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Sister City Flights - week 5 - Volgograd (Russia) - Cargo props!

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  • Sister City Flights - week 5 - Volgograd (Russia) - Cargo props!



    In 1944 during World War II, the world's first Sister City link was set up. It was between Coventry and Volgograd, then known as Stalingrad, and that's the obvious choice for where we fly this week. However, the airports are a lot further apart than in previous weeks, so we need a higher speed and we'll be switching to cargo props!

    Start 1st stop 2nd stop Last stop
    URSS URMM URWI URWW
    Adler/Sochi Mineralnyye Vody Elista Volgograd Gumrak
    Flight plans: https://is.gd/StormsFlightPlans (both .PLN and .FMS files available)

    Cruise: 240 knots IAS at 15,000 ft (275 mph; 445 km/h). Target 300 knots ground speed or more.

    Aircraft: Cargo props! Anything you used to fly on Lazer's Around the World flights.
    So bring out your C-130s, C-97s, C-119s, C-133s, An-12s, An-32s!
    However, passenger props are also acceptable, but no jets.
    (I may try the EADS CASA C-295M in XP11.)

    Scenery: Default is OK. Free XP11 scenery available here.
    Note for XP11 pilots: It's OK to use up-to-date 3D URWW scenery, but be advised the FSX and XP11 runways conflict!

    Server: SimLink AU server: 101.165.150.139

    Simulators: All welcome: FS9, FSX boxed, FSX Steam edition, Prepar3D, X-Plane.

    Photo credit: MrHicks46. Text and C130 added + clipping by Storm, Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic (CC BY-SA 2.0) license.

  • #2
    Originally posted by Storm View Post
    Aircraft: Cargo props! Anything you used to fly on Lazer's Around the World flights.
    So bring out your C-130s, C-97s, C-119s, C-133s, An-12s, An-32s!
    However, passenger props are also acceptable, but no jets.
    (I may try the EADS CASA C-295M in XP11.)
    I may instead try the C-130 in X-Plane 11. There's a freeware update today giving it a 3D cockpit that works with TrackIR. :eagerness: It's still not what you're used to with CaptainSim, but it's a big improvement. More tests ongoing...

    Comment


    • #3
      After testing XP11's current C-130 (with 3D cockpit mod) and C-295, here's what I've found.

      C-130:
      • The model is the MC-130P (Combat Shadow, special operations tanker).
      • Externally very nice, except for the exaggerated spinning prop texture (which would be easy to fix in Photoshop).
      • Has refueling drogue which extends automatically in flight and retracts when landing. It looks great in some circumstances, less so in others. I haven't found how to override it yet.
      • Nice 'feel' to it and lands very well.
      • Engine sounds are subdued and not totally convincing.
      • Autopilot is a little trickier to use than the C-295's.
      • The engines are under-powered. Consequently the maximum speed at 15,000ft is 240 kts. I haven't found how to reconfigure that yet.

      C-295:
      • The model is the C-295M (military transport).
      • Externally OK but rather simple and the body texture 'flashes' in tower view.
      • Autopilot is a little easier to use than the C-130's.
      • The cabin light doesn't seem to work reliably at present.
      • Sounds are simple but more convincing than the C-130.
      • Probably has too much drag. The good thing about that is the autothrottle responds quicker when slowing. The bad thing is landings are too heavy (due to losing speed too quickly in the flare) unless you leave quite a lot of power on. Workaround is to fly heavy which gives more inertia and mimics a better ground effect, but that reduces top speed a little.
      • The most appropriate SimLink code is probably AN32 (two engines and similar size), even though it looks more like a C-27J Spartan (which we don't have).

      Unrelated bonus tip! XP11 autopilot canceling:
      In FSX I have one of my throttle quadrant buttons mapped to the Z key so I can cancel the autopilot quickly that way. In XP11 I've found I can map the same button to "Flight director down (on/FDIR/off)" to get the same effect. Note that's only a cancel in XP11, whereas in FSX you could use it to engage autopilot too (though I never use it that way).

      Comment


      • #4
        Reminder (and trivia questions!): Join us tonight at 9pm eastern in SimLink at URSS for our 240 kt Run across Russia. Ideally bring your cargo prop!

        Awfully hard™ trivia questions:
        1. What are the mountains we'll be flying over?
        2. What religion is king in Chess City (apart from chess itself)?
        3. What connects the Louvre in Paris, a brand of sportswear, and The Motherland Calls?

        Answers during the flight only please (not below!).

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        • #5
          Here are some pictures of another great flight. http://imgbox.com/g/GcVUc9mkAG

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          • #6
            Wonderful! Thank you PR. 88 great shots. I could only manage one.

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