Carenado Cessna 337 Skymaster
The Cessna Skymaster has long been one of my favorite aircraft. The concept of a two-engine airplane, but with the engines aligned on the aircraft’s centerline in a tractor/pusher configuration, is a unique way to mitigate some of the hazards of possible engine malfunctions such as adverse yaw. Being able to have two engines aligned with the fuselage and yet maintain a high wing also allows for great visibility from the airplane cabin.
Read MoreAirbus X Extended
There are few products which have produced a hype comparable to Airbus X Extended by Aerosoft. During the last months, a constant flow of announcements and delays were announced on their forum but nothing really happened for a long time, which caused sarcastic comments by many in the scene. However, shortly before Xmas, Aerosoft surprised everyone by releasing the product. In a frenzy not unlike those known to happen during releases of the latest mobile devices or Harry Potter books, Aerosofts online shop was totally overwhelmed during the first several days while all those who had previously sulked in private went for bust and bought in masses! Nevertheless I was able to obtain my software download without any hassle. Would Aerosoft be able to satisfy the high expectations they had been rising now? I was about to find out!
Read MoreVATSIM
Some of you not-so-experienced yet in the world of flight simulation may have heard of VATSIM and wondering what it is. Or maybe you know what it is but you would like to get some more details?
Bandon Howell explains what VATSIM is and where to find the most important bits of pieces to get started.
As many of us know, the default Fight Simulator (FS) air traffic control (ATC) is meager at best and suicidal at worst. Fear not, for there is a solution: VATSIM, short for Virtual Air Traffic SIM(ulation).
VATSIM (at www.vatsim.net) puts human volunteers in the tower to provide you with an immersive experience from departure to destination. VATSIM spans the globe, enabling you to get ATC cover from just about anywhere. The AI planes that populate the FS world are gone, replaced by other human pilots such as yourself. Thus, you can fly in a more detailed world, where big jets such as the 747 and A380 visit the major international airports, down to your everyday Cessna out over the plains. VATSIM is also 100% free for you to fly on, so there’s no membership fees to worry about.
Read MoreOld bold pilot
For me the love and fear of flying began when I was five years old. My step-brother was a pilot in the RAF and on Battle-of-Britain day in 1952 he smuggled me on-board a Wellington Bomber at RAF Hullavington and I was immediately ‘bitten’ by the flying bug. On a foggy day in October of the same year the love turned to fear when my step brother was killed in a crash at the same airfield in the same aircraft.
Read MorePrepar3D® Version 1.2 and 1.3 Updates
We previously reviewed Lockheed Martin’s Prepar3D® product version 1.1, and now, updated versions 1.2 and 1.3 have been released, to provide student, private, and professional pilots an immersive flight simulation training environment. Prepar3D is evolved and updated from Microsoft ESP™, which in turn was derived from Microsoft Flight Simulator X. Prepar3D also includes new features and enhancements to aviation, maritime, ground-based, emergency response training scenarios, and it adds a new multiplayer engine, to help professionals and students from around the world train together in real time. In this article, we highlight the version 1.2 and1.3 updates.
Read MoreLugano X: „Airportino“ for FSX
If I call Lugano an „Airportino“, I do by no means imply to belittle this important airport in Southern Switzerland. Lugano, small as it is in comparison with large airports like nearby Milan Malpensa, has made aviation history both locally and abroad. The population of the Swiss sunshine canton of Ticino (Tessin) were understandably proud to get their very own scheduled services, originally started by Crossair. When that carrier brought a real-life four engine airliner into Lugano, it got quickly dubbed “Jumbolino”, as in “the little Jumbo”. It was followed shortly after by the Saab 2000, known for its speed, which was called the “Concordino” accordingly. Since then the BAE 146 and its successors have been known by the name of Jumbolino around Europe and sometimes even elsewhere in the world and the “-ino” ending has been used to describe small but cute businesses, airplanes and other aviation related venues.
Read MoreLian Li PITSTOP DIY Test Bench – Technical Review
I’ve been testing selected computer hardware with flight simulation programs for several years, and I’ve written many reviews about my experiences and specific test results. In some instances, I’ve been mounting hardware in computer cases, though in other situations, to keep costs lower and provide for easy changes of components, I’ve done “bench testing” of hardware. In those instances, I’ve cleared a horizontal surface for all necessary components, including motherboards, which I’ve placed on a fairly firm piece of foam insulation board, using a clamp, cable, and bracelet device to ground myself while handling components, to avoid issues with static electricity, particularly with motherboards and processors.
With some additional hardware testing on the horizon, I thought about purchasing another computer case, maybe one that would be fairly open, though I wanted complete accessibility to allow easy and frequent changing of components. So, I Googled “computer test stand,” “computer test bench,” and similar terms, thinking that at least one manufacturer had developed the product I imagined. I found only three candidate products, two of which are described briefly, and the third comprises the main part of this article.
Read MoreInfinite Flight Review
by Mark Avey
Being a constant traveler due to my work, I love the idea of having a flight simulator available on my mobile devices. Flying Development Studio fulfills that wish with the iOS version of Infinite Flight (herein known as IF). IF is also available for Windows Phone 7 (in fact, it was written for the mobile Windows Operating System first).
This review focuses on the iPad version, as that seems the more natural device to run it on, due to its larger screen size and Retina graphics (more on that later) of the new iPad. I’d like to add at this point that I purchased this app prior to being asked to review it. Yep, I put my own hard earned cash down on this one.
MAJESTIC SWEETNESS – the DC-6B
Parked on the tarmac of LOWS, in Salzburg, Austria, a four-engined Behemoth glimmers in the morning light. The example at hand is N996DM, a fully restored Douglas DC-6B, owned and operated by Flying Bulls. It was delivered as serial number 45563, in November of 1958. In 1961 it was transferred to the Yugoslav Air Force, then later donated to the Zambian Air Force in 1975. It served as the airline of President Kaunda. In 1994 this classic was bought by Namibia Commercial Aviation, registered as V5-NCF. The Flying Bulls of Salzburg brought her back to Europe after purchase in 2000. Since, the aircraft us undergone extensive restoration.
Read MoreComputer Pilot IPad App
