: GTX 1080 ti