Tim Conrad's PC-6 Turbo Porter

It seems lately that I have found some really nice add-on aircraft for FSX. Tim Conrad's designs some great FSX airplanes and the PC-6 is no exception.

One of the things I LOVE about this airplane is its performance. While it isn't a fast airplane by any means, bush flight is where this airplane shines. I have landed this airplane in places from the Eyjafjallajökull Volcano in Iceland, to thin cornices in the Grand Canyon. With full flaps, this airplane will touch down at about 50 KTS and most of the time roll out is so short you don't have time to apply reverse thrust.

The one thing I find tricky with turbo-props is the slight lag from when you change throttle settings because the turbine has to either spool up or down. While not a bad thing, it takes some getting used to because of the reaction isn't as instantaneous as with a piston engine.

I love to fly this airplane, most often in multiplayer if we aren't landing on aircraft carriers I am usually flying this airplane although the PC-6 would have NO issue making it onto the carrier deck.

Aaron

Bellanca Decathlon

In the wake of the Bellanca Scout, the the Long Island Classics Design Team brings us another FANTASTIC airplane. The Bellanca Super Decathlon. This airplane is hands down my favorite and most flown aircraft in FSX.

The cockpit is very much like the Scout but it has some noticeable differences. For starters the Garmin autopilot is ditched for more aerobatic related instruments . The regular steam gauge style attitude indicator is replaced with a aerobatic one very similar to the one found in the default Extra.

Once of my favorite aspects of this airplane are the 4 repaints. You have a choice as to a classic "starburst" theme or you can go with one a little more "custom." My only regret is the lack of a smoke system. There is a switch on the overhead panel in the VC, but it does nothing. There are three effects you have to copy over into the "effects" folder so maybe one of more of them didn't copy correctly. Regardless, this is an easy fix because of the many add-ons that allow you to add smoke to ANY aircraft.

This aircraft description says it is fully spinable. I have yet to try it out but I have done some hammerheads, avalanches, cuban eight's, attempted knife edge, snap rolls, and inverted flight. If you are looking for a aerobatic airplane that also is a good Sunday flier, this is your machine.

Bellanca Decathlon

Aaron

Freeware Bellanca Scout

The other day while browsing Simviation I found an EXCELLENT aircraft. This airplane is just as good as a Microsoft aircraft and is very close to payware quality.
This beautiful airplane was created by for Fs 2004 byLong Island Classics and updated for FSX by the Nor Cal Prop Club. With full flaps and a decent approach, you can land the Scout nearly anywhere. This package comes with 4 different textures and everyone of them is fantastic. They are crisp and clear, with only one or two gauges in the VC not perfect.

The biggest complaint I have with this airplane is the seccond version with tundra tires. I can't get it to work. After you install it it never shows up in FSX. This is a minor complaint for a GREAT aircraft.

Bellanca Scout download

Aaron

Well I thought I would start my new blog off with something ANYBODY with Flight Simulator X can do. For many of the default FSX aircraft, the out side textures and Virtual Cockpit textures are blurred and imposible to read. This is NOT good if you like to fly realistically from the VC because you cant read the gauges, and it is a pain if you like to take and share screen-shots because the airplane always looks out of focus. The fix to this is really simple and quick.

First go to http://www.simviation.com/ and in the upper right hand corner type in the search box for example, "Cessna Fix." Somewhere in the results you will find the download to fix the default blurred files.

One important thing to do is read the Read Me file and back up ANY file you intend to replace or modify. This will prevent you from having to make the dreaded full reinstall.

In the photos above, you will notice one is REALLY blurred and one is crisp. The key differences are in the overall sharpness and if you notice the tires and paint look 10X better.

The airplanes which currently have texture fixes are:
Piper Cub
Grumman Goose
Cessna 208
Maule Orion
DeHaviland Beaver
Aircreation Ultralight
Extra 300
Beechcraft Baron
Beechcraft King Air

There may be more but I haven't found them yet.
I enjoy blogging so I hopefully will post here often,

Aaron