Astrasim Expo 2010 A Success

Posted: Thursday, September 2, 2010 - 14:54
Astrasim Expo Summer Sim 2010 was held at the Royal Air Force Museum Cosford, UK, over the weekend of August 28-29. Their first show at this world class venue lived up to everything they expected and more, with record attendances over the two days ensuring a success for all. Official figures showed 3,831 visitors came to Summer Sim.

The events aim was to raise awareness of flight simulation by not just attracting the hard core flight sim enthusiast but also the general public who may not have seen flight simulation before on the scale it was exhibited at the show. Introducing new people to the genre is an important part of making an event like this work. It also helps build and secure a bright future for flight simulation.

Top companies from the UK and further afield attended including Flight 1 and Just Flight, VRinsight, Flightstore, Komodo Simulations, Fury Technology, Creative Cockpits, Fly UK Virtual Airline, Sherburn User Group and our sponsors for the event PC Pilot. They also had Imagineering in attendance on the Saturday. Another major attraction was the first showing anywhere worldwide of the 2010 display by the Virtual Blue Angels.

Mark your calendar and start planning to attend next year's event.

Orbx Release WA79 Walter Sutton's Private Airfield

Posted: Thursday, September 2, 2010 - 14:18
ORBX is pleased to announce the release of WA79 Walter Sutton's private airfield. Located in a sleepy hide-away rural and logging valley in southern Washington state close to the Oregon border, this grass strip invites you to land and explore. With a large area of beautiful photoreal coverage, you'll find plenty to see in the circuit and plenty of the 'little details' on the ground which Orbx is famous for. Made by the same team who created WA56 Israel's Farm, this airfield offers the same charming atmosphere, long grasses and custom modeling based on actual onsite photos. As a special bonus also included is a challenging second airfield (WA7M Walter Musa's Field), the Chelatchie general store, the old abandoned rail works and the peculiarly named 'Tum Tum', a unique cone shaped hill almost directly aligned with the runway.

737NG By iFly Development Team / Flight One Software For FS9

Posted: Thursday, September 2, 2010 - 14:07
Flight One Software, in partnership with the iFly Development Team, are proud to announce the release of the 737NG for FS 2004.
During 2 years of development and testing iFly has created one of the most sophisticated add-on packages for Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004. The product showcases a highly accurate simulation of the 737 cockpit environment, including detailed flight systems and virtual panels. There are multiple variations of aircraft included, covering a wide range of 737NG configurations.


Here are just some of the highlights of what is included in this great add-on:

- A fully functional FMS with 45,000+ SID/STAR database
- Realistic autopilot and autothrottle functionality.
- Highly detailed 3DS Max models.
- Realistic control surfaces/animations.
- Fully functional virtual cockpit (nearly every switch, knob, and lever is modeled in 3D)
- GPWS / TCAS / Cabin pressurization gauges with logic fully implemented.
- Interactive Configuration Manager.
- Detailed Operation Manual with extensive tutorial.
- Ground support and pushback.
- Some models include drop-down HUD.
- Fully simulated Inertial Reference System.
- Full TCAS logic (with traffic display on EHSI).
- Free repaints are available through multpile popular FS websites including Flight1's File Library.
- Well staffed community forum for help and interaction with other virtual 737NG pilots.
- Plus much more!

The product includes an entire fleet of aircraft that covers the NG range. This includes the 737NG -600, -700, -800, and -900, plus the -BBJ, -BBJ2, and -BBJ3 variants. There are multiple configuration options among this fleet that you can configure via the Configuration Manager, including jet engine types, and wingtips.

For more information and screenshots , visit the iFly Jets 737NG Homepage .

FSXFollow 1.3 Released

Posted: Thursday, September 2, 2010 - 13:51
FSX Follow has released an update to their application that turns your iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch into a moving map for your flight simulator!
Version 1.3 adds a smoother screenshot function - the option to save an incoming screenshot to your device and the ability to publish a screenshot and hybrid view on/off. The PC client was updated as well. Visit the FSX Follow homepage for complete details and download.

New Screen Capture Utility For FS

Posted: Wednesday, September 1, 2010 - 14:32
Flightsimdreams has released CaptureFS a freeware utility. This utility captures screenshots from Microsoft Flight Simulator (FS9 and FSX) and allows users to either save as a file or upload to any server that the user specifies.

For more information vist Product Page

PMDG MD11 Training Course From Angle of Attack

Posted: Wednesday, September 1, 2010 - 12:49
Angle of Attack has announced the release of training course for PMDG MD11. A limited number of trainees are now being accepted into this exclusive training course. This training course is the latest in a series of airliner training courses from Angle of Attack. Also, the training is available online at release, in stunning HD.

For more information visit Angle of Attack website.

PRE-Flight Mitsubishi G4M Betty

Posted: Monday, August 30, 2010 - 15:45
PRE-Flight RC Simulator is pleased to announce the release of the PRE-Flight Mitsubishi G4M Betty for free download. The Mitsubishi G4M "Betty" was Japan's best bomber in WWII. It enjoyed enormous success in the start of the war - playing a key role in the capture of the Philippines and the historic sinking of Britain's HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse. Towards the end of the war, it was obsolete and was relegated to carrying the infamous Ohka Kamikaze rocket plane. The Betty was powered by 2 Mitsubishi MK4A-11 "Kasei" (Fire star) 14 cylinder radial engines (1,530 hp each) and had a range of 2,852km flying at up to 428km/hr. with a bomb load of up to 1000kg - making it very effective against stationary targets. This PRE-Flight model of the Betty includes moving control surfaces, super-detail, operating landing gear, and paintball bombs.
For free download, please visit PRE-Flight RC Simulator .

RAZBAM's LTV A-7 Corsair II Patch Released

Posted: Sunday, August 29, 2010 - 11:05
If you purchased the RAZBAM LTV A-7 Corsair II before August 25th, you can now log back into your account and download a new version of the Corsair. More information can be found on the RAZBAM homepage.

Monastir X From Aerosoft

Posted: Saturday, August 28, 2010 - 0:40
Staff reviewer Rick Desjardins travels to Tunisia to discover Aerosoft's MonistirX. "Habib Bourguiba International Airport (DTMB) is located next to the city of Monastir which is a major tourist resort in the north-eastern part of the country on the Mediterranean."

"This airport is off the beaten path so to speak. This is not a large airport nor does it have a complex layout. The main terminal building is centrally located and there are no jet ways. Overall the buildings look good but there are several that stand out."

"I'll begin with the main passenger terminal; the two story structure has a distinctive looking roof which is made up of triangles arranged in circular patterns. It is an unusual roof and I thought they did a really good job in recreating it. The other building that catches your attention is the large EADS hanger located on the eastern end of the runway. It is an imposing structure because of its contrasting blue color and its size."

"The ground textures like most everything else at this airport were good and appear to be hi-resolution textures so that washed out look close up is minimized. The runways and taxiways look weathered and stained but the aircraft parking area directly in front of the main terminal building shows no signs of wear and tear, no oil, fuel or dirt stains you would normally expect to find."

"In addition to recreating Habib Bourguiba Airport the surrounding area has also been improved to be more in line with how the area actually looks. In the FSX default rendition the entire area shows up as desert but after installing the scenery you can see that the individual salt lagoons are defined and that a built up area to the east is representative of the city of Monastir."

"Overall, I thought Monastir X was well done, is a good value for the price and is a huge step up from the airport that exists in FSX."

Add-on Converter X V1.04 Available

Posted: Friday, August 27, 2010 - 23:18
FlightSimTools.com is pleased to announce a new update for their Addon Converter X product. The update contains several bugfixes and improvements, and is free of charge for existing customers. Addon Converter X is a module for FSX that allows using most aircraft and scenery add-ons designed for FS2004 with FSX SP2 and Acceleration Pack, both in DirectX 9 and DirectX 10 modes. There is also a free Demo version available at the website.

EZdok Camera Updated To 1.15.1

Posted: Friday, August 27, 2010 - 23:15
Flight1 announces that the official 1.15.1 release of EZCA is now available as a free update to all existing customers. This update addresses several issues and adds a few features.

- Added the ability to save/load all cameras at once.
- Fix "MACROVISION" path error for world cameras.
- Improved connection with TrackIR software.
- Centering of camera view when TrackIR signal is lost.
- Added ability enable/disable TrackIR for every camera individually
- Added "Set application priority" mode in General Settings page.
- Add "Advanced Effects Manual", and update the main product manual.

EZdok Camera (EZCA) is a camera and effects system and manager that enhances the pilot experience in FSX.

Aerosoft Releases Gibraltar For FS9

Posted: Friday, August 27, 2010 - 22:17
Gibraltar has now been released for those who fly in FS9. Go and enjoy one of the most fantastic airfields in the world with it's huge mountain, the cable cars and the traffic crossing the runway. If you want to find out more about this scenery, please visit the Aerosoft product page.

The Latest From Just Flight

Posted: Friday, August 27, 2010 - 15:05
A320 Jetliner - There is a boxed and download version available. The boxed version has 20 liveries. The download version comes with four main liveries. There are now also four low-priced livery packs to allow users can add to their product as they require. Here is an example of one of these packs.

New 767 200/300 Series SP - Just Flight has released a second service pack for the 767- 200/300 Series. This new pack contains several fixes including fixes or updates for the fuel consumption, 2D cockpit, the sounds for all engine variants, and cargo door operations when the engines are off. The pack is available to download from the support section of their website.

New section on their website - As releases come thick and fast, several customers have mentioned to JF that it would be helpful if they could put their latest releases together in one place on the website. Their wish was JF's command so the new section is now up and running on both the Just Trains and Just Flight websites. Hopefully this addition will make things easier for those wanting a recap Just Flight's latest releases.

Ant's Airplanes Releases The Tecnam Sierra LSA

Posted: Friday, August 27, 2010 - 14:37
The Tecnam Sierra is a sleek, modern 2 seater aircraft designed for the new Light Sport Aircraft category. Tapered, laminar flow airfoils with upturned wing tips and a streamlined fuselage give the Sierra outstanding performance with responsive controls while still offering stable flight characteristics. Fitted with a Rotax 912 100HP engine the Sierra cruises at 110 kts and climbs at over 1000 ft/min. The canopy offers excellent visibility and can even be opened in flight.

This aircraft has a multitude of features listed and there is a Demo available. Evaluate for yourself how this aircraft will perform on your system. Be advised that there is no 2D panel with this aircraft. Recommended System requirements: Microsoft Flight Simulator X with SP2 or Acceleration or Gold, a Dual Core CPU with 2GB RAM, a 1024MB Graphics cardand can operate under Win XP SP2, Vista or Windows 7.

Piaggio P180 Avanti II For 2004

Posted: Friday, August 27, 2010 - 14:30
Wilco Publishing has released the FS2004 version of their Piaggio P180 Avanti II for FS9, highly detailed with great care taken to ensure fuselage profiles and general arrangement shapes are true to original, creating an accurate rendering of the futuristic Piaggio P180II.
Among the features of this release, the landing gear operation is highly realistic and detail extends to brake-lines and electrical connections, landing lights extend and retract and the unique canard forward flap system is authentically modelled and animated.
Luggage hatches open and close as does the port engine cover which conceals a fully-modeled turboprop engine complete with big bore exhaust pipe, hydraulic and electrical lines and more.
The cockpit has numerous complex systems and fittings modelled in and rendered with texture art that really brings the V C alive. Glass cockpit arrays and flight consoles bristle with switches and knobs and the Flight Management Computer is there and allows inputs for flight-planning, as well a Wx500 Weather Radar powered by RealityXP is included.
Visit the Piaggio P180 Avanti II product page for more details.

GPS 5 from SimWare / VRinsight

Posted: Friday, August 27, 2010 - 1:15
Senior staff reviewer Angelique van Campen tries not to get lost as she explores SimWare/VRinsight's GPS 5. " This VRinsight electronic unit is a replica of the Garmin GPS 500. It’s the same unit that can be found in default FSX and FS2004 airplanes. With a replica I mean that all the buttons and selector knob functions are 99% the same as the real one."

"The GPS-5 housing is completely made of metal and that means it’s heavy. It looks like a Garmin unit although that name is not used. The GPS-5 can only be connected and thus tested with the default FS2004/FSX Cessna 172. Furthermore, once the MSFS Garmin GPS500 is moved to the VRinsight display, it behaves like a normal MSFS software Garmin."

"Pressing the buttons or keys on the GPS-5 feels solid with a nice clicking sound and depending on the button/key, an action – logically - can be seen on the screen. Because of the four rubber pads on the bottom of the angled bracket, the display won’t slide when pressing one of the buttons/keys."

"The SImWare/VRinsight GPS 5 package including VAT will cost you €390.00 or approximately US$ 400.00 excluding VAT. I’m pleased with the hardware design although it’s not a 100% replica of the real Garmin GPS500. The buttons/keys are absolutely different as well as the selector knobs. Pressing the buttons/keys gives me a good feeling, which is the same for the inner- and outer selector knobs."

Aerosoft Releases Discus K Glider X.

Posted: Friday, August 27, 2010 - 0:27
This product shares it`s base with the Discus Glider X (a separate product) that got the most spectacular reviews and even managed to get the AVSIM Gold Star Award.

The Aerosoft's Discus K Glider X has been create with help from Schempp-Hirth, who produced the original plane. Without a doubt it is the first true high end glider add-on for FS. From the flight model that is near perfect to the high detail modeling, it's a product without rivals and without precedent.

Aerobatic gliding is perhaps the most complex and demanding of aviation sports. It`s hard enough with an engine but doing it all on kinetic energy demands a very high degree of skill. There's a bonus awaiting you at Aerosoft if you already own Discus Glider X.

Deltasim Studio Sailing Catamaran

Posted: Thursday, August 26, 2010 - 19:06
Deltasim Studio has released a 57 foot sailing catamaran for FSX, compatible with SP1, SP2, Acceleration and ESP.
This very detailed FSX model features animated sails (bulging with wind), rudder, throttle, gauges, switches, stern ladders, fenders, cleats, flags, TV set with slideshow and music, crew and a retractable engine.
Additional features include 13 pieces of music for slideshow, 23 prepared flags (ready to use) in dds format and includes two models both tourist and racing (with amazing leans) in eight variants with an animated wheelman and the whole boat as a virtual cockpit.
For more information, head down to the Deltasim Studio warf.

CLS 767 now available at the Avsim store

Posted: Thursday, August 26, 2010 - 17:09
The Avsim store is proud to be carrying titles from Commercial Level Simulations. You can get the beautiful 767 200/300 from CLS. It's available as an instant download. The Avsim store will add more title from Commercial Level Simulations in the next few days.

Visit the Avsim store today

Upcoming Flight Simulation Events

Posted: Thursday, August 26, 2010 - 13:11
This weekend (28th and 29th August) Flight1 will be at the RAF Museum Cosford for the Summer Sim 2010 Flight Simulation Show, for full details visit the Astrasim Expo homepage.

The 4th & 5th of September the Imperial War Museum at Duxford hosts Flight Sim 2010 , The Flight Sim 2010 show will take place in a spacious indoor exhibition hall within AirSpace giving visitors the perfect chance to hop next door to the Aircraft Hall and enjoy a look at over 30 historic military and civil aircraft.

Check the AVSIM Community Calendar for a list of upcoming events, and dont forget to add your event to the Avsim Calendar !

AirTrafficAtlanta

Posted: Thursday, August 26, 2010 - 13:01
The Premier Atlanta Air Traffic Control Site has some new features, first they have changed their Domain name to "AirTrafficAtlanta.com " giving a tower-eye view of skies over the world's busiest passenger airport.
New and improved features include 10X faster radar image refreshes, ten channels of live pilot-to-controller radio communications, archived radio highlights, and a streamlined user interface. In addition to providing real-time video and audio streams of radar and radio communications controlling Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport's approximately 2,700 daily flights, AirTrafficAtlanta.com now offers subscribers access to interesting Radio Highlights that have been pointed out by users. Radio Highlights include emergencies such as engine outs, medical emergencies, and humorous exchanges between pilots and air traffic controllers. AirTrafficAtlanta.com, an FAA-approved and National Air Traffic Controllers-endorsed website, was established as ATCMonitor.com in September 2000, one year after Hartsfield-Jackson officially became the world's busiest airport in terms of both passenger count and number of flights.

C208B GRAND CARAVAN HD SERIES

Posted: Thursday, August 26, 2010 - 12:47
Carenado has released the C208B GRAND CARAVAN HD SERIES for FSX. Featuring Hi Definition textures (2048 x 2048) and Five different paint schemes plus a blank texture for repainting, other features include a customizable panel for controlling seat configuration, windows transparency, 3D Knobs, cargo pod, doors opening and eyes candie such as, wheel chokes, pitot cover, tail stand and sights prop and custom Bendix/King Weather Radar and original GNS 430.
Original HQ digital stereo sounds were recorded directly from a real PT6A (Pratt & Whitney Canada) engine, the package was tested by real C208B pilots and comes with PDF documents for Normal and Emergency Checklists, GNS430 User Guide, Weather Radar Manual, C208B Reference, AVSS manual and VC diagram plus the traditional high quality and friendly FPS of Carenado, visit their Hanger for a preflight inspection.