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Reviews (by David)

JUSTFLIGHT - MOSQUITO SPECIAL OPS - UPGRADE PACK A

JUSTFLIGHT - MOSQUITO SPECIAL OPS - UPGRADE PACK A

It’s a complete mess. Missing gauges and no audio! I managed to fix the audio but I shouldn’t have had to. The gauges are a bit more challenging to fix but again I shouldn’t have to! Also no new liveries for the base pack as there should be. Very disappointed. Same problem with Pack B. Should come with a warning like “some assembly required” 

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FLYTAMPA - KAITAK FS2004 FSX P3D

FLYTAMPA - KAITAK FS2004 FSX P3D

Insanely good scenery. Wow! The city looks so nice during the day and at night is even more beautiful. Catch the fireworks from 8pm to midnight on the hour for 10 minute shows. Only wish the explosions sound FX were included.  Great frame rates on my mid level PC with high settings across the board. The approach is of course outstanding. Very fun to fly and watch the replays. I can’t believe they ever allowed such an approach in the first place, but I’m very pleased that FlyTampa gave it all so much care and attention in bringing it back to life in FSX. So many details to look at. Totally worth the price and isn’t a multi GB footprint, nope! It’s less than 300MBs!  Must have for those of us not yet willing to retire our FSX collections.

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RFSCENERYBUILDING - LSGG GENEVA COINTRIN 2015 FSX P3D

RFSCENERYBUILDING - LSGG GENEVA COINTRIN 2015 FSX P3D

I finally figured out how to fix this this on my own no thanks to the dev who ignored my email. So minus 1 star still for the nonexistent customer service, and static jetways no SODE. BUT! It’s still better than FSDT and it never reverts at random to a trial mode like FSDT does.  Lovely airport.

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RFSCENERYBUILDING - LSGG GENEVA COINTRIN 2015 FSX P3D

RFSCENERYBUILDING - LSGG GENEVA COINTRIN 2015 FSX P3D

I bought this to replace my extremely buggy FSDT version of the same airport. While this one does actually work and looks really good, for some reason I have no jetways at all? Just the stubs of where a jetway should be. Weird. It’s definitely not from my end, and I have a LOT of add ons and experience with them so I have made sure. My SODE is fully up to date working with all others. Just a weird bug I think? Anyway despite the jetway issues it’s a really nice airport. Unlike the FSDT version which kept reverting to Trial Mode and requiring reinstallation every time I wanted to use it, I’d still highly recommend this one if you have a choice. Nice lighting and winter effects too. Almost a 4 star add on if the developer would’ve answered my questions about the missing jetways issue. 

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FLIGHT REPLICAS - CAC BOOMERANG CA-12/CA-13

FLIGHT REPLICAS - CAC BOOMERANG CA-12/CA-13

This is a real hidden gem! I had never even heard of this aircraft until I spotted it in the Market. They did a very nice job of building and developing this unique warbird. Excellent texturing on all fronts! Very good audio and lighting. Believable flight model that gives a realistic impression. The guns (when armed) fire using the same trigger button I have mapped to brakes. The same button (without having to make any mapping changes) fires guns in the air, and brakes when on the ground.  I love that engine damaging is modeled. So you do have to fly it by the book. No continuous full throttle allowed, just very brief periods are possible depending on the aircrafts in flight conditions. Realistic limitations are applied. Much appreciated realism by this warbird fan. 

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FINAL APPROACH SIMULATIONS - TRINIDAD, TOBAGO, GRENADA AIRPORTS FSX

FINAL APPROACH SIMULATIONS - TRINIDAD, TOBAGO, GRENADA AIRPORTS FSX

A competent add on with some bright spots, but mostly a low budget attempt with rather low quality textures. I seriously have had far better freeware, just not all three of these airports. Well it’s the only option for these airports in one package so what are you gonna do? Kind of surprised it’s not a better add on considering this was available since late 2020. It looks like it was made in 2004.  I regret paying full price. But satisfied to have the scenery options for the region all in one purchase. 

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FLYTAMPA - STMAARTEN COMPLETE FS2004 FSX P3D

FLYTAMPA - STMAARTEN COMPLETE FS2004 FSX P3D

What can be said that hasn’t already? It’s another superb FlyTampa add on. All three islands and airports in amazing detail! It’s the crown jewel of any Caribbean scenery collection. Much of the very best details are near each airport, but there are also some nice surprises here and there. Such as a pod of dolphins swimming dolphins, people riding around on small motorcycles, walking around the beech, waving etc. so cool.  It’s worth getting this complete package version for sure. Excellent FPS!  Pricey yes. Worth it yes! I just wish FSX would stop clearing me to land jetliners on 28. However it is a rather fun and challenging (if not totally unrealistic) experience to make the R28 approach in a jumbo.  Oh yes, the night lighting is also amazing and done in such a way that you could suspend reality and get a real world impression of the surroundings.  This is not something to be missed and I believe is an essential scenery add on for anyone, especially Caribbean fans.  FSX Steam Win 10. 

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MEX HIGH FLIGHT - MMMD MERIDA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT FSX

MEX HIGH FLIGHT - MMMD MERIDA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT FSX

I picked this up because my Taxi2Gate version suffered extreme frame rate loss down to 3FPS. This version is just as good and gets much better FPS averaging around 30. The details are excellent and overall a lovely place to visit or do circuits. Night lighting is pretty good too. I’m glad I could find a MMMD add on that works well and looks great.  Totally recommend it!

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WILCO - PIAGGIO P180 AVANTI II FSX

WILCO - PIAGGIO P180 AVANTI II FSX

Very buggy. Crashes. The audio keeps glitching in and out. The plane causes FSX to keep freezing up throughout the flight until finally FSX just shuts down. Cant complete a single full flight. Total waste of money and time.

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CARENADO - A72 500 SERIES FSX P3D

CARENADO - A72 500 SERIES FSX P3D

This plane is better than some of the reviews suggest. There is a full ground power system actually and it’s unique to these planes in real world. Just google “Hotel Mode proceedure ATR 72” you’ll see various videos explaining it. Basically these plane don’t use GPU units, but instead run power from the right engine while in Hotel mode. The whole process has several steps, but ultimately it works and it really cool that Carenado fully modeled this. So a complete procedural cold and dark can be performed as the real aircraft does. The other systems all are working as well I had no trouble with setting up complete routes with waypoints and altitudes etc. The plane followed it perfectly so far. I did however need to correct some altitudes, but that’s easy also.  So far as I can tell after doing a bunch of research before buying everything is simulated. At least all the important things that would lend to a realistic experience.  That all said she flies great! Real gentle bird but responsive when you need it. The textures are as usual outstanding inside and out.so is the interior lighting but the landing lights really stand out as …. WOW!  So it’s not perfect but we expect this from Carenado. We get a beautiful aircraft that surprises with deeper than usual systems. It’s not one that should be ignored. Just be ready to watch some YouTube vids in order to learn the full start up on board power system. It’s worth it.

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ALABEO - C441 CONQUEST II FSX P3D

ALABEO - C441 CONQUEST II FSX P3D

Having the FlySimWare Conquest as well and many hours flying it I can tell you this. This Conquest is bar far better looking but fails to model the Garrett engines realistically as the FSW version does that very well. What you get here is a way better looking but far simpler plane. Not much modeled here except the flight characteristic or behaviors in the air. Which are good. Basically they are two totally different versions of the same aircraft. It’s undeniably prettier here. It’s also fun to fly, but you can run full throttle all the way without causing any problems. It’s up to you to fly as designed of course. It’s really beauty vs realism. This is the pageant winner for sure. It just leave some to be desired where accuracy is concerned. 

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CARENADO - XL560 CITATION FSX P3D

CARENADO - XL560 CITATION FSX P3D

This plane is really much better than some might suggest. First of all it has the usual outstanding Carenado texturing inside and out. You really see something that looks real and luxurious. Right down to the seat belts, random external scratches or marks from routine use and onward. The lighting is also high quality. Where the flight models is concerned it delivers an amazing flight capability that impresses a sense of realism. Those engines sound great!  The PL21 systems are mostly capable. So far I’ve been able to make detailed flight plans but did have to correct the altitudes on each. It doesn’t follow every point on the route for some reason but it does manage to stay on course in the end.  For a Carenado product it is well simulated regarding the systems. Though little documentation provided for the ProLine 21 it isn’t hard to figure out if you’ve used other systems. If you don’t know what to do, just do what I did and google the plane and you’ll find all sorts of helpful tutorials to walk you through it all from start up to shut down. Nearly every single switch, button and dial works. Whatever the case it’s not by any means a 2 star add on. That’s just crazy unfair.  I love flying this plane and highly recommend it. It has it all, looks, details, realism and fun!

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TAXI2GATE - MANUEL CRESCENCIO REJON INTL MMMD FSX

TAXI2GATE - MANUEL CRESCENCIO REJON INTL MMMD FSX

I have many excellent scenery add ons and none have ever dragged so slow. 5 to 9 max FPS. I can run the same weather and aircraft at MMMX and easily get 25 to 30 FPS there. I don’t know why but this is the very worst T2G scenery (of the 6 I own) and the worst of all in my entire collection. Chug chug chug real bad. 

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DIGITAL DESIGN - LOWS SALZBURG W.A. MOZART FSX P3D

DIGITAL DESIGN - LOWS SALZBURG W.A. MOZART FSX P3D

I hadn’t heard of this developer so I wasn’t sure if I should trust them. I took the chance and I’m glad. This is some outstanding scenery! First off the airport is really nicely made. Great detailing and careful building placement that matches photos from the time of this release perfectly. The nearby city being included is great. Love all the custom or real world building models. Light posts line the streets and the night lighting is just as good as the rest. Really makes for a very cool destination or helicopter flights. Flying to and from my Innsbruck add on scenery and Salzburg is a treat.  If you want something that gives more than just an airport but also a city and neighborhoods with a good amount of real world building models and a good photo ground layer, than this should be high on your list.

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METAL2MESH - M2K-C FSX P3D

METAL2MESH - M2K-C FSX P3D

Wow! I just recently got the VRS TacPac with the Amazing SuperBug F18 combo and just had to pick this up too. It was a good choice if I may say so myself. This Mirage2000 is such a nicely crafted add on. Plenty of liveries that for once (for military planes at least) aren’t a bunch of the same livery with only slight differences. This package offers some standard military liveries as well but there are more creative types to choose from than most. That French flair is quite evident in some very artistic and colorful liveries that compliment the collection variety. The flight model is (so far as any civilian can possibly know, which is little) seemingly excellent. It’s a high performance plane that can haul ash. Beautiful afterburner effect. Con trails, leading edge and over wing vapor wash all done well. Unlike the Typhoon this M2000 has more distinctive flight behaviors that impress upon the virtual pilot that they are flying something different. The somewhat simulated fly by wire system while not truly simulated is at the very least fairly well replicated here. The TacPac integration works seamlessly and is infinitely easier to use than say the Typhoon by another dev. Perhaps it’s because this is a less complex fire control system, but ultimately makes use of armaments a lot easier than the current generation fighters. The INS is awful but very realistic. It’s real world design (at least for the period of this model Mirage) requires the dumbest user programming procedures I’ve heard of. No joke you must enter coordinates completely in revers of the way us humans read them. Somebody was high and sleep deprived or just didn’t care when they created this INS system. M2M offers a link to a converter to use online to bring back to the sim but not without much end user manual input for the most part. I can’t imagine anybody actually using this? But there’s sure to be die hards out there who will happily.  Despite this real world INS system being fully simulated I have ignored it completely without issue in favor of the fairly simple and general autopilot.  Nevertheless weapons are easy to shoot or drop without requiring any complex fire control systems programming and that’s really fun.  This add on has it all. Realism, great looks, fun to fly, easy TacPac integration and just an all around outstanding fighter package! Love it!  My new favorite modern-ish fighter. 

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CAPTAIN SIM - 757 CAPTAIN III - (757-2PW) BASE PACK - FSX/SE

CAPTAIN SIM - 757 CAPTAIN III - (757-2PW) BASE PACK - FSX/SE

This is actually the best CaptainSim product available for FSX. I own all of their planes and this is my most recent addition. Got it on a flash sale at CaptainSim direct. The full asking price as is is far too high by today’s standards. Not to suggest it’s bad or anything, just way too expensive. That said I After having got it for a fraction of that insane high price tag, I’ve come to feel very good about the add on and would’ve paid maybe $40. Tops knowing what I know now.  This 757 package is their best effort and very well executed. The textures are all very good quality and look like the real thing. The cockpit is stocked and fully functional except for maybe a few minor things. You get two fully functioning FMCs that can be used independently of one another. The systems all seem to be modeled accurately or at least believably. Night lighting is really good with touches of ambiance brought by the adjustable lighting options in the cockpit. The taxi and landing lights are better than the average CS add on.  You get (like most CS add ons) a cool virtual cabin with views from business class and coach. The tallies are stocked with various sundries and whatnot. Even the cabin entertainment screens on the bulkheads show a tiny simmed but looped and brief movie clip, the moving map of the current flight or the pre flight safety announcement. Where the flight characteristics are concerned I believe this to be again their best offering. Hand flying is fluid and easy with a very responsive behavior.  The engines sound right, and so do all the ambient effects like wind over the windshield, rolling rattles on take off or high speed taxiing, shuddering upon landing etc. It’s all there.  You also get the captain and flight attendant audio announcements that you can select by pushing on a collections of buttons on the overhead.  There are a ton of liveries available for download and easily added (unlike the wonky and inconsistent iFlys plane liveries) via the 757 aircraft manager. The same manager also provide options for weight and balance with either presets, randomizer, or fully customized click by seat click.  All well done. My only complaint is that it’s hard on frame rates. For example my QualityWings 787 using its HUD runs at 40+ FPS on average at the same places or flights  that this 757 is struggling to average 24-28. Not sure why?  In the end I feel like I got a solid 757 simulation that is fun and satisfying. But I’m glad I didn’t pay full price considering it needs more optimizations for the performance. 

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CARENADO - S340 FSX P3D

CARENADO - S340 FSX P3D

This might be my favorite Carenado aircraft. They always deliver amazing textures inside and out but this one is just a little bit more amazing than usual. Plus the flight dynamics are better than usual and the systems modeling is above their average but the FMC is as usual, pretty lite. After walking around the exterior and viewing all the little details and well defined curves and lighting effects I was really in awe of how good it all is. 

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TAXI2GATE - MONTERREY MMMY V2 FSX

TAXI2GATE - MONTERREY MMMY V2 FSX

It’s T2G so you know it’s going to be good. Why the jetways don’t move or connect to airplanes doesn’t make sense even for the age of this add on. Frames drop a little bit with higher end aircraft. Still an excellent airport to have.

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TAXI2GATE - MMMX MEXICO CITY XTREME FSX

TAXI2GATE - MMMX MEXICO CITY XTREME FSX

It’s amazing scenery add ons like this that keep me satisfied with continuing to use and enjoy FSX SE.  the airport is chock full of detail. An immersive, almost like being there experience is not an exaggeration. T2G is very good at creating the best you can get add ons. I can’t really say anything that hasn’t been said except echo and confirm all the good things others mentioned. It’s all true.  The whole scenery area has some of the best night lighting around. Somehow all this detail on even higher density settings still yields good frame rates.  Something not really mentioned is that there are at least a dozen roof top helipads. Only a couple that seemed like they should be solid landing pads aren’t. It’s a helicopter pilots dream. I’m so glad I finally got this. 

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FLIGHT 1 - CESSNA CITATION MUSTANG VERSION 2 FSX P3D

FLIGHT 1 - CESSNA CITATION MUSTANG VERSION 2 FSX P3D

Sure the interior textures aren’t exactly up to date and are a little on the flat side, but the aircraft on the whole is actually quite good. Not full price good, but good all the same. I picked it up on sale at Flight1 site so I feel I got a good value. If I had paid full price I’d be a little disappointed.  While the interior textures leave some to be desired they also have some cool extra features not usually seen. Such as cabinets that open to reveal a stocked bar with bottles and glasses. Some drawers are empty too. The seating in the back looks pretty good and the tables can be set.  Most of all the flight model and sounds are excellent. The FMC is fully capable and all systems appear to be simulated.  If you can forgive a slightly dated appearance and appreciate good flight dynamics then find it on sale and it should leave you feeling good about it. I did.

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FLIGHT 1 - IFLY JETS: THE 747-400 FSX FSXSE

FLIGHT 1 - IFLY JETS: THE 747-400 FSX FSXSE

No reviews? How could that be? This is an outstanding package. Not 9th do you get the 747-400 in amazing detail but also the 800! Everything is very well done. Systems seem to be all simulated which is cool.  A hefty FMC that I can’t find any issues with. The FMC has several options built in like custom failures, or random failures etc as well as all door controls, load the aircraft live and more.  The textures are really well done and the night lighting is also top notch.  Engines sound pretty good, wind over the airframe hisses like it should when at full cruise. I just can’t say anything bad about this. Everything works and works very well. It looks great, flies fantastically.  Ok I found one thing to complain about, the liveries require some additional downloading and then individually installed. If you don’t enter all the fields correctly while using the manager app then you’ll have either no livery or a messed up one. It’s just a little painful and I’d have preferred they at least offered a collection of most common airliners to start and then the option for adding more later. But no, you must get them all (except for maybe 4 non house liveriea) manually and it’s a bit of a pain.  Still I  wouldn’t remove a star for that complaint. This is the 747 I’ve always wanted but spent years being unsure of it until now. Love it!  Working with FSX Steam 16GB Ram Intel UHD630 Integrated GPU with 128MB dedicated VRAM and getting excellent frame rates even at big add on airports. Amazing! 

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XTREME PROTOTYPES - AVRO CF105 ARROW

XTREME PROTOTYPES - AVRO CF105 ARROW

I picked this up on the cheap from the developers shop. Not as fluid as SimMarket and has extra steps but the job got done. I’m using this with FSX Steam Win10 with 16GB ram and Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU 128MB VRaM dedicated. It runs perfectly without any issues.  That said this is a very interesting aircraft that apparently never caught on on the real world. A very niche add on. Right up my alley and I’ve been enjoying this gas guzzler quite a bit. It’s hard to see what’s directly in from of you from inside the cockpit as the way the glass in framed causes quite a blind spot. Much like the Convair dart and dagger planes. So landing is pretty challenging and side slipping is very difficult in this plane. Not a lot of bells and whistles here just a pretty simple set of systems are simmed but the flight model and sound offer something unusual.  If you like obscure and sort of a what if type of add on that is really fast, then do check this out. Even though it’s really a FS2004 model it works fine in FSX Steam and looks good enough to not feel quite as dated as it is. The included Mk2 is even faster and can fly a little higher.  A very basic Auto Pilot come with the plane so that helps. You do need to nurse the A/P elevator trim in order to stay level and speed changes will make that even more of a work load. Don’t worry it’s manageable and level flight can be achieved with the A/P. 

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MP DESIGN STUDIO - UTVA AVIATION INDUSTRY - UTVA 75 FSX P3D

MP DESIGN STUDIO - UTVA AVIATION INDUSTRY - UTVA 75 FSX P3D

What nice little somewhat hidden gem. Trainers may not be the most popular add ons but I have several and personally enjoy them. This Utva 75 is an excellent plane to fly around in. It gives a realistic impression which is aided by the visible vibrations or shakes that occur appropriately during ground roll and in the air. Strong audio effects and good night lighting. The night lighting especially taxi and landing lights reflect on the cockpit side of the aircraft a little bit just as in real world which is something I’ve not seen simulated often. 4 liveries come with it. It’s a solid add on that should be given more looks. No A/P but the glass multi display is a very nice feature. There is a manual included to learn about it.  Give it a shot. Works fine with FSX Steam. Just needed to manually direct the install path to my FSX SE root folder. No problem. 

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MP DESIGN STUDIO - SIKORSKY S-55 FSX P3D

MP DESIGN STUDIO - SIKORSKY S-55 FSX P3D

A while ago I emailed the developer asking if this was compatible with FSX Steam. They responded with a simple “No”. That seemed odd. Later I saw in a forum where somebody was using it successfully with FSX SE, so I bought it a couple days ago and can tell you it DOES work just fine with FSX Steam. So either the developer doesn’t know what he or she is doing or their customer service doesn’t know what they are talking about. So minus 1 star for poor customer service. The helicopter is really cool and fun to fly. Like all MP Design rotorcraft this S55 is simulated to a high degree of realism pushing the FSX limits. It’s challenging to fly and again there’s going to be a learning curve for the uninitiated.  Textures are also good quality and the audio sounds excellent. To sum it up this is FSX Steam compatible and a lot of fun! 

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MP DESIGN STUDIO - AEROSPATIALE GAZELLE SA342 FSX P3D

MP DESIGN STUDIO - AEROSPATIALE GAZELLE SA342 FSX P3D

Really quite an amazing helicopter sim. This is a lot more stable than expected. Not that it doesn’t present a challenge, it does. MP Design really did something special here. You have the option to manually control the RPMs and it works great by simply assigning a joystick the proper propeller pitch controls making it as close to realistic as FSX can get. Love the various flight aspects that are simulated like transverse effect etc. keep ya on your toes for sure. In addition the excellent flight model the visuals and sounds are top notch too. If you are looking for a realistic helicopter than this would be a great start! Just be prepared for a learning curve. It’s worth the effort. 

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MP DESIGN STUDIO - AEROSPATIALE SA316 ALOUETTE III FSX P3D

MP DESIGN STUDIO - AEROSPATIALE SA316 ALOUETTE III FSX P3D

It’s hard to find a realistic helicopter for FSX, as we all know. MP Design has had a very good reputation offering the most realistic possible models. So I picked this up based on the reviews. First thing I noticed was that this is not an average helicopter. From the start I heard and saw something different from the pack. I was immediately put in my place as a confident FSX helicopter pilot and had to relearn everything. I was used to the usual things. Little of that experience carried over to this. It took a few flights and crashes to get the hang of this chopper and I’m still not certain I get it. Strangely I love that feeling. It’s a real challenge that for the first time after many previous helicopters I’ve tried an enjoyed, leaves me with an impression of what it might be like to fly a real helicopter even with a standard HOTAS set up. As close as I can get anyway. The Alouette has unique characteristics I’ve not experienced before and I have a little ways to go still before I can say I am totally competent with it.  The challenge is there for sure.  The shake effect is very cool, and when you start to get into trouble there are more intense audio and visual cues telling me I need to make an adjustment to my flying habits quickly of suffer.  The visual models are really good for their age. You can also make a number of visual changes to the chosen model after starting a flight. Changes like baskets, antenna, loud speakers and more. There are several liveries in this package to choose from even if a few are only subtly different from another.  If you love helicopters and have felt like you’ve tried them all, feeling like they are mostly all the same, then you should seriously consider this add on. It’s not like all the rest at all. It will challenge you. It’s a solid add on for sure. 

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AEROSOFT - DIGITAL AVIATION PIPER CHEYENNE X - (DOWNLOAD)

AEROSOFT - DIGITAL AVIATION PIPER CHEYENNE X - (DOWNLOAD)

The positive reviews sold me on this plane and despite the age of it, I bought it. I see now what all the others are saying about this aircraft is all true. It’s a very good add on. The age of it however is showing quite a bit. Its design roots from previous iterations of MSFS shows and you can see clearly that it not totally up to FSX standards. Having said that I want to point out that despite that it does look pretty good for its age, and more importantly it flies even better. In the areas of feeling realistic this aircraft add on does fit the bill nicely. It’s also a fun plane to fly that doesn’t leave me feeling like it’s the same as any other twin. The audio holds up pretty good as well.  It might be a bit over priced for the times but it is still clearly a classic that after some time in the virtual skies I understood why it has been held in such hi regard by so many simmers.  You are getting a few different versions of the Cheyenne and a good number of liveries in total. So to sum it all up I’d say that this old lady is still a worthy add on for the sake of realism as long as you can get over the obvious visual age and appreciate its realism. I like it. 

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TAXI2GATE - HAMAD INTL AIRPORT FSX P3D

TAXI2GATE - HAMAD INTL AIRPORT FSX P3D

This is of course a very nice scenery package with a highly detailed airport and the whole nearby Doha city. Not quite as good as FlyTampas Dubai, but still up there as one of the greats. T2G always delivers on the expectations of its fans and this is no exception. Most attention was paid to Hamad. The city seems a little thrown in, almost like it was a last minute thing. It’s still good and I’m very grateful for the cityscape, but the airport outshines it. Like all their airports. Accurate , complete, detailed and beautiful. Totally worth it! 

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GLOWINGHEAT - B-58 HUSTLER FSX

GLOWINGHEAT - B-58 HUSTLER FSX

OK this is a really obscure or at least relatively unknown aircraft. You might have to be a weirdo Cold War era collector like me to be truly interested. I had to have it in my virtual museum. Flying the Hustler is odd. The afterburners kick in after only about 25% throttle setting and get stronger as you slide throttle up. It burns fuel at an alarming rate and is hard to keep it at a cruise of around 300kias. That also means that slowing this beast is a nightmare. No spoilers to aid with shredding off airspeed especially on descent.  How much of this is realistic I have no idea. But I’m pretty sure the afterburners shouldn’t engage at such low power settings. But, it’s an interesting plane that is a challenge to fly and especially land properly.  The VC is pretty low rez and while it matches photos hardly anything is clickable. Like an old Virtavia or AlphaSim freeware but slightly better. The key thing here is having a keen interest in the era of this type. If so then there is some fun to be had. But after only a couple flights I already feel like I’ve exhausted my curiosity or desire to stick with it. Maybe? I’m still glad I own this monster. 

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FLIGHT 1 - QUALITYWINGS ULTIMATE 787 COLLECTION FSX

FLIGHT 1 - QUALITYWINGS ULTIMATE 787 COLLECTION FSX

I can’t believe there are hardly any user reviews for this. Maybe not many people are buying it since it’s the most expensive add on aircraft around. Definitely a little price gouging here. I mean it’s a really really nice collection of the 787s. The cockpit is just unreal but so very real looking. Very very few aircraft add ons look this good! Even Carenado could learn something. I’ve been inspecting these and so far after a few hours of viewing and flying I can cannot find anything wrong or out of place. Quality Wings went all out here and it shows. This is a fully functioning aircraft that is represented at the highest level. The FMCs the Flight Bag touch screens are all clickable and easy to use. No finicky buttons or hard to locate click spots( except on the A/P Speed dial) to frustrate you.  Outstanding textures from A to Z and easy on frames. I use an integrated GPU and can fly this in and out of my Taxi2Gate or FlyTampa sceneries without issue. I’m running at 45 FPS consistently and only lose about -5 or so when in less optimized scenery add ons.  The lighting is oh so good! It looks so realistic. One could feel like they are looking through a window at the real thing when staring at the monitor.  The wing flex, engine and other sounds all come together for a fully immersive experience.  Hand flying is top of the heap excellent! It’s just how I imagine a real 787 would be like. Of course I only have videos, pictures and various ebooks to derive any sort of comparisons but being a flight sim fanatic with over 21000 hours and having over 400 aircraft add ons (paid and free) I can say that this is as good as it gets for FSX (PMDG not withstanding) and while it is over priced a bit, it’s the only 787 available that is worth buying. I waited years with this on my wish list looking for a sale but never saw one so I finally caved and paid the extreme sticker price. I have to say I just love this one!  So many liveries available also from QW website. 

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FSDG - CASABLANCA FSX P3D

FSDG - CASABLANCA FSX P3D

I always start off thinking wow, with these FSDG sceneries. It another excellent offering by them no doubt. You can expect high levels of detail and quality textures throughout. I can’t find anything to complain about. Always a solid buy when purchasing any FSDG scenery.

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MSK - REMAKE ISLAMABAD INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT FSX P3D

MSK - REMAKE ISLAMABAD INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT FSX P3D

Not bad, could be better. However it is pric3d right for what you get and that is fair. I’m not saying anything is wrong with it. It’s just not a really well defined and detailed scenery. It is still pretty nice and the airport is complete. But I’ve never been there so I can’t really say for certain just how accurate it is. It’s hard to find good scenery for Pakistan, and I only wanted it so I could have somewhere different to fly from Dubai or Doha etc. I’m satisfied with this. Frames seem pretty good too.

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JUSTFLIGHT - 146-200/300 JETLINER

JUSTFLIGHT - 146-200/300 JETLINER

Even though I already have the Quality Wings version package I thought I’d try this as well. The main selling point for me was that airstairs can be enabled with all liveries not just a few. Also the passenger views with full cabin was a big point as well. The aircraft config tool lets you choose what planes have airstairs and if you want them in the front or back, neither or both. That proved to be just what I wanted. Plus the model is really nice. Great textures and the the cockpit looks fantastic except for a few minor low rez textures near the side window frames. Kind of nit picky but it stands out a little bit.  The flight modeling is pretty good also and seems more realistic than the QW version. The sound is better too.  Only real issue I have is that there is no panel for opening and closing doors or stairs. The only option is a very touchy shift E 1,2 etc. on all my other planes I hit shift E  once then each digit one at a time requiring only a little timing between each number. This one forces a shift E  together then 1 (and so on) one at a time and hitting the digit must be just right. I mean it requires absolute perfection or the corresponding door won’t open or close. Really annoying. Makes getting doors, stairs etc where I want them very frustrating and takes a while sometimes because I can’t always get the timing perfect. Shift E together then in a split second hit the digit right after. None of my other planes do this. Weird little quirk with this.  Other than that I am happy with the purchase. 

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AEROSOFT - FAIRBANKS X FSX P3D FS2004

AEROSOFT - FAIRBANKS X FSX P3D FS2004

Another excellent SimWings scenery add on!  Unfortunately it’s (same with Anchorage) not fully compatible with FSX Steam. No water in the sea base lake. It’s dried up in all seasons. Plus the train never appears. Other than those compatibility issues the airport is incredible! Every detail is given full attention. Like the Anchorage add on it’s all very well done and has excellent night lighting effects. So much better than default. 

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AEROSOFT - GERMAN AIRFIELDS 2 - NORDLICHTER (DOWNLOAD)

AEROSOFT - GERMAN AIRFIELDS 2 - NORDLICHTER (DOWNLOAD)

I picked this and Vol 2 up on sale and I am glad I did. It is a great island hopping scenery area. Lots of interesting small field with nice textures. Unfortunately the default textures remain just underneath the add on textures at most of the airfields. Some more than others. Still a decent package but not worth full price. 

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AEROSOFT - GERMAN AIRFIELDS 1 - INSELHÜPFEN (DOWNLOAD)

AEROSOFT - GERMAN AIRFIELDS 1 - INSELHÜPFEN (DOWNLOAD)

This is a pretty cool collection of small airfields with a couple medium sized airports as well. There are also various new buildings and other structures around Kiel that enhances the default scenery quite a bit.  The airfields are all detailed nicely and flying to and from each is much better than it was before I installed this. One issue though is that the original default airfields remain present under the new scenery at most of them. Some are worse than others but some are only a little noticeable.  Probably a problem with FSX Steam maybe? I still like the add on. It’s harder on frames or system power than say the UK2000 airfields packages. Then again these are better textures as well. 

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FLYTAMPA - DUBAI REBOOTED FS2004 FSX P3D

FLYTAMPA - DUBAI REBOOTED FS2004 FSX P3D

I got these from FlyTampa direct as a replacement for a previous scenery problem. Which should be noted as amazing customer service. FlyTampa not only offers so,e of the best scenery around, but also is run by a person of great integrity who cares about his customers.  That said this Dubai scenery is epic. Full of detailed custom buildings and other sites. The airport itself is up there in terms of quality and true to FlyTampa standards. Working jetways, ground vehicles and a lot of other airport details fully implemented. It’s quite a vision on approach with all those tall and interesting towers. It’s especially nice at night or sunset.  Taking a helicopter up to get a closer look at things is a blast. There are at least a dozen roof top helipads to visit. My only complaint is with the helipads and it’s really minor. I wish that the helipads had a little more detail like access stairs or ramps. As is you there are no visible means for folks to get on or off the pads. Again a minor gripe.  Frame rates are outstanding even with some weather and high end add on aircraft in use. This is the best Dubai scenery I’ve been able to find and I highly recommend it even with missing some of the most recent airport additions that came after this was released.  Works great with FSC Steam. 

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AEROSOFT - KASTELLORIZO (DOWNLOAD)

AEROSOFT - KASTELLORIZO (DOWNLOAD)

This is another outstanding FSDG scenery! Full of details and photo real visions that take you a virtual island visit. Of the Aerosoft Greek islands it’s the smallest but totally worth it. Other than the main island you also get a couple other small islands nearby that have helipads. I really like this scenery especially with having all the other Greek islands they make. The Caribbean is nice and gets the most attention but the Greek isles are equally as nice and make fun some excellent island hopping.  Very easy on frames. 

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FSHELI.CH - SA315 LAMA X

FSHELI.CH - SA315 LAMA X

I was expecting an exceptional helicopter simulation and I guess I mostly got that. However I don’t feel like it’s any better than a lot of other helicopters available? It is indeed excellent and does come close for an FSX offering, it’s as good as a Cera helicopter but with lots of added missions and variations that bring a bit more to the table. The appearance of these are actually pretty good, but the virtual cockpit shows its age a bit. It’s not bad, just could be better for the money.  The add on scenery is kinda nice but causes weird problems with flight planning for other aircraft so I disabled them and everything was fine after that. Very odd bug that if I selected any other of my aircraft FSX could not load a flight plan and just got hung up or froze.  The Lama itself as a whole does have a very good feeling of being well developed with care.  I think it’s a bit overpriced even with all the extras but is still pretty cool all together as a package. 

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AEROSOFT - DIGITAL AVIATION DO-27 X (DOWNLOAD)

AEROSOFT - DIGITAL AVIATION DO-27 X (DOWNLOAD)

This old gem should still be considered for purchase. It’s another of Aerosoft fully simulated airplanes that surrounds you with a true experience. At least as close as possible in FSX. While you can turn off all the detailed realism features and just fly worry free, that’s not what the core of this Do-27 is about. Like the Katana (but implemented very differently) you get to approximate a realistic aircraft complete with all of its quirks and general needs. Not unlike A2As Accusim, you’ll have to take care of this plane just as if it were real. It’s a highly detailed system that if you can suspend reality for the time being, you’ll be rewarded with a very fulfilling and entertaining time. It’s hard to find these types of simulations but they are of the best kind. Even while showing its age a little bit the Do-27 is nicely detailed and centered most on the appearances of well used aircraft. The only thing missing is the physical feelings of being there to experience the vibrations and gravity etc.  I just wish I knew why the rear windows are not see through? Not sure what’s causing that. Anyway this is one amazing plane. Still worthy of a serious look. 

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GOLDEN AGE SIMULATIONS - GOLDEN AGE - PITCAIRN PACKAGE FOR FSX

GOLDEN AGE SIMULATIONS - GOLDEN AGE - PITCAIRN PACKAGE FOR FSX

GAS does a great job with their add on planes. I have many and never had any complaints. This package is just as good. What a strange and interesting aircraft. Really different to fly and fun also.  Excellent details, very sharp. Pretty good sounds but a little inconsistent when looking left or right in the cockpit.  It’s not an exact replica but all things considered and working with what was possible GAS managed a really good product that approximates the real thing pretty closely. At least so far as I can tell having never seen one of these except in pictures. 

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AEROSOFT - DA20-100 KATANA 4X FSX

AEROSOFT - DA20-100 KATANA 4X FSX

This is a real surprise and cool plane simulation.  If you’re familiar with the excellent A2A Accusim products you’ll feel right at home here. The user interface is a bit different but pretty intuitive. Like Accusim your aircraft is fully simulated down to the slightest detail and then some. There are some differences such as in this you can wash and clean your plane inside and out. It simulated every aspect of the process right down to filling a water bucket and dipping the sponge, to vacuuming the interior. So much is detailed for all maintenance of the aircraft, it would take too long to list them all out. What you’re getting is a small plane with a huge amount of real world related necessities associated with it.  My only complaint is that the various maintenance options take a long to complete. There should be a speed up option but I’ll be damned if it isn’t realistic.  So far as the plane itself it performs just like it says on paper. You can easily damage something and ruin the flight if you don’t pay attention and just full throttle your way through flight.  So be prepared to treat this like it’s a real plane or have a hard time with it.  To folks like me that’s great. A fully simulated plane that includes ever little detail is a remarkable and fun deal.  Not too mention the aircraft is extremely well designed and very immersive. Only Accusim offers something similar. I wish Aerosoft made a lot more like this.  Don’t worry too much if you don’t want to deal with all the little things, you can turn those off and just fly for fun. 

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FLYTAMPA - LEGACY -  GRENADINES FSX P3D

FLYTAMPA - LEGACY - GRENADINES FSX P3D

Having bought Corfu and thoroughly enjoying the spectacular scenery within it I decided to also get Grenadines. I was very disappointed to find that after installing and activating the scenery in FSX Steam that there is zero autogen outside of the airports on all islands. The airports do indeed have the excellent new scenery, so does everything related to water like boats and docks. However not one building or tree anywhere else on the islands. Just black photo scenery for the included islands. After much troubleshooting via the included doc or manual, uninstalls and reinstalls still the problem persists. I tried everything laid out in the manual and the forum.  It appears also that this is a very common problem for a lot of customers that for reasons I can’t fathom has never been fixed by FlyTampa.  If FlyTampa can somehow respond to my support request and fix this I’ll gladly change this review.  I just don’t get why they never fixed it considering how prevalent the issue is.

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CARENADO - E50P PHENOM 100 HD SERIES V2  FSX P3D

CARENADO - E50P PHENOM 100 HD SERIES V2 FSX P3D

First off this is way better than the FeelThere Phenom100 by a mile. The plane is of course high Carenado visual quality. Very nice liveries. The flight model seems very good but I have nothing to truly base that off of. The systems are lite as with all Carenado planes but there is enough to enjoy a nice direct flight plane or GPS. My one complaint is that I cannot have cockpit dome off and cabin dome on. It’s all or nothing no matter what combination of lighting is used internally. This is annoying enough to knock off 1 star. The best lighting configuration possible at night leaves the cabin dark but the cockpit perfectly lit for night flying. Sorry passengers, I hope you weren’t counting on being able to read a book.  Other than that strange lighting  bug I really like this add on. 

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FLYTAMPA - LEGACY - CORFU FSX P3D

FLYTAMPA - LEGACY - CORFU FSX P3D

Wow. What a great scenery add on. This is so highly detailed and with lots of unique custom autogen. Ships come and go, dock and undock. Ferries even open and close their rear gate. They didn’t ignore anything. Lots of light posts all around the island and at night they light up perfectly. N fact all of the islands lighting is super well done. I get now why FlyTampa sceneries get such rave reviews. The frame rates are amazing also. Even with some weather and high end add on aircraft and high FSX graphic settings I get between 40 to 60 all over.  Don’t overlook this one, it’s truly amazing.

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AEROSOFT - ANCHORAGE X FSX

AEROSOFT - ANCHORAGE X FSX

This was very nearly a five star add on. Everything about the airport and its details is excellent. However I’m getting a few strange bugs. The water areas within the scenery area is solid ground. That was extremely disappointing as I was really looking forward to using some of my seaplanes here. Nope! Then I noticed no train, anywhere, ever! Also the taxiway gates that should open and close automatically don’t. The don’t open at all.  If the overall airport detailing wasn’t so good I’d have given only 3 stars.of all the add ons by Aerosoft SimWings made products are the ones I have had the most troubles with.  At least it’s a very nicely made airport with a lot of detail. Winter settings are especially cool. 

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A2A SIMULATIONS - ACCU-SIM P-51 CIVILIAN MUSTANG FSX

A2A SIMULATIONS - ACCU-SIM P-51 CIVILIAN MUSTANG FSX

This was the last AccuSim plane for me to buy. I knew what to expect when I completed the collection and was not disappointed at all. If you are looking at your first Accusim or just another, just don’t worry you will get something very special. I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again these are the very best airplane simulations you can get for FSX. The very best. It’s almost like having the real thing so far as one can get without owning the real thing. Every little detail is designed and simulated with incredible detail. The results are a by the book and believable virtual aircraft. Everything works exactly as it should and no flight is the same, for real.  This powerful aircraft isn’t something you can just put the throttle to the firewall and start doing aerobatics without practice. Oh yes it can do all those things but you better understand the aircraft first or you will spin wildly out of control. Once you do get the hang of things you are rewarded with the most satisfying flight sim experience there is on a home PC.  I found this civilian P51D to be a little more demanding than the military version. Not sure exactly why but I think it has much to do with the fact that these are much lighter among other things. Whatever the actual case is, I just love this plane. It can’t be helped, it’s just that good! 

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LIONHEART CREATIONS - LIONHEART - LJ24B GENERATION2 FSX P3D

LIONHEART CREATIONS - LIONHEART - LJ24B GENERATION2 FSX P3D

I hope SimMarket will allow me to comment on this plane despite having purchased elsewhere, because it needs more word of mouth.  The Lionheart LJ24B is a real hidden gem. They overstate the need for a high end PC a bit though. I use a Win 10 i7 16GB Ram with an Intel UHD630 GPU that only has 128mb dedicated video memory and it runs perfectly even in high density add on scenery. I average 40fps never been lower than 30. That said it is a super nice plane inside and out loaded with systems to watch over. But it isn’t overly complicated. Only the fuel transferring might have a slight learning curve.  Yes it looks smashing from all views. Yes it flies like one would expect and seemingly quite realistically.  It’s a plane that has a scary price tag that is described as needing a lot of power to even load. Those were the things that put me off for a long time. I’m glad I finally brought it to my virtual hangar and love to fly it. Let’s face it there just aren’t a lot of really good and believable light biz jets to buy. Oh sure there are a lot available but when considering value for your money, this beats all the others.  Don’t let this high speed little bird go without serious consideration. It beats all my Carenados even though they might look a little prettier. If a realistic and well simulated biz jet is something wanted, this could very well be the best choice these days.  My only complaint is the people I’m the passenger area looked like they are unhappy with each others company. Sitting with dead doll eyes appearing to wish they were either with somebody else or somewhere else. It’s a little funny and no biggie as they can be easily removed from view with a click on the seats.  Lastly the sounds a pretty darn good. Plus it comes with a nice snack pack for the Captain!  Don’t miss out on this one. 

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SKY SIMULATIONS - MD-11 V2.2 FSX P3D

SKY SIMULATIONS - MD-11 V2.2 FSX P3D

I see why people complain about this plane so much. It’s true indeed that the VC has very bad textures but they are mostly limited to the cockpit window framing. They look pretty bad, but this alone doesn’t make this a bad aircraft. It doesn’t help that the FMC is poorly implemented with severe limitations. The systems that are simulated are done so well enough to have an enjoyable flight.  However the rest of what you get is pretty good. The exterior is well done and the audio is as well. The flight model shines brightest. You get a plane that feels like a big heavy airliner or freighter. Be sure to go to SjySims website to download the livery pack which doubles the total count.  It seems to me that this is a competent but slightly hindered MD11 attempt. Currently, there’s not any other option to purchase and it does overall beat any freeware available. Well any freeware I have found and tried. The main issue here is that for you get you have to pay far too much. Since there isn’t any other MD11 around that’s any better, they kind of got you by the ear.I don’t regret buying it but I do regret that I could never find it on sale for a more reasonable price. As is it’s just over priced. If it were lower then more could be forgiven regarding the areas of sub par development. So if you want a MD11 significantly better (but still not great) than freeware, this is as of 2023 the ONLY option. 

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RLABORIE - CL-215 FSX P3D

RLABORIE - CL-215 FSX P3D

RL did a fine job modeling this aircraft. It has a realistic and believable flight model. Sometimes it feels a little on rails but mostly it feels like a rather cumbersome bird just shoving it’s way through the wind. The VC is very nice with crystal clear gauges, buttons and knobs. The main thing that bugs me is how painfully hard it is to steer on water. I guess maybe the real world one also must use thrust from alternating engine power to turn? I’m all for realism but this is just a pain on the water.  The audio is the best part. The engines really sound right. Powerful and loud.  The water load and dumping is pretty fun so there’s that.  Runs very smooth with no FPS hit. Nicely done for the most part. A couple strange and clipped camera views on the external views. But I like it.

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AEROSOFT - SKIATHOS X - THE GREEK ST. MAARTEN FSX

AEROSOFT - SKIATHOS X - THE GREEK ST. MAARTEN FSX

All of the Greek island sceneries sold by Aerosoft are excellent! Skiathos is equal to Rhodes and Mykonos. The airport is perfectly modeled and has a lot of details around it. You’ll even see some nut standing on a concrete block snapping off pictures at all hours complete with his flash. A couple cars and beach goers are also modeled at either end of the runway. The runway does in fact resemble TNCM greatly. It’s like a smaller version on the other side of the planet. The custom autogen is excellent. Many many unique buildings and stuff can be found all around the island which feels alive. The island is beautiful day and night. Absolutely worth it for not just the challenging airport approaches but also the views all around. 

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AEROSOFT - MEGA AIRPORT ROME (DOWNLOAD) FSX P3D

AEROSOFT - MEGA AIRPORT ROME (DOWNLOAD) FSX P3D

It’s a good scenery package but not one of Aerosofts best. The parking assignments are really weird and all say Gate X GA  parking which is strange. Is it a gate or GA parking cause they aren’t the same. Also the train doesn’t move unlike other sceneries with airport trains bringing and taking people about.  The unfinished terminal looks lousy but I suppose was accurate at the time this was done. Also every time I use ATC to request landing it sends me to 18 Water, regardless of aircraft type. Seems a little strange clearing an MD 11 to land in the ocean no? These may be ticky tack complaints but they were annoying enough to detract from an otherwise excellent scenery.  The existing terminals are well done and so are all of the structures that make up LIRF. A fair amount of ground traffic from airport service vehicles to aircraft make it a lively place to visit. I don’t see anything the least bit “cartoonish” as every building matches it’s real world counter part. The runways and taxi ways are all nicely modeled too. So I must say having got it on sale I’m mostly happy with it. 

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A2A SIMULATIONS - CHEROKEE 180 FSX ENTERTAINMENT

A2A SIMULATIONS - CHEROKEE 180 FSX ENTERTAINMENT

Having bought nearly all A2A products I knew what to expect. Greatness. That’s what you get here just like all of their other planes.  This Cherokee is the best you can buy. A fully simulated in the highest detail plane.  As with all AccuSim planes you get something nobody else can deliver. A fully believable and highly detailed simulation that can make you forget it’s a sim.  There’s little to say other than yes it’s totally worth the money even today. Everything looks and feels right.  You can do no better than Accusim. Outstanding!  Installs and runs perfectly in FSX Steam, Win10.

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BEAR STUDIOS - FLANKER B+

BEAR STUDIOS - FLANKER B+

I get people being frustrated by bad customer service but this plane is way better than one star. There is a detailed manual included that has information on all of this planes features and functions. It isn’t the best manual I’ve seen but the answers are in it if you take the time to look.  That said this is actually quite a solid Flanker package with a lot of details and a well simulated model. Well who really knows how well it can be simulated without being a Chinese or Russian pilot, but it does have the expected power and maneuverability that seem well within a believable package.  The cockpits are very good but as with all Bear products have very few cursor hover information. I mean that when you put your mouse cursor on or over a given switch, button, knob etc there is no info about what they are or do. There are a LOT of them and if you can’t read Chinese or Russian then you better be willing to open the manual and look it up. So that makes this something you will have to read up on quite a bit. It’s this lack of helpful in-cockpit info that keeps it from being 5 stars in my opinion. Aircraft of this type should have robust mouse over details that say what the switch, button or knob is. There are a few but very very few.  Getting over my frustration with lack of cockpit info the rest of these are very nicely designed. Each model has its unique cockpit layout relating also to which country it’s from. The VC is clearly a labor of love and shows a great attention to detail. The exterior is also something that is evident of a huge amount of effort and care. There’s some areas that could be picked at but I think that would just be nit picky for no real reason. The planes look very very good.  With a little manual reading and a few button reassignments like water rudder, concord nose drop etc you can have active (not full combat capable)  and functional weapons and fire control systems. Mussels fire, rockets guns counter measures etc all can be fired off. You even will get lock tones if you set your weapon's control systems correctly. You’ll need to have at least 30% air traffic in your sims settings. What you fire at or drop on does not explode or is not destroyed but you’re getting more than the usual.  The whole package is well done. I should mention the sounds are well done also.  I have all of the available Flankers or SU models and this is the best by far! The others all feel like toys with very limited systems. This is a highly detailed package that is full of features and functions. While not perfect it is better than anything else available to purchase. It could even be called a study level product perhaps? Well I have had to do some studying for sure.  One bad review by an impatient buyer unwilling to read or look up the in and outs is unfair and this product deserves better.  Installs and works perfectly in FSX Steam and Win10.

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FLYSIMWARE LLC - C441 CONQUEST II FSX P3D

FLYSIMWARE LLC - C441 CONQUEST II FSX P3D

If you’re looking at buying this then you’ve probably also seen the Alabeo version of this same aircraft as well. Might even wonder what the difference is? If you prefer realism and functioning systems then forget about the Alabeo version. This is the 441 C2 to own if realism is most important.  FSW did do a remarkable job simulating the Garrett engines from start up spool to shut down spin. Additionally they managed to simulate all of the systems in great detail. Flight physics are great so far as a non real world pilot like me can tell based off videos and documentation.  The drawback is all in the visuals. While the textures aren’t bad, they are however nowhere near as nice or pretty as the Alabeo 441 C2. But for those who prefer a detailed simulation of the plane over being an all eye candy, no realism affair, then you will appreciate the detailed systems and physics of this plane. This is very close if not a spot on study type aircraft sim. 

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FLIGHT 1 - BN2 ISLANDER FSX

FLIGHT 1 - BN2 ISLANDER FSX

A surprising little plane. I’ve read good things about it for a while. If you’re like me and enjoy island hopping like say The Seychelles (Aerosoft add on scenery) then this is a really nice plane to have. It’s low and slow but does have an auto pilot. The GPS is something I’m not familiar with but there is a manual to download.  The engine sounds are amazing. All the sounds are well done actually.  Excellent modeling and a good plane to look at all around.  The gauges are exceptional. I didn’t know Virtavia was involved with this plane’s developmental. Don’t worry everything is top notch quality. The BN2 fills an empty spot in my hangar that I didn’t know I had. So glad I finally bought it. These days you never know when a FSX add on might vanish from the market never to be seen again.  Did I mention the flight physics are well done and feel realistic? They are. A worth purchase for the island hopping masses that shouldn’t be overlooked.   No cold/dark option, it always starts engine on. A little annoying when you have to turn it all off before starting a flight from scratch.  I also really like that you can hit a click spot under each lever to tie or untie the pairs for power, pitch and mix. Very cool.  All in all it’s a great plane that I am enjoying. It just a little bit over priced if you ask me. 

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FLYSIMWARE LLC - GRUMMAN G-44A WIDGEON FSX P3D

FLYSIMWARE LLC - GRUMMAN G-44A WIDGEON FSX P3D

Having watched this go on and off sale several times as it sat on my wishlist I finally pulled the trigger. The screenshots don’t do it justice. It looks better (on my pc at least) than those shots. It also flies really nice. It doesn’t steer well on the water as there is no water rudder. You have to carefully manipulate the throttles separately in order to turn on the water. So be sure to give your surroundings a real good look before trying to power steer this duck. You’d think they’d have a rudder on this but apparently not. I also wish there were a couple more civil liveries. At any rate it’s well made and nice to fly. Great for island hopping and seeing the sights. No auto pilot at all by the way.  Everything that matters is done well by FSW and that is most important. Great catch on sale. 

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CERA - BELL 412/EP FSX SP2

CERA - BELL 412/EP FSX SP2

Sure it’s really really old. It is also however, one of the best available helicopters when it comes to realism. No FSX chopper is totally realistic, we all know that. But even with the limitations in FSX that hamper helicopters on general you can still find excellent helos. This is one of them and espite being 15 years old it still holds up and demonstrates a very cleverly designed helicopter that is both fun and challenging to fly.  The 412 has dual engine power that can make new helicopter pilots wince a little bit when first trying to fly it. It behaves about as close to real as FSX will allow, much is a credit to Cera. All their choppers are actually excellent so this should be no surprise.  If you’re like me and want to get close to realistic, CeraSim is the place to check first. You will have to forgive the texture age as they are not up to more recent development expectations, but still not bad at all. Sit this 412 next to there newer choppers and the difference is obvious. But again it’s about the best possible physics and flight behaviors that interest me most so take it for what it’s worth.  Either way if you haven’t tried a CeraSim product this Oswald be a great start and all the others they make are all very good.  I knocked one star for lack of Auto Pilot because I know for a fact it’s possible and one of their other helos has A/P.  Also no back of cabin views.  Otherwise totally worth getting.

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FLIGHT REPLICAS - SUPER CUB - DELUXE IFR AMPHIBIOUS FSX P3D

FLIGHT REPLICAS - SUPER CUB - DELUXE IFR AMPHIBIOUS FSX P3D

A mostly exceptional sim of a classic. These fully modernized amphibians are very well modeled in visuals and flight characteristics. Only a couple weird bugs. First the other reviewer has my appreciation for including the solution for the Red plane and it worked. It was also a very easy fix.  The rifle never appears when selected and the Pod doesn’t appear when selected on just the red one. On the yellow bird the pod is visible but cannot be opened like with other Flight Replica Cubs. This can be forgiving as they weren’t something I really cared about, but others may not feel the same way, so that’s why I bring it up here. It’s a small price for two excellent planes so why not.  Used with FSX Steam Win 10.

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CARENADO - TBM 850 HD SERIES FSX P3D V2

CARENADO - TBM 850 HD SERIES FSX P3D V2

Of course it looks amazing. That is always going to be the case with Carenado. One problem is that the cabin dome light button doesn’t work. The only way to light up the passenger cabin is hitting the L key. Then you have to check that everything else is on again. That’s the only significant problem I found so far. It flies great and has believable behaviors in flight. It’s certain fast! Faster than a lot of twin turbo props. TBMs have a fairly minimalistic interior and that’s evident here too. You can set cabin pressure, temps, defrost etc. I can’t seem to get it to accept approach procedures, vectoring and such. To me that’s just annoying but I prefer to manually fly my planes anyway.  All in all it’s over priced with these bugs but still the best TBM 850 you can buy these days. 

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CAPTAIN SIM - 1011 CAPTAIN BASEPACK FSX

CAPTAIN SIM - 1011 CAPTAIN BASEPACK FSX

This may be almost 9 years old but it doesn’t show. As with nearly all CS products you get something special here with this L1011. The cockpit is beautifully modeled and packed with realistic textures. No cheap looking anything. Everything is modeled and systems are complete! This is not your every day start and fly plane. They managed to fully simulate the plane in great depth. You will not be able to jump in and CNTL E then fly. Nope. You will need to learn how to prepare and start the plane manually and it’s not exactly obvious. I spent two hours like an idiot trying to figure it out before I caved and watched a tutorial video. Miss one single step and no start. I love it! Realism galore here. Not only is learning the systems necessary but you will also need to fully understand aircraft load weights and balance in order to successfully land the beast. Of course you could just auto land as it has that capability, but that’s no fun. It has extremely realistic behaviors and feels so right. If you like a challenge and don’t mind a little reading or video watching you’ll be rewarded with a unique flight sim experience. It’s already one of my favorite airliners and while ahead of it’s time when built, it’s now a relic that revives the joy of early 80s flying. You just need to be ready to be not just the pilot, but also copilot and engineer all in one unlike modern airliners. I’d call this a thinking pilots plane.  I only wish there were a few more liveries in the download and some airstairs and a passenger cabin model, but you get so much as is at a price that’s still well worth paying.  A perfectly gorgeous bird that really sets itself apart from the pack. No serious complaints. Runs great on FSX SE Win10. 

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DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - NEW YORK CITY X V2 FSX P3D

DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - NEW YORK CITY X V2 FSX P3D

I have all Drzewiecki Designs cities except Chicago. I had been impressed by their amazing attention to detail and offering of such large scenery areas. So I got NY City.  v2 thinking I’d have the same outstanding experience.  Sadly not quite. While there is a huge amount of custom autogen and excellent photo scenery with nearly every point of interest viewable, there are also a lot of strange issues with some of those custom autogen buildings. A lot of them are just black or dark gray with limited night lighting. An equal number of these look exactly like the real world building and light up great. Throughout the city there are these off colored buildings that in shape only, resemble their real world counterparts. It’s kind of split like 50/50; perfect vs imperfect building appearances in all. The more historic the building the more likely it is actually modeled and lit well. So you will see the Manhattan skyline in mostly excellent detail and accuracy. Buildings below famous skyscrapers that are less well known appear to be those less accuracy grayish structures that even sometimes look like clay models in a way. All of the bridges are well modeled and none are off colored like some buildings I’ve described. They are well lit.  I guess I’d say that mostly this is a very good scenery package but not as good as all their others.  It’s possible that the appearance issues I am having are because of my GPU, so I can’t in all fairness remove more than one star. I still like flying around the enormous city area taking in the sites. Helicopter flying is especially fun and there are a few well detailed heliports to use.  Compared to Aerosofts Manhattan X this is much better by way of sheer size and scope to be explored. But AS Manhattan X is better when considering just Manhattan although very outdated. This scenery has the new towers completed where the Aerosoft Manhattan X show them only partially built. That is another reason this is the better option overall. 

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CAPTAIN SIM - C-130 X-PERIENCE BASE PACK

CAPTAIN SIM - C-130 X-PERIENCE BASE PACK

I haven’t found or experienced any of the bugs reported in other reviews myself. I use FSX SE and have done a few test flights to test everything out and so far everything is working well.  Granted it’s old and some textures are showing their age, but I find it to be tolerable. Mostly it’s hard to read the words at the switches, dials and knobs that describe what each do when zoomed in closely.  From a more normal VC sitting distance they look fine. The plethora of 2D panels can be very useful and are crystal clear. But there is no denying this is old. The external textures look pretty darn good for their age and make for a pleasing look even today.  Most importantly the flight model seems very realistic and believable. Much better than any freeware by a wide margin.  All doors, hatches and windows that can be opened and closed do open and close properly for me.  Cockpit night lighting is too bright and although there seems to be a few dimmers, none actually work. It’s strictly on or off. Exterior lighting also show their age a bit but aren’t bad.  The auto pilot might confuse those who have not seen the type used here but it is working and following my GPS flight plans perfectly.  Engine sounds are a bit off. When idle and or cruising they sound really good, but when advancing or retreating the throttles the engine audio is inconsistent throughout throttle travel. This is about the worst problem I’ve discovered, but again I was expecting things to be a bit off due to the models age.  All in all for the price I’m satisfied with the purchase and enjoy flying the CaptainSim C130 and look forward to adding the extras. It’s not that bad for its age and worth taking the chance if your collection needs this plane. 

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AEROSOFT - IBIZA X EVOLUTION FSX P3D (DOWNLOAD)

AEROSOFT - IBIZA X EVOLUTION FSX P3D (DOWNLOAD)

Not bad but pretty lite on any custom auto gen. There is a some but very little and most of the island outside of the airport is FSX generic autogen. The airport however is amazing and looks like the real place. The water traffic is better than an average with custom boats and ferries. The photo scenery coverage is also very good and highly detailed. This is overall a good scenery package but lacks custom auto gen in the city (like no resorts such as found in other AS sceneries ie; Rhodes etc) and around the island. I am mostly satisfied.  FSX Steam with very high settings.

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AEROSOFT - MALLORCA X EVOLUTION FSX P3D

AEROSOFT - MALLORCA X EVOLUTION FSX P3D

I hate to say this but I was really disappointed with some of this scenery. First if you are looking for just having excellent photo scenery coverage and the 2 airports in excellent detail then yes this is very very good. However half of the island has only trees for autogen, zero buildings on the island side opposite of the airports and main city. The airports and surrounding city extending a fair distance even further into the mountain does have auto gen of all types except no marina boats. Plus the auto gen lacks much custom buildings and except for a couple major sites is almost all buildings are generic FSX autogen stock. For the size and money I expected better. But again the airports especially LEPA is very very good and looks just like the airport should and is full of life with moving carts and various airport vehicles all in excellent detail. I’m using FSX Steam with very high settings.

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FLIGHT 1 - IFLY JETS - THE 737NG FSX FSXSE

FLIGHT 1 - IFLY JETS - THE 737NG FSX FSXSE

I sat on this in my wish list for a long time hoping for a sale but never saw one. So I caved and finally got this. Right off the bat I installed the updated services pack from Flight 1. First thing I noticed is when I launch any 737 in FSX SE I get a warning “iFly 737.DLL failed to load”. Yet the plane does load up and flies fine. The configurator used to set fuel and loads doesn’t send data to the sim, so I have to do that the old fashioned way. The engine sounds are very nice. Distinctive and robust sounding. Being able to add the HUD to any given livery is cool as well as engine options, winglets, imperial vs metric etc. There is a long list of customizable options to satisfy just about anyone. You just can’t do any on the fly and must be adjusted before starting FSX. The HUD itself is great to have.  The exterior textures are outstanding as well as the lighting and reflection FX. The landing lights at night in fog look so cool lighting up fog and the sides of the plane realistically. The cockpit seems a little bright. Systems are all in order and auto pilot is as expected with a Boeing.  The flight model is exceptional. Noticeably better than any freeware or the stock 737. It has the believable impression of being the real thing. It reacts like you’d expect a plane of this size to react in all sorts of weather.  Frame rates even in dense add on scenery is 30-60FPS and sometimes higher.  My only complaint is that the initial download comes with only house liveries and a single KLM. That is lame. For the money I’d expect at least ten standard or common airliner liveries to start.  After fumbling about with the livery manager and configuration manager I managed to load up a couple dozen liveries downloaded from Flight 1. It’s so tedious and time consuming.  Overall I’m happy with the iFly 737s and am enjoying flying them. I just don’t feel it’s worth $55 USD at this stage of the game. But what are you going to do? 

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CARENADO - H25B H850XP HD SERIES FSX P3D

CARENADO - H25B H850XP HD SERIES FSX P3D

The age is showing a little bit and you can only open the main door. However the flight model is really well done and it’s a joy to fly. Is it worth nearly $50? Nope. But you can’t get this particular aircraft anywhere else for less. I decided I needed to fill the gap I had in my biz jet collection between small and large and this does the trick.  It does have very good sounds and lighting, and the it’s not like the textures are bad. Not at all. Just not as good as my Carenado Phenom  of a more recent development age wise. 

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AEROSOFT - LA PALMA X FSX P3D (DOWNLOAD)

AEROSOFT - LA PALMA X FSX P3D (DOWNLOAD)

This might be one of the very best add on sceneries I’ve owned! So much amazing detail and excellent custom auto generation it’s so close to real. It certainly looks like the real place so far as can be determined by google earth and other photos I could find. It seems that every point of interest is fully mocked up and modeled. The airport is just as fantastically designed as the whole island with excellent photo real ground. Even the ground traffic and boat traffic is cool. Of my hundreds of add on sceneries this is easily in my top five. Couldn’t recommend this high enough! Don’t miss it!

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JUSTFLIGHT - CANBERRA PR9 FSX P3D

JUSTFLIGHT - CANBERRA PR9 FSX P3D

Amazing replication of such an icon. Not an easy plane to fly and especially challenging to land. Full of detail and exceptional textures. The plane is highly detailed with systems and an understanding of how it all works can make your life and flight more enjoyable. Like the real Canberra you can’t just throw full throttle and leave it there as it will overheat and possibly cause flame out. That extra attention to detail makes this such an amazing simulation. Totally worth it! 

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AEROSOFT - MYKONOS X (DOWNLOAD)

AEROSOFT - MYKONOS X (DOWNLOAD)

I love the Mykonos style. Everything is white, and blu outside of the airport that is. Makes for a truly different sort of scenery.  The airport is highly detailed and a solid amount of animated bits scurrying about.  The photo scenery is excellent and I can’t find any serious issues or bugs. This is just a real nice place to virtually visit. Excellent frame rates even on high detail settings.  Excellent night lighting at the airport and the island as a whole. 

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JUSTFLIGHT - LANCASTER B MK.I FSX P3D

JUSTFLIGHT - LANCASTER B MK.I FSX P3D

Wow just wow! I had to have a Lancaster for my collection and they sure did put a ton of love into this! It’s easy to say quite simply in all areas they made a crazy beautiful plane here.  One that flies like an old lumbering bird that has incredibly powerful engines. I only wish I could load the damn busters spherical bombs, or the 12000lbs Tirpitz killing darts. But I can live with the cookie and standard bomb load.  If you like WW2 aircraft you can’t forget this legend. A must have for those of us still too invested in our FSX hobby to give up in favor of shiner and newer FS2020 that has hardly any good add ons yet. 

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FLIGHT REPLICAS - DH.114 HERON FSX P3D

FLIGHT REPLICAS - DH.114 HERON FSX P3D

I really like this old plane. Slow as it is I feel like they really did a good job simulating it. Be prepared this is a super slow aircraft considering it has 4 engines. My best cruise with a typical load was around 152 mph at 7000 feet. The old A/P held nicely and it was an enjoyable flight.  The overall appearance is quite good inside and out. The audio is equally well done, maybe a little understated for my tastes but nothing the volume control can’t fix. A great choice for flying around high detail scenery areas like Aerosofts Madeira & LaPalma. The slow speed makes you appreciate the views a bit more.  Excellent views from the detailed cabin and lav. 

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AEROSOFT - US CITIES X - NIAGARA FALLS/BUFFALO FSX P3D

AEROSOFT - US CITIES X - NIAGARA FALLS/BUFFALO FSX P3D

Not the best US Cities X I’ve bought. Yes the area around the falls is a lot better but even with max settings a lot is missing.  The entire downtown high rise area is gone, not a single auto or custom gen building throughout the whole scenery area is over 300 feet. I can forgive it’s dated looks were it not for leaving out every single high rise. There is nothing I can turn up any higher. Watching the orcas is pretty neat though. It’s far better than the stock scenery at least. Just not great. 

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TFDI DESIGN - 717

TFDI DESIGN - 717

I’d like to replace my first impressions review with this more reasonable one. At first the automations were giving me fits. Especially when disengaging AutoFlight and having the audio warning constantly repeat “Auto Flight….” Over and over with no way to shut it up other than to turn Auto Flight back on. It made taking manual control very frustrating. Since my first few hours were total craziness I’ve taken the appropriate time to get to know this 717. So far so good. I still don’t really like so much automation and prefer to pilot my planes myself. I understand better now what needs to be done to have a good flight as the aircraft was designed to do.  That said I do like the textures inside and out and the details within. The lighting is excellent also.  The only real issue I have is that they don’t include any liveries with the purchase. You have to manually add them which is annoying when every other developer includes at least a solid number of popular airline liveries. Some time the downloaded liveries don’t even work or are all black. Nevermind that they were added exactly the same way as the others that showed up perfectly. Plus having to download one at a time with no option for a package option is even worse. Tedious process and if you never added a livery before good luck figuring it out. The instructions are lousy. Livery issue aside this is an excellent simulation of the 717 and I’m getting good fun use from this. 

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A1R DESIGN BUREAU -  A1R PIEL EMERAUDE FSX

A1R DESIGN BUREAU - A1R PIEL EMERAUDE FSX

This is a nice little plane. Very maneuverable and easy to fly. Forgiving and fun.  It’s a simple aircraft with little to cause any confusion making for an easily recognizable cockpit.  Not very fast but better than a C172 for sure.  Nice night time cockpit and excellent audio.

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ROLAND LABORIE - VOUGHT CRUSADER AEG FSX

ROLAND LABORIE - VOUGHT CRUSADER AEG FSX

For some (regarding aircraft carrier ops) reason this plane bounces like a rubber ball all over the carrier deck no matter how good your landing is. It’s fine when landing on the ground, but try the same thing on an aircraft carrier and this F8 ends up all over the place and sometimes in the water. So forget about doing a naval operations with this. Also the speed is wrong. Out of the box these barely get to Mach 1.3. I had to adjust the aircraft  .cfg thrust scaler up to 1.75 in order to make this super sonic aircraft get close to its top speed around Mach 1.7 in level flight at fl300.  Also the speed gauge Mach indicated is broken. It will never indicate a Mach speed about .85 so I had to use an aeronautical speed calculator to figure what the actual Mach is. That stinks. That’s ll the bad.  The good is pretty good in that the airplane overall appearance is excellent. The radar works, the scope works, you can fire (without FX)  your missiles or drop bombs.  It handles like I would expect for an F8. I like flying it quite a bit.  The engine audio is understated so you’ll have to crank up your volume. The night lighting is well done.  In summary the bad: Top speed too low and requires end user to fix. Mach meter gauge is broken. Cannot perform any carrier ops.  The good: Excellent textures and flight modeling. Nice night lighting.  Fun to fly.  It’s the ONLY Crusader you can buy so whether or not it’s work the price is beside the point. I’m a collector so I begrudgingly bought it and am OK with it. 

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FSDG - RHODES FSX P3D3-5

FSDG - RHODES FSX P3D3-5

FSDG really has a special talent for creating scenery at the highest level of quality and enjoyment. Rhodes is another example that does not disappoint at all! So much custom autogen mixed perfectly with generics that in some way even makes the generics look better. Diagoras is incredibly well done. The airport feels alive and welcoming. No hit to my PC performance. Efficient code!  I could easily go on and on about how good this scenery is, but you just have to see it and fly it to get it. Very worth buying!

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AEROSOFT - MADEIRA X EVOLUTION FSX P3D

AEROSOFT - MADEIRA X EVOLUTION FSX P3D

As with nearly all of my Aerosoft products (and all of the various developers contained within) this is a beautiful scenery. I’m a little disappointed with the smaller amount of custom autogen but the most important things are definitely present and look great. No frame loss even with high-ish settings and really high quality aircraft. I just wish they would’ve somehow make air stairs work with parked planes when no jetways are around like at this airport.  The landing isn’t as difficult as I expected. The lead in lights help a bunch at night on that curvy final approach. 

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AEROSOFT - AIRBUS BUNDLE (A318/319 & A320/A321) FSX P3D

AEROSOFT - AIRBUS BUNDLE (A318/319 & A320/A321) FSX P3D

What a great deal even at its age. Buying the bundle saves a lot of dough. Could’ve been more liveries for each variant but there are a good amount as is.  The cockpit is spot on and really looks and feels right.  However there is a lot less clickable working systems than I expected. In fact there are a bunch that cannot be used on the lower center console. Not exactly the “%90” I was expecting. More like about %65.  At any rate you do have all necessary controls at your finger tips and can easily have a realistic feeling Flight from the captains chair.  Nice cockpit audio includes ambient sounds like a coughing, or sneezing copilot, a flight attendant will bring you a drink from time to time and of course there are all the appropriate aural warnings and others to chime in when appropriate.  The engines sound fantastic from any perspective. The external textures are also high quality. It really seems that everything is well done so I can’t complain much. There really should’ve been a passenger cabin view. If Captain Sim can do it, so could Aerosoft. Anyway 4 stars for the light number of liveries and omitted usable systems to click on.  Being a Boeing fan I have to say I am impressed with these Airbus. I am glad I finally bought them. 

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RLABORIE - DEWOITINE D 551 FSX P3D

RLABORIE - DEWOITINE D 551 FSX P3D

This is one surprising plane. I’d never heard of it until I saw it on the Market. The cockpit is really nicely done. Very realistic gauges and some of the best I’ve seen for an old warbird remake. The exterior textures are just as nice.  It flies a bit on rails, but that is really common. I say “a bit” because at times it seems to have natural responses that feel more realistic. It’s hard to pin point where those differences are but the stall mechanics stand out as over simplified where the turbulence response feels more realistic.  The engine sounds are really good and so is most of the lighting. Externally lights appear as expected. However from inside the cockpit the wing tip lights are off and above the wings which is distracting at times.  There is no touch down or wheel audio and hardly any wind sounds FX. I don’t like any plane that doesn’t have a realistic audio change when you open the canopy and this is one of those that sounds the same open or closed.  If some of these little things were given more attention it could’ve been a 5 star plane. No chance of that happening anymore, but I still think it’s a nice plane to have and I enjoy flying it. Plus it has smoke effect and that’s cool. 

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CARENADO - DO228 100 HD SERIES FSX P3D

CARENADO - DO228 100 HD SERIES FSX P3D

So good! This is such an under appreciated aircraft. They did a super good job with this planes details in both texture and flight characteristics. A couple more liveries would’ve been nice, but Carenado is always stingy with liveries. All the same I love flying this bird. It’s surprisingly quick too. Well done!

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AEROSOFT - ASPEN EXTENDED FSX P3D

AEROSOFT - ASPEN EXTENDED FSX P3D

I had thought that “extended” might mean a bit more scenery area coverage like I’ve seen with several other Aerosoft extended or “X” products. It’s not tiny or anything and it does cover the whole valley with excellent detail and loads of custom autogen. I was hoping for something like the MtEverest area or maybe not that big but more than this. I can’t say I didn’t get what was paid for, no way. This is an excellent scenery add on. Seems small for 2.5 GB. Whatever it’s very nice and the summer / winter textures is very nice. 

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CARENADO - B120 FSX P3D

CARENADO - B120 FSX P3D

Of course it looks amazing all around and in all aspects.  I like the way it flies. It feels a little less “on rails” than some other Carenado planes. It has excellent system depth and really good sounds.  My only complaint is there is no cold and dark or any start up options. Even the fuel on/off switches don’t work. The only way to shut this plane down is by pulling the fire handles for each engine. Why? That is why only 4 stars. 

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DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - WASHINGTON X FSX P3D

DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - WASHINGTON X FSX P3D

What can I say that others haven’t already? I echo all the positives about this scenery. It is a full area with so many unique autogen objects and buildings. If you go to the White House and get really close to the Oval Office you can see what appears to be a serious discussion about the pros and cons of soft vs hard shell tacos between Trump and Pence while Milania stares blankly at a wall. All of the cities historic sites can be visited.  The city looks so good at night as well.  All of the airports are finely detailed. Even the little ones are well done. No frame loss.  Another DD masterpiece. 

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CARENADO - B120 FSX P3D

CARENADO - B120 FSX P3D

Just about every Carenado aircraft is a thing of beauty. This B120 is is no exception. Eye candy galore here. Sharp, clean bright and beautiful on all counts.  The flight model is seemingly accurate and makes this aircraft very nice to fly. No strange bugs or glitches. 

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DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - POLISH AIRPORTS VOL3 V4 FSX P3D

DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - POLISH AIRPORTS VOL3 V4 FSX P3D

Drzewiecki Design is one of the best scenery developers around. I have several of their products and love them all. Polish Airports vol3 is another amazing one. It says 4 airports but actually you get 5. Also you get 3 full small cities. Everything is excellently optimized and has virtually no system recourse impact. You cannot go wrong with this. 

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BEAR STUDIOS - MIG-15BIS P3D4-5 FSX FSXSE

BEAR STUDIOS - MIG-15BIS P3D4-5 FSX FSXSE

I’ve had a very good experience with their Mig17 as well, so why not go for the Mig15 bid? I sat on it in my wishlist for a long time and finally bought it. So glad I did! The texturing is noticeably improved making for some beautiful aircraft. Lots of reflection and clean looking air frames. Even though they are all very old, they appear as if they just rolled off the line. Some may not like that but I don’t mind so much. There aren’t as many repaints as with the 17, but what you do get is still a very nice selection to choose from. I didn’t count but I think there is at least a dozen plus liveries!  The aircraft handle as expected and seem spot on to the historic documentation available.  Only real complaint is that after a while of flying the compass goes berserk and I keep getting a FSX notice that my compass is incorrect and to push “D” which only sends the compass spinning. The back up dash compass remains accurate but the console one among all the other gauges is the problem.  Everything is of course in Russian with almost no data pop ups when scrolling the mouse over any switch, dial or button. That would’ve helped a lot. So get ready to read and memorize the manual specifically the cockpit layout info. Unless you speak and read Russian.  I also wish there was more accuracy in the engine modeling. It should not be difficult to over heat the power plant but I can’t do it no matter how hot the weather is or how long I push full throttle, she won’t overheat. But she should! That missing element of realism bugs me a little, but I can live with it I suppose. Overall the Mig15bis here is a mostly awesome plane! Looks great next to my MilViz F86, and F100. 

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SWISSMILSIM - DE HAVILLAND VAMPIRE DH-100 MK6 FSX P3D

SWISSMILSIM - DE HAVILLAND VAMPIRE DH-100 MK6 FSX P3D

This is a well made and thoroughly simulated aircraft. It really does capture the age from its came. The Vampire Mk6 is a slow first generation jet fighter so don’t expect to get in and fly at top speed or full throttle. It won’t let you. These early jets are plagued with shortcomings but that’s to be expected. They were very new. It climbs slow and can easily overheat or just stall. In some ways that’s some of the fun. You must pay attention to your gauges and be very aware of throttle position all while moving that throttle very carefully. All of these things are accurately remade for the PC pilot who love a challenge and enjoys realism.  Unfortunately they didn’t quite pay as much attention to the quality of textures in the cockpits. They aren’t bad, but they could’ve been much better. Also a better variety of liveries should’ve been included for the price. It’s not worth full price by even standards of 3 years ago. Also the developer is very slow to respond to questions and still hasn’t answered my questions from 3 days before purchase. Now I have to wait who knows how long just to get the required serial number code in order to install some of the so called “free” sceneries. Lurid hen and Payerne were easy but the rest require some strange method of contact and wait for a download/ install activation code. Seems overly complicated for something that is free?  Whatever, I like the plane and all its quirks that the real world Vampire was known for. It gives a very authentic experience that I consider worth having in my virtual hangar.  Oh, and it’s easy on frames. Thumbs up! Mostly.

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AEROSOFT - GREENLAND - NUUK X FSX P3D

AEROSOFT - GREENLAND - NUUK X FSX P3D

Aerosoft delivers yet another amazing and huge scenery add on. Nuuk is full of detail and life in the city and the airport. I don’t think I saw a single default autogen building at all. You don’t get just the airport and city but also a very big area surrounding it all. It may be just barren Greenland rocky landscape void of any vegetation but it is a great deal better than the default FSX scenery. The waters around Nuuk are full of icebergs in varying sizes. Unfortunately you can’t land. Helicopter on any of the ice but it does add a lot more character to the place. Be sure to visit FSDG and download the scenery manager tools for free. It will allow you to select specific month by month atmospheric changes and make specific scenery adjustments, such as enabling Northern Light, road traffic etc.  So far I haven’t seen any northern lights as result, but I keep hoping I will.  There are so many places that can be found on earth to explore, but FSX just fails to bring to life, like Greenland so this is a fantastic add on to have and explore. 

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CERA SIMAIRCRAFT - SIKORSKY UH60L BLACK HAWK FSX P3D

CERA SIMAIRCRAFT - SIKORSKY UH60L BLACK HAWK FSX P3D

Wow this is excellent! So much attention to detail visually and audibly. The flight characteristics are very nice as well (so far as a non Blackhawk pilot can tell) making for a fun chopper to fly. Cera Sim helicopters are in my option the best for FSX. I also have the Virtavia Blackhawk and it’s not even close to the quality and realism of this Cera Blackhawk.  It’s not perfect but that is expected with any FSX helicopter. It can somehow exceed its real world performance by a wide margin doing things that should cause a crash or disintegratio. However if you avoid pushing it beyond normal or even maximum operational parameters then that shouldn’t matter. What really cast this a 5th star is the light offering of liveries. A sparse selection is included where there really should’ve been several more. Putting that aside this is a very nice Blackhawk with great detailing. The lighting is amazing and yes even night vision can be used for those covert black of night ops. The night vision is accessed via the config manager where you also find all the other options like cold/dark, open/close doors etc.  love it!

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AEROSOFT - KEFLAVIK X FSX FS2004

AEROSOFT - KEFLAVIK X FSX FS2004

First off if you have any interest in Iceland then this should be high on your wishlist along with Iceland X. As is by default FSX Iceland is awful. Just a barren lifeless island that never stood out. I consider this an injustice to one of the most interesting and beautiful places on earth. That said this airport add on does finally bring some detail and life to the sim world. The airport isn’t exactly a marvel here, nor in the real world (based on viewed videos and pictures) but it is an excellent representation of the real thing.  Depending on your settings the airport can become a busy place. Mine are pretty high so I’m seeing a lot of things at the airport in nice detail. It looks great at night too!  You can’t fully enjoy it or Iceland with just Keflavik X. You really get the best Iceland experience by having both this and the Iceland X to fully open up this amazing island and all it has to explore and view.

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FLYFREESTD - EUROFIGHTER EF-2000 TYPHOON V2 FSX

FLYFREESTD - EUROFIGHTER EF-2000 TYPHOON V2 FSX

What we have here is a fair representation of the Eurofighter 2000. Not much of the systems are simulated and it’s pretty much a load and fly kind of plane. That’s what I expected and why I bought it. Sometimes ya just want to strap on a fast plane and go for a ride.  Everything does look very nice including the lighting but just be prepared for a pretty dumbed down version of it. I wish there was a light interceptor weapons load option but no.  What stops me from giving 5 stars is that FFS did a terrible job with the speed capabilities. All variants can barely do Mach 1. That’s just plain wrong. It’s known for being a very fast accelerating fighter to perform quick intercepts. However regardless of load or no load and at any altitude these all top out at a little over Mach 1.08. This requires manually adjusting the thrust scaler in each aircraft .cfg file to around 2.0 from the default 1.0 Which is not terribly accurate generally, but you can at least make the Eurofighter as fast as it should be in the air. Problem is it also will increase idle thrust so taxiing requires more breaking. Why can’t developers just correctly build a planes speed capabilities from the start? It’s very annoying to buy a Mach 2 aircraft that can barely perform at %50 known specs. Just put in the extra work with coding the drag variables with engine thrust performance etc etc. whatever they know how. You get what you pay for. 

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A2A SIMULATIONS - ACCU-SIM BONANZA FSX

A2A SIMULATIONS - ACCU-SIM BONANZA FSX

I’m a broken record when it comes to my reviews of A2A Accusim products. But I bares repeating that they make the most realistic and fun planes. The V tail Bonanza is no exception and delivers the best flight simming experience.  This one has new gauges technology which means the gauges age and behave like real world gauges as they get older. Just watch their video. It adds just one more cool thing to the abundant list of realistic features. Tap them with the mouse cursor and they react differently depending on their each individual condition.  It is not the same plane as the Comanche, Cessna etc. The Bonanza has its very own and different flight characteristics that set it apart even more than the others do in their own right. It does feel like a plane that can do more in the air than just fly straight and level. It’s hard to resist attempting semi aerobatic maneuvers.  As usual what you get is a plane that feels so right and looks outstanding at the same time. It flies like it should and is by no means another pretty on the rails plane that you see most of the time from most other developers.  Sure A2A AccuSim planes are expensive, but you get so much more than just a plane. You get what feels like a really well simulated experience that sometimes makes non Accusim planes just feel boring. Any of them is worth every penny and in my opinion all developers should be doing the same things.  I just love it! 

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AEROSOFT - ICELAND X FSX

AEROSOFT - ICELAND X FSX

I knew going into this that it wasn’t photorealistic scenery and it makes sense as that would’ve been an enormous download easily at or above 20gb. But I do not regret the purchase. There is a lot to see and they did a really good job with the land class, mesh and textures. First of all even though you don’t get Keflavik airport and have to buy it separately (I feel should have been included) you do get loads of improved and new airports that were missing in FSX. Even Keflavik is improved quite a bit with better, and new buildings, fences, parking, ground equipment etc. It is vastly improved from the default drab and dull airport before this add on. With 40 other airports, or strips and many points of interest there’s now good reason to explore the island nation. The colors make sense now and much better reflect the actual Icelandic scenery. A fairly barren island with very few trees but nice scenery all the same. The photo real glaciers also make a great improvement to the landscapes.  A lot more buildings around as well where before this is added there was a seemingly uninhabited country outside of Reykjavik, and now has life and infrastructure.  The many ports or docks and ships that spot the coastlines inspire float plane use, but there are no float plane starting points. Also most of the new airports cannot be found in the FSX flight plan directory which makes for very limited planning options.  All in all this is a very nice add on that does some justice to Iceland and makes it worth flying to and around.  Go visit hot spots, many water falls that are accurately placed, or just see a village. Chimneys smoke (some) and roads are alive as well as shipping lanes with some boat traffic. All that was not to be found prior to installing Iceland X.  One complaint is that some spotty autogen miss placements, such as a dock with a tour boat and tour bus in reverse positions. The boat is on the dock and the bus is in the water. Funny sure but kind of annoying to see.  If you want to finally explore Iceland without that nagging feeling of it being terribly barren and lifeless with bad coloring and terrible land class/mesh then you should get this. It really opens it up for a fun time with a lot to explore and see. 

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FLYFREESTD - UAV JETS FSX

FLYFREESTD - UAV JETS FSX

You get a lot for your money and the planes are fun to fly but there are some annoyances that keep me from giving 5 stars.  One super annoying thing is that the plane keeps warning “don’t sink” all the time including while on approach. I was doing an approach and “don’t sink” wouldn’t shut up even though I was on a controlled final at -500fpm with gear down, which does not warrant any warnings. It’s like the plane doesn’t understand how landing works and won’t stop bugging you! You have to sink to get down to the ground.  Also warnings “flaps” goes off with aircraft that have no flaps.  Why is there a G lock effect when there’s no pilot to black out?  Needs more “cockpit” or control room camera options. One single forward cam alone isn’t enough. I know for a fact that drone pilots have a much better point of view and can make adjustments to their view, but not here. Look straight and only straight!  Other than those irritants I like the variety of drones that can be selected. Each with different speed and handling characteristics. But all with the exact same engine sound.  Got it half off so it’s worth that price. 

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GOLDEN AGE SIMULATIONS - STEARMAN 4E JR SPEEDMAIL P3D FSXA FSXSE

GOLDEN AGE SIMULATIONS - STEARMAN 4E JR SPEEDMAIL P3D FSXA FSXSE

GAS always does a great job with making true stick and rudder classics. There’s isn’t much to these planes, just the pilot and the machine. This is my favorite Stearman. It has excellent power and control. A very forgiving Aircraft to strap on and buzz the tree tops, soar through canyons or sight see your favorite scenery.  Very well done. Very worth buying. 

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A2A SIMULATIONS - ACCU-SIM SPITFIRE MKI-II FSX

A2A SIMULATIONS - ACCU-SIM SPITFIRE MKI-II FSX

Another amazing offering by A2A! I have almost all their planes and this is as great as the rest.  A meticulously designed Spitfire simulation with the Accu-Sim makes for an incredibly realistic experience. Most of us will never get to fly a real Spitfire so this is as close as we can get.  Nothing has been left unaccounted for. Every switch, clicks, squeaks, rattles or anything that made a peep in the real plane does so here as well.  You just have to remember to taxi and get in the air as fast as you can or your flight will end on the ground with billowing smoke and steam or even fire. Not much of an intercooler was installed in these planes. They were far too small and even rather useless if when the engine was running, you weren’t pushing through the air at over 200mph to cool things down.  Just like the real thing. If you take care to handle your Spitfire as instructed you have a great flight. If not, fire is in your future.  All that attention paid to delivering such a realistic simulation is a must have for any fan of this legend. Worth every penny!

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A2A SIMULATIONS - ACCU-FEEL V2 - GLOBAL FSX ENHANCEMENT

A2A SIMULATIONS - ACCU-FEEL V2 - GLOBAL FSX ENHANCEMENT

Doesn’t work. The add on installed without issue but is not anywhere to be found within the sim. Not in add on drop down like other (GSX, Aircraft Carrier etc) add ons. Plus immediately after installing it’s caused FSX SE to crash on title screen every time I tried to start up.  Reinstalled, restarted etc, I did everything (nothing on A2A forums and no response from them either) but it wouldn’t stop CTD until I deleted Accu-Feel from my PC. Stuck with a useless add on that only added problems.   Really disappointed as I’m a big fan of all A2A products except this destructive malfunctioning mess. 

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RAZBAM - AV-8B HARRIER II PLUS

RAZBAM - AV-8B HARRIER II PLUS

Even though I didn’t buy this plane here I’d like to offer my thoughts anyway.  First I should note that no Manual was include in my installation either. I did fine one online though.  Second the modelings and sounds are all amazingly well done.  What bothers me is that even after following the manual to the letter several times it simply will not VTOL! Instead it goes forward then pitches up wildly out of control. Yes the weight is set for VTOL and so is the aircraft configuration according to the manual. It is only capable of STOL and will not hover under any circumstances. I’ve followed tutorial videos as well and made dozens of by the book attempts at VTOL. No joy!  It’s does however perform STOL maneuvers well, with practice. That said I still enjoy flying it and since I didn’t pay much for it I can live with the limited capabilities. Even though I wanted the plane specifically for its hovering ability that makes it such a unique and cool aircraft. Half off and half the capability.  The weapon load out actually does work with the engines running, just need to make weight adjustments to certain fuel loads in order to place weapons as desired. 

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CLS - MD81/82 JETLINER

CLS - MD81/82 JETLINER

I took a chance on this old bird (developed in 2010) and I’m glad I did! I was very surprised to find a well developed and good looking plane considering the year it came out. It’s as good as any Captain Sim to say the least. Sure it’s overloaded with 2D panels but that doesn’t interfere with the excellent virtual cockpit and I hardly use any of those panels. Yeah it’s a “lite” type but not so much so that you should get bored with it. I have the CLS DC10 and 747 and this is easily the best of the 3. The cockpit is more clickable than expected and looks real good. The external modeling is equally good and highly detailed. The audio is fantastic! The engines roar when viewed from the outside and are much less notice from within the cockpit. Makes sense as the engines are way back on the end of the plane making for a very quiet cockpit other than normal ambient noises. A nice passenger cabin is also included. Two camera views from the seats are also included. Something that is all too often ignored by most airliner add ons. No lavatories or galley modeling but still that passenger cabin looks great. From the outside (only) you can even make out passengers seated by the window.  The plane flies and handles like the on paper specs suggest. It is a very enjoyable plane to fly.  My one complaints is there is no Alaska Airlines livery. ?.?? Why would they not include that? Even the extension pack doesn’t have it listed as being included.  Whatever the case I am pleasantly surprised by this CLS aircraft and got something much better than expected.  Based on use with Win10 3.3ghz i7 16GB RAM Intel UHD630 integrated GPU. Excellent frames!

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JUSTFLIGHT - DH.98 MOSQUITO FB MK VI FSX P3D

JUSTFLIGHT - DH.98 MOSQUITO FB MK VI FSX P3D

Even if you’re not a WW2 aviation nut like me you should still consider this interesting aircraft. They did an amazing job with developing the Mosquito and paid great attention to detail.  Every little thing is noticed and given much love. The crisp but well used cockpit, the weaponry, the wood detailing in the one unpainted livery etc. All is very vividly detailed.  The engines sound great too! So glad they paid attention to so many details, this is really something. All with zero loss of frames. Based on use with FSX SE win 10 3.3ghz i7 16GB RAM Intel UHD630 integrated GPU

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DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - LUKK CHISINAU X FSX P3D

DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - LUKK CHISINAU X FSX P3D

Drzewiecki Design makes some of the very best scenery add ons you can find. I have almost all of them and this is the first time I was a little disappointed. Everything does indeed look very good and is easy on frame rates but the city is just lacking a little bit. Too many of the same textures are used for buildings. I’m not sure if it’s DDs doing or if that’s just what the architecture is really like? At any rate it is a nice addition to my collection that brings more route options for this part of the world connecting to all of my other DD sceneries in Europe.  I should note that the airport is spot on (for the year it was representing at time of development) and as always well done.  I’m probably a little spoilt by Warsaw, Moscow, Tallin,Azerbaijan and Krako which all have incredible detail of architecture and more unique auto-gen. Based on use with FSX SE Win 10 3.3 ghz i7 16GBRam Intel UHD630 integrated GPU 

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A2A SIMULATIONS - ACCU-SIM P-47 RAZORBACK FSX

A2A SIMULATIONS - ACCU-SIM P-47 RAZORBACK FSX

You can’t love WW2 aircraft and not seriously consider this. I have another P47 that is extremely well done and high quality, but this is just special. This will get you a close as possible to experiencing the real thing. After several hours with my new P47 I have a whole new respect for it’s real world pilots. I mean having to constantly monitor and adjust coral, oil intercooler flaps and keep one eye on the gauges with the other on the skies is bewildering. How did they do all of that and del with combat? It’s a chore (albeit a fun one) to fly and if you don’t pay attention to all that your plane needs it will kick your @##!  That’s the kind of realism I personally appreciate!  As well as a highly realistic systems simulation it’s also very nice to look at and fly. While it’ll climb kind of slowly it’ll repay you with excellent speed once high above the clouds around FL300. That’s where the Razorback beats anything the enemy could throw at it.  Hats off to the Tuskegee airmen, they had more than the right stuff! They flew these complex aircraft with amazing skill and grit!  Just give this a try and you’ll agree. Also I want to note that A2A include a few more historic liveries than they usually do.  Based on use with FSX Steam Win10 i7 3.3ghz 16GB Ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU 128mb dedicated.  Smooth frames.

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VIRTAVIA - T-34C TURBO MENTOR FOR FSX-SE

VIRTAVIA - T-34C TURBO MENTOR FOR FSX-SE

I got this recently on sale elsewhere but really wanted people here to know just how good this plane is! Virtavia is mostly known for low quality to mid quality at best. That is not the case with the T34C Turbo Mentor. It is as good as anything else by other high end developers. The cockpit is extremely well done and has a living quality to it.the gauges are truly as good as they are hyped to be. The flight characteristics are excellent as well and won’t disappoint. I love the extra added realism with hypoxia and canopy fog effects. Plus if you land and or brake too hard your tires will blow and your brakes might fail. You don’t see those things all that much. The liveries are all excellent. Nothing can be complained about. I own quite a few of their airplanes all varying from barely worthy of freeware download to decent. I’d say this is Virtavia’s very best offering to FSX ever! I wish they’d put this much into all things.  If you have or are considering Carenados T34B Mentor ( I own both) just skip it, this is infinitely better! It’s also not a frame killer at all.  Highly recommended!  Based on use with FSX Steam Win 10 i7 3.3ghz 16GB Ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU 128mb dedicated. No problems at all.

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JUSTFLIGHT - DC-6B LEGENDS OF FLIGHT (DOWNLOAD)

JUSTFLIGHT - DC-6B LEGENDS OF FLIGHT (DOWNLOAD)

I feel like no Douglas collection is complete without the oft overlooked DC6. Its history is rich. Unfortunately while it looks really good, it’s not as in depth systems-wise. The planes were pressurized yet it’s not a simulated system? Unless I have gone blind? If that’s the case I apologize. I suppose that’s not a really big deal. The planes are so nicely modeled with exquisite detail and they are plenty fun to fly. I forgot that Red Bull used a fully restored one for a while. The lighting is excellent and the engines do roar. This all makes for a great experience for a relatively low priced add on.  There’s 2 add on extensions with some more liveries if you want more options beyond this base package. 

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AIRCRAFT FACTORY - HEINKEL HE219 UHU

AIRCRAFT FACTORY - HEINKEL HE219 UHU

A2A offer the best add ons you can get for FSX and this non Accusim product is really good. I collect WW2 era aircraft and couldn’t pass up this little known plane. I don’t know how I never noticed until now but I’m glad I did. Sadly there’s no back seat view option and only the one forward VC camera option. But this is a pretty old old add on so I can forgive it as everything else really holds up all these years later.  You get some nice liveries and some different variants each with their own unique (if slight) visual differences. The RAF depicts the most powerful version with the fastest top speed despite being also the heaviest version.  All in all the HE219 is a very unique and maybe even rare aircraft that Aircraft Factory has done a great job recreating for FSX.  After reading up on the plane I feel like they have done a competent job with making it fly and feel like the real one.  The engines sound very good from the cockpit, but are somehow less impressive in external views. This seems to be a common trait with A2A? Whatever the reason I still am very happy with my purchase and to be able to expand my WW2 collection with such an interesting warbird. Excellent frames and performance. 

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JUSTSIM - STRIGINO - NIZHNY NOVGOROD INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT FSX P3D

JUSTSIM - STRIGINO - NIZHNY NOVGOROD INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT FSX P3D

I hate to sing two stars but in my experience of this add on there’s some bugs. Many building have no roofs and in a lot of cases in the surrounding city buildings only have half of the buildings visible. They look like incomplete movie props. Not all are like this but a whole lot of buildings are. It’s most apparent while flying low over the city and it hurts the overall immersion feeling quite a bit when looking down and seeing huge blocks of partial and incomplete buildings. I’d say approximately half of the autogen in the airport and surroundings are effected.  The airport while on the ground you’d never know the buildings there have no roof. I can’t make any sense of it as all my other JustSim sceneries are fine.  Other than the weird bug mentioned this is an excellent add on with a large area to explore and nice photo scenery. The night lighting is very good and considering the large number of incomplete autogen buildings, night flying is preferred as it in a way conceals the errors in darkness. If the developer would’ve answered my support message I’d have given more stars.  At any rate it makes for a fairly nice destination and short flight from my Moscow city add on scenery by another dev. If I hear back with a fix I’ll happily amend my review but as is I am having a less than excellent experience with this. 

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GOLDEN AGE SIMULATIONS - GOLDEN AGE - DOUGLAS DOLPHIN PACKAGE FSX

GOLDEN AGE SIMULATIONS - GOLDEN AGE - DOUGLAS DOLPHIN PACKAGE FSX

Being a bug fan of WW2 era aircraft I just couldn’t pass this up. It’s such a nicely detailed and well simmed creation for FSX. The extra Catalina scenery is a big extra even if it was not automatically installed and took a few extra minutes to locate and move to the appropriate add on scenery root folder. I also have the Wilmington terminal on the LA side. Having both definitely is a big kick to fly back and forth.  The airplane itself is a typical quality GAS product that looks, sounds and feels well done. A couple more private type liveries would have been appreciated but you do get enough to see what differences each type (civilian, commercial, military) offers. Those differences are only apparent in the cabin which has no preset view. Instead I have to move the camera back from the FO cockpit to the cabin section before every flight in order to get a feel for the passenger impression.  Other than that I can’t complain. It’s a fun bird. Very easy on the frame rates. No impact at all even with the US Cities X Los Angeles add on and the two GAS seaports. Keep in mind only the Catalina scenery is included here, I got the mainland Wilmington scenery from GAS via a different airplane I purchased previously. I forget which one exactly? But that said there was still no frame rate loss with all add on scenery I own and activated  in the area.  To sum it all up, this is an excellent package from GAS. 

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AEROSOFT - KTNP - TWENTYNINE PALMS FSX P3D

AEROSOFT - KTNP - TWENTYNINE PALMS FSX P3D

This is another excellent scenery add on from Aerosoft. I’ve driven through the real world area several times but many years ago. From what I can recall this is a spot on recreation.  The various airport animations are a cool addition not usually found in most add on sceneries. Even if a few of the people are just walking in the same repetitive circles.  The night lighting of this area is really good as well as the ambient audio sound effects. The low flying eagle can be heard above the field, as well as seen. Really good amount of AI traffic make for an active feeling airport in the desert.  I wish they could’ve made the surrounding area a little bigger. The description makes it sound huge, but it’s really not. Still very nice and if you have other Mojave area sceneries then you can’t pass this up. 

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JUSTFLIGHT - HS 748 PROPLINER FSX P3D

JUSTFLIGHT - HS 748 PROPLINER FSX P3D

I’ve had my eye on this for a while and finally pulled the trigger. I must say this is a very good representation of the 748. They did an excellent job with the audio. I mean that the engines sound amazing! Incredible high quality details in the cockpit making for a highly immersive and fun experience flying the 748.  Without having any real world experience with the plane, I’d still say it’s an authentic simulation.  I only wish there was a cold/dark panel option . If there is I haven’t found it? The aircraft always loads fully running and powered up. I guess I can live with shutting it all down and then go through the checklists but it does slightly detract from the otherwise excellent immersion of everything else. Not enough to remove a star from my rating of this package.  Also in the JF demo video you can see passengers in the cabin from the outside view, however this is not depicted in the final product and the passenger windows appear to be shaded.  Still I can’t bring myself to not give 5 stars.  Based on use with FSX Steam Win 10 I7 3.3 ghz 16GB Ram Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU.  Excellent frames no loss. 

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A2A SIMULATIONS - CAPTAIN OF THE SHIP 049 CONSTELLATION FSX ENTERTAINMENT

A2A SIMULATIONS - CAPTAIN OF THE SHIP 049 CONSTELLATION FSX ENTERTAINMENT

A2A makes some of the very best add on aircraft that can be found. The quality and realism is without peer. Unlike some other premium developers they don’t just make really good looking and highly detailed planes but they also give the greatest attention to realism and accuracy. This L 049 is no exception and delivers on all levels. Every flight is different and attention must be payed to the aircrafts systems or you could suffer severe issues in flight.  The COS system is a lot of fun and just ups the fun factor even more.  If you want the very best possible experience, this example won’t disappoint. If this is your first A2A then you should save up and try to get more of their products. You won’t regret it.  I only wish they would offer a few more liveries.

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ALABEO - M20R OVATION FSX P3D

ALABEO - M20R OVATION FSX P3D

Another beautiful Alabeo plane. Such amazing care for detail and an accurate representation. Really nice liveries.  In case you’re wondering about having to keep your eyes on your fuel tanks because they require manual switching just like the real plane does. I’m glad Alabeo kept things realistic and did not make the fuel automatically fed by both tanks as that would be detracting from the realism that us flight sim enthusiast love. Just be aware that you’ll need to switch tanks to feed the engine sometimes to keep the balance.  This is the kind of GA aircraft that makes swimming so fun!

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JUSTFLIGHT - F-111 AARDVARK  (DOWNLOAD)

JUSTFLIGHT - F-111 AARDVARK (DOWNLOAD)

I have all of the available F111s that can be bought. Virtavia, and the GSK collectors edition. Each has something done better than the other. The Virtavia’s are the fastest and can reach max capabilities but way low resolution and no working radar.  The GKS collection has the most available liveries and amazing textures as well as best engine sounds. These JF Aardvarks may be the best all around. Except like every other Just Flight military fighters the speeds are done ll wrong! The F111 is quite capable of reaching M2.5 when all externals are removed but these JF versions can barely reach M2.2 and that’s while getting an Overspeed warnin after M1.9 ish. Again they botched the speeds. The F111 does not “Overspeed” with a clean load over FL380 at a measly Mach 1.9. Will they ever get this right? Otherwise they did a good job with the flight model and very good textures. The liveries are almost all the same except for a few minor tail graphics. NO Terrain Follow capabilities, but on the plus side the radar systems actually do work. Something GKS missed badly.  The overall cockpit experience is best had here. I just hope I can edit the .cfg to fix the stupid “Overspeed” warning error and scale up the thrust a tad bit.  That said this is your best bet of the 3 overall. The working radars were the clincher.

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RAZBAM - SA227-BC METROLINER III FSX

RAZBAM - SA227-BC METROLINER III FSX

I bought this from the Razbam website direct and a considerable discount. Despite not purchasing this plane here at SimMarket I have information that should be helpful to others considering the purchase.  First off you should know that there is a well known issue with the lighting, as in there is none! All but the cockpit dome lights fail completely and will not ever light up. Also the annunciation “Pwr Fail” light will always blink and cannot be shut off. All systems except pressurization and climate control work so it’s totally flyable but only during the day. There is much speculation on the forums about what the bug is exactly but the prevailing suspected cause is related to the very wonky installer and an issue with a DLL on the aircraft .cfg entry that is missing causing both the flashing warning and the lack of any functioning lights.  There are various suggested fixes but for folks like me who are excellent sim pilots but terrible with computer coding or editing they are painfully difficult despite being portrayed as “an easy fix” in the forums.  Not everybody will experience these issues, but my FSX Steam version using Win 10 definitely did.  That all said I’m so glad I got it on the cheap. If I had paid full price id be furious. As is it is nice to fly during the day. It does have nice textures in the cockpit and many excellent liveries. The flight model is seemingly well simulated as well. You will need to be aware of your RPMs and temps just like in the real world. The cabin is modeled but poorly. Really only good for looking out the window as there is nothing worth looking at in the cabin.  So if you’re OK with the high probability of not having any lighting and can live with this being a day flyer only, then go for it. Just look for a sale or something. Also if you’re confident in editing .cfg files then you may have no problem with the forums suggested fixes.  Oh yeah. The installer is a colossal mess. Be prepared. It will require some extra steps and manual installing. There is no developer support, so be warned.  Good luck. 

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CARENADO - SR22 GTSX TURBO HD SERIES FSX P3D V2

CARENADO - SR22 GTSX TURBO HD SERIES FSX P3D V2

Gorgeous aircraft! That’s to be expected. Not sure why there is always a yellow highlight “TER ERR” message on the pilots Garmin? Nor can I figure out why hey both can get stuck on a screen making it impossible to get from Radar to map once radar is selected. The flight planning is all wonky as well. I’ve run through the manual and cannot find any solutions.  Other than those weird display issues the plane flies great and looks even better. Way way way better the Eaglesofts version of this same plane. I just it had the animated chute deployment. Unfortunately if you pop the chute it just ends the flight and resets it.  It’s a satisfying eye candy flier that stays reasonably close to a realistic sim of the SR22. Amazing night lighting also.  Oh, and the air conditioner drowns out the engine noise. That’s some crazy cabin sound proofing. 

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FSDG - REUNION FSX P3D3-5

FSDG - REUNION FSX P3D3-5

To me this is a must have scenery pack if you intend to get Mauritius, Seychelles, and Maldives! Then this completes the FSDG French West Indies scenery of amazing islands. Reunion is so well detailed and a great place to explore by helicopter. A equally great place to start your island hopping adventures.  So much to see. Even alone it’ll provide many hours of fun!

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AIRCRAFT FACTORY - F4U CORSAIR

AIRCRAFT FACTORY - F4U CORSAIR

So much better than the JustFlight version. Unlike the JF Corsair this one doesn’t overspeed at 240knots at any alt. This thing flies like it should. Fast and loud.  I only wish they made an Accusim version. Oh well, it’s the best F4U that you can buy.  Really well made with excellent textures and flight model. I wish there were a couple more liveries though. 

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FSDG - MAURITIUS FSX P3D

FSDG - MAURITIUS FSX P3D

First I got Maldives and loved it, then Seychelles and loved that too! So I had to get Mauritius and wow it just gets better! Such a nice island with so much to explore. A great place for helicopters. Love the details.

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AEROSOFT - LUKLA - MOUNT EVEREST EXTREME FSX

AEROSOFT - LUKLA - MOUNT EVEREST EXTREME FSX

Absolutely amazing scenery package! You get so much more than just the Lukla area and Mt Everest. The whole area spans an enormous amount of coverage. Dozens of heliports and small airstrips. All in great detail. Lukla won’t disappoint and there are some other airports just as difficult. The base camp at the base of Everest is covered with tents and even some climbers hanging around amongst them. So much to explore you just shouldn’t skip this scenery. 

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CAPTAIN SIM - 707 CAPTAIN

CAPTAIN SIM - 707 CAPTAIN

This is an almost perfect replica of the classic 707. My biggest issues are with the cockpit night lighting Ewing too bright. Even with white dome off and red dome on it’s barely any different. Makes for some challenging night flying. The navigation computer doesn’t turn on at all so you cannot manually enter way points. Other than those, everything else is great. Both appearance inside and out are excellent and really are well done. The passenger cabin is detailed nicely as well. Complete with lavatories you can open the doors also.  The flight model seems right so far as one who’s never flown the real thing. I love this plane. 

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JUSTFLIGHT - HAWK T1/A ADVANCED TRAINER FSX P3D

JUSTFLIGHT - HAWK T1/A ADVANCED TRAINER FSX P3D

OK Wow! I didn’t expect to be so happy with this purchase. I’m glad I did. You get a terrific flight model and excellent textures inside and out. Most things in the cockpit work. Parasitic drag will depend on your external load and impact the flight envelope noticeably. Not like lazily made military planes that fly exactly the same with pylon loads or none. Nope. This will fly as expected according to all load factors. At least that’s what I am experiencing.  The liveries and lively! Some very creative and beautifully made liveries to choose from. Even without TacPac you can load any weapon configuration, but none will fire or work.  Fun  and easy plane to fly in all aspects. 

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A2A SIMULATIONS - CAPTAIN OF THE SHIP B377 FSX

A2A SIMULATIONS - CAPTAIN OF THE SHIP B377 FSX

I hate to give just 5 stars but they could’ve updated some of the interior texture. As is it looks like it was developed almost 15 years ago….which it was of course. Something so amazing deserves to be brought up to date in my opinion. So minus one star for some neglect.  Other than that it’s still an incredibly well made aircraft that is a lot of fun to fly. I love how passengers react to my landings especially hard landings. They scream! It’s darkly funny.  Crew chatter adds to the already high level depth of immersion.  Even if you don’t prefer old aircraft you should still consider this. It’s a masterpiece simulation of a fantastic aircraft you won’t find elsewhere or at least not even close to this level of quality.  The B377 is not an easy beast to land, at least without getting complaints.  As with all A2A Accusim planes you get a lot for your dollar.  Don’t miss out.

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A2A SIMULATIONS - C182 SKYLANE FSX ENTERTAINMENT

A2A SIMULATIONS - C182 SKYLANE FSX ENTERTAINMENT

Another superb A2A product! First something very strange happened when I installed this C182. My A2A T6 and Comanche both went completely haywire. I mean like really strange. They were perfectly fine just prior to installing this but right away they were mute in the cockpit, unable to be repaired without instantly having severe engine damage. The T6 rolled backward and when I hit brakes it went up on its nose somehow. So strange. Fortunately I just needed to delete the, and then reinstall to fix them. But wow that was odd. Just a heads up.  Beside that craziness I love this plane as much as my other Accusim aircraft. Lie the others the C182 is meticulously designed in all aspects giving the most realistic simulation possible. Nothing is compromised or lazily portrayed. You get a beautifully engineered aircraft. These A2A planes are the cream of the crop. Worth every penny and ooze quality.  If you are looking for planes that feel look and sound right not to mention fun, then these works of art are the best options. 

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A2A SIMULATIONS - T-6 TEXAN FSX ENTERTAINMENT

A2A SIMULATIONS - T-6 TEXAN FSX ENTERTAINMENT

I have always enjoyed my Virtavia T6 but also always felt it desperately lacking in the realism department. Not to mention low rez visuals. Seeing A2A had this T6 with Accusim (and having some birthday cash to spend) I couldn’t pass it up.  I’m very glad I did buy it even at full price.  Like all A2A aircraft it is modeled to be as real as it gets for FSX and looks amazing! Even though it has only two virtual cockpit cams (front and back) which limits certain view point I still can’t get enough of my T6.  The auto pilot is weird and has issues holding altitude some of the time. It manages to keep the heading though.  I wish they had added a cockpit flood dimmer but perhaps that would ruin the authenticity for some?  Whatever the case these are minor complaints all things considered.  If you haven’t experienced any A2A Accusim products I suggest checking out the A2A website where you can get a free sample by downloading the free P40 Warhawk package. It’s as complete as any of the others and will give those unsure about making a big price tag A2A purchase a solid idea of just why it’s so worth the money.  Love this T6 so much. Looks, sounds and feels as real as it can get.  Based on use with FSX Steam Win 10 i7 3.3ghz 16GB Ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU. 

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A2A SIMULATIONS - COMANCHE 250 FSX ENTERTAINMENT

A2A SIMULATIONS - COMANCHE 250 FSX ENTERTAINMENT

A2A and its Accusim tech are a very special. I had not fully understood their products and would shy away from purchasing any because I thought they were too expensive. They sort are expensive but for darn good reason! These are some of the most realistic simulations around in not “The most”. if you’re not sure yet yourself check out A2A website and get the P40 Warhawk that they are just giving away for free. That’s how I got bit and fell in love with their products.  This Comanche is just so nice. They did not skip any detail and even the smallest is carefully represented. As good as any Carenado in appearance but simply superior in realism.  The Comanche is so nice to fl excellent speed and handling.  The whole Accusim thing immerses you like nothing else. I can’t say enough good things without this going on too long.  My only complaint is only the passenger door opens and closes. No baggage door for some reason. Also no preset back seat camera views. The later is common with A2A products.  Even with two minor complaints I still want to give it more than 5 stars.  Based on use with FSX Steam Win10 i7 3.3 ghz 16GB Ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU. Excellent frames until entering high density large add on city scenery. Others with dedicated GPUs should have better performance. 

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MAJESTIC SOFTWARE - DASH 8 Q400 PILOT X32 FSX/P3DV3

MAJESTIC SOFTWARE - DASH 8 Q400 PILOT X32 FSX/P3DV3

I love this plane! Wow what a well made simulation. This is as complete as it gets and so much detail. The Dash 8 is relatively easy to fly but if you’re not used to highly simulated planes it may take some practice. The way it responds in the sim definitely gives a big impression of realism. A gentle touch and careful trimming are required or it can easily be put out of control if you make exaggerated stick input movements. A light touch is all its needs for turns. I mean this is really something special.  Everything in the cockpit is simmed. A Clickers dream! The FMS is very in depth so make convoluted flight plans from the seat.  The liveries are all well done and you get a fair amount, but there could be more.  My only complaints are as follows: For some reason if I contact ATC to ask for taxi, take off or landing permissions and complete the read back, then got to FSX Map view for a few seconds, then come back and all those previous ATC requests are as if they never happened and I have to do it again. Pretty weird and annoying as I often like to get my approach frequencies from that Map after I contact ATC. No idea why this happens and it’s only started with this specific plane, and no others are affected.  The other complaint isn’t really a compliant but a wish. I wish there were a few more liveries.  All in all and considering how intensely this plane is simulated the frame rates are great. Same as any other well made plane no chugging. Unless approaching a heavily populated major scenery add on city and airport sceneries. Other wise no problem. Im sure results will very from PC to PC. A must have for serious or heavy use simmers.  Based on use with Win10 i7 3.3ghz 16GB RAM Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU. 

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A2A SIMULATIONS - ACCU-SIM B-17G FLYING FORTRESS FSX

A2A SIMULATIONS - ACCU-SIM B-17G FLYING FORTRESS FSX

The B17 is my favorite WW2 era military aircraft. Seeing that there is this A2A version with Accusim I felt it was a must to buy it. I’m glad I did. Everything about this sim is amazing. Details details details! Everything is modeled and simulated. You get crew help options which are very handy. The crew also randomly makes comments here and there. The radio broadcasts are authentic and a great extra piece of immersion.  I also have the AeroHeaven B17 and while that is also very nice its just for fun and pales in comparison to this one.  This is as close to the real thing as most of us can possibly get. A truly remarkable product!  Based on use with FSX Steam Win10 i7 3.3ghz 16GB Ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU. Excellent frames. 

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FLYSIMWARE LLC - C402C BUSINESSLINER FSX P3D

FLYSIMWARE LLC - C402C BUSINESSLINER FSX P3D

This C402C is a nice twin to fly around in. It’s especially good for those charter type flights in and out of small airports and island hops say like the Seychelles. I like the way it’s been designed to fly as close to real world as possible. However I believe it could be a little more realistic, but that’s a little nick picky maybe. It’s a smooth easy forgiving ride that is quite enjoyable. The textures are a little lacking but not bad. I really like that all of the doors open and close. The sounds are pretty close to the real thing so far as I can tell in comparison to real world videos. Everything works as expected and I can’t find any problems. Very easy on frames. Based on use with FSX SE Win10 i7 3.3ghz 16GB Ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU.

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FLYSIMWARE LLC - FALCON 50 FSX P3D

FLYSIMWARE LLC - FALCON 50 FSX P3D

I’m a bit sad to say this could be a lot better, it’s not bad, just not as good as the price would indicate. First off I had to deal with a flickering interior cockpit and cabin. It was maddening and made the plane unusable. After some forum research I found almost nothing by way of a solution. On the FlySimWare website F50 product page I found a file labeled “No flash” and downloaded it. The description said “not for FSX SE” however installing the patch completely resolved all flickering. So somehow it is for FSX SE. whatever the case problem is solved now. Next up the general graphical appearance is a little less than great. Almost zero cabin lighting beyond the very dim ambient ceiling lighting, the rest is very dark. Again not terrible. Next complaint is the configuration tool doesn’t work. Only external door that opens and closes is the main door. The cockpit lighting is pretty good though. No baggage or any other external door animations. That leaves me feeling like this is a bit incomplete for such a high price. However the plane does fly and behave nicely and as described on paper. Auto pilot works great and follows the route and waypoints. Fuel seems to burn a little faster than it should and the overall range suffers for it. In the end I’m not regretting the purchase as it was on sale. If I had paid full price I’d be a lot more dissatisfied. Nevertheless it is fun to fly and I’m happy to finally have it in my virtual hangar. Based on use with Win10 i7 3.3ghz 16GB Ram Intel UHD630 GPU. Recommend if on sale.

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JUSTSIM - INNSBRUCK AIRPORT  AUSTRIA - LOWI FSX P3D

JUSTSIM - INNSBRUCK AIRPORT AUSTRIA - LOWI FSX P3D

I love this scenery. It’s not just the LOWI airport but the whole Innsbruck city and surroundings. Including the various ski resorts. Excellent photo scenery of the entire area. It’s all just gorgeous. The airport is in perfect detail and well represented. The approach of course is a big part of the appeal being so challenging and complex assuming you choose to follow the actual charts and procedures. All of which are included in this package. There is loads to explore and see. Excellent night lighting and comes with automatic seasonal textures. Works perfectly with FSX Steam. I just needed to direct the install patch to my main FSX SE folder then activate it. Amazing frame rates! Based on use with FSX SE Win 10 i7 3.3ghz 16GB ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU.

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FSDG - SEYCHELLES FSX P3D

FSDG - SEYCHELLES FSX P3D

I love this scenery! I love large scenery add ons that have much to explore over a wide coverage area. This delivers both in fine quality of the scenery and a huge area to to enjoy. Excellent custom auto gen, land class and many different airports and air strips. All with unique flavors. There are a bunch of AI things to see from ships to birds and even a turtle. Not sure the turtle counts as AI? Whatever. It’s a fun, big and great looking area to fly around. It’s a nice companion to the Maldives scenery also. Sure it’s 1200 miles away but a nice flight to or from either scenery areas. Seychelles is the perfect place to fly just about anything but especially nice with helicopters, otters, beavers, small business jets and amphibians. You can play charter pilot to your hearts content and find something new every time. Highly recommended. Based on use with 3.3ghz i7 16GB Ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU, amazing frames!

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AEROSOFT - BEAVER X (DOWNLOAD)

AEROSOFT - BEAVER X (DOWNLOAD)

There is no better option for the Beaver. MilViz was the only real competitor and did have better textures, but also had many problems with their version of this plane. Aerosoft has done a very good job with the Beaver and delivers a huge collection of variety to enjoy. A real bang for your buck with so many models including a crop duster with even more liveries. The interior is where the age of this shows a bit but it’s by no means bad. They look like 50 plus year old planes. The exterior textures are very good and trying to choose which one to load and fly is the only issue. These Beavers fly great! There is a nice sense of realism as attention to the planes physic are clearly well catered to. You get a lot in this package and even at full price it’s a good value. Every flight simmer should have a good Beaver to fly the virtual skies. Based on use with FSX Steam Win 10 i7 3.3ghz 16GB Ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU.

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RAZBAM - MCDONNELL F-2 BANSHEE

RAZBAM - MCDONNELL F-2 BANSHEE

I didn’t buy this from SimMarket but I did buy it direct from Razbam on special. Since there’s only one review I thought a more up to date review could be helpful despite being purchased from the developer and not here. It’s exactly the same plane so here goes. I’m a big fan of military aircraft and have a large collection. The Banshee was a short lived naval aircraft but a significant part of early jet development. I recommend reading up on the Banshee as it’s an interesting part of history. This virtual version seems pretty accurate in its performance. Not particularly nimble by todays standards but it did climb very well and had good altitude capability which is well represented here. It’s a fast plane but short of supersonic. It can exceed Mach 1 in a power dive but that is likely to destroy the aircraft if you fly in full realism type settings. But for its time it was indeed a fast plane. Keep in mind this plane was released in 2007 and it really shows. There is NO eye candy to be found. Much of the VC is inoperable except for critical systems and controls. The radars and recon screens do not work. It reminds me of an old Virtavia quality but maybe slightly better concerning the external modeling. That said if I hadn’t gotten this on special that included the expansion pack at a considerably lower cost, I’d say forget it. If however you can spot or come upon a decent sale, then maybe consider it as it is a worthy piece to add to your collection. Despite its visual shortcomings it’s fun to fly. Has no impact on frames at all. Based on use with FSX Steam Win 10 i7 3.3ghz 16GB Ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU.

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RLABORIE - CARGO 400M V2 FSX P3D

RLABORIE - CARGO 400M V2 FSX P3D

First I want to let folks know that it can work with FSX Steam. You will probably need to use the included patch which will also make the HUD no longer functional. You’ll know this if when you start a flight the screen flickers like a spasmodic strobe light of green and white random blocks and triangles as well as what looks like a center screen flashing explosion of lights. If you see that then say good bye to the HUD as the patch cures the horrific light show but deletes the ability to turn the HUD on forever. This is the main reason I am giving 3 stars. Other than the lack of a HUD (in my case) the planes are real cool! The plane is well simulated but not academic level by any means. You cannot control everything as much is automated. The A400C has a clever auto trim function that keeps flight at the perfect AoA at all times including manual flight, there is no manual trim at all. The cockpit is nicely detailed and only take a short familiarization period to know where and how everything is and works. The doors are opens by a pedestal turn knob with 7 positions. Each opening or closing various doors minus the rear main cargo door. The rear cargo door has a two position rocker that controls it. Night lighting is pretty nice inside and outside. The plane is fly by wire so it’s really easy to fly. As easy as a small plane but heavier obviously. All in all it’s a solid package with a nice variety of liveries. I just wish the HUD worked for me. Don’t know why as I have dozens of other planes with working HUDs (except my Wilco Harrier) and no problems. Pretty smooth frame rates except in large add on scenery like Los Angeles but everywhere else no worries. Based on use with FSX Steam Win10 i7 3.3ghz 16GB Ram Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU

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AEROSOFT - MALDIVES X - THE MALE ATOLLS (DOWNLOAD)

AEROSOFT - MALDIVES X - THE MALE ATOLLS (DOWNLOAD)

This is a pretty decent pack with a lot to explore. However it’s not a complete Maldives package. You do get the main atolls and of course Male. It’s realistic in general including the crowded shipping lane with lots of cargo shifts hanging around waiting to dock at the tiny port. Yes it actually looks like this in the real Male area, just check google or google maps. Each resort is a little different from the other but all have a sense of similarity. It’s a great place to fly the Aerosoft Twin Otter around, but I also like using helicopters. The trees don’t looks so bad, I don’t see anything to gripe over them, but to each his own. It may be a bit dated even by FSX standards but it’s the only Maldives scenery worth getting. I just wish you could start flights from the various resorts with sea plane spots. All flights have to begin at Male Intl. So get your swimsuit and visit some amazing resorts including Club Med! 4 stars for not including more of the Maldives atolls and generic amount of auto gen, but still worth it! Based on use with FSX Steam Win10 i7 3.3ghz 16GB Ram Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU with very high auto gen and other scenery settings. Love it!

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RAZBAM - T-2 BUCKEYE

RAZBAM - T-2 BUCKEYE

I bought this direct from Razbam. Despite having not purchased from SimMarket I hope my review will be allowed anyway. First I think it’s important to note that it is FSX Steam compatible. I only needed to redirect the install path. Easy as pie. Once installed I eagerly loaded up these interesting planes and was pleasantly surprised by a very nice flight model. I place high importance on a good flight model and Razbam delivered. It really gives the impression of accuracy and feels realistic. The graphics model is a little dated, but still pretty good. My only issue is that despite the features on their site speaking to all of the systems that are simulated, some do not appear to be, Such as icing, and engine damage not ever occurring when in heavy icing conditions and excessively pushing the RPMs. Yes I have the realism and engine stress causes damage on and set. It’s not a deal breaker but was a little disappointed considering how much it’s written about in the manual and their features description on their website. At any rate these are quite fun to fly and look good doing it. The audio is also very well done. The engines roar when viewed externally and the internal cockpit audio is very nice adding to an immersive experience. All in all. I recommend these. Based on use with FSX Steam Win10 i7 3.3 ghz 16GB Ram Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU. Excellent frames!

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MSK PRODUCTIONS - SAAB MFI-17 / PAC MUSHSHAK (THE PROFICIENT) FSX P3D

MSK PRODUCTIONS - SAAB MFI-17 / PAC MUSHSHAK (THE PROFICIENT) FSX P3D

OK this isn’t the highest quality plane ever. It is however a very nice plane. Despite the slightly low rez visuals (but not terrible or as low as the common freeware) the plane is very well simulated. A lot of add on plane fly just fine but lack any real feeling of it being natural. Obviously nothing is natural about a simulation but when a developer carefully codes the flight characteristics of their aircraft to respond and react to the simulated environment, then you have something special. This is one of those planes! It responds to winds and turbulence about as naturally as possible in my opinion. That is something worth having. The responses also aren’t exaggerated or inappropriately understated either. It gives a very realistic impression of flying within the simulator world. That said the textures while not flashy are actually really what the real plane looks like. It’s not a real world fancy or eye candy type of plane and you get that here all the same, could it be a little better? Sure. But I’ll take accuracy over fluff any day. Not really worth more than the on sale price all things considered, full price should be avoided if possible. I’m ok with the $9 U.S. that I paid and am really enjoying this little bird. Based on use with FSX Steam Win10 i7 3.3ghz 16GB Ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU 128MB dedicated. Recommended!

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NORTEASUL - FULL CITY - FLORIANÓPOLIS

NORTEASUL - FULL CITY - FLORIANÓPOLIS

The product screen shots look nice and $5 is hard to pass up. The scenery is plagued with problems and omissions. No bridges, miss matched photo scenery areas with many cloud shadows on the ground, and to make matters worse there are a lot of buildings floating in the air. There are parts of the island that look pretty good, but it’s like they took random photos taken at different times of the day and lined them up with each other in a rush or something? Really though it’s all the floating buildings that make it difficult to tolerate. I’m not talking about a few, but large areas of floaters. I tried contacting the developer but was ignored each time.

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FLYFREESTD - SUKHOI T-50 & PAK-FA FUTURA FSX

FLYFREESTD - SUKHOI T-50 & PAK-FA FUTURA FSX

4 stars because again FFS released a slow plane. These 5th gen aircraft were built for speed and super agility. However only super agility is present in this package with sorely underpowered thrust. They are faster at sea level than at high altitude, totally backward. They performed more like 2nd gen aircraft. They barely could hit Mach1.1 at altitude ( FL400) where they should be capable of hitting around Mach 2. Thankfully there’s plenty of YouTube or forum advice on how to adjust the .cfg file “engine thrust scalar”. After I did the appropriate adjustments to said .cfg I can get these amazing aircraft to perform as intended! Fast and insanely agile. All things considered as well as the low price this is a pretty cool set of “what if” type aircraft that are a blast to fly. Also you can’t really get them anywhere else so there’s that. Based on use with FSX SE Win 10 3.3ghz i7 16GB ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU.

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AIRCRAFT FACTORY - P-51H HIGH PERFORMANCE MUSTANG FSX

AIRCRAFT FACTORY - P-51H HIGH PERFORMANCE MUSTANG FSX

I bought this from Steam for my FSX Steam but I hope SimMarket will allow my review. Somebody has to say something about this fantastic plane. I’m a big P51D fan and love it’s history. The H model as you’ve surely read in the description was never used in WW2, but wow it would’ve been great! It may be a simplistic simulation of the plane but the flight model and its behaviors seem to mimic everything I have read in FSX. Vs my D the H is noticeably quicker, and more agile. It can really climb and is superbly controllable. Despite each livery being nearly the same with just subtle differences and nothing as interesting as say the “Jersey Jerk” and the likes, they are beautiful models regardless. Shinny polished metal is still nice to look at in my opinion. The cockpit layout is improved as well with much better instruments visibility. The automated supercharger, radiator flaps etc make it a lot easier to just fly without worrying about when or how much to adjust. No more chasing the manifold pressure gauge, this bird was built to give the pilot the freedom to concentrate on the fight. If you like or love WW2 planes like the P51D Mustang then this is another would be legend to add to the collection. Based on use with FSX Steam Win 10 3.3ghz i7 16GB Ram Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU. Excellent frame rates!!

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GLOWINGHEAT - LOCKHEED SR-71A BLACKBIRD FSX P3D

GLOWINGHEAT - LOCKHEED SR-71A BLACKBIRD FSX P3D

Wow, what an upgrade! I had the Cygnus for a while and have always enjoyed it but things didn’t feel complete without an actual SR-71 Blackbird in the stable. Sure this is a slightly dumbed down version but it does deliver on speed and performance expectations. Speed is what this does best, performance not so much. Zero aerobatic capability in an unforgiving airframe can’t be overlooked. GH did a fair job modeling the flight characteristics but was lite on systems especially the FSX version. No radar of any kind for the FSX version (which is the version I use) and a few less other systems as well. No cabin temp or pressure control. You can turn on the oxygen but that’s it. The FSX radar limitation bugs me because I have older planes that DO have radar or a periscope function that work fine. So why not here? That and you also can’t turn on much of anything in the backseat. You get a moving map but cannot adjust the range or terrain function. I have more advanced passenger liners complete with ground and weather radar that work fine, so what’s the FSX limitation here? I don’t get it and that’s why I knock off 1 star because frankly if my 777 has it, then surely a Blackbird could too? Whatever the case with the simplistic and limited systems or lack of it’s still a really nice flying SR-71 with a great selection of rail art liveries to choose from. They are all very nicely detailed and you cannot get them anywhere else, so love it or leave it. I choose to mostly love it! One last thing and this may be a new release bug, but if I so much as tap the radar power button I get a horizontal red line across the mid screen over the primary compass, then after ending the flight a error message I forgot to note pops up and forces FSX to close. As long as I do not touch any radar buttons everything is just fine. All in all it’s a great upgrade to the old Cygnus and it wasn’t terribly expensive so all is well. Based on use with FSX Steam Win 10 3.3ghz Intel i7 16GB Ram Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU excellent frame rates, no loss.

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GOLDEN AGE SIMULATIONS - GOLDEN AGE - LOCKHEED MODEL 12 FSX

GOLDEN AGE SIMULATIONS - GOLDEN AGE - LOCKHEED MODEL 12 FSX

Such a nice plane. It’s a smaller version of the L10 and flies very similarly. It may be a little faster though? Despite having fixtures in the cabin there are no dome or night lighting other than the cockpit panel. The GPS auto pilot option doesn’t follow the flight plan. You have to use heading lock. Other than those two issues I’m pretty pleased with this models flight characteristics. Nice liveries as well but one that is shown is is missing.

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CAPTAIN SIM - 777 CAPTAIN BASEPACK (777-200) FSX

CAPTAIN SIM - 777 CAPTAIN BASEPACK (777-200) FSX

I hope SimMarket will allow me to review this despite having purchased directly from CaptainSim online store. If so… This is a good add on. Not being an actual pilot I can only be so sure about accuracy of flight modeling and behaviors but being a experienced flight sim enthusiast. That said I believe this to be a pretty good simulated representation of the real world plane. Obviously it’s not going to be dead perfect, but it certainly has the systems and characteristics that all come together to deliver what feels as close as possible for FSX. In other words it feels right. Is it worth full price? Well that would depend on the simmer I guess. One who loves the 777 and can’t find a better option elsewhere (I couldn’t find any?) then yes. Everyone else might want to wait for a sale like I did. I won’t rub it in but I did get a stellar deal on a flash sale from Capt.Sim direct. All that aside, this is a fairly deep sim of a really cool real world plane. Some things might require you to RTFM in order to use properly, while the average experienced simmer will find most systems to behave intuitively needing little manual reading. I am surprised to find that unlike say the CS727, this 777 does not have Pilot or crew announcements, or a built in passenger cabin view. If you want to see the passenger cabin you have to start a flight selecting the 1 and only passenger cabin aircraft and enjoy your flight ONLY from the passenger point of view. To pilot the plane you have to do it from the cabin using the 2D panels, no VC! This really bugs me and is why only 4 stars. How come CS would give a passenger cabin view with any livery as well as the complete VC with the 727 but NOT the 777? It doesn’t make any sense? Especially for the heavy price tag. I should knock it to a 3 star but since it’s the only currently available 777 of high design standards (the AFS triple seven doesn’t count as a legit option) I can’t be that harsh. Letting the crazy weird passenger cabin view as a separate option to select and fly aside this is a very good plane, and I am enjoying it. The sounds are very well done and flying by hand is delightful. I do recommend it but if you can wait, do wait for a sale. Based on use with FSX Steam win 10 3.3ghz i7 16GB Ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU excellent frame rates!

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VIRTAVIA - T-34C TURBO MENTOR

VIRTAVIA - T-34C TURBO MENTOR

I have an older version of the very same product from when Virtavia sold it in the FSX Steam add ons. I’m reviewing here and now because the start up sequence is not hard at all. You just have to turn the fuel switch on (under the throttle) then flip the starter on the right side forward console area, and make sure the generator is on. It does work and I learned it by reading the included manual and. Little common sense. I hate to see bad reviews because of operator error. That said I only paid a total $11 back when I initially purchased this and see nothing new to suggest justifying a $28 price tag except for a couple new liveries. The engine audio is fantastic and so is the flight model. Just be sure to turn on the oxygen and the cabin heat when over 10K feet or the canopy will fog up and also hypoxia is simulated which will end your flight. This is way better than the Carenado Mentor but not $28 better. It’s way over priced now. Still it may be one of Virtavia’s best simulated turbo prop they ever offered, but seriously why nearly 3 times what I paid now?

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AEROSOFT - DHC-6 TWIN OTTER EXTENDED (DOWNLOAD) FSX P3D

AEROSOFT - DHC-6 TWIN OTTER EXTENDED (DOWNLOAD) FSX P3D

It might be 9 years since it first came out, but it doesn’t show. Aerosoft did a real good job with this! The steadfast work horse that is the DHC6 is so well represented here one might even say a lot of love went in to the making of it? Well I love that they made it so well. Despite not saying so it IS FSX Steam compatible and even has the Steam install option. The various types that are included like Float, amphibious, wheeled, ski or tundra wheeled is great. I just wish there were a few more liveries for each. It would also have been nice to have the option of changing between cargo or passenger. You just get either or depending on the livery selected. For the money it seems that should be a standard option but it’s not. Complaint aside the details are not glossed over and are carefully brought to life. Nearly everything in the cockpit is workable save only a few dead switches. I was surprised however that you cannot control cabin heat at all. I guess I can let that go all things considered. Excellent textures and an even better flight model accompanied by a super good audio package and a aircraft config tool that allows for detailed fuel, weight and aircraft set up round out this extended edition very nicely. I understand why so many people love this plane. It should not be overlooked and especially if on sale a easy purchase. Based on use with FSX Steam Win 10 i7 3.3ghz 16GB Ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU. Very smooth frame rates even in very bad and heavy wether conditions. GET THIS!

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CAPTAIN SIM - 727-100 CAPTAIN BASE PACK

CAPTAIN SIM - 727-100 CAPTAIN BASE PACK

Ok sure it’s really old and dated, but there just isn’t any other way to buy a decent 727 for FSX Steam these days. It shows it’s age for sure but that can be forgiven considering how well the whole thing is simulated. Cpt.Sim pulled no punches with this classic jet and even by todays standards delivers a comprehensive and entertaining package. Pretty much everything is simulated even the oft forgotten pressurization and heating systems. The VC is highly detailed with all the switches, dials and buttons having actual purpose. I like the passenger cabin getting some love too. You can move trays, overhead compartments, window shades, even the Bathroom door opens to a nicely detailed head. All very very cool. I’m a stick and rudder type and much prefer to fly my planes by hand, using automation only when I really needs to like say long flights. That said this 727 flies like a 727 would be expected to fly. You can feel the weight and responsiveness or lack of, in nearly any flying condition. In other words it does feel different from say a 737 or whatever. I love that. My only complaint is the ACE tool for bringing in new liveries. It simply doesn’t work. Not for me anyway, and I’m not a rookie. The installer comes with a FSX Steam option built in, and of course it is fully Steam compatible. Great frame rates, very smooth. Based on use with FSX Steam Win 10 3.3ghz i7 16GB Ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU. love it despite its age.

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GOLDEN AGE SIMULATIONS - MEYERS OTW-160 P3D/FSX

GOLDEN AGE SIMULATIONS - MEYERS OTW-160 P3D/FSX

This is another outstanding stick and rudder aircraft by Golden Age! Truth be told when you fly one biplane, you’ve pretty much flown them all. Very little separates one from another. Of course there are differences (climb, turn, etc) but they are rarely noticeable unless you pay very close attention. Some do have much better speed capabilities. In general they are all low and slow fliers. That said there is something about the Meyers OTW that just feels different. Sure it’s a slowpoke for a aerobatic capable bi plane, but it has a different sort of character that stands out from the common fare. I personally love the subtle design differences especially when viewed on one of the two polished metal liveries. The super shiny chromed looking bodies with contrasting wing colors are lovely. The other two liveries (total of 4) are also very nice even if still common looking. The OTW has captured my imagination and makes for a highly enjoyable experience. Something that makes the OTW stand out performance wise is the narrow windows of which certain acrobatic maneuvering can be performed correctly. The relatively weak powered engine doesn’t offer much speed or acceleration to execute spins and rolls. You’ll need to rely more on a combination of factors to do any one type of move and be aware of how to allow for recovery before attempting another. Makes for excellent training but not for any actual combat….which is the whole point I suppose. Nice plane that feels like a trainer should and with some nice liveries.

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DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - BAKU X FSX P3D

DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - BAKU X FSX P3D

I have mixed feelings about this. Of the several Drzewiecki Design sceneries I own this one is my least favorite. For some reason it is a system resources hog despite being the least detailed (settings all being the same) where auto gen is concerned. I’ve made sure I have no duplicate files or anything that could cause the frame rate chugging. The auto gen is relatively sparse (set to very high) with many empty foot prints. You will have to visit DDs website to locate and download the photo real Azerbaijan country and lite airports package as it is no longer included. It’s easy enough. The city photo real is much much better than the surrounding country, however even the lower quality surrounding country photo to real is still better than the default FSX if you stay above 3000 feet, but has very few trees. Up close the country photo image scenery is pretty lousy. But I think it’s work having if you can’t run ORBX resource greedy scenery. The UBBB Baku airport is indeed very nice and the highlight of the entire package. The airport is populated with planes, buses, carts, and people, of which many vehicles are animated and travel the airport. It is packed with great detail. All in all it’s the main airport that makes this package worth buying but only when at sale prices.

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FLYFREESTD - ANTONOV AN-225 MRIYA FSX

FLYFREESTD - ANTONOV AN-225 MRIYA FSX

This is very close to a 5 star aircraft. Everything about this package (of 3 Liveries available to select as Russian or English language cockpits) is pretty well done. Only issues are no dome lights and a wonky auto pilot that is not instinctively operated. But the AP does work as it should when you figure out it’s weird quirks. The dome lights appear to be a known issue pending future update fix? When loading the front cargo the whole process is animated and movements are at the speed one should expect, slow. It will kneel down to ground supports bear the forward wheels that also kind of tuck themselves in. The plane flies like I’d expect, slow and lumbering under its massive weight and awkward external loads. I love the various load types that can be selected. They are all graphically represented in detail. I am satisfied in general and happy with my purchase. This is a unique aircraft to have in ones virtual hangar. Not a lot of airports can accommodate such a behemoth but don’t let that stop you, just be aware of the need for a lot of braking distance when landing and use the thrust reversers. Based on use with win 10 FSX Steam 3.3ghz i7 16GB ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU. Zero frame rate hits even with add on scenery like the entire Moscow area.

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DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - MOSCOW CITY X FSX P3D

DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - MOSCOW CITY X FSX P3D

This developer doesn’t pull any punches! I always enjoy there work and own 6 so far. I think this is one of their biggest scenery areas? Whatever the case it’s huge! Several airports in the vicinity of Moscow and an amazing amount of unique autogen for a great many locations of interest. It’s a helicopter pilots dream. They even have Putin at the Red Square heliport where I find it to be an entertaining place to visit him with a heavily armed Apache Longbow. Also included is a challenging mission to land a Cessna at Red Square. Really nice night textures and lighting. Pretty good winter textures as well. So much to explore and discover. Based on use with i7 3.3ghz 16GB Ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU, settings at high to very high no loss of frames. Very smooth!

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DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - EPKK KRAKÓW X V3 FSX P3D FSW

DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - EPKK KRAKÓW X V3 FSX P3D FSW

Another amazing and large scenery By Drzewieki! There is nothing to complain about here. You get a large area to explore and enjoy. So much amazing detail especially in the historic old town. Very easy on the frame rates. The flight museum is a fun place to see. There is a runway nearby the museum that is a nice challenge thanks to power lines right at one end. Not quite as large an area as Seattle or Warsaw but still a sizable plot. Definitely makes for some very nice short flights between krakow and Warsaw. Based on use with i7 3.3ghz 16GB Ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU. High to very high graphics settings.

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PAULO RICARDO - RIO DE JANEIRO - SANTOS DUMONT SBRJ 2020  FSX P3D

PAULO RICARDO - RIO DE JANEIRO - SANTOS DUMONT SBRJ 2020 FSX P3D

Paulo Ricardo offers some of the biggest scenery products you can buy (if not THE biggest?) and this Rio De Janeiro Santos Dumont is positively enormous! Stretching all the way up coast to Macae down past Rio to Ilha da Marambaia! Tons of custom generated content along with even more generic auto gen mixed in! All on really nice photo scenery. This is a area you can spend a great many hours exploring. It has a bunch of helipads strewn about as well, including a hospital near Macae if you want to have a nice and fairly lengthy helicopter flight. I found a few building roof tops in the city of Rio that helicopters can land on as well that are not mentioned in the products description. I also found some helipads that look clearly marked as such but are not solid. Have fun finding which ones are solid to land on or are not. The night lighting is spectacular. The city sparkles at night. Having so much in a huge area is pushing my PC to its limits. I actually had to lower my Autogen Complexity and Autogen density to high from very high. My only complaint was my initial download from SimMarket came with some kind of malfunction causing a strange area crash. I mean that when I went a little bit east inland from the Rio bay it crashed FSX when I crossed an imaginary line. Not to worry though and don’t sweat this as the developer was quick to help and sent me a new download to install. The new download solved the crash and I can now fully explore the entire area without fear of see my desktop very suddenly. Weird that the new download is missing the non airport complex that previously was visible at the SBRJ airports east border, and now just borders water? Amazing!

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A1R DESIGN BUREAU -  A1R CP-80 RACER FSX P3D

A1R DESIGN BUREAU - A1R CP-80 RACER FSX P3D

If you want a very nimble, quick and stable racer or stunt plane this will do nicely. However it’s really a racer that has acrobatic capabilities. Just be aware that the type of engine installed does lose power when inverted. It recovers power relatively fast I’d you return to level flight but I would not do too many inverted maneuvers consecutively or you’ll stall I wish it had a smoke feature. A very nice little no frills, bare bones kit plane for zipping around pylons or valleys and mountains during the day. No lights of any sort.

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NEMETH DESIGNS - EC-135 FSX

NEMETH DESIGNS - EC-135 FSX

Another excellent helicopter by Nemeth! Very nice details in and out. Flies very nicely and easy to control. Only complaint is the back cabin doesn’t light up ever no matter what light switches are on. The wipers don’t work. No functioning autopilot but that’s pretty common in helos.

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PAULO RICARDO - SBKP-VIRACOPOS-CAMPINAS FSX P3D3

PAULO RICARDO - SBKP-VIRACOPOS-CAMPINAS FSX P3D3

while I gave this 5 stars it is not perfect. It is amazing and full of cool places to see like a huge oil refinery, amusement park with a big roller coaster and rides, and a couple smaller airports as well as many other sites. The area of coverage is huge! it goes beyond the immediate city and main airport. This large coverage area is typical of P Ricardo sceneries. you get more than what you pay for and are granted a massive (compared to most other add on scenery products) area to explore. The scenery itself is very nice and satisfying even at low altitudes. there are a few floating buildings but not many and i find them easy to ignore. The night lighting is outstanding. highly recommended! Based on use with FSX Steam 3.3ghz i7 16GB Ram Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU excellent frame rates at high scenery settings.

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PAULO RICARDO - SALVADOR INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT SBSV AND CITY FSX P3D

PAULO RICARDO - SALVADOR INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT SBSV AND CITY FSX P3D

This is my second scenery from this developer and I love it. FYI you’ll need to download the ORBX Freeware libraries to fully enjoy the FTX 3D lighting as seen in the screenshots. Otherwise it’ll just be default lighting which fall flat and doesn’t do this package justice. Not only do you get the whole city of Salvador but the photo scenery extends far beyond city limits for even more amazing or at least much better scenery. Some of the extended photos scenery beyond the main city area has sporadic autogen building and foliage. There’ll be like a small neighborhood with houses and then maybe half a mile away no autogen, just photo. I’m not complaining as it’s basically extra free scenery. The city is dense! So much to see and enjoy. This is one scenery set that delivers and then some! Can’t be beat for the price especially on sale. Based on use with FSX Steam 3.3ghz i7 16GB RAM Intel UHD630 integrated GPU with 128mb dedicated. No frame rate or display or rendering issues at all.

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DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - EETN TALLINN X V2 FSX P3D FSW

DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - EETN TALLINN X V2 FSX P3D FSW

Maybe I’m spoiled by their Warsaw city, Seattle City but Tallinn leaves me a little bit disappointed in comparison to those other massive and amazing scenery packages. Granted this is the city AND airport combined so there is that. The city itself just doesn’t have that satisfying of a coverage area. That said this is NOT bad by any means. Just smaller than I expected. The airport is incredibly detailed has some very cool options to open a few hangars which reveal some sparse but nicely detailed interiors. The terminal is beautiful with connecting jetways, custom airport vehicles and a few ground crew personnel hanging around. The ports could be better with actual 3D docks but instead the docks are just photo scenery. A few nice ships and ferries dot the ports. For some reason you cannot land helicopters on the ferry helipads. The city is what leaves me most dissatisfied. The auto gen is mostly standard FSX objects with a smattering of custom 3D buildings that could have been done better. All in all it’s not worth full price, I’m glad I got it on sale. But again maybe I’m just spoiled by their bigger cities Warsaw and Seattle. Not bad not great, definitely above average compared other developers.

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DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - WARSAW CITY X FSX P3D

DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - WARSAW CITY X FSX P3D

This developer makes some of the largest sceneries I’ve seen. Warsaw is a massive area full of amazing sites, details and discoveries. It’s one of the best for helicopters, and crop dusters. Metropolitan area is full of unique tall buildings and historical sites. Several villages and small air strips to explore as well as vast farming areas. Loads of detail around every corner. Next to Seattle X this is a favorite scenery to fly. Based on use with FSX Steam Win 10 i7 16GB ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU. Running near max settings with no loss of frame rates. Amazing!

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VIRTUALCOL - SAAB REGIONAL PACK V2 FOR FSX P3D

VIRTUALCOL - SAAB REGIONAL PACK V2 FOR FSX P3D

For the money you get a pretty nice collection of Saab 340A,340B and 2000. The great number of liveries is a big selling point and they do deliver many. My only complaint is the idle power is too high, these things practically take off without any power. Yes an exaggeration, but they do start moving quickly and pick up speed too fast at idle even with condition lowered to %5. The planes are well done and satisfying to fly those regional routes. The graphical quality is a little low but not bad. I enjoy these birds a bunch. Based on use with FSX Steam Win 10 i7 3.3ghz 16GB ram, Intel UHD630 integrated GPU.

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CAPTAIN SIM - B-52 DRIVER

CAPTAIN SIM - B-52 DRIVER

First I’d like to say this works perfectly with FSX Steam Win 10 3.3ghz i7 16GB Ram. Only needed to direct the downloaded to my FSX Steam root folder and wallah. You get a pretty simplified B52 but considering there aren’t any other options to buy any others, it’ll do. I don’t think it’s really worth the full price as you get just 1 model and livery. The free liveries that supposedly can be downloaded actually cannot be downloaded. They just don’t exist anymore, all the links on the Captain Sim site are no good. What you do get is a very nice looking B52 that for the most part flies nicely. I really wanted one badly so I’m cool with this over priced and under represented product. Not bad at all. Love the Smokey trails.

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FLYFREESTD - MIG 29/35 FULCRUM FAMILY FSX/P3D

FLYFREESTD - MIG 29/35 FULCRUM FAMILY FSX/P3D

Works great with FSX Steam. I only needed to direct the installer to my FSX Steam root folder which was very easy. That said this is easily the very best MiG 29 family you can buy. So many great liveries and multiple variants each with their unique virtual cockpit. Nice and varied weapon load out options. Some with extra fuel tanks. Great detail in the cockpits, and with each livery as well. My only complaint is they are all much slower than what the paper specs say. Generally the MiG 29 should be a Mach 2 plus aircraft. They were build to take on the F15 and these (except for the MiG 35 maxes out at M1.59) all can barely reach Mach 1.2 which is woefully underpowered compared to the real world 29s. These ( with a clean load out) can barely take on an F5 much less a Mach 2.5 capable F15 Eagle! They have the extreme agility for sure, but with a huge speed handicap that just doesn’t make any sense? Why skimp on speed? Anyway they are fun to fly, but I’m very dissatisfied with the terribly inaccurate and low engine power. At least they aren’t very expensive. Based on use with FSX Steam Edition win 10 3.3ghz i7 16GB Ram

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JUSTFLIGHT - TORNADO GR1 FSX P3D

JUSTFLIGHT - TORNADO GR1 FSX P3D

I was skeptical about the modeling of this aircrafts high Mach speed capabilities from the start. After being dismissed out of hand by JF when I asked why these are so underpowered and max out at M1.29, I spent months researching the GR1. I found videos, books articles etc that included aircraft development records and gulf war pilots real world testimony that all state the GR1 absolutely should be able to achieve Mach 2plus easily above FL320. But these simulator versions cannot go any faster than M1.29 while clean and level. A “Overspeed” warning always pops up around M1.35 (when flying nearly straight down in full burn) which is just not accurate at all. Even the included manual and at least one of the aircraft selection details about a specific livery (MRCA PO2 XX946) state the aircrafts capabilities of flying well over Mach 2.+ above 32000 feet in level flight (flt 281 5/3/79), with a clean load. Yet these are not capable or even close to being able to fly as fast as they should! I expect more from JF. Other bugs I reported such as a crash when trying to load a flight with a flight plan, a interior light switch that causes the throttle for engine one to not move past 50% and others were confirmed by JF to being fixed in future updates, but not the low Mach speed limits. That said, the plane is still pretty and fun to fly low hugging the hillsides and clipping tree tops. All full load out specs add up, but not speeds while clean. So if flight model speed characteristics accuracy and consistency are important to you then skip this for now and wait to see if JF corrects the issues. As is this Tornado is little more than a low altitude dust devil.

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FLYFREESTD - DASSAULT RAFALE C,M,B V2 FSX

FLYFREESTD - DASSAULT RAFALE C,M,B V2 FSX

Attention FSX Steam Ed users!!!!! This is compatible with FSX Steam Edition. You will only need to direct the installation to your FSX SE root folder. Very easy to do as long as you don’t also have the Box or Gold version installed on the same drive. That said I love this plane. I’ve paid more for lesser aircraft add ons. I never flew (simulated of course) a Dassault Rafale before so I wasn’t sure what to expect. So I read up on everything about the plane I could find for a few weeks before buying. Based on what I learned about this bird I feel like I have received a pretty accurate simulation here. It behaves just as I expected based on paper specs. Very quick acceleration and can reach top speed (Mach 1.8) and beyond. Maneuvering capabilities seem to properly differ depending on load out and weight assignments. A clean load out will perform best as it should versus a loaded up Rafale will. Compared to the Eurofighter the Rafale is a competent rival but noticeably less agile (and slightly lower top speed) especially at high speeds. I’ve had more aerodynamic and high speed stalls in this when performing similar acrobatics. Not saying this isn’t agile, it is! You just need to be a bit more cautious or thoughtful about your situation overall when doing complex acrobatics. Careless maneuvering can easily result in an unrecoverable spin or tumble. Nothing a little practice can’t overcome. As far as looks go this is a beautiful aircraft inside and out. Excellent lighting and reflection effects. Shadows and ambient lighting cast smoothly in the cockpit. Night lighting is just right. The engines purr and roar when reheated. The weapon and fuel loading is done by a “Ext” drop down menu and you have full control over each hard point with some very cool weapons to choose from. The same menu controls the ladder, formation lights, and auto start function. I can’t think of anything that isn’t well done except the fuel burn seems a lot slower than expected, but not bothersome. Totally recommend this. The price is relatively low and attractive. Get it! Based on use with FSX Steam Edition Win10 3.3ghz i7 16GB Ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU.

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NEMETH DESIGNS - EUROCOPTER EC-130 B4 FOR FSX P3D

NEMETH DESIGNS - EUROCOPTER EC-130 B4 FOR FSX P3D

Amazing helicopter! Known as one of the quietest helicopters around, you really get that when flying it. Some may thinks it’s too quiet, but that’s how these are designed in the real world. Still nothing you can’t overcome by simply turning your speakers up. The liveries are some of the best I’ve seen in a helicopter addon. The interior is very well done too. It’s a little more challenging to fly than most helo add ons but can be mastered with some practice. My only issue is that when I arm and then engage emergency floats nothing happens? Is there a third step not mentioned in the user manual? Strange, problem costs 1 star. Used with FSX Steam Ed. Win 10 3.3ghz i7 16GB ram Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU. No frame rate loss even when inside highly detailed and dense add on scenery areas.

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JUSTFLIGHT - DC-8 JETLINER 50-70 FSX P3D

JUSTFLIGHT - DC-8 JETLINER 50-70 FSX P3D

I also have the 10-40 model variants and somehow these 50-70s feel and look a little better. Anyway these DC8s are beautiful all around, in and out. Excellent attention paid to details big and small. Fantastic flight model that should satisfy any flight simmer. The engines roar and smoke like they should. Love the ground crew details that match each airline. The systems are almost all simulated, some more than others like the fuel management during flight while demand your attention sooner or later. No computer to manage tank draw during flight so you’ll need to periodically monitor every tanks level as your flight goes on and know when to throw the levers to change tanks or cross feed fill current ones in use. Very nice wing flex. Another excellent JF product. Used with FSX Steam Ed. Win10 3.3ghz i7 16GB Ram Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU. Frame rates become more demanding when within high detail add on scenery. Just occasional pauses when entering add on airspace that subside.

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LOTUS SIMULATIONS - L-39 ALBATROS

LOTUS SIMULATIONS - L-39 ALBATROS

Don’t let the 2009 release date fool you, this plane has held up to the test of time. It’s as good or better than most newer addons. Seriously, I have bought much newer aircraft that don’t meet the same standards as this L39 does. These days A lot of planes look really good but little attention paid to the flight model and systems. This Lotus Simulations addon while relatively old has a ton of character and oozes uniqueness. The flight model has clearly been given a lot of thought and developed with great care to meet high realism standards. When you fly the Albatross it doesn’t feel like any other plane in its class. It’s not very forgiving and can be challenging at times when you push its boundaries. This makes for a very fun plane to fly as it gives the impression of being a proper trainer simulation. It has to be experienced to truly get it. The variety of liveries and load outs are plentiful, with lots of eye candy. The night lighting is a huge stand out in the quality department. The landing lights actually light up whatever they are cast upon. Something a lot of modern developments still fail to do. The price still seems a little high considering its age which can be detected when looking very closely at the smaller visual details. All the same I love this plane and it’s zero impact on frame rates. It’s truly is a must have. Used with FSX Steam Edition Win 10 3.3ghz i7 16GB Ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU Was easy to install as it auto detected the location of my FSX SE drive location. Piece of cake, don’t be afraid fellow Steam Edition users.

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JUSTFLIGHT - DC-8 JETLINER SERIES 50-70 LIVERY PACK 2 FSX P3D

JUSTFLIGHT - DC-8 JETLINER SERIES 50-70 LIVERY PACK 2 FSX P3D

I also have the DC8 10 - 50 package and I like this one better. This aircraft set isn’t any better but just as good, and I just happen to like the stretch versions like these. A solid flight model that feels different from the 737s and the likes. So you don’t get a plane that looks different but flies the same as every other commercial airliner. Resembling the 707 but distinctly different, the DC8s have that big plane feel when in the simulated skies. The instruments have a lot of character compared to modern glass cockpits. Even the partial glass cockpit doesn’t look or feel like any other. Great looking vintage liveries and in a considerable number to choose from. If you love the pre modern era of airliners this is a great one to add or start your collection. JF went all out with the details big and small. They nailed the audio and exhaust (throttle power at or above %80) trail. No problems to report. Use with FSX Steam Win10 3.3ghz i7 16GB ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU. No frame rate impact at all.

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BEAR STUDIOS - MIG-17

BEAR STUDIOS - MIG-17

There aren’t many offerings of the Mig16 or 17 around so big thank you to Bear Studios for giving the legendary MiG 17 some much needed love! This is one of my all time Cold War era favorites! Second only to the F4Phantom. These 17s gave those F4s quite a run for their money for a while. Slower but way more nimble than the big Phantoms. In many cases F4s only got away from being shot down by a MiG 16 or 17 because of their enormous speed advantage being used to escape death. This collection has (I think?j every version of the 17 and just about all the countries that had it. Lots to choose from. I wish that the cursor would reveal each button, switch or dials purpose for each one! Sadly only a handful will show what the switch button or dial does when rolling the mouse cursor over it! This makes it VERY difficult to know what I am about to turn off or on a lot of the time. Sure there is a extensive manual with all labeling of the clickables but man that’s a pain. So unfortunately Bear decided that all virtual MiG 17 pilots will have to read the manual or pay Russian roulette when clicking blind. That annoyance aside, I have nothing else to complain about. Everything about these are well done and I’m largely satisfied with my purchase. The exhaust smoke leaves a cool trail and if you look up the pipe there’s a great flame effect from within. No afterburner of course. 17s never had that. Anyway if you like Cold War aircraft then you can’t ignore this. FSX Steam Win 10 3.3ghz i7 16GB ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU. Excellent frame rates!

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JUSTFLIGHT - ENGLISH ELECTRIC LIGHTNING F.6 (DOWNLOAD)

JUSTFLIGHT - ENGLISH ELECTRIC LIGHTNING F.6 (DOWNLOAD)

Having already been flying around in my Aerosoft F5 (tandem trainer) for a while I think has spoiled me a little. That said and trying hard not to compare this F6 with my F5 of another developer too much, I’d say I am enjoying this quit a bit, the differences are mostly visual quality. A lot of the cockpit switches and dials don’t really do anything at all. However the flight model and audio are damn good here! The fuel in this F6 burns noticeably slower which is both welcome and seemingly unrealistic? How would I know though? Whatever the case this is a nice addition to my Cold War era fleet collection and I love having it. Very easy on the frames. Cockpit is pretty dim at night. Sure is fun to go from dead stop on the runway to FL360 in about a minute. Wow! Very cool and despite being an old JF model it’s priced right and worth it. FSXSteam Win 10 3.3ghz Intel i7 16GB ram Intel UHD63 integrated GPU.

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JUSTFLIGHT - DHC-3 OTTER FSX P3D

JUSTFLIGHT - DHC-3 OTTER FSX P3D

I've always been a fan of the Otters. JF did a really nice job of bringing the DHC-3 Otter to life here. JF can be hit or miss with their products sometimes, but they hit the nail with this one. This is truly one their better releases but not without its quirks. The Otters here are well represented in detail and flight model to a high degree. very pretty inside and out. They fly as expected, slow. For some strange reason though when flying in certain directions you get a Overspeed warning. For example flying at 2000 feet 340 degrees at 120kias you're fine. turn around and fly 160 degrees at 120kias and you're somehow over speeding the aircraft? What the....? Same speed and altitude but one direction is unbelievably too fast? I don't think so. Clearly this is a bug. I mean I have hundreds of planes and not one of them ever overspeed's at the same altitude and airspeed but in a different direction. It would've been nice to be able to place all the seats in ready to sit positions throughout the cabin rather than only 2 ever being unfolded and ready to sit in. plus an actual passenger cabin view or two could've been nice. for those missfires i deduct 1 star. But that doesn't detract from the overall satisfaction and enjoyable experience I get from flying these. FSX Steam Win 10 3.3ghz i7 16GB Ram Intel UHD 630 Integrated GPU.

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DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - SEATTLE AIRPORTS X FOR FSX P3D

DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - SEATTLE AIRPORTS X FOR FSX P3D

This is an incredible collection of highly detailed airports. Every little thing is detailed. The airports each have their own personality and I have gotten lost just driving a small plane around to look at everything. The airports are active with various traffic coming and going. Having this and Seattle City X together makes for one huge area to explore. Night or day are gorgeous experiences. You got to have both to really feel the completeness in its full glory. I’ve spent most of my life living in the area and I can speak to the accuracy of the sceneries. Except for the occasional minor building being the wrong size, or vehicle traffic going the wrong way, there’s little to complain about. Very smooth frame rates. Must have scenery along with Seattle City X! Best I have so far. FSX Steam Win 10 3.3ghz i7 16GB Ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU. Amazing performance.

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DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - SEATTLE CITY X FSX P3D

DRZEWIECKI DESIGN - SEATTLE CITY X FSX P3D

This is a very solid 4 stars and would be 5 were it not for some strange scenery omissions. The area where the Seattle Zoo belongs is somehow a residential area with houses. A bunch of places have totally wrong building sizes for what’s actually there. Where tunnels start and end on roads the traffic simply drives right over. Also traffic is going northbound on both the north and south routes of I5. The Ballard locks are missing. Now I realize that I might be a little bit picky and maybe unforgiving probably because I’ve lived in this area most of my life. That said the vast majority of the scenery is incredible. Lots and lots of fantastic details. I’m not regretting the purchase one bit. The frame rates are perfect even with so much detail. The size and scope of the scenery package is also very satisfying. Close to perfect. Totally worth it. FSX Steam Win 10 i7 3.3 ghz 16GB Ram Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU

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AEROSOFT - HELGOLAND FSX V2.0

AEROSOFT - HELGOLAND FSX V2.0

This is a very nice scenery add on! The amount of detail both big and small is great. All of Helgoland is represented along with 4 wind farms in the surrounding ocean with 4 helipads. Turn up your boat and shipping traffic settings to get the most of the areas lively sea traffic. There’s a couple Easter eggs not in the description that I really enjoyed finding by slowly flying around in a helicopter. No spoilers. I had never heard of the place but it goes nicely with my Denmark area and Bornholm add ons. A fun new route. The airport is small and the runway is very short. A little challenging for light jets like a citation or phenom but doable. This is a real hidden gem. FSX Steam Win10 i7 3.3ghz 16GB Ram, Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU. No lag or chugging even in my newer Carenado Planes and with other nearby scenery packs enabled.

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FSX3D - CALVI ST-CATHERINE AIRPORT LFKC FSX P3D

FSX3D - CALVI ST-CATHERINE AIRPORT LFKC FSX P3D

This was the last piece to completing my collection of scenery by this developer. Just like all the other sceneries they make this is excellent. The buildings are well detailed and properly positioned (so far as I can tell by eyeball check vs google earth) and even the area where the land slopes downward and away from the airport towards the beach, there is a building that was designed to match the grade. Usually developers just place the building awkwardly hanging in mid air part way down the slope. Not here! Things match the way they should. Good audio with ambient noises. This gives me good reason to fly to Corsica from LeCastellet. Good frame rates, some slight stutter at first right after loading but that clears up pretty quick. FSX Steam Win 10 3.3ghz i7 16GB Ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU

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GOLDEN AGE SIMULATIONS - KINNER B2 SPORTWING P3D FSX

GOLDEN AGE SIMULATIONS - KINNER B2 SPORTWING P3D FSX

Cute little machine from the golden days. Very well detailed appearance and fun to fly low and slow. Love the option to add or remove canopy for weather whatever conditions. Only 3 liveries, which is a little disappointing. The sound is the same with open or enclosed cockpit, not a big fan of skipping on that audio realism. Should be a few more in my opinion but got it on sale for a small price and I’m mostly happy with it. FSX Steam Win 10 3.3ghz i7 16GB Ram Intel UHD 630 integrated graphics.

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NEMETH DESIGNS - SIKORSKY S-76A SPIRIT FSX P3D

NEMETH DESIGNS - SIKORSKY S-76A SPIRIT FSX P3D

The review knocking this for having no auto pilot despite the store description clearly saying it does is accurate. The only place that mentions the simple auto pilot is the flight manual where it says the A\P is ONLY for P3. NOT FSX or Steam! so that was very annoying! other than that I really like this helicopter! It flies so smoothly. Very easy to control and a real joy to fly. looks great too! The audio is a bit understated but i guess i can just turn the volume up. runs great on my Win 10 i7 3.3ghz 16GB Ram. Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU

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FLIGHT REPLICAS - MESSERSCHMITT 262 RARE TYPES

FLIGHT REPLICAS - MESSERSCHMITT 262 RARE TYPES

Another very nice package of rare types! Unfortunately the guns don’t fire in this one. Would’ve loved to seen and heard that 50 fire. Still cool to have these. I like that there’s a confiscated one with a USA ID. They all fly about the same so not much to say here beyond my other review of the special Ed. Runs perfectly with FSX Steam on win 10 3.3ghz i7 16GB ram, Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU.

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FLIGHT REPLICAS - MESSERSCHMITT BF-109G-6 FOR FSX, AND P3D UP TO V3

FLIGHT REPLICAS - MESSERSCHMITT BF-109G-6 FOR FSX, AND P3D UP TO V3

Another excellent WW2 replica simulated as well as can be expected. The overwhelming majority of us simmers have never even sat in the cockpits of these legendary machines much less flown one, so I temper my use of words like “authentic or accurate” to having only read extensively about such planes. That said this iconic fighter delivers on every note that I can research or have learned about. I expected a very difficult take off experience, but wow this is super difficult to get off the runway safely. It’s a real chore just trying to get in the air. Even in perfect weather it’s very challenging and a little frustrating. I still can’t take off without bouncing around or fighting a stall but at least not crashing anymore. As I understand it the real pilots had a pretty hard time learning how to take off injuring or killing a number of trainees. Once in the air it’s a great flying machine. Nimble, fast and not terribly easy, unlike say a P51 or Spitfire. The liveries are similar but very nice. My reason for 4 stars is I wish they could’ve maybe dumbed down the difficulty of the take off experience. As is it’s pretty frustrating. Maybe even too realistic? But it’s still a well priced and excellent product.

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FLIGHT REPLICAS - MESSERSCHMITT ME-262A SCHWALBE SPECIAL EDITION FOR FSX

FLIGHT REPLICAS - MESSERSCHMITT ME-262A SCHWALBE SPECIAL EDITION FOR FSX

Great value for such a detailed and important technological jump that thankfully came too late to make a difference. The historical relevance is undoubtedly considerable. Sure you only get three but they are remarkably well represented in both detail and expected flight characteristics. A must have for any WW2 collector and surprisingly fun to fly. Just don’t throw the throttle around like you might on an F16 or you’ll stall both engines. The 262 gas powered engines were not quite ready and terribly unreliable not to mention easy to fail. My only complaint is that the oxygen tank meter is always set to empty for some reason, but the breather glows bright and dull indicating it’s functioning. I wish there were a loadable weapon configs but only the guns have ammo. Fun to fire though. Best handful of dollars I’ve spent in a while. Works great with FSX Steam Win 10 3.3ghz i7 16GB ram Intel 630UHD integrated GPU. Very easy on frames!

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FLIGHT REPLICAS - HISPANO HA-1112-M1L BUCHON FOR FSX, AND P3D UP TO V3

FLIGHT REPLICAS - HISPANO HA-1112-M1L BUCHON FOR FSX, AND P3D UP TO V3

This is a version based off of the Bf109 that most people know little if anything about. It’s notoriously difficult to take off and land and requires a lot of practice. You can’t just throw the throttle up and expect to roll up to a perfect take off. Every different weather condition will require adjustments to each attempts technique. Once in the air it’s a wonderful plane to fly. Excellent rate of climb but handle with care at high altitudes. Needs more runway to stop than I expected. I just wish there was some animated exhaust, ground crew stuff and a few more liveries. Compared to my P51D Mustang only rate of climb is superior in the Buchon. Everything else is to close to call either way, but the Mustang seems to be a little quicker and more stable in high altitude tight turns. Great engine sounds as well as excellent graphical models. Runs great with FSX Steam on Win 10 3.3ghz i7 16GB Ram and Intel 630 UHD integrated GPU. No frame rate loss even in high detail add on scenery areas.

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RICHER SIMULATIONS - CARIBSKY  ST. KITTS 2017 FSX P3D

RICHER SIMULATIONS - CARIBSKY ST. KITTS 2017 FSX P3D

It took some time and a lot of effort by the developer but everything now works! Everybody should disregard my lousy 1 star review as it no longer applies at all. Although there is currently a known bug with the autogen (photo scenery is fine) included at this time, it should not worry anybody as even if it does pose new customers a possible issue with the autogen, rest assured it will be fixed even if you need to contact RS directly. He will NOT ignore you or throw up his hands and give up (looking at you WILCO!) on resolving any issue. I should add that the developer (Zev) is in a league of his own with regards to accepting responsibility for his work and giving the highest level of support. Sure I was frustrated and annoyed initially but that’s all been resolved and I’m happy with this purchase and developer support. Excellent scenery package! The light posts have actual lighting on them rather than the more common floating orbs of light. It’s a really nice effort to do something uncommon which lends to the overall realism. The trees and buildings are well placed and mostly sitting in their intended footprint. I realize that has a bit to do with scenery settings, but there is something a bit better here than what I’ve seen before with other add ons. Day and night flights are a joy! Frame rates are smooth even with high scenery display settings and “very dense” autogen. Based on use with FSX Steam Win 10 Intel i7 3.2ghz 16GB Ram, Intel UHD 630 integrated graphics.

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FSX3D - ASPRES-SUR-BUECH LFNJ FSX P3D

FSX3D - ASPRES-SUR-BUECH LFNJ FSX P3D

I hope SimMarket will delete my prior 1 star review. Either way I was wrong, there is no problem with this scenery pack, just my eyes. I literally remembered seeing something right after I posted that bad review. This scenery is amazing just like all the other FSX3D sceneries! Amazing detail and the area beyond the little airport connects with the other FSX3D sceneries. So if you get Gap Tallard, St. Crepin and Barcelonette and this, the all seamlessly connect with each other making for a significant total area to enjoy and explore! I love it! By the way great support response time! Lass than a couple hours! Kudos!

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RICHER SIMULATIONS - CARIBSKY  ST. KITTS 2017 FSX P3D

RICHER SIMULATIONS - CARIBSKY ST. KITTS 2017 FSX P3D

I didn’t hesitate to buy this and I’m really regretting it. The auto gen merger tool that this scenery relies on is “no longer supported”. The developer had responded rather quickly at first with what I hoped were fixes but both turned out to just be more bugs with a different auto gen merger application. After that it’s just been silence to my questions which is why I’m letting it be known as to what could be expected by others. All I get is the photo scenery, lights, and light posts. But every single structure footprint or outline where a building should be, is empty. If I suddenly hear back and get a real fix I’ll change my tune, but people should know what they are getting. Specifically FSX Steam Win 10 users.

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FSX3D - SAINT-CREPIN LFNC FSX P3D

FSX3D - SAINT-CREPIN LFNC FSX P3D

Great scenery except for a few ground mesh errors like one side of the bridge doesn’t quite touch the ground, and a nearby (the airport) highway that looks like it was built on crumpled paper. Other than those the overall scenery is amazing! Covers a sizable area beyond the airport. Photo real mountains and valleys with loads of vegetation and various houses and buildings. More than just an airport is included. Looks great at night too. No opening hangar doors though but I can live without that considering how much of the area is included. I might add that the changing of winter or summer is done via the configurator which must be done before starting FSX and I find that a little annoying. Based on use with FSX Steam Win 10 3.4ghz i7 16GB ram Intel 630UHD integrated graphics. Excellent frame rates!

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FSX3D - LE CASTELLET AIRPORT LFMQ FSX P3D

FSX3D - LE CASTELLET AIRPORT LFMQ FSX P3D

What a cool little scenery package! I was a little disappointed that it didn’t cover much outside the airports immediate surroundings but for what it does, it’s really cool. You can hear the race cars as they speed by the airport if you sit with your engines off. Also some nice ambient natural audio adds to the atmospheric feel of this small airport. Tremendous detail packed in to every corner. I love that some of the hangar doors can be opened and closed and there’s a guy that wanders around the airport as well. Totally worth the price. Based on use with FSX Steam Win 10 3.4ghz i7 16GB ram Intel UHD 630 integrated graphics. Excellent frame rates as long as I don’t have nearby Provance city add on enabled.

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JUSTFLIGHT - AVRO VULCAN B MK. 2 FSX P3D

JUSTFLIGHT - AVRO VULCAN B MK. 2 FSX P3D

This is an amazing representation of the Vulcan! Exquisite detail leaving seemingly nothing out. This is one of my favorite JustFlight releases. I tried a few freeware options and none came anywhere close to the high quality and realistic plane here! That legendary howl is sweet! It seems a little over powered with regards to its climb rate and top speed at high altitudes but better over powered than under powered (looking straight at JustFlights Grossly underpowered Tornado GR1) I say! Only troubles I’ve really had are with the Vulcans AutoPilot. Holding altitude is painful and the bird does a lot of porpoising at rates from +/- 500fpm up to +/- 4000 fpm Vertical speeds. It’s crazy how wildly this thing will pitch up and down when altitude hold is engaged and powered on. I’ve asked JF about it, but so far no response. I guess just don’t leave it unattended for long when flying with AP is in use. It seems to hold altitude better at around fl500 and a speed around Mach .75 but still bobs up and down enough to keep me wary. I have better results leaving the altitude parts of the auto pilot turned off and just carefully trimming things but it’s labor intensive comparatively speaking. All in all this is one beautiful piece of Cold War history that I enjoy flying faults and all. Based on use with Win 10 FSX SE 3.4ghz Intel i7 16GB ram, Intel UHD630 integrated GPU no loss of frame rates

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JUSTFLIGHT - TORNADO GR1 FSX P3D

JUSTFLIGHT - TORNADO GR1 FSX P3D

After some very strange technical issues that amounted to a nice set of GR1s that could not turn right or pitch up, JustFlight sent me a replacement file to correct the problem. Only issue now is that when selecting “console” lights On the left throttle gets stuck at %50 max, while the right travels all the way from zero to max.so I just don’t turn on those lights. I’m not terribly bothered by this. The planes are truly decked out with what seems to be a full compliment of instruments including a variable ride terrain following capability. These are complex machines and the simulation shows it. Reading the manual definitely helped me learn to fly these magnificent birds. Not really a throttle up and fly kind of situation here, though with some previous experience flying other military aircraft of the same era the learning curve isn’t too steep. Loads of detail and switches to flip (better know what they do though) makes me feel like this is a top tier add on. When clean they can reach extreme speeds upwards of Mach 2+ and are realistically simulated to reduced speeds when loaded up. So unlike say the entry level Virtavia you cannot go max speed with a full load, and in case it’s not obvious that’s normal. Smooth frame rates in my experience with my Win10 3.2ghz i7 16GB ram Intel 630UHD integrated GPU with 128mb dedicated and the rest shared with the ram. No problem despite the minimums suggest a 1GB GRaphics card. A very cool addition to my virtual military history museum collection and anybody else’s.

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AEROSOFT - ANTONOV AN-2 FSX P3D

AEROSOFT - ANTONOV AN-2 FSX P3D

This is an Amazing and funky airplane. Beautifully designed on all fronts! A real rivet counters dream. This huge slow single engine biplane not only looks great and has incredible detailing but is also fantastically simulated in its flight behaviors. It feels as unique as it looks. Not at all like anything else. The manual is a must read even though it’s barely intelligible. It’s done as a hand written manual with countless diagrams and outlines, all difficult to read. I managed to push through and learn to fly this plane after a few terribly unsuccessful first tries before learning the in and outs. Now I can fly this plane just fine and so glad to do so. No cabin views but plenty of cockpit views. The audio is seemingly understated, but upping my volume helps. Quick tip. Get familiar with the oil and engine flap controls, as well as the corresponding gauges relating to their temps. Carb temp is crucial too. Thankfully Carb Heat can be adjusted very precisely unlike most planes with just on/off switching. Such fun. FSX Steam Win 10 Intel i7 3.2ghz 16GB ram Intel 630UHD integrated gpu. 128mb dedicated vram, the rest is shared and not a problem one bit. Great frame rates even in dense scenery areas and add on airports etc.

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HARRIER JUMP JET FSX P3D

HARRIER JUMP JET FSX P3D

After checking the Wilco website and locating their compatibility page and confirming that this particular product is indeed compatible with FSX SE and Win 10 32bit I bought the plane. Only one problem exists that bothers me. There is NO HUD! Shift- 1 doesn’t do anything, and nether does the instrument drop down HUD option. I’ve clicked carefully on everything including the HUD Brightness and Thickness dials with no change. I checked the XML.DML as per Wilcos troubleshooting recommendations. No HUD period! If there were a functioning HUD I’d have given 5 stars. The modeling of this 1st gen Harrier is nicely done. It’s a challenge to fly and takes some practice as well as instruction manual reading! STOL flight can only be done when the aircraft overall weight is less than 21000 lbs. That is easily adjusted by simply reducing the fuel load to somewhere around 50% in each tank. The nozzles are adjustable manually by using the propeller pitch key controls. I mapped this already so despite it sounding absurd it does the trick. With the correct weight and nozzle angle set taking off or landing vertically is easy and fun! Static hover can be done with some practice. The overall aircraft performance is excellent for a sub sonic jet plane. The interior is also pretty nice! Night lighting is just right. Not too bright or too dim. So overall and considering there is no HUD (Wilco has not answered me still) I give this 4 stars. Based on use with FSX SE Win10 3.3ghz i7 16GB ram Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU.

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INDIAFOXTECHO - EUROFIGHTER TYPHOON FSX P3D

INDIAFOXTECHO - EUROFIGHTER TYPHOON FSX P3D

I give 3 stars because you can’t even place weapons on any hard points, nor fuel tanks unless you have TacPac. This is dumb. All of the other IFT planes (except F35) you can still place missiles, bombs, rockets, tanks etc without having Tac Pac. I have an AFS and JustFlight Eurofighter and can place whatever I want on the planes hard points. Other than this terrible limitation the planes are modeled great and fun to fly, but less desirable than others that can have all sorts of load outs. I also didn’t like that the all black display livery is not included. All in all this isn’t very exciting. But hey, it was free so thanks for that!

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INDIAFOXTECHO - E-2 HAWKEYE - C-2 GREYHOUND PACKAGE FREE

INDIAFOXTECHO - E-2 HAWKEYE - C-2 GREYHOUND PACKAGE FREE

I’m thoroughly enjoying this package! Greyhounds and Hawkeyes in one wrapper. Here is another plane that I made the mistake of buying a Virtavia version of previously. I mean those weren’t terrible, I got what I paid for. These Hawkeyes are vastly superior in every way. Like others have mentioned the engine sounds are toned down a lot by default for some reason. Sure I can change my EQ and turn the volume up, but it just doesn’t sound right then either, only slightly better and louder. The flight physics seem to be quite well done. I think the interior is pretty nice myself. The exterior is certainly outstanding. I just wish there were more interior camera options like the cargo or cabin area, but no. Nevertheless these are some well developed add ons. Based on use with FSX Steam Win 10 i7 2.3ghz 16GB ram Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU. No problems even when in other add on scenery areas the frame rates remain intact.

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INDIAFOXTECHO - SIAI MARCHETTI S-211 / AERMACCHI M-345 PACKAGE FSX P3D FREE

INDIAFOXTECHO - SIAI MARCHETTI S-211 / AERMACCHI M-345 PACKAGE FSX P3D FREE

Review based on use with FSX Steam Win 10 2.3 ghz i7 16GB Ram Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU with 128MB dedicated visual mem. Only used offline without TAC PAC. I have all IFE add on aircraft thanks to their give away at the time of my review. All run extremely well on my system as I described above without any troubles. Even smooth flying around complex photo scenery, add on airports and cities. No frame rate issues at all. These nimble little trainers are a blast to fly. You only get forward seat view. River runs or canyon runs in these amazing little jets is so fun! I love that both the S211 and M345 models are included! Very nice cockpit detail. I can’t say enough good things about this pack.

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INDIAFOXTECHO - TA-4 SKYHAWK FLIGHT SIMULATOR X EDITION FREE

INDIAFOXTECHO - TA-4 SKYHAWK FLIGHT SIMULATOR X EDITION FREE

Amazing representation of the TA-4! Runs on my system very very well which is far below the noted product minimum requirements. I’m only using this offline and without TAC PAC so if you have a system like the following - FSX STEAM win 10 Intel i7 16GB ram Intel UHD630 integrated GPU with 128MB dedicated visual mem, then you can easily have a great experience flying this gem as I have. No chug or any hiccups flying this with specs far below the noted product minimums. Probably needs the higher mins if being use in multiplayer with TAC PAC? Anyway, I love this plane and everything’s about it feels right! Knocked one star because there’s no back seat camera.

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INDIAFOXTECHO - A-4E/F/G/H/K SKYHAWK FSX EDITION FREE

INDIAFOXTECHO - A-4E/F/G/H/K SKYHAWK FSX EDITION FREE

I can’t believe this was just sitting in the store here for FREE! I’ve had my eye on this plane for a while but kept hesitating because of the minimum requirements. Well being free means no risk so I got this and checked it out. The minimums listed are way extreme and totally NOT necessary if you’re just flying around off line without TAC PAC. Maybe the noted mins are intended for use in TAC PAC and multiplayer situations. Here is what I’m running this plane on without any issues at all: win 10 Intel i7 16GB Ram, Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU 128MB dedicated GPU memory. I’m flying this plane around a bunch of photo real scenery add ons that include full airports and some cities. No chug or anything. So it’s my opinion that if you are going to be using this as I described then you do NOT need to be concerned with the min requirements of this or any IndiaFoxEcho Visual Simulation products. The cockpit is well done and very accurate. They really nailed the agile and responsive flight characteristics of the A4. I also have the Virtavia A4 and IFE blows that away. IFE payed great attention to the realism of the A4s and that translates to a really fun to fly subsonic Cold War/ Vietnam era aircraft. I knock 1 star because there’s only a single cockpit camera, and other camera angles would really make cockpit visualization much better.

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FSDREAMTEAM - GENEVA COINTRIN FSX P3D FS2004

FSDREAMTEAM - GENEVA COINTRIN FSX P3D FS2004

Be aware that if this is your first FSDT product you are required to also download and install a free 3rd party software called GSX in order for your purchased FSDT scenery to work. This developer refuses to add this important requirement to its product description because “it’s free”. Yes it is free, but buggy and a very slow download. I have also had to reinstall several times because for unknown reasons it resets my paid and registered product to a 5 minute Trial Mode at random. Reinstall GSX updates and it’s back to normal. But slows down starting a flight significantly. Now I’m not a rookie here and have a couple hundred paid add ons and other than a couple minor install issues that were easily resolved, I’ve never had to repeatedly reinstall anything in order for something I bought to work again, not ever before this. To be clear, only the 2 FSDT products I own have this “Trial Mode” problem. So it’s clearly unique to this product. People need to know what they are buying and what other software will be necessary for it to work. Will everybody have the same frustrating experience as I have? Probably not, but be aware that it is possible and you should look up GSX before you buy so you know what you’re getting into. That’s all I’m saying. That said the LSGG scenery is excellent. Loads of detail and carefully crafted on all sides. Truly remarkable. Call for deboarding or boarding buses and luggage carts of appropriate size for the aircraft being used. You can call catering and fuel and in some cases animated people might be visible as they come or go from the plane. This may depend on the add on aircraft you use. So far it’s been a real kick and adds a factor of realism that is missing largely from other add ons and especially the stock FSX. Night lighting is very nice as well. I’ve had no problem with progressive taxi working. There is a really nice warp feature you can select when changing parking spaces. Several hangar doors can be opened or closed which is quite cool. 2 stars because of omitted requirement of additional download of GSX and it’s buggy Trial Mode problem.

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FSDREAMTEAM - ZURICH KLOTHEN V2.5 FSX P3D FS2004

FSDREAMTEAM - ZURICH KLOTHEN V2.5 FSX P3D FS2004

Be aware that if this is your first FSDT product you are required to also download and install a free 3rd party software called GSX in order for your purchased FSDT scenery to work. This developer refuses to add this important requirement to its product description because “it’s free”. Yes it is free, but buggy and a very slow download. I have also had to reinstall several times because for unknown reasons it resets my paid and registered product to 5 minute Trial Mode at random. Reinstall GSX updates and it’s back to normal. Now I’m not a rookie here and have a couple hundred paid add ons and other than a couple minor install issues that were easily resolved, I’ve never had to repeatedly reinstall anything in order for something I bought to work again, not ever before this. To be clear, only the FSDT products I own have this “Trial Mode” problem. So it’s clearly unique to this product. People need to know what they are buying and what other software will be necessary. Will everybody have the same frustrating experience as I have? Probably not, but be aware that it is possible and you should look up GSX before you buy so you know what you’re getting into. That’s all I’m saying. That said the LSZH scenery is excellent. Loads of detail and carefully crafted on all sides. Truly remarkable. You can open and close main terminal blinds in quarterly increments. Call for deboarding or boarding buses and luggage carts of appropriate size for the aircraft being used. You can call catering and fuel and in some cases watch animated people might be visible as they come or go from the plane. This may depend on the aircraft you use. So far it’s been a real kick and adds a factor of realism that is missing largely from other add ons and especially the stock FSX. Night lighting is very nice as well. I’ve had no problem with progressive taxi working. There is. Nice warp feature you can select when changing parking spaces. 2 stars because of the omitted GSX download and buggy Trial Mode issue. The scenery itself is 5 stars.

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DAVOR PULJEVIC - PULA X FSX P3D

DAVOR PULJEVIC - PULA X FSX P3D

This is fantastic scenery! The airport and surrounding area including the whole city and the islands. Everything is in great detail and fun to fly over. It also has a very small dirt runway strip with some interesting little buildings on the property. I found this for free on this site a while back and am so glad I didn’t dismiss it. A very nice piece of scenery in a low traffic and lesser traveled part of the world.

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SIM-MECH - JET PROVOST T.4 XS186 FSX

SIM-MECH - JET PROVOST T.4 XS186 FSX

I really like older aircraft, especially the kind that are obscure or hard to locate. This BAC T4 is a fine collectors piece as well as a fun plane to fly. It doesn’t have eye popping visuals, and even seems a little dated, but it’s not bad by any means. Where it counts it nails it. Obviously I’ve never been in a real one and didn’t even know it existed until I saw it on sale here, but I get the distinct impression of careful flight dynamics coding. It is a forgiving trainer that will not impress the speed freaks. Slow to climb but very forgiving to fly. I’ve only maxed the speed out at about 330 GS around FL250. On average it cruises just over 200gs. But it is agile for sure. I like flying this slow bird. The engine audio sounds great if you turn the volume up a bit. Based on use with Win10 i7 3.3ghz 16gb ram Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU. On average graphics settings med hi to high. Runs very smooth.

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LIONHEART CREATIONS - LIONHEART - TRINIDAD TB21 GT FSX P3D

LIONHEART CREATIONS - LIONHEART - TRINIDAD TB21 GT FSX P3D

I love this plane! Sure it’s not the greatest textures or at Carenado level, but it IS really nice. It’s powerful, pretty, and has a huge variety of liveries. 2 liveries are repeated with either 2 or 4 people pre loaded and visible from the outside views. Just two each though. Otherwise the vast majority are single pilot that is either male or female. The way this plane flies does have that realistic feel. It responds like I’d imagine the real plane would in whatever the given environment I’m in. The sleek design just screams speed. It is fast for a single turbo prop, with excellent climb rates. Such a simple yet elegant design that I think is very pleasing to just look at. Don’t worry about tinted windows, you will have no visual darkening at all from the interior no matter how dark it appears from the outside. Totally worth the price especially on sale! Based on use with FSX Steam Win 10 3.3ghz i7 16gb RAM and Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU running at medium high graphics settings on average including scenery.

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JUSTFLIGHT - COMET JETLINER (DOWNLOAD)

JUSTFLIGHT - COMET JETLINER (DOWNLOAD)

Looking at the low price and long ago release date one might expect a subpar or low rez offering. Not so. This has some very nice textures and loads of excellent detailing. Nearly every switch and button is clickable. They may not actually do anything, but hey clicking can be satisfying too. Perhaps part of the reason for the low price is that many of the clickables don’t actually affect anything. Pressurization is totally automatic among most other systems. Forgetting to turn on fuel, pitot, or engine heaters or anti icers won’t change your flight through even the coldest and iciest weather. But you can still turn them on or off…it just won’t matter. One particularly annoying problem is once you open a cockpit window you cannot ever close it. Why? Well just don’t open the windows until you’ve landed I guess. Still this plane flies like expected and has great audio. It’s very enjoyable all around despite the passenger cabin being only half complete with no left hand details or even windows. Weird. Totally worth the price though. For collectors like me it’s a must have. You can’t have any early jet age planes without the Comet 4 and call it a “collection”. The first Comet versions were also the first jet powered transatlantic and pressurized passenger aircraft. Comets 1&2 had square windows which contributed to pressurization failures and mid flight break ups. The 4 is the best and final variation of the historic aircraft which also sported rounded passenger windows that are found on jetliners to this day. FSX Steam win 10 3.3ghz i7 16gb ram, Intel 630 UHD integrated graphics.

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CARENADO - S550 CITATION II HD SERIES FSX P3D

CARENADO - S550 CITATION II HD SERIES FSX P3D

Another remarkable aircraft by Carenado! No complaints! I mean that everything is as close to perfect as it can get. You can expect a beautifully crafted plane in all areas. Not hard to fly, and so nice to look at. One of my favorite planes & should be near the top of anybodys business jet wishlist.

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LIONHEART CREATIONS - PROTON STINGREY FSX P3D

LIONHEART CREATIONS - PROTON STINGREY FSX P3D

This is one strange looking plane. Not a bad kind of strange, but just unfamiliar and eye brow raising. At first glance it looks like something out of a 1950s sic fi movie about aliens. For me just looking at it got me overly curious so I had to buy it. Wow! It’s a lot of fun to fly and not really as difficult as some reviews lef me to believe. Then again I have a lot of tail dragger experience so maybe that’s why? At any rate this is a highly aerobatic and entertaining plane to fly around in. Extremely nimble and responsive with fair speed (around 200 GS) to keep it moving the Stingrey doesn’t disappoint. The interior is just as a I fi as the exterior and come in a variety of color schemes depending on each selected livery. I might add that there are a lot of cool liveries to choose from. The float versions are front heavy and look awkward on water. The fixed gear is almost identical to the RG variants characteristics. Even though it looks like it can’t possibly fly in real life it does excel in sim world and keeps me wondering if this might ever actually make it to the real world someday? Another great “what if” airplane from the future by LHC! Based on use with FSX Steam win 10 3.3 ghz i7 16GB ram Intel 630UHD integrated graphics. Better than %50 high graphics and scenery settings with several around %80to %90 on sliders.

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JUSTFLIGHT - 737 PROFESSIONAL FSX

JUSTFLIGHT - 737 PROFESSIONAL FSX

Considering the price and despite its age, I feel good enough about this purchase to rate 5 stars. However I should note that the textures are outdated. Not bad, just kinda older. When it comes to the overall package though it’s totally worth it, even if it doesn’t win any good looking awards. But it is nice looking all around and more importantly it behave like I’d expect. A loud, smokey, 80s style aircraft that is very fun to fly short to mid range hops. The auto pilot is a bit odd to me and I can’t get the pitch dial control to do anything at all? It has. Nice flight computer that is not user friendly so read the manual. I wish there was a cabin view, and you could pan the exterior wing view cameras. Oh well. 3.3ghz i7 16GB Ram, Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU with 128mb dedicated. I’m happy. Based on use with FSX Steam 3.3ghz i7 16GB Ram, Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU with 128mb dedicated. No lags at all.

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JUSTFLIGHT - CONSTELLATION PROFESSIONAL

JUSTFLIGHT - CONSTELLATION PROFESSIONAL

The Connie is forever a golden classic. Some of the visuals are a little dated, but not terrible and it’s priced accordingly. If you’re a collector or just want something iconic this is a must have! Only 7 actual different liveries and you have to buy add ons if you want more, but honestly it’s lol worth it. The sounds are spectacular! The engines really rumble and give a satisfying sense of power. The breaks squeal when used just like the real things. The planes fly a little mushy but relatively fast. More than anything this plane looks like no other and screams class. The one passenger cam view does show off how elegant air travel once was. Spacious seating that give the impression of a high class picnic in the sky with plush seating and decadent detailing. Not like modern air travel where seating is typically a experiment in body packing as many as possible rather than a pleasant experience that it once was. Problem though, the cabin camera doesn’t pan around like say a cockpit view does. You can use combo key commands to move forward, backward, up, down, right and left in a very cumbersome manner. No free panning around and it’s a bit annoying. Night lighting is very nice, but I can’t get the taxi lights to work. All in all it’s a great plane, at a really good price that is a nice flyer. Based on use with FSX Steam. 3.3ghz i7 16GB ram, Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU 128MB dedicated Video memory.

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FLIGHT REPLICAS - SUPER CUB ULTRA FSX P3D

FLIGHT REPLICAS - SUPER CUB ULTRA FSX P3D

These are great planes! Best bush planes you can get. Excellent amount of detail and great looking cockpits. The forward slats move automatically depending on angle of attack. If you have a nice scenery area this the the plane to sight see and even make unscheduled landings near scenic hit spots. I only wish there were a few more liveries, but quite happy with the pack all around.

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VIRTUALCOL - AIRBUS A220 SERIES PACK FSX/P3D

VIRTUALCOL - AIRBUS A220 SERIES PACK FSX/P3D

Updated review with very important details, especially for FSX Steam users. Initially I wrote a fairly negative review because the A220-300s failed to load any aircraft visuals at all. I have since learned from VirtualCol that they have an easy fix for this on their website. You have to visit their website then go to menu PRODUCTS and select option UPDATES ZONE and product respective. Download and install the patch and ready. Easy and done problems solved. All is well.

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GOLDEN KEY STUDIO - GKS - F-111E STANDARD EDITION FSX

GOLDEN KEY STUDIO - GKS - F-111E STANDARD EDITION FSX

First note this review is based of used with FSX Steam. Win 10 i7 3.3ghz 16gb ram Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU. Even though it doesn’t say so this product IS compatible with FSX Steam. It downloaded and once I changed the directory to install in FSX Steam I was up and flying in no time. I have the Virtavia F111 and this one is far better. Way more realistic and better looking all around. The flight model really makes this feel like the real thing. Not too mushy and not too nimble. The F111 was a real underrated Vietnam and Cold War era long range bomber with intercepted capabilities. Built for high altitude and high Mach speeds with great weaponry. It also did an amazing job buzzing tree tops at high speed thanks in large part to its terrain following auto pilot features. Most people think about the F4 Phantom and forget about the aardvark when the subject of speed comes up. The aardvark could go further at similar high speeds than the F4 when appropriately loaded with fuel tanks. Anyway, it’s just a blast to fly. Love the afterburner and sonic “boom” effects. The addition of wing flex is also very cool. The pilots have a lot more animations than expected. The seem alive and even reach up to pull down their canopy to lock. They remove their oxygen masks and helmet visors when parked. My only gripe is I cannot locate a pilot flight manual for this? It would help with setting the auto pilot to the appropriate type of flight or mission. Fantastic plane.

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VIRTUALCOL - AIRBUS A220 SERIES PACK FSX/P3D

VIRTUALCOL - AIRBUS A220 SERIES PACK FSX/P3D

Using with FSX Steam and very dissatisfied! Only the A220-100 can be used. All of the A220-300s completely fail to display any part of the aircraft. Just audio. No VC, no internal or exterior views from any of the multiple available cameras! That said I’ll change my review if the developer answers me and provides a fix so I can use all of what I paid for. Other than that the A220-100s are very nice. Very simple planes for those times where you just want to fly a bit with as little headache as possible. Some aspects are well simulated and you get almost (based on above experience) what you pay for. First time I’ve had such a downer experience with a Virtualcol product. This is my 5th

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FLIGHT REPLICAS - HS.125 DOMINIE T MK.1(2) P3D4.5-5 FSX

FLIGHT REPLICAS - HS.125 DOMINIE T MK.1(2) P3D4.5-5 FSX

It’s nice to have older generation aircraft offered with such attention to detail. I’m using this with FSX Steam on Win 10 16GBram, i7, Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU. Everything looks and works great! It has unique flight dynamics compared to say a Lear 35 or other similar small jets. I particularly like the 3 cabin view options. This is a great plane. Just a heads up though, for FSX Steam users there are only generic thumbnails at aircraft selection, but the 3 different liveries are there and have no problems. Totally Steam compatible.

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AEROPROYECTO - CESSNA C172N R1.3 - FSX P3D

AEROPROYECTO - CESSNA C172N R1.3 - FSX P3D

After having such a nice experience with this developers C172N Float package I just had to have the more common version we see in the skies every day around the world. It’s no surprise to me that the same love for the C172N Floats would be found in this pack. Again it just feels right. I get that feeling of realism here that so many others just don’t deliver, and I’m including the Carenado 172s. While these aren’t as flashy as a Carenado product, they are definitely just as good all around and even a bit better considering that sim flight satisfaction feeling one gets when controlling a virtual plane. You know, like when a plane just seems to behave like you you think the real world one does and you get lost in the sim enjoying flying it. No quirky distractions or unusual behaviors. This is just one of those lesser known gems that needs to be shoved into the light and get into more flight simmers hands. No complaints. Highly recommended! PS though it doesn’t say so in the product description it IS FSX Steam compatible. I’m using it with my FSX Steam and it’s perfect. In fact ALL of Aeroproyecto planes are FSX Steam compatible. I have confirmed this with the developer directly as well before I made the purchase.

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AEROPROYECTO - CESSNA C172N FLOATPLANE V1.3 - FSX P3D

AEROPROYECTO - CESSNA C172N FLOATPLANE V1.3 - FSX P3D

This is a bit of a hidden gem. There are loads of C172’s around and I’ve had and tried many. Not a lot of C172 Floats or amphibious, and of what I’ve experiences from those few others they don’t seem to behave well or realistically on water or in the air. This developer seems to have a special knack for bringing these birds to life in a way that just feels right. You can practically feel the weight of the floats under the plane and how they impact how the plane moves through the air. For a simulated experience it doesn’t get much better than this. The detailing is really nice and as good as any I’ve ever seen. I am very happy with this.

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PAULO RICARDO - JOINVILLE 2017  SBJV FSX P3D

PAULO RICARDO - JOINVILLE 2017 SBJV FSX P3D

This is way more than just an airport. You get the whole city and surrounding neighborhoods plus 2 more smaller airfields of excellent detail. Having bought it on sale for around $7 usd I feel more than satisfied. Exceptional detail all around. Shipping docks, boats, all surrounded by great photo detail. No frame rate drops at all. Using FSX Steam, win 10 3.2 ghz i7, Intel UHD630 GPU

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FLIGHT 1 - QUALITYWINGS SIMULATIONS - THE ULTIMATE 146 COLLECTION FSX P3D

FLIGHT 1 - QUALITYWINGS SIMULATIONS - THE ULTIMATE 146 COLLECTION FSX P3D

I have the QW 757 collection as well, which made me comfortable buying this pack. It doesn’t disappoint for the most part. I’ll start with my only real complaint. There are no working air stairs on any variant. The QW control panel shows “Airstairs” button with “inop” printed in it. So no amount of clicking on the air stair button with ever produce them. Very dissatisfied with this issue where had it not been so, I’d have giving 5 stars! Or also despite what’s seen in some photos there are also no grasping service vehicles except for the pushback truck. Seems to be some misleading information within this products descriptions. So I’ll forgive these issues as everything else is very nice! Excellent cockpits with very few unclickables. Very nice night lighting. Lots and lots of downloadable liveries. The audio is very good as well. Call outs and various safety or other announcements from cockpit or cabin are clear and add a nice touch to realism. Max cruise is about Mach .70 with a Max airspeed at altitude of Mach .73 These are fun planes to fly just avoid low altitude cruise as the engines will really burn fuel faster than other similar in class aircraft. They climb pretty quickly so getting up to cruise altitude doesn’t take too long. Love the steep approach ability. EGLC is finally somewhere worth flying to for me now. This plane was built for steep approaches perfectly. Review based on use with FSX SE Win10 3.2 ghz Intel i7 and Intel UHD 630 GPU 16gb ram shared. Excellent frame rates even within high quality add on scenery with medium high to high settings.

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AEROSOFT - BRONCO X

AEROSOFT - BRONCO X

Remarkably fun plane! This thing can really move. Zipping around narrow canyons and doing river runs pulling Gs is a blast in this plane. So much detail and crisp graphics make it a beaut’ inside and out. It’s not nearly as hard to manage as Aerosoft eluded to in the product description. Only minor issue is that the engines are a little slow to spool up, so you do have to be very aware of your surroundings. It’s not a terrible knock on the plane, it’s just the way it was built. Fly smart and you’ll live to take off again. The field of view from inside is amazing. Only the forward view is slightly obstructed by the the canopy framing and the gun/camera sight housing, but it’s easy to get used to. Not only is this a quick and super agile aircraft it’s also very good at hanging around over head slowly circling, and does manage to accelerate out of most situations without trouble. Don’t overlook this plane, it’s more than it appears to be. Personally I like the design but I know there’s folks who won’t appreciate its looks. Whether it looks cool or stupid it’s more than capable and loads of fun to fly.

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GOLDEN AGE SIMULATIONS - BOEING SUPER STEARMAN PACKAGE FSX P3D

GOLDEN AGE SIMULATIONS - BOEING SUPER STEARMAN PACKAGE FSX P3D

This really is nearly a five star package. I knocked one star off because they tease that top speed is “really REALLY fast…” but due to FAA regulations has been made slower. Well I got this pack because I knew what these aircraft are capable of and expected the option to choose the FAA version or the intended builders version. Top speed is not well over 200kts as they are more than capable of, but is around 140kts in level flight. Now take it for what’s it’s worth to you. If you don’t care about the inhibited speed of the planes then forget all the above. I admit it’s kind of tricky tacky to complain about. Overall these are some amazing planes and are all gorgeous and fun to fly. Definitely loads of aerobatic fun is to be had. I just wish I could try them out as they were intended at full power. I still love these planes though.

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LIONHEART CREATIONS - LIONHEART - SKYLARK HD FSX P3D

LIONHEART CREATIONS - LIONHEART - SKYLARK HD FSX P3D

I love early models of planes. It’s a great stick and rudder experience, but it’s not always easy to find older aircraft designed or coded in a way that makes the experience believable on a sim. This one pretty much hits the mark and is a solid performer. It looks great and has fantastic sound. The Skylark gives me the impression that it flies like it should. I have a couple issues though. First is that this is my 3rd Lionheart product that requires clicking 200 (no exaggeration, I counted and same exact issue with their Epic Legacy VLJ and Epic Dynasty) times on an error box that pops up right after hitting “Fly Now” before the plane will load. No idea why this is? I have a few other of their planes that load normally just fine though. No other add on of mine does this. Once loaded everything sounds fine. So weird. My other gripe is the pilot and copilot heater knobs are static. Depending on other cockpit camera views some switches can’t be clicked on while they can in other views. More strangeness no? Anyway, it’s still a really nice product and for less than $10 I can live with it.

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FLIGHT 1 - JSS SIMULATIONS TRANSALL C-160 FSX FSXSE P3D

FLIGHT 1 - JSS SIMULATIONS TRANSALL C-160 FSX FSXSE P3D

Wow! This is more than I’d expected. First thing you should know is you cannot just hit auto start control E, or even L for lights or G for gear, the usual short cuts don’t work. This is by design for some reason. You will always have to start cold and dark and follow the specific proceedings to get this thing turned on. Be prepared to do some POH reading, and even checking out various YouTube videos or forums for help. If you’re used to starting 50s-60s era from scratch then you’ll probably be able to figure it out with some trial and error. I myself read the manual, watched tutorial videos (only found 2) and finally got some forum help before I felt good about getting this thing rolling. My first flight was full of alarms, malfunctions and well, lots of rookie pilot errors. Each flight gets better and proves to be worth the effort. This plane is very nice. One thing though and this is why only 4 stars. The pressurization alarm cannot ever be turned off. No matter how well one finds the error and corrects it, or even dives below 10,000 feet that alarm will be going for the rest of the flight. Pretty freaking annoying. I guess this plane doesn’t forgive or forget? Great visuals especially at night with the UV lighting inside. The sounds are super cool! Way better than what most offer. I mean this thing sounds amazing! Flying feels right on but how would 8 know since I’ve never actually flown the real thing. But according to the many articles on the web that I’ve read this JSS model nailed it! It really feels very different from other aircraft. You know what I mean? After awhile of experiencing different sim planes you start to notice a pattern of how certain types will behave and often get a feeling of same ol same ol. Not here, not at all. Very unique flying experience is had with this model. Just remember that I warned you about the fact that many keyboard shortcuts or keystrokes do NOT work and it’s not a bug. Be ready to take time to learn and you’ll be glad you did.

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NEMETH DESIGNS/MILVIZ - BOEING CH-47 CHINOOK FSX P3D

NEMETH DESIGNS/MILVIZ - BOEING CH-47 CHINOOK FSX P3D

I’m loving this version of the famous Chinook. I’ve had a couple free wares which stunk, and I have the Virtavia version as well which is OK for the small price I paid years ago. This ND version is very good! Excellent detail, and cockpit lighting. For some reason getting the cargo door and ramp to open the way I expect is proving to be surprisingly confusing. Maybe I need more coffee, but so far it’s been a little frustrating to open. The basic auto pilot-like function is very wonky and so far doesn’t hold any heading I choose. My only other complaint is that there is no night lighting in the cargo hold area. As far as flying this beast it’s fun and easy compared to other helicopters. It’s the best CH47 I’ve had so far and I’m pleased with my purchase.

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REALWORLD SCENERY - YOSEMITE AND BEYOND - FSX FSXSE P3D

REALWORLD SCENERY - YOSEMITE AND BEYOND - FSX FSXSE P3D

First I should let folks know that this is NOT a easy install. There is a process that involves unzipping, creating new folders and sub folders and copy/paste steps. It was very confusing and after much trial and error and some help from the dev, I finally got it working. It was a hassle and a half. Maybe I’m spoiled from having experienced all other add ons coming with a simple installer? Anyway. The important things is, the scenery works, and is very nice. No textures though. Which means only the buildings that you already have at the airports are there. No random houses or other buildings anywhere. Just random small areas that have a few trees but that’s it. I’m not particularly bothered by the lack of area buildings and enjoy the incredibly realistic landscape visuals. Sale price was just right.

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AFS-DESIGN - AIRWOLF V2 FSX

AFS-DESIGN - AIRWOLF V2 FSX

This is purely a nostalgia purchase for me. If you were a fan of the TV show then you may understand. However as far as flying is concerned there are some problems. First you have to turn all realism sliders to easy, turn off “engine stress causes damage” and deactivate crash and collision detection settings. Then you can fly this as intended. This thing violates physics in some hilarious ways. The controls in helicopter mode are heavy. It’s often like flying a brick. Push the throttle past 50% and the blades become variable geometry wings. It can max out around Mach 2 and climb to fl650 which is laughably impossible, but you have to suspend reality and accept the fantasy in order to enjoy flying this. Overall it’s not that great of a flight model and leaves a lot to be desired in terms of controllability. Also for some reason you have to load other cabin views as completely new aircraft. This makes no sense to me. Every other add on I own load once and then just cycle through cameras to get other internal views like the other seats, stations or passenger areas. Not here though, nope. You must stop everything, go to select aircraft, then select the other internal cabin view aircraft options and fly from there only. Meaning if you choose “Cabin” view you cannot switch camera to the VC or vice versa. Of all my many many add ons only AFS does this. So if you can forgive the fantasy of this physics defying chopper and get a warm feeling for the Airwolf TV show, then sure….buy it. If you’re looking for anything resembling a realistic experience, then move along or you’ll be terribly disappointed.

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NEMETH DESIGNS - MD 500 DEFENDER FSXSE

NEMETH DESIGNS - MD 500 DEFENDER FSXSE

This is the design that I first saw as a toy when I was a child. It was responsible for getting me interested in helicopters at an early age. A nice chopper that is pretty agile, and a little challenging to master flying and hovering. Not bad not great but definitely worth the price. Fun to fly around the many roof top helipads in Los Angeles Cities X add on scenery.

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FLYSIMWARE LLC - C195-X 2012 FSX P3D

FLYSIMWARE LLC - C195-X 2012 FSX P3D

A real nice aircraft that didn’t really catch on as much as expected due to high operating costs. Thankfully we don’t worry about such things as simmers, and can enjoy this unique aircraft. It’s way faster than your average Cessna high wing. Cruises easily around 155kias under 10k feet. The model is indeed a bit behind Carenado standards, but not at all bad. The lighting is pretty good offering a nice ambience at night in the cabin. The flight model seems to be carefully designed making for enjoyable flights. I’ll take this over my 172 any day. I recommend picking up when on sale for sure. Only dinged it minus 1 star because it could’ve had more liveries

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LIONHEART - EPIC LT DYNASTY FSX P3D

LIONHEART - EPIC LT DYNASTY FSX P3D

This plane is a little miss understood. The interior looks just like the real interior. It’s not a cheap design by the developers but an accurate rendition of the actual aircraft. So while it may seem like a poor effort based simply on a glance it’s a realistic presentation. The Dynasty has an overall simple, sleek (minimalist if you like) and uncluttered design and layout. The plane is a joy to fly. Fast! Really fast for a prop driven aircraft and even rivals light jets. My only complaint is that like at least one other of the Lionheart developers products has a super annoying loading bug. An error of unknown file pathway for certain audio files occurs and requires having to click “OK” no less than 200 times on the error message box before the plane loads and can be flown. When it finishes loading everything looks and sounds just fine, so I’ve no idea what the problem is. I have the same problem with their Epic Victory light jet. Reinstalling made no change. For that annoyance I knock off1 star. Otherwise this is a very nice product that matches up to the real thing (short of having real world experience) very nicely.

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AEROSOFT - F-14 EXTENDED FSX P3D

AEROSOFT - F-14 EXTENDED FSX P3D

Absolutely stunning! Such incredible attention to details. There are a couple things you should know before purchasing if using FSX Steam like myself. The saved flights or carrier ops don’t always install correctly due to a “FSX bug” according to Aerosoft. Also the kneel position when trying to attach to the catapult doesn’t work. Both are easily fixed, just contact Aerosoft and they will will respond quickly to get you the fixes needed to get you up and running. For me is was just a matter of moving the carrier flights source data up one folder, and downloading updated aircraft provided by the developer. Once I did as instructed everything has been smooth. Don’t let this scare you off please. This F14 A &B package is quite incredible and totally worth the little extra steps that may or may not be necessary. The F14A is modeled as should be expected showing off it’s dated HUD and underpowered first gen engines. The A seems to be more prone to compressor stalls and do not always restart. Just the the real thing. Scary when a double stall occurs but survivable if just one refuses to restart. The B seems a little less likely to stall as easily, and is noticeably faster! Not as fast as a D but gets close. I’ve topped the B out at M2.0 or slightly over. It’s climbs a lot better as well, unlike the A which like the real thing (depending on load weight) required climbing in steps to cruise levels. I just love this plane and Aerosoft has given us a truly outstanding model to fly in our sims. Win10, 3.2ghz i7, 16GB RAM Intel UHD630 Integrated graphics. ( loss of frame rates when in high detail areas or large add on scenery areas such as Los Angeles city or Manhattan X. Otherwise flying over open ocean or typical areas of F14 operations very little drag on system resources. )

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FLYSIMWARE LLC - BEECH 18 FSX P3D

FLYSIMWARE LLC - BEECH 18 FSX P3D

I’m not sure how I feel about this. I mean it’s a really nice aircraft and nicely detailed, but it’s flight model seems odd? Maybe it me? Upon takeoff with no flaps it pitches up so dramatically that I have to apply very heavy amounts of downward trim or it’ll stall right off the bat. Maybe the real B18 D behaves as such? Does it really require heaps and heaps of down trim just to take off? Also landing requires the same treatment and it’s a real B word to even things out. I’m not exactly a noob here and have plenty of experience operating difficult aircraft of all kinds but nothing has been so unwieldy at low speeds as this 18. Shen reaching a typical cruise speed everything is fine and she handles like a dream. But something changes very dramatically around 100 knots +/- 20 range. I can handle it but can’t help wondering if this really is normal? I guess I’d say just be prepared to make unusually large trim adjustments on take off and landings and DO NOT use flaps.

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JUSTFLIGHT - DC DESIGNS FA-18 E, F & G SUPER HORNET FSX P3D

JUSTFLIGHT - DC DESIGNS FA-18 E, F & G SUPER HORNET FSX P3D

Much better than the stock F18s in FSX in all ways except one. Really nice detail and great to fly. Only issue I’m having is that for some reason all of the variants included in this package max out at Mach 1.1. That doesn’t make any sense considering they should be able to easily get over M1.5 with just about any load out. So why are these so damn slow? I have the JustFlight F15 also and it can get very close to its max speed capabilities. It’s a little frustrating. Aside from the lack of speed everything else is great. Using with FSX SE Win10 3.2ghz Intel i7 16gb RAM with Intel UHD630 integrated graphics.

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NEMETH DESIGNS - SIKORSKY CH-54A & ERIKSON S64E SKYCRANE FSX P3D

NEMETH DESIGNS - SIKORSKY CH-54A & ERIKSON S64E SKYCRANE FSX P3D

Picked this up on a whim and I’m glad. Real sharp looking both indies and out. No blurry textures on my end. (FSX SE Win10 3.2ghz 16gb RAM Intel UHD 630 integrated graphics) it handles a bit differently than other helicopters as should be expected. Can’t seem to lower the claw so far, but I also just figured out how to raise and lower the firefighting water nozzle so I probably can’t say it’s a problem at all right now. Its fun to fly around in but obviously too large for a lot of rooftop helipads. I love flying over the Hollywood hills dispensing huge loads of water to drench the hillsides. While the nozzle does go up and down it does not actually do anything like load the tank. The tank is always loaded so there’s some pretending when lowering it to “fill” the tank so to speak. At any rate it’s a nice and very unique helicopter.

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SKY SIMULATIONS - MCDONNELL DOUGLAS DC-9 FSX V2

SKY SIMULATIONS - MCDONNELL DOUGLAS DC-9 FSX V2

Excellent product! I only found the added step of locating and then downloading no installing liveries to be a stupid step. Just put it all in one DL guys. Great cockpit and exterior modeling. You have to choose either the Blue or the grey panels but cannot have the option of both simultaneously. I chose blue. These DC9s all have similar behaviors with little difference in flight modeling and only some minor cockpit differences regarding where certain switches are located. So it’s easy to move from one variant to another. You will definitely want to at least skim the manual. One tip I feel is valuable to offer is regarding the need to turn on fuel heaters when about FL150 or you will encounter I’ll pressure loss and engine stall. However the 3D cockpit view of the overhead doesn’t allow these switches to be clicked and are accessible only by opening the 2D overhead panel to activate and deactivate these crucial switches. Other than that odd switch placement I found everything else to be excellent. Nice little fleet to add and I’m glad I did. Based on use with FSX SE Win 10 3.2ghz, i7 16gb RAM Intel UHD 630 integrated graphics. No problems whatsoever.

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JUST FLIGHT - DC DESIGNS CONCORDE FSX P3D

JUST FLIGHT - DC DESIGNS CONCORDE FSX P3D

First a note on my specs being used to run this plane. Win 10 3.2ghz i7 16gb RAM intel UHD 630 Integrated graphics. FSX SE. I’m happy as can be with this, but only a little disappointed that there are only 4 Liveries. Having had 16 airline carriers with over 70 planes and dozens of different liveries I feel this package containing only 4 is annoyingly stingy. Just 4? Really? Boooooooo! Other than that I am very happy with my purchase. Sure it’s a slightly dumbed down version of the real thing but I’m ok with that as I just don’t have the desire to play pilot and engineer roles simultaneously. Everything handles and behaves as should be expected. I mean it’s the Concorde, you know what you’re getting. It’s either worth it or not, and simply put I say it’s worth it.

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JUSTFLIGHT - FOKKER F27 FRIENDSHIP 100/200/300

JUSTFLIGHT - FOKKER F27 FRIENDSHIP 100/200/300

This is just a super nice classic to have. Great cockpit and exterior details and excellent sounds. I haven’t had any issues so far except that some switches or buttons have no clear identity so clicking them is a guessing game. This was annoying at first when I discovers I had wheel chocks on while taxiing and had to keep clicking buttons and checking outside for any changes. I finally did discover the hidden button but it was annoying. Just mark your buttons people! That’s really pretty minor still. I enjoying flying the F27 thoroughly. Great frame rates and sounds too. Quality design. Totally worth the purchase. Using FSX SE on a 3.2 ghz win 10 i7 16GB RAM with intel UHD 630 integrated GPU

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JUSTFLIGHT - DC DESIGNS F-15 C, D & I EAGLE FSX P3D 32-BIT VERSION

JUSTFLIGHT - DC DESIGNS F-15 C, D & I EAGLE FSX P3D 32-BIT VERSION

First I’ll tell you that I am using an Intel UHD 630 integrated GPU on a 3.2ghz i7 with 16gb RAM. That said I only have relatively minor issues that are not the fault of this product. Issues like slightly blurry lettering on areas near switches and dials. Otherwise it’s totally flyable without any frame rate issues unless I fly into a high density add on scenery area like Los Angeles X scenery pack. No problems at any default scenery areas. It does have one concern I cannot figure out a solution to, and that’s the fact that these F15 hit “Overspeed” at about M1.9+. Regardless of load out or altitude these F15 seem to have an error in regards to the true max speed. I can ignore the overspeed warning (stress turned off) and make M2.5 above fl410 and up to fl650. It’s just really annoying seeing that warning knowing full well it’s nonsense. Everything about the F15 just oozes power! Really fun to fly and great looking. The audio seems to be pretty lame in my opinion. It’s muted a bit compared to my F16 which roars. All in all and considering I am not equipped with the GPU requirements listed by the developers I am very happy with my purchase.

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NEMETH DESIGNS - AEROSPATIALE SA-2 SAMSON FSX

NEMETH DESIGNS - AEROSPATIALE SA-2 SAMSON FSX

First I want to confirm that this works fine with FSX Steam Edition. The installer even detects FSXSE with a specific installer. I thought folks would like to know this since the stores compatibility description for this product leaves out the fact that FSXSE is fully supported. This concept helo may look familiar to folks who’ve seen the movie Avatar where this craft saw some screen time. GTAV also showed the SA-2 as well. I’ve heard of others but you get the point. It’s not exactly real world. Forgiving the sci fi aspects of this aircraft and putting aside big blue CGI aliens having some to do with the Samson, and you should be able to enjoy the simulated real world uses ala FSX Steam Ed. It flies a little differently from most helicopters but it is easy to get used to rather quickly, especially for those who are experienced with swimming VTOLs. I was disappointed to find that there is no differential power control. Even with two separate throttles each will control both engines power. I was hoping to find some new challenges with say 1 misbehaving engine, but nope. Other than that it is a very nice aircraft in flight and isn’t hard to hover. It’s slower than I’d hoped...rated up to 140kts max airspeed. I’ve gotten it up to 155 without any over speed warnings despite this max speed rating. Not sure how much faster I might get it going, but it speeds along like most similar helicopters such as a Blackhawk. The modeling is pretty nice inside and out. Really nice details. The VC is highly interactive almost everything can be clicked. Flying via the VC is nice with better than fair visibility. Night lighting is pleasing. Doors require being clicked on directly to open or close. They do not respond to SHift E 1,2,3 etc. guns fire with the push of the I key with satisfying sound. All in all I am really enjoying this chopper and the price is so low I found it hard to resist.

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CARENADO - 690B TURBO COMMANDER FSX P3D

CARENADO - 690B TURBO COMMANDER FSX P3D

I love this plane. Fast and fun to fly. The exterior models are nice if not a little bland. The interiors show wear and tear reflecting a plane that’s been around the block a few times and is holding up nicely.. the audio is very good and I’m not sure if it’s intended but seems louder than other similar twin prop aircraft. At any rate it sounds cool. I’m not complaining. No problems at all and very stable frames. Based on use with Win 10 PC FSX Steam, 3.2ghz i7 16gb ram and intel UHD630 integrated gpu.

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JUSTFLIGHT - ONE-ELEVEN 300/400/500 FSX P3D

JUSTFLIGHT - ONE-ELEVEN 300/400/500 FSX P3D

This is a classic noise machine and the audio is well represented. A truly outstanding cockpit. Nice real world commercial liveries but I wish there were a few more. It’s a lot slower than I expected. This will not keep up with your 737s or CRJs at all. Only slightly faster than the most powerful turbo props. No way it’ll cruise at M.77 at any altitude. It flies best around FL 200 to 240 and gradually will lose speed as you climb any higher. I talking about a max ground speed of 360 with 90% power when nearing fl300. Especially with any significant loads. Flying this classic bird is however a fun venture. You have to watch your grim carefully on take off and landing as well as through speed changes. More than I’m used to. There is a very satisfying black smoke trail and roar to the engines. Even the “hush” fitted ones are still really loud. It seems best suited for short to mid range voyages leaning more to the shorter types. I nice one for the collection.

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CARENADO - B1900D HD SERIES FSX P3D

CARENADO - B1900D HD SERIES FSX P3D

I love this aircraft. Such nice detail and eye candy galore. Incredible cockpit that is fully functional. I wish there was a little more cabin views options. The included liveries have some common but nice designs and color. The fact that Carenado offer some more free liveries to download from their site brings more commercial aviation options like United Express, Era Alaska, Air Canada and more. Having found this on a massive sale I feel really good about this and have been enjoying every minute with this plane. Only strange thing is with the extra downloadable liveries the auto pilot will not allow me to fly at any altitude other than 4500 no matter how much I try to change it. The default liveries don’t do that and it’s super weird.

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JUSTFLIGHT - P-38 LIGHTNING FSX FS2004

JUSTFLIGHT - P-38 LIGHTNING FSX FS2004

Review based on use with Win 10 3.2ghz i7 16GB RAM integrated Intel UHD 630 Graphics. FSX SE. I wanted a nice P38 for years but because I have the FSX Steam Ed. version and I couldn’t find one (under $50) that really felt like it was worth purchasing. I tried the Demo first and was very happy to see it runs perfectly with FSX SE despite not being officially supported. Just selected the FSX install and redirected to the drive I keep the sim on. Easy as pie! So I paid up for the full pack and am so glad I did. This is a very nicely modeled and represented classic plane! Even though a few years older than I’d have preferred, it still looks and flies amazingly. The gauges are spot on and gorgeously done. Still can’t find any reason for the extra compass sticking out and blocking the altimeter almost completely from view? I mean it’s literally less than an inch away from the panel installed compass doing absolutely nothing differently. There’s also no additional cockpit or external cam views (except chase follow) so I really can’t ever see what my altitude exactly is. Lots of guessing based of what small portion of the altimeter that remains in view under the redundant and annoying compass. For these reasons I knock a star off. By the way no, it cannot be removed period. The engines audio is amazing and you can feel the rumble of the machines as well as that slight whining super charge-like sound at higher power outputs. These forked tail devils seem to behave just as one might expect (having never actually flown one) in the air. Very satisfying all around with the wide variety of liveries available. This is one of my top 3 U.S, WW2 military aircraft favorites among the B17 and P51D that no collection should be without. So happy with this!

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NEMETH DESIGNS - BELL 407 FSX P3D4

NEMETH DESIGNS - BELL 407 FSX P3D4

I give just 3 stars because there is exactly 1 cockpit cam view. No copilot, no passengers nothing inside. That’s dumb and half. Otherwise the helicopter is real nice. I bought it because of the KIRO 7 news chopper livery goes well with my Seattle city scenery, and I live here. The other liveries are nice but an American police chopper would have been nice. The handling is pretty good too and generally good behavior all around. Can’t aim the search lights for some reason. Good buy on sale but with the strictly limited cockpit view full price should be avoided.

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AFS-DESIGN - PANAVIA TORNADO V2 FSX STEAM

AFS-DESIGN - PANAVIA TORNADO V2 FSX STEAM

Another AFS product that looks to offer a lot for the money but plagued with bugs. First off the flight models are not quite up to snuff compared to other makers of this same plane, but not really that bad either. The interiors are low Rez maybe slightly better than an average Virtavia cirque 2015 but some gauges do not work and others make no sense. For example the fuel flow never moves beyond its apparently locked position at 100% The inflight refuel fails to actually refuel. The tanker shows but no matter the speed or altitude you get no gas ever. The throttle goes straight to full afterburner half way up. You cannot fly more than barely 200kias without afterburner at altitude (such as FL360 plus) so you either fly full burn at high Mach speeds burning your fuel up nice and quick, or chug along like a struggling Cessna 208 past it’s ceiling. The auto pilot doesn’t have a speed hold so no joy there either. The missions don’t work, though you can technically select and fly them. The issue is no flight plan and no briefing can be located during the mission. So you have to take notes and prepare your flight like it were a WW2 era pencil and paper kind of thing. Unless you have a good memory and the pre flight briefing sticks in your head. Whatever you do you will not ever get a completion confirmation afterward. Rostock is supposed to be included with certain scenery updates but it hasn’t changed on bit after installing. Lighting up the GPS button should enable flight following of the GPS plan but it doesn’t. You have to select NAV to follow GPS which begs the question why even have a GPS button? 2 stars because I like the liveries and it can be fun to fly once in a while when I just want to go fast for a little bit, but other than that the noted problems make it not worth doing anything beyond that. Another AFS WTF product leaving a bad taste in my mouth. If they do a FREE update fixing all the problems it currently has, then it could be a fair 4 star product. Not today though. Based on FSX SE Win10 3.2 ghz I7 16GB RAM

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AFS-DESIGN - EUROFIGHTER TYPHOON PROFESSIONAL 6 FSX STEAM

AFS-DESIGN - EUROFIGHTER TYPHOON PROFESSIONAL 6 FSX STEAM

This is one of AFS better offerings. A pretty decent model inside and out with a nice selection of liveries. I have a Typhoon by another developer that is much better, but it doesn’t have many liveries at all. What sold me on this was the inflight refuel option in addition to the generous amount of liveries. There are aspects of this plane that feel off so to speak but for the money it’s hardly anything to complain about. All things considered this is my favorite AFS product.

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AEROSOFT - ENGLISH ELECTRIC LIGHTNING T5 FSX P3D

AEROSOFT - ENGLISH ELECTRIC LIGHTNING T5 FSX P3D

Wow! This is really cool. I am one of those Cold War military aircraft lovers and seeing this unique plane available I had to have it. It is indeed a special plane. Loud, fast and fun! The visual models are amazing in and out. So far it seems like everything’s working just fine. Took a while to find a well hidden radar on/off switch but I did after much cursing. It’s not all that hard to fly even though it requires a high speed landing compared to others of the type. The chute helps but 8000 feet are usually needed. Just a great plane to add to any virtual hangar. Runs very well on FSX Steam Win10 3.2 ghz intel i7 16gb ram, no dedicated graphics card And runs great with my UHD630 integrated gpu. No FR drops until flying into a heavy add on city like LA. But other add on scenery like Cardiff or Rammstein don’t hurt FR at all. Generally I have medium to medium high scenery related settings and no probs to report. Totally worth picking up.

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AEROSOFT - CATALINA X FSX P3D

AEROSOFT - CATALINA X FSX P3D

Amazing! Great models in and out. Could use a few more interior views and maybe a exit door (if there is such a thing?)and what not but still really good. Awesome inclusion of various variants with different behaviors. You can choose to fly with highly realistic engine coding or standard and simplified engine coding. The difference between the two is significant! Lots of baby sitting when using "realistic" engines. There are a few with a simple (no map) GPS and no A/P or the rest without the GPS but have an ancient version of an auto pilot or Gyro lock installed. The additional scenery is kinda Blah but appreciated. It runs very nicely on my FSX Steam Ed. running on a Win10 I7 8th gen 3.2ghz 16GB RAM UHD 630 integrated GPU, with generally high graphics settings. i havent needed any dedicated gpu for anything even when a 1gb card is a "required minimum' to date for any of my add ons, and i have a lot without being burned so far.

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NEMETH DESIGNS - AGUSTA WESTLAND AW109 FSX P3D

NEMETH DESIGNS - AGUSTA WESTLAND AW109 FSX P3D

The flight model is excellent, not weird at all. The instruments are all accurate and do not display incorrect info. Its very easy to fly for a helicopter and as long as you have some experience with helos youll be fine. Very nice physical modeling with high detail. I like this more than my AS155. The auto pilot seems to work well and ive not had any problems with this. Totally recommend! Glad I ignored the bad reviews since they appear to have no basis in reality as i have experienced it. Running FSX SE Win10 3.2ghz 16GB RAM i7 UHD 630 integrated graphics with medium high graphics settings and complex HD add on scenery like US Cities X Manhattan, Los Angeles etc.

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ANTS AIRPLANES - TROJAN T28D FSX P3D

ANTS AIRPLANES - TROJAN T28D FSX P3D

Incredible! Ants makes some of the best planes around and at really low prices. Every aspect and detail is carefully developed to make for some great flying. The sounds are amazing too! You can really feel the pounding of the engine and it fosters an even greater immersive experience. Of course visually its all stunning. The Flight model sets it apart from most every day planes. I have their T28B&C as well as their Tiger Moth and Winjeel, all just as high quality as you can get. Running on FSX SE, Win 10, 3.2ghz i7 16GB Ram, UHD 630 Integrated graphics with medium high graphics settings. Performs great even when flying into add on HD scenery areas.

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LIONHEART CREATIONS - LIONHEART - BLADE FSX P3D

LIONHEART CREATIONS - LIONHEART - BLADE FSX P3D

This is an inexpensive plane that is all eye candy and no frills. I say that because it looks great and has a pleasant flight model but very little bells and whistles. For example the center console has the dial throttle and 4 smaller dials surrounding it that each do nothing at all and cannot be interacted with. Seems odd cause they look relevant and maybe important? At any rate the touch screen “kiosk” does have all controls you’re gonna need so maybe they are just analog redundancies? The plane is a nice flyer that is very forgiving and predictable in its behaviors. Excellent interior design and the exterior is nothing to shake a stick at. The motor is of course super quiet an you’ll hear wind noise a bit more. I also have their Avelina electric “what if” plane which has a lot more going for it than this in terms of clickable interactivity. On sale it’s a no brainer purchase. Don’t doubt Lionheart, as they do make interesting “what if” planes and this Blade (like the Avelina) is a very good looking plane worth collecting. Runs great on my Win10 3.2ghz i7 16GB RAM, UHD 630 integrated graphics with medium high graphics settings on FSX Steam Ed. No noticeable drops in frame rate even in default high density scenery areas. Some drop when in HD add on scenery areas like Los Angeles X or Manhattan X and moderate drops if also using complex weather settings. I hate that you cannot shut off the open pilot door warning dinging (same with the Avelina) unless shutting the entire power off.

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GOLDEN AGE SIMULATIONS - C3B STEARMAN FOR FSX FSXSE P3D

GOLDEN AGE SIMULATIONS - C3B STEARMAN FOR FSX FSXSE P3D

Best Stearman CB3 I’ve been able to find. Great modeling! A great piece of history that makes flying slow and low fun. The sound is exceptional. Great attention to detail. I only wish there were a few more liveries but not worth knocking any stars over. Runs great on my Win10 3.2ghz i7 16gb RAM with UHD630 integrated graphics and medium high graphics settings, FSX Steam. No drops in frame rate until I enter HD add on scenery areas, but everywhere else no prob.

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GLOWINGHEAT - LOCKHEED A-12 CYGNUS FSX FSXSE P3D

GLOWINGHEAT - LOCKHEED A-12 CYGNUS FSX FSXSE P3D

I just couldn't resist this purchase. For those unfamiliar with this variant, its the Blackbird with 1 seat except for the included version that has a drone piggybacking the Cygnus. All in all sure the graphics arent super high end, but they are nice and do the aged bird justice all the same. No you cannot just go full throttle and hit Mach3.2 right after a brief climb. No chance! it flies just like the real one was designed. It takes time to climb within the aircraft envelope of operation and you must be patient or suffer a major failure. If like me, you have experience with similar aircraft kike the SB70 Valkyrie then you'll understand right away. Its not hard to flame out or destroy the craft with even subtle aerobatic maneuvers. This is a super high speed a to b type of plane. Flying is a joy if you follow the instructions (only found the Sr71 Pilot book on developers website so.... Its basically the same) provided. You cannot get a better iteration of this famous plane anywhere...forget any of the freeware versions they all stink! Runs great on my rig which is a Win10 3.2ghz, i7, 16GB Ram with 630UHD integrated graphics on the FSX Steam version with medium high graphics settings. I love this plane. -1 star for the periscope view screen never shows anything and yes i m sure i have it powered up and scope enabled. I was hoping that (like the demo screenshots) id be able to see it working, but sadly no. Last note you better be ready for a difficult landing from the VC as the forward windscreen center bar blocks a bit of the forward view making it a challenge to line up properly. Everything else works and is great!

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MARIO NORIEGA DESIGNS - CAPRONI-VIZZOLA C-22J VENTURA FSX P3D4

MARIO NORIEGA DESIGNS - CAPRONI-VIZZOLA C-22J VENTURA FSX P3D4

Not much money for a fun little jet. It is indeed quite a capable aerobatic bird and real easy to fly. Not very fast but fast enough. I only wish it had some kind of auto pilot but it handles well enough for manual flying. Don’t expect super hi res imaging, it’s kind of middle of the road but still nice enough to make it worth the money.

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GOLDEN AGE SIMULATIONS - BRUNNER WINKLE BIRD FSX P3D

GOLDEN AGE SIMULATIONS - BRUNNER WINKLE BIRD FSX P3D

What a nice piece of history in flight. This is one loaded package. You get a few different models, lots of nice liveries, and some extra add on scenery as well. The 3 different models each look and fly great. There are some noticeable differences in flight characteristics for each model as well. Slow but responsive and predictable is the name of the game with these birds. The two included add on sceneries are fair but a nice addition. There is a third scenery offered for free that you have to download and install separately and the link for it can be found in the included manual. This 3rd scenery pack is the best of the 3 depicting a vintage airfield with a fair like atmosphere. Highly detailed small buildings and some hangars to park in with several classic planes of the era lining the inner field. Based on use with FSX Steam 3.2ghz, win 10, i7, 16gb RAM, UHD630 integrated GPU (set to run equivalent 512mb VRAM) average game graphics settings *medium high to high. Recommend lower graphics settings if using high weather details during flight at Hicksville add on, or other add on scenery is near by such as Manhattan or NY City airports etc. Must have for all vintage aircraft lovers.

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NEMETH DESIGNS - MIL MI-35 “SUPER HIND”  FSX P3D4

NEMETH DESIGNS - MIL MI-35 “SUPER HIND” FSX P3D4

As a fan of helicopters in general but especially with military variations I just had to nab this one. The modeling is fantastic first and foremost. Lots of attention to detail and just about every switch (which there are a great many) is clickable. However there is no info about what the switch is for that usually pops up when moused over. So lots of zooming and guessing. I cannot find any cabin views at all despite the merchant screen shots showing that there are internal cabin views. Also only the cockpits have working doors. Of the two cockpit exits only one works with Shift E. The other requires being clicked on from inside. Problem here though as clicking that same exit docent work to close it. So don’t open until you’re landed and not taking off again. I tried everything to close it and nothing worked. Shift E 2,3,4,5 etc don’t open or close anything. The wipers and fans work but I couldn’t turn off the wiper and the switch was definitely in Off position, yet they kept wiping anyway. Flying this modernized Hind is actually really nice and smooth. Despite being lighter than older variants it’s still a heavy machine and takes time to slow. That and being a bit less responsive than say even a Sea Stallion should be expected. It’s fun to fly. There is a highly detailed manual available which will need to be studied a bit in order to understand what the switches all do or don’t do. However nothing in the manual about how to close that stubborn cockpit exit. All in all I’m still glad I bought this despite the strange idiosyncrasies. 4/5 stars Based on use with FSX SE, 3.2ghz i7 16gb ram, 1gb integrated UHD video ram, with on average graphics settings around high. Smooth frame rates even with high detail scenery add on areas.

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FLIGHT REPLICAS - CANADAIR NORTH STAR FSX P3D

FLIGHT REPLICAS - CANADAIR NORTH STAR FSX P3D

I hope the fine folks at SimMarket will replace my earlier review with this one as it had multiple errors. I previous thought that there were a few missing functions and features but found that they were not missing at all. The only real problem is that a few things are miss-labeled or unlabeled. The passenger and crew stairs will not appear unless the engines are off. Restarting is another issue but probably just need to find some reading material to correct. The parking brake is labeled “Emergency Brake” which is slightly confusing when being used to all other aircraft with an actual “parking brake” label and in some cases also an “emergency brake”. Anyway the only real issue is that you CANNOT use Pushback ever. It will cause the plane to crash. Somehow stopping a pushback causes the tail to drop backwards through the ground. CRASH Every single time. So you have to start at parking where forward motion is the way out. Other than that stuff the plane visual modeling inside and out is really really nice. Excellent night lighting. A great attention to the sound FX of the engines makes for a realistic and loud flight especially take off! Turn your speakers up at least once to try and get a real idea of just how load these Merlins were. No wonder so many ground workers and pilots etc had hearing damage. This is basically a faster and much louder DC4 and I prefer the Canadair overall.

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AERIALFOUNDRY - CAF CF-18 HORNET MILITARY PACK V2.0 FREE

AERIALFOUNDRY - CAF CF-18 HORNET MILITARY PACK V2.0 FREE

Tried with FSX Steam which is specific to my review. Not much to get excited about here. Sure it’s not for FSX SE but I thought I’d try it anyway and while it did install and can be flown, it’s not very good. You would need to have a bit of knowledge with editing .cfg files to correct some things but that won’t help the fact that hardly anything in the cockpit can be moused or clicked. So if you’re thinking about trying it out for versions of FSX that it’s not intended be warned that it isn’t really worth the effort. If you use FSX 2004 then I think you should grab it since it’s free.

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CARENADO - S330 FSX P3D

CARENADO - S330 FSX P3D

Based on use with FSX SE, 3.2ghz win10 16gb ram, 630UHD 1.5gb VRAM integrated graphics, with high graphics settings on average. Other than what the previous review stated my only complaint is that the default external spot view has the plane zoomed out really really far. Of course you can zoom in but it does so with an unnatural view aspect of the plane. I’ve found the only way to correct this is to intentionally crash the plane into a building while in spot cam view before doing anything else after starting a new flight. The plane then reloads with the expected correct spot view just don’t hit cntl & space in spot or chase camera views or it’ll reset the plane back to being a tiny little bird in the distance, but zooming in or out is ok. Put that aside and I love this plane. Beautiful aircraft inside and out that is highly detailed. The cabin view is great too. The mixture levers have no apparent influence on flight at any altitude whatsoever. No I don’t have auto mixture on, I use full realism across the board with no “auto” anything enabled. All of the lighting looks really great and well this is a Carenado product so you get quality as expected. The flight model is fantastic. I just wish it came with some way to choose either all passenger or freight types rather than just a default split passenger/freight interior. Some real world airline liveries would’ve been nice as well. The liveries that are included are good but not very inspired. At any rate I got it on sale and am happy.

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LIONHEART - PROTON BULLETTE FSX FSX:SE P3D

LIONHEART - PROTON BULLETTE FSX FSX:SE P3D

Based on use with FSX SE 3.2ghz i7 16gb RAM UHD630 integrated GPU 1.5gb video mem. High graphics settings. I’m really enjoying this interesting little plane. It does have really nice detailing and lots of colorful liveries. It is loads of fun to fly but can be easy to overstress at times. It’s a nimble and relatively fast (max level flight 190kt , -10 for fixed gear) low altitude cruiser that handles very nicely. The landing lights do not seem to work nor can I even find the lights on the aircraft to begin with, so maybe there aren’t any at all? But there is a landing light button in the cockpit. The overall lighting seems off a bit. The “dome light” lights the whole cockpit and gauges, but there’s no separate back light for just the gauges and that bugs me a little bit which is why I knocked off one star. There is GPS 2D panel pop up, and a basic hold current heading and alt type AP. All things considered I am happy with this swift little plane and even more so since I got it on a great sale deal.

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FLIGHT REPLICAS - HALIFAX FSX P3D

FLIGHT REPLICAS - HALIFAX FSX P3D

I’m a big fan of WW2 military aircraft especially those used by the allies. That said, I think you’d have to be at least a little bit of a fan of this genre to appreciate what you’re getting into here? The modeling of the plane does seem spot on and it looks pretty darn nice. The night lighting is era accurate but if you’re used to modern plane night lights it may seem odd to you. Different time and different technology make for noticeable differences between this and your average modern aircraft especially with lighting. There’s no mixture controls so either that’s correct or I didn’t know this plane like I thought? There is a empty lever slot marked for mixture though so I’m confused. No oxygen control, not many hatches or doors open, and there’s an annoying tendency for the plane to yell “LANDING GEAR.....” if you apply any flaps without the gear down. Pretty sure that didn’t exist in 1940. Very few in plane view options. All interior views are concentrated on the main cockpit area. No turret, no tail, no bombardier or nose gunner views at all. Only a few external views also disappointed me. Since I got this at half off on sale I’ll say it’s worth that and I am happy to have added it to my hangar. Full price may very well be a fair price for some, but I do not recommend paying more than half the listed price if possible. The last thing I’ll add is about how it flies. Well, it flies like an old heavy plane....mushy at times and doesn’t do well when all engines fail turning it into a brick. Basically just like descriptions given by pilots from the time. Rubs very smooth on my Win 10 3.2 ghz I7, 16gb ram 1.5GB uhd integrated graphics. Running along with add on scenery, high graphics settings.

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ANTS AIRPLANES - CAC25 WINJEEL FSX P3D

ANTS AIRPLANES - CAC25 WINJEEL FSX P3D

Ants Airplanes are very high quality and well detailed. This Winjeel is just outstanding on all counts. Rivet counters will revel in the fine details on display and the flight model won’t disappoint either. Not much to say beyond “wow”. If you like unusual aircraft that perform and look well, then this should be something to seriously consider picking up on sale or not it’s worth every penny and more. Based on experience with FSX Steam 3.2 GHZ i7 16gb ram 512UHD integrated GPU.

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CARENADO - DA62 G1000 FSX P3D

CARENADO - DA62 G1000 FSX P3D

Absolutely gorgeous inside and out. This is such a joy to just look at. Of course flying this plane is just as nice too. You’d expect a great model from these guys and you would not be disappointed. Only issues I’ve noticed are the wing lights and landing light do not illuminate anything. The seem to be on but do not cast any light. Thankfully the Taxi light does cast light on the ground but not a lot. The install got hung up on the first step and would crash unless I accepted to skip that step, so perhaps that is what caused the few relatively minor gripes? I don’t know? Plus the nav system won’t ever load the 2016 data and that seems to be causing a issue with settings up a flight plan which means I have to do old fashioned navigating with a lot of heading hold adjustments along the way. Since I got this on sale I’m ok with these issues more or less, but it would have been nice to be able to just let the GPS nav system do the steering. The flight model and visuals are just so good that I find myself feeling very forgiving for the problems. Based on experience with FSX Steam, 3.2GHZ I7 16gb ram, 512 UHD integrated GPU.

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FLYSIMWARE LLC - MITSUBISHI MU-2B-60 FSX P3D

FLYSIMWARE LLC - MITSUBISHI MU-2B-60 FSX P3D

I have a bunch of Flysimware add on planes for FSX Steam and except for a bad experience with their Lear 35 I have been pleased with their products. This is another that I'm really happy with! The MU-2B is a unique plane and very well represented here. The flight model is exceptional. I feel immersed in the experience from ground to sky and just love it when a plane like this delivers such a grand sim experience. The sounds are a large part of the immersion and compliment the whole feel. Turn up your speakers volume to get the most of the audio aspects. The visuals are above average but not quite as good as the newer planes currently offered by powerhouse Carenado. However, despite the less than modern graphics I am glad and happy with what is displayed here! There is some satisfying detail but not so much that you need a heavy hitting graphics card. I'm loving the whole plane especially the interior. Pretty good night lighting except the Taxi lights don't really illuminate the forward center ground area, just the flanks and need to be adjusted inward hopefully in a future update. The landing lights are bright and are needed for taxiing to get the full frontal night view on the ground. All in all this is one excellent add on that shouldn't be missed especially when on sale. Review based on use with Win10 3.1GHZ CPU, Intel I7-8700 Gen 8, 16GB ram, Intel UHD 630 integrated graphics. Running with Med-Hi graphics FSX settings. Excellent frame rate performance. Highly recommended

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FLYSIMWARE LLC - LEARJET 35A FSX P3D

FLYSIMWARE LLC - LEARJET 35A FSX P3D

I have a few of this developers products and never had any problems until this Lear35. When I try to start a flight with this plane it begins the load action while blaring the stall horn along with some other cockpit environmental sounds and then crashes FSX SE at %6 load progress. I have a decent rig that allows me to use most Carenado products along with scenery and airport add ones at the same time with medium graphics settings, no problem. But this plane at the lowest possible graphics settings crashes. The product page here says nothing about any unusual system minimums. I can however start a flight with another of my planes, then change aircraft to this Lear 35 and fly for about 30 minutes before it crashes FSX SE. NO WAY this plane requires more system resources than any of my Carenado or Alebeo planes. If Flysimware resolves this issue with their FSX SE version I’ll change my review but as is, I give it barely 2 stars since I can at least switch aircraft and fly for a little bit. Hardly worth recommending like this though.

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ANTS AIRPLANES - TIGER MOTH PRO FSX P3D

ANTS AIRPLANES - TIGER MOTH PRO FSX P3D

Outstanding on all counts! The detail and physical characteristics are top notch. If you own just one classic biplane type make this one a top candidate. No, it’s not fast but it’s nimble and still capable of some aerobatics as long as you keep your load as low as possible. The “complete auto start” goes through all of the start up procedure pieces in detail. You could change that to a quick start (cntl E) or just set it to force a full manual start up. This plane has many little tidbits and added details from voice changes, to wear and tear tracking. Eventually your plane will need maintenance (if enabled) and yo7 will need to complete those maintenance tasks or suffer problems or failures. You get a lot more than bargained for here. Runs great with medium hi graphics settings at full realism on my 512 integrated graphics, Steam edition, even with intense weather settings while flying in add on scenery. Great for sight seeing VFR conditions

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CERA SIMAIRCRAFT - CERA - AS365N3 FSX P3D

CERA SIMAIRCRAFT - CERA - AS365N3 FSX P3D

CORRECTED REVIEW I was mistaken in my early review about the functionality of the rescue basket. It does work just fine, I made the mistake of not having “Advanced Animations” turned on in my settings. Having since corrected that the basket does fully raise and lower as it should. This is one of my favorite choppers! The night lighting is especially nice. The auto pilot actually works which is a first for me though I know others exist.

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FLYSIMWARE LLC - SUPER HUEY X FSX P3D

FLYSIMWARE LLC - SUPER HUEY X FSX P3D

CORRECTED REVIEW. It should’ve been obvious to me that in order for the basket operation to work properly, Advanced Animations needed to be enabled. I had it disabled at first and was totally unaware how crucial having it turned on would be. That said I’ve raised my review and rating to reflect a more proper representation of opinion. I love this Huey, but getting the audio was initially a bit problematic. The download comes without any audio. However I learned from the developer website that adding audio was very easy to do. I aliased the stick Augusta 101 audio to be used for this chopper and it works fine from start to power down. There’s better audio out there, even true Huey sounds so don’t let it turn you off from this excellent chopper.

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PERFECT FLIGHT - ULTIMATE AIRBUS A380 SIMULATION FSX

PERFECT FLIGHT - ULTIMATE AIRBUS A380 SIMULATION FSX

the overall package is a fair deal but the quality of the actual plane regarding the cockpits and general flight dynamics is a bit off the mark. The glass cockpit instruments are fuzzy making it hard to read speed and Altitude etc. Im pretty sure the A380 only uses the two inner engines for reverse thrust but this model uses all four. you could consider that minor although if realism is crucial to you then this is not the model for you. This is one of those get in and fly types where just about anybody could complete a first flight with no problems. The missions are ok, nothing all that special. You do get a lot of liveries, more than i thought existed but ok. sometimes the cargo doors will open and close and sometimes they will not open or close. Jetways do not connect but at least when you open the door a ladder extends. All in all its an OK value with minimal realism that has its moments of being enjoyable.

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FLIGHT 1 - THE ULTIMATE 757 COLLECTION FOR FSX

FLIGHT 1 - THE ULTIMATE 757 COLLECTION FOR FSX

I hope SIMMARKET replaces my previous outdated and inaccurate reviews. This is my final review after doing much research and verification. This is a excellent package for the money. Easy on system resources and great frame rate. The liveries are not included in this initial download, but are available for free (after registering your product with developer) by going to the developers website. There you will find hundreds of liveries to download and then easily install using the included livery manager downloaded with all your files after purchase. There are so many, mostly for the 200 passenger variant, but still you get a ton if you want them all. Can’t bet this deal!

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LIONHEART - ROBIN DR400/180 FSX P3D

LIONHEART - ROBIN DR400/180 FSX P3D

The Robin is a unique plane and for some reason difficult to locate a solid sim representation. I chose this one in a whim and so far feel pretty good about it. It’s a really nice plane for touring under 10,000 feet. Has a fair amount of power for short flights with lesser fuel and perform well even loaded up. There’s a nice selection of liveries included. The interior looks like any Robin I’ve ever seen and is detailed nicely. It sounds right and flies right. Lionheart always offers very pretty planes and this is slightly less eye popping, but the Robin isn’t really eye popping anyway. It’s a bird that may need some acquired taste. For the money it’s a solid purchase and I’m not finding any problems with it after my first 4 hours of flying.

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FLYSIMWARE LLC - SUPER HUEY X FSX P3D

FLYSIMWARE LLC - SUPER HUEY X FSX P3D

I really want to rate this higher but there’s too many significant bugs holding it back. First the models are fantastic and fly realistically. Easy to hover and control. Nicely detailed in and out. Few actual functioning switches, knobs and dials. Just the essentials work mostly. The most glaring drawback is that FSX SE version does not have any audio! Yes I mean a totally silent engine. However the developer web sight has a solution that I found to be really quite simple. Basically you just alias sound from another aircraft, I used the Augusta 101 helicopter. It’s not quite the right sound at all, but It’ll do for now. Next issue is that the variant with the rescue basket has a problem. The basket can be loaded and dumped of its human cargo but it only move half way out from the chopper and does not raise or lower at all. The fire tank equipped model doesn’t show the dumping of water effects. The copilot altimeter doesn’t work. I can forgive the little things but the nonfunctional rescue basket is a big disappointment. So really this is a mediocre Huey and I only give it 3 stars because I am a big fan of this chopper and the modeling is better than good. If you’re a fan of the Huey like me and can forgive those issues then consider buying but ONLY on sale. No way it’s worth full price as is.

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AFS-DESIGN - F-4F PHANTOM II PROFESSIONAL V2 FSX STEAM

AFS-DESIGN - F-4F PHANTOM II PROFESSIONAL V2 FSX STEAM

I am really bummed out by this F4F version. It looks OK but the flight model is just broken. This plane can achieve Mach 2.++ in real life but this AFS Design version struggles to hit Mach 1.24 MAX regardless of altitude or load. It is by far the slowest F4F model ive tried. I have tried several and own 3. Im very familiar with this plane and understand its capabilities and can confidently inform you that this is a poor choice. Also the colorful "50 years..." livery thumbnail is present in my list of the various included models, however after selecting that particular livery a very bland gray German livery loads. No clue why but you can forget about using it. The other liveries all appear just as they should. Very very few switches move, and most that are clickable have no detail as to what they control when hovering the cursor over them. Plenty of guessing which is actually on or off or what it even is. If I weren't already familiar with the F4F cockpit id be lost. I cannot honestly recommend until AFS updates and fixes the sever flight model flaws and livery issues. If they do, I will gladly reassess.

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PERFECT FLIGHT - ULTIMATE KING AIR 350 SIMULATION

PERFECT FLIGHT - ULTIMATE KING AIR 350 SIMULATION

I give 4 stars because of the overall content, but would grade the aircraft itself 3 stars. For the money you get a fair amount of interesting flight missions, and nice liveries. The airplane is barely any better than the default 350 included with FSXse. Very little systems control and really just lights, basic deicing, simple autopilot. GPS and only internal views are cockpit no cabin. That said its a decent package considering all the missions and liveries, but just a very basic med res airplane itself. Its priced right for what it is and in content.

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LIONHEART - EPIC VICTORY VLJ FSX P3D

LIONHEART - EPIC VICTORY VLJ FSX P3D

Even with a low powered pc using integrated graphics this plane looks amazing! It is a joy to fly. Lionheart makes really nice planes with a lot of detail somehow without causing your machine to revolt unlike others like say Carenado, JustFlight, Alebeo etc. I have dozens of aircraft from the aforementioned developers many less detailed but somehow far more demanding. Lionheart makes beautifully detailed aircraft that fly as well as any competitors but without being system resource hogs. If you want something that is a fun flyer and looks outstanding you can’t beat this developer and this plane. Epic Victory is basically just like that Cirrus jet we’ve all seen and it behaves very much the same. I think the Victory is a better plane, but sadly never got to market. It’s kind of like owning the only prototypes for your virtual hangar.

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LIONHEART CREATIONS - LIONHEART - QUEST KODIAK BUILD 2.6 FSX P3D

LIONHEART CREATIONS - LIONHEART - QUEST KODIAK BUILD 2.6 FSX P3D

I have what’s technically a lower powered PC but still find the lesser textures to be very nice nonetheless. The plane has a great many livery and load out options. The only thing I don’t like is how the waterborne versions behave. They just don’t stop even when applying minimum throttle to move slowly, it drifts forever making docking very difficult. They can be stopped by using reverse thrust, but this is difficult to manage in tight spaces. Other than that the planes look and fly great, a very nice alternative to the old C208 and faster! Cargo pod doors do not open by the way just passenger and front doors.

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AFS-DESIGN - BOEING COLLECTION - UNITED AIRLINES FSX-STEAM

AFS-DESIGN - BOEING COLLECTION - UNITED AIRLINES FSX-STEAM

You get what you pay for, but in this case a little bit less than what it says you’re paying for. It says there’s a B787 Cabin but there’s not. The 747 has both though at least. It’s not a big deal as the “Cabin” version has NO virtual cockpit just the 3D but you do get to experience the ride from a passenger seat for some reason so the fact that the 787 doesn’t have this advertised feature doesn’t bother me much. That all said it’s a pretty basic model for both and kind of middle of the road quality. It’s not a true simulation of either plane, more of a relaxed fly for fun experience which can be nice sometimes. For the money what did you expect? Well you get 2 planes with the same United livery. At least the doors open and you can call stairs for passengers to exit when no jetway is available. The HUD is nice but can be hard to see at certain times like twilight. Some switches can be “clicked” but don’t move from “off” to “on” even though it is on. Whatever, it’s what I expected and I hope this might help others not sure what to expect.

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AFS-DESIGN - MIG-29 V2 FSX STEAM

AFS-DESIGN - MIG-29 V2 FSX STEAM

This is a fly for fun kind of version. Very simplified with limited capabilities. There’s no engine or radar systems just a throttle u And have fun. The model is fair to good but the cockpit lacks many functional aspects. The liveries are pretty good. The extra detailed airport isn’t detailed any more than before. For some reason there is always 2 mirrored planes flying in formation with you almost all the time, except when supersonic. Maybe there is a switch to disable the wingmen somewhere bu5 it’s well hidden if it exists. Similar quality to Virtavia planes but slightly better cockpits. All in all It’s worth it.

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VIRTUALCOL - ATR SERIES PACK FSX P3D

VIRTUALCOL - ATR SERIES PACK FSX P3D

You can’t beat this deal. You’re getting a large collection of ATR42 and 72 airplane and liveries. You should not expect perfection but the interior cockpit modeling is good, not great. Looks good enough so as to not hurt the experience. It’s mostly interactive with the buttons and such, but some do nothing and others cannot be moved or clicked. The essentials are all available and for me that’s what counts. Each variant fly pretty much the same with perhaps some minor differences but overall they are enjoyable. The exterior models are very nice. All of the lights seem to be working and the night time cockpit might be a little too bright, but still pleasant. The massive amount of real world liveries is a big plus. Fantastic package and a very nice price. Runs very well on my PCs base integrated Intel UHD graphics on medium high settings. No problems and was a quick and easy DL & install.

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