STMA Sherpa K650T

This is an aircraft I've been waiting for since it was announced. I was right in thinking I'd like it, because it's a good aircraft.

Blackshape Prime

This is a well made aircraft that's fun and rather easy to fly. Didn't take long for it to become one of my favourites.

It looks good both outside and inside. You get it with two paint schemes and it's possible to have a rear seat passenger or not in a simple for the user and clever way by adjusting the payload mass.

SSG E-190LR

This is a nice and interesting aircraft, because it's not just a larger E-170. (I assume the real E-170 and E-190 are very similar except for size and performance.)

I think it flies differently than the E-170 and possibly not just because it's larger but it's difficult to describe how. Better, though.

But the large difference is in the systems. Many more systems pages and for example V1 and Vref can be shown on the primary EFIS. Haven't explored it very much yet, as I'm still in the stage "see how much you can use without reading the manuel".

Piper PA-11 Cub Special

New instant favourite.

Download here.

Today I reached 100 hours in X-Plane this year

Did it on a short flight from Jersey to Guernsey in a Cessna Cargomaster.

SSG Embraer E-170LR

This is a really nice aircraft.

Handles very well, easy to fly, looks good. Small enough that you don't need a large airport but also with enough range you can choose where to fly.

E-170 Tallinn - Kirkenes

Looks like a bumpy take off from Tallinn.

E-170 from ESOW to EETN

Take off from Västerås.

Open water west of Åland.

Åland archipelogo.

On approach to Tallinn from the north.

Carenado Cessna 208B Caravan

This quickly became one of the aircraft I fly often.
Main reasons are that it's a well made aircraft, it's very useful as it can go to small airfields but isn't very slow, it's easy to fly but also has medium complicated systems to operate. As we don't have to pay for fuel it's not a disadvantage it's larger than some smaller GA it is similar apart from size so for me it can replace a few of them in my "hangar". (I'm one of those who like to learn a few aircraft well and usually don't keep rather similar types at the same time.)

I like how its systems are modelled. You can fly it without reading the manual, but might get surprises, so it's better to read it and follow the check lists. Much appreciated that it's not absolutely necessary, though.

Recommended.

But it's not without some faults. Perhaps it's not justified to bring them up as I fly only X-Plane 10 (and beta at the moment) whereas the instructions clearly says it's not really (yet) made for version 10 as X-Plane 10 is in a flux.

Livery for STMA's Turbine Otter.

Couldn't make it really right, for example the outer sides of the floats should have decoration but not the inne sides which the texture mapping would have made it. And some small details aren't mapped to where they are on the fuselage.

So it won't be released.

Reason I made it was almost all photos of the real aircraft in the package are on floats without wheels and I wanted one that was amphibious in real life. Besides, I like orange.

STMA DHC-3 Otter v10

This is an update of an aircraft that's several years old. It's long been one of my favourites, I've had a version of it since at least Oct 2006, because it's easy to fly and with floats, wheels and skis it's usable in many situations.

Externally it looks totally modern but internally the panel isn't quite to the same standard as STMA's new releases. It's still good, usable and realistic but the instruments don't all quite match in looks as they're made in slightly different ways (I think) and I don't think the night lighting functionality is fully matched to version 10.

If you want this sort of aircraft I don't think this should stop you, but I think you should be aware of it so you don't think it's to the same standard as for example the OV-10.

One of the things I really like with STMA is that before you buy, here, you can download the readme file.

Carenado Piper PA-34 Seneca II - a quick view

This is a rather easy aircraft to fly because it's got counter rotating propellers which means it's symmetric and you won't have to use the pedals very much. It's also stable in the air so when trimmed it's almost like on autopilot. You can get into it and fly it without reading any manual so it's not got very complicated systems.

Inside Passage v10 initial impression

 

I didn't keep the v9 installed (because of the problems noted in the update notice: misaligned seaplane bases), so I can't compare directly. This is Vancouver and Nanaimo and they look very good, Vancouver much better than I remember, but then I only flew here in v9 before. 

T-38A Talon

Most payware aircraft are either general aviation or airliners, it seems to me. This is an example of something else, a military jet trainer. A bit of variation can be fun, so I decided to try this out.

It's not a complex systems aircraft; Just get in and start flying like any other X-Plane aircraft.

OV-10 Bronco

This is a fun aircraft to fly. There is a quick start guide included. You don't have to read all of it in order to fly, as this isn't a very complex aircraft to just fly -- but you should note that it has autoreverse on landing always active and no separate propeller RPM lever. Touch and go without taking the first into account is more than just a tricky.

There are three distinct different versions, not just liveries and different loadouts. I really appreciate things like that.

Relatively benign behaviour, but you have to watch out when one engine isn't running as it seems easy to fly then, but if you get too slow it turns difficult quickly.

Delivering weapons is a bit complicated as there's a plugin making it similar to the real aircraft's procedures. But if you read and do as it says it works fine. Scenery in the form of an airbase and nearby gunnery range included.

External lights are also plugin controlled, which means you have to use the cockpit switch.

Available from here

http://store01.prostores.com/servlet/x-planestore/Detail?no=357

Avro RJ70 - a quick view

To me, this is a clear improvement over the RJ85 from about a year ago. But, I've got a completely new PC now, so it's not a direct comparision. This is also intended to work in X-Plane 10 which the RJ100 doesn't quite do. In short: This I'll keep in my "active" aircraft folder.

Caribou

An instant new favourite: Get it here!

It's both easy and tricky to fly. Easy most of the time, but you should watch out as it can take off at lower speeds than at which it has good control authority.

Well made cockpit. Looks good inside and out. Made in 9.70, but I think it works right in version 10 too.