reball

I've gotten so many tips here, finally I may be able to help out others. This challenge nearly defeated me over the past week--then I used my head and figured out that one probably can't ever hit every hoop, just to many and too much distance to travel in the alotted time. Finally realized that reds are essential, as are yellows, but trying for greens may be a waste of time. I found the Vans to work best for me, the Icon just too slow and faster planes too hard to control precisely (altho the menu illustration shows a Zero, I found it too twitchy and prone to accelerated stalls). So bear with me, don't know how to record and post a video, but here in words is a strategy. First, altho straight ahead on the runway is an ascending array of yellows, I couldn't get up enough speed in the Vans to do the course, so here's the first trick, start with a light fuel load (8-10%), take off but do a fast right 180 and then another so you come back along the runway at more than 90 knots. Then hit that ascending set of 5 yellows at full throttle(starting the clock), then bank left and aim for the next set of 7 yellows in a descending tight right bank, then full throttle down toward that small ship with a crane alongside, grab the 8 yellows in a tight right bank, cut throttle, sharp right and hit the 5 reds below the crane, quick sigh of relief if no crash and immediately grab the 5 greens in a line leaving you headed toward that hill with a tower at top and a set of three reds, quickly bank left then right in a very sharp descending 180 degree right along the water toward the bridge, again ignore the greens but grab the 4 reds under the bridge, another sigh if still alive and half way out the bay is an ascending array of 6 reds, requiring very steep bank and nearly full throttle, then down and a bit left and you will see a long array of 6 yellows curving left followed by 6 more yellow curving right. Grab them but ignore that nice straight array of 6 greens, they will net few points and take too much time. Rather, sharp right, full throttle and head out across the water to the only remaining array of yellows, far across the water. (at this point there are a lot of greens to your left near the cliffs and another set of greens above that crane you previously collected reds from, but again all those greens are wastes). Instead full throttle toward that inverted V set of 9 yellows, I did it by attacking the left end, going up and down to collect those 9, and at that instant time ran out, at 4000 pts collected! Perhaps there are other strategies, maybe better ones, but if this helps someone a bit, then great! Thanks for your patience. Dick

Thanks Don and all the others for their suggestions. I have still not got the gold on this challenge when landing into the wind, but yesterday after several failures I managed 1479 pts!! However, to do this, I did other things quite wrong. I circled around to the east and landed with the wind, really crazy in a 29 knot wind. Here's what worked, a low approach keeping the runway off to the right a bit (so the compass wouldn't block the view on short final, full flaps, hand on throttle and finessing it just to keep above a stall speed, and try to touch down as early as possible. With that tailwind, you still might not touch down till mid runway. Just at touchdown I did a slip, bank a bit left with right rudder, and viola, 500 pts for sideskid, nearly 500 for centerline hit, and most of the loss of points was for a not quite soft touchdown. After many tries on other challenges, too, I find that the sideskid component is very small (easy to get 450 pts). I don't know whether this is an artifact of the coding, or perhaps is that a realistic factor in real landings. Compensation for this advantage of going in with a tailwind is that the soft touchdown score really drops quickly. The one time I was successful, I really kept of the throttle to avoid dropping in. Also, I think well modeled, is when you land with a strong tailwind, then once on ground and slowing, it is very easy to groundloop, and I think that's what would happen when a tailwind hits a deflected rudder, making wild swings inevitable. I do feel I cheated and still will try to do the proper thing, to land into the wind, but that sideskid factor seems really tough. Even if you touch with nose pointing straight down the runway, that sidewind component will be pushing you . Maybe one should, after working to keep the nose to the right, right before touchdown try to quickly yaw left of center, but that's really hard if you're right at stall speed. Still a challenge!! Dick

Hi everyone. Have not spent a lot of time on this forum, but have had a lot of questions answered here, so am posing this question- the second RV-6 Landing Challenge has gotten the better of me. I'm greedy for the Gold, but have never reached it--max of 1432 pt I think. Here is the issue--the set up invites one to descend down to Kalaupapa against a 29 knot headwind with a strong right to left component. I have tried every trick I know of, varying degrees of flaps, speed, using a crab approach, a side-slip, and combinations. I can get nearly 500 pts for a soft landing and center line contact, but the sideskid score has always been under 350. Then, to be perverse, I tried flying around from the other direction and doing a fast with the wind approach. Guess what--several times got near or at 500 pts for centerline and the elusive side skid, but alas, lousy soft touchdown scores. Generally, my totals are higher using the wild downwind approach. When I went on to the next two Vans landing challenges, I found the same result, namely that darned side skid is easier managed downwind. Has anyone mastered that Kalaupapa strip, and if so, what technique works best for you? I have to say that Flight has really hooked my with these activities, but also with it amazing detail or its scenery (as Steve A pointed out in a nearby post). Maybe we ought to not press too hard for Alaska and let them take the time necessary to do it justice. Dick

Gareth and Adam, I'll confess to having all three. I understand all the dissatisfaction over cockpit-less planes, but I see the glass half full in this case. Get any of them, use Ctl-Q to inch the view position back into the plane at the correct point, you will see a dummy panel and if you view around you, you will see the wings and feel you are in the cockpit, which you will be. Keep the heads-up display active and you will enjoy flying these planes, as you will easily monitor airspeed, throttle setting, altitude, heading and fuel content. If you try these tips, you can really enjoy flying any of the three. Their exteriors are beautifully rendered with good detail. I thought I would prefer the Mustang, but the Zero handles well. The P-40 seems to be more lively, esp with respect to roll stability, and I've gotten into more trouble with the P-40 than the others--maybe that means it's more challenging, I'm not sure. Of course, a true VC would have been much preferable, but I still think these three are well done and worthwhile. Dick

Don, I agree completely. For me, my greatest mission is to get a higher percentage of happy passengers, and also to stop making them sick! I think I actually caused a guy to upchuck in my Maule, and I don't want a repeat.

Not the good folks on the forum, but those darned passengers I take on as charter jobs. So far, I have only 15 happy passengers, and I guess I sickened another 19 and frightened 4 more! Well, you'd think, whether sick or scared, they'd be really grateful to be back on terra firma. I have personally killed myself more times than I've landed happy passengers--that in itself should make them happy. Anyway, my post last week said I was humbled by a bird, and this week am humbled by those virtual people. Is there anyone out there with a "happier clientel?" My percent happy is 43%. (I have to admit, I think I know how I got some sick, was about 6 nm out from a short destination strip on a coast, at over 6000 ft, so instead of wasting everyone's time circling the field and descending slowly, I decided to throw the Maule into a wicked sideslip, and as I recall the decent/ascent gauge was pegged in negative territory. Anyway, we dropped like a rock, sideways, and never heard a peep of complaint from the folks, but I guess they wrote me up badly of the "How can we serve you better" survey.) Oh, well!Dick

I really appreciate all the replies to my thoughts, especially the comments from the glider pilots and those who found great videos--you made my point better than I ever could. It occurred to me that we all love the process of flight intensely, and maybe that's why some of us are happy enough with the sims we already have, yet we may also long for a more perfect experience and grow impatient with the shortcomings of our sims that prevent that ideal. Anyway, if any birds have checked into this forum, they must be pleased that so many humans envy their skills!

Now hang on a bit folks, it's not strictly an "outside of plane" control situation at all---by selecting the VC view (F9), you do get a straight ahead view as if inside the plane, but with no panel. However, there is that heads-up display data along the top, so you can fly the Mustang as if you were in the pilot's seat. Actually, if you select that view and then scroll 180 degrees backwards, there you will see your plane--you are actually perched about 5 feet in front of the plane! Anyway, you can fly the Mustang as if you were in the cockpit, and the full vista view is rather nice. Having said all that, I do agree with most of you that MS should really supply complete planes in the future.

Well, if you want this view, and I understand the desire to get a large unobstructed vista, just download the Mustang. Then, when you fly it, pressing F9 gives you exactly this kind of view. Some posters have viewed the Mustang as restricting one to an outide-the -aircraft piloting situation, but not true. F9 gives you the wide open vista forward, and the heads-up display gives enough info for reasonable flying. I use the joystick hatswitch to pan around, and "backspace" snaps the view back to straight ahead.

This post may not fit the requirements, but it might be construed as a hint, of sorts. After completing a couple "jobs" today, I checked my career progress--Level 14, some accolades, many crashes, 40% passenger satisfaction, 4 % made ill--not a bad performance for a 71 year old novice. Later, just after 7PM I went out and sat down in my backyard, enjoying the unseasonal warmth, and streaking through the barren tree branches barreled a little bird, maybe a sparrow, which shot around some bushes and made a perfect flare and perched on an arbor vita. Now the conditions were not good, no wind, but very limited visibility due to well advanced dusk. Well, maybe the creature was just after a quick $100 grub because it quickly took off, streaked to nearly V(never exceed), and darted at perhaps 80 knots through bushes and tree limbs, to disappear in the west. And I thought my flying skills were progressing! This little guy put me right in my place. That little brain was processing so much information and responding so quickly, with complete mastery of its flight dynamics. I'd really enjoy sometime sitting down with him and chatting about sideslips and stalls....

Many thanks, Ramon, backspace does the trick!

Sorry for repeat thread--tried to correct spelling is first and thought it didn't repost.

I resisted buying the cockpit-less Mustang until a couple days ago then broke down and downloaded. It's a gem! Beautiful exterior and great sounds, and pressing F9 does give a forward view but of course, no aircraft features. It nonetheless can be flown well using the heads-up display information, landing is a bit of a challenge but learnable. The real problem is that, using the joystick hatswitch to scan around, its a bit of guesswork trying to return to a straight ahead view. There doesn't seem to be a keyboard command to snap back to forward view (as could be done in FSX by a Shift-spacebar press). Am I missing something? Otherwise, I recommend this plane--it's really fun to fly.