PC Pilot

NEWS - Legendary F-16 sim Falcon is back again, this time in an updated retail package titled Falcon 4.0: Allied Force. X-Plane too makes a long-awaited reappearance as a boxed package and is now available as a DVD release with a printed manual. There’s an entertaining online aerobatic game to promote the Red Bull Air Race World Series and we’ve found a company with all sorts of light aircraft cockpits just waiting to be given a new lease of life by the committed sim builder.

Airbus A380 pilots who want to beat the queues can take their pick from three new FS offerings and there’s a fine new freeware Hercules available for anyone wondering when the Captain Sim aircraft will ever show up. David Maltby’s FS2004 freeware Trident 3 is ready to download right now, however, and with a superb VC to boot.

FS Passengers looks like being an innovative program that should keep you on your toes during your virtual airliner flights and two new scenery enhancements are coming soon from Just Flight. Take a historical flight in LZ1, the first Zeppelin ever built, and get stuck into your FS2004 configuration files with FS9 Configurator.

REVIEWS - FSNet could well be the most revolutionary program to appear for Flight Simulator in recent years - online crew co-operation in the same aircraft is finally a reality and we’re pleased to say that the system works extremely well. If you prefer to fly solo, Airliner Pilot looks like the ideal program for anyone who’s seeking some structure in their flying but doesn’t feel ready for the VA life.

Flying Club might sound a little dull on paper, but this package of four popular GA trainers with flight models tweaked by RealAir’s Rob Young makes a lot of sense for both the trainee pilot and the committed GA flyer. Flight One’s infinitely variable Flight Environment shows how a lot of little tweaks can add up to a huge improvement in your FS world.

Aerosoft’s SH-60 Seahawk is that rarest of breeds - a highly detailed single helicopter package from a major FS publisher - and Abacus’s Military Helicopters provides a larger yet less detailed selection for the combat chopper enthusiast.

English Electric’s Canberra has a fascinating history and we take the Alpha Sims model up for a spin. Finally, we enjoy an FS add-on where size is inversely proportionate to the amount of fun on offer - the JetPakNG. Strap it on and with enough practice you’ll be ready to star in your very own James Bond movie!

HARDWARE - TrackIR’s head tracking utility for sim flying has grown steadily in popularity since its launch. The Vector Expansion adds a number of additional features which are extremely impressive and really do transform a decent utility into an essential one.

FEATURES - We go online with the VATSIM ATC Network to see if improvements to Squawkbox really have made the system easier for users to get to grips with; less downloads and improved ease of use mean our first-timer is impressed.

Piper and Cessna might have the lion’s share of the GA trainer market, but there are plenty of alternative manufacturers out there, many of them based in Europe. Iain Dawson finds a favourable freeware selection for FS2004.

We investigate the world of FS abandonware and revisit some flight sim gems from years gone by. Does the end of a sim’s financial worth to a publisher mean that it should be freely available to nostalgic enthusiasts? We look at both sides of the debate.

Long-time 767 Captain David Barrington was closely involved in testing the Level-D 767; here he discusses the importance of real-world pilot input in FS add-on development, gives us his thoughts on flying the real 767 - and explains why pilots look forward so much to ferry flights!

TUTORIAL - In this issue we take a cross-Florida flight from Saint Petersburg to Miami. It should take us round 95 minutes to cover the 169 nautical miles, but thing don’t go exactly as planned