I had a quick look at the download and the configurations seem to be original for this from what I can tell. So the model was likely custom build for this plane.
I caved and got the Waco, for only $15 it seemed like a no brainer. I have no idea how “accurate” it is to the original, but it absolutely feels like a big heavy plane with a big heavy engine at the front. You can almost see the drag as you’re flying.
That’s not bad, it’s a fun plane. It’s hard to beat an open cockpit, especially with sounds that good.
Bought the Carenado Mooney Ovation over the weekend.
$30 is way too much for a non-study-level addon plane these days, but the Ovation is pretty fun. Fast as heck. Feels a bit like a GA jet. Have to pop the speed brakes to have any hope of getting to the ground in a timely fashion. The steam gauges are a nice change from all of the glass in the defaults.
Apparently it went through some teething pains, so I’m glad I jumped in late. The only problems I’ve encountered are VR-related, such as needing to close one eye to be able to interact with controls using the mouse cursor. I’m glad I have a goofy headset on my head, because I’d look goofier if anyone saw me leaning forward with one eye closed like a farsighted pirate meticulously examining the quality of a plundered treasure.
I wish there were more standard planes with steam gauges, or maybe I mean faster planes with steam gauges. The ones that are there are fine for bopping around in, but are a bit underpowered for covering distances greater than 50nm.
I like the Ovation too, though it’s good that you are using it in VR. In exterior view, there’s a weird, faint noise, like an old-timey telephone ringing in a distant room. Very annoying; I’ve been using the Piaggio since I got it instead.
It depends what you’re looking for. They’re two very different planes – about the only thing they have in common is having one more wing than usual.
This Pitts is an aerobatic platform and it feels it – it’s quick and nimble. The Waco, OTOH, is a much larger and heavier airplane. Like I said above, you can almost see the drag when you’re flying it. It’s also more stable.
The Pitts also lacks an open cockpit, and its engine is nothing unusual. The Waco has a true open cockpit and a great-sounding radial.
The Pitts, because of its focus, seats 1 and has a minimal range (2 hours, according to the game). The Waco will seat 2 (or sometimes 3, but I don’t think the Carenado models that) and will stay in the air several times longer.
I prefer the Waco, because it actually feels like an old bipe, whereas the Pitts is more like a modern plane someone stuck an extra wing on. But your mileage, and interests, may vary.
Posted to reddit today, an amazing screenshot showing the work they’ve been doing on water masking (water depth updates to reflect on satellite data. Unfortunately I think it’s a manual process.
This flight sim is leaps and bounds more beautiful than anything in the past. I’m blown away at times.
It is, yeah. :( IIRC, they reportedly had an AI process that turned out to work a lot more poorly then they thought it would, so for now it’s all manual editing.
Absolutely. When it shines, it shines like a supernova.
For sure. I chat frequently with a buddy who’s a RL pilot in addition to being a sim addict. Sometimes he sends me pictures from his flights over discord, and there have been a few times I thought he was sending me a screenshot from the game, until I realized, no, it was real life.
The illusion usually falls apart when blown up to full res and things like, eg, the overly-uniform waves on the surface of the water in your picture stick out. But that it can even come close enough for there to be room for doubt at any resolution is a major step forward in sim tech.
There’s some really interesting and under-visited terrain in Africa that can be fun to explore. Taking off from FTTR and heading east into the Tibesti Mountains seems like you’re flying on a different planet.
Bring a Cub can you can do some really fun STOL landings on the cliffs above calderas.
Way up thread there are pictures, but in addition to the one kaosfere mentioned, I’d recommend a bit of a cross country flight as well from Cape Town, SA (FACT) to Port Elizabeth, SA (FAPE.)
It crosses over multiple zones of amazing scenery. That’s a bit of a haul, I’d recommend something that can get a bit more altitude and range.
Recommended 10,500 ft altitude minimum for the flight. That’s mostly leaving Cape Town and for the first 1/3 of the flight as seen in the bottom elevation profile.
Finally finished the bush trip I’ve been working on; it’s a bit of a beast - a 27-leg trip around the US Southwest. If you were interested, the first leg is fairly representative of the rest, so you’ll know pretty quickly if you’ll like it or not.
Big emphasis on navigation and sightseeing, less so on tricky landings or takeoffs.
There are actually two versions of the trip. They are identical in content, but one uses the XCub, and the other uses the Savage Carbon (with GotGravel’s blessing). So if you want to free yourself of the tyranny of the magenta line, you need to install the Savage Carbon separately.
You guys have seen all the images already but hey ho:
Those look AWESOME. How tough was the navigation, Pedro? I’ve been low on gaming time lately but I’m trying to line up some fun stuff to attempt to fly some VR stuff. This might be a good fit.
I’ve tried to cover the navigation pretty well - as well as compass directions and time to next waypoint, I’ve put in a text description as well, so I point out towns etc as you pass so that you should be able to situate yourself fairly easily.
There are definitely a couple of tricky legs (maybe 2 out of the 27) without much in the way of landmarks. In these cases I sometimes put in a screenshot of say, a road layout, to help you along.
It’s probably a lot easier with external view, so VR should be interesting. As I say, you’ll probably know one way or the other after leg one ;)
PS if you use the Xcub you’ll have the magenta line pointing the way at all times as well.
There are a couple preview videos online. The textures, to my eye, look pretty ropey. Combined with the fact that trans-sonic flight isn’t properly implemented in the sim at the moment, the price of this relative to other offerings, and that they’re clearly projecting that this is a “casual” model, I’d be inclined to wait on it unless you desperately want to fly an F15 anywhere in the world.
If you just want to go fast in a small plane, I’d think of getting the MB.339 first.
Hmm. Rivet-countery isn’t my bag, so that’s not that big of a deal. Neither is trans-sonic flight, to be honest. But I would expect, for $40, a bird that looks as good as the best in DCS, flies better than the SFM Lock-On F-15, and optional switchery-buggery.
