New FSX panel and airfiles for the Space Shuttle Atlantis from Bruce Fitzgerald (Atlantis-1.zip). The panel provide
views from an astronaut as copilot and 2 external views for the landed shuttle with drag chute. The camera configuration provides 2 additional external views and 2 cargobay views, which allows you to watch the crane, when it is bringing out the satellite payload. The new airfiles provides excellent flight handling for very easy landings and allows unrealistical flights from A to B (just for fun). Two replacementfiles for the approaches and landings in the AFB Edwards (Shtl-edw.zip) withs the NASA-facilities are included. Shuttle panel grafics from Alex Hassey, configuration, flights and drag chute grafics from Erwin Welker.
First of all: This text is very long. But don't be afraid. It is not complicated. It is only a very new way in FSX.
My method is just a combination of panel.cfg with bitmaps with a camera-configuration in the aircraft.cfg.
Until now I did not believe that this methods of inserting bitmaps in FSX is even possible. I did such configurations for CFS2, FS2002 and FS2004. I have missed such functions in FSX. But suddenly I found a solution. Here it is! More files using this method will follow in the very next time. The possibilites provides fantastic new features (depending of the virtual 3-D model of aircraft):
This features I have already succesfully tested, but not yet completed for uploading:
Gunnerviews for gun turrets for bombers like Heinkel He-177 or Blackburn ROC, which can be rotated for 360 deg.
(I did not find appropriate freeware wit complete virtual 3-D models for B-17, B-24, B-26 and so on. I suppose it will be easyly possible with such payware, but I don't have any.)
Gunnerviews for canons or AA-gun turrets for ships, like destroyer USS Fletcher, which can be rotated for 360 deg
Periscope for German U-boat, which can be rotated for 360 deg, which can be zoomed and which can be raised and lowered.
How to display the astronaut or the drag chuted shuttle?
1. toggle with S-key to panel-views
2. toggle with A-key until you read in the upper right corner: "Copilot_press Shift 3"
-- do that and you will see the astronaut right beside you at the direction of 3 o'clock
3. next toggle says: "Dragchute view to left_press Shift 4"
-- do that and you will see the drag chuted shuttle at 9 o'clock
4. next toggle says: "Dragchute view to rear left_press Shift 5"
-- do that and you will see the drag chuted shuttle at 7 o'clock
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PANEL DESCRIPTION:
Do not expect a new 3-D model of Bruce Fitzgeralds fantastic shuttle. I may not - and I can not put a 3-D drag chute onto his space shuttle model. My method is just a combination of panel.cfg with bitmaps with a camera-configuration in the aircraft.cfg.
The panel graphics are based on ALEJANDRO ALFONSO HASSEY ESPARZAs work. I have not done a own panel with own grafics and I will not remove panel windows from Bruce Fitzgeralds. Therefore I provide that panel which I have personaly in use.
The configuration with the appropriate bitmaps refers to the camera-configuration from the aircraft.cfg. Therfore do not change the order for your personal panel.cfg, because it will cause malfunctions for the correct displays of appropriate panel-windows. For window00 and 01 or optional from 05 to 08 you can use whatever you like, but please keep that order:
A: Keep the panel in the folder Space Shuttle easyflights and aliase that panel for your original Shuttle from Bruce Fitzgerald
or
B: Cut the panel in the folder Space Shuttle easyflights and put it into the original Shuttle from Bruce Fitzgerald
and aliase the panel in my folder Space Shuttle easyflights with the panel from the original one.
or
C: Use the original one for launches and my one for landings
or
D: edit your panel as discribed above, by keeping my configuration for the windows 02 - 04
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AIRFILE DESCRIPTION:
For launches the shuttle needs an incredible power. You will have some problems to land with that one. Therefore you shold keep the shuttle from Bruce Fitzgerald (Atlantis-1.zip) for launches at is is. But for other flight and especially for landings you need a much more smoother flightdynamic. First I have tried to have to different airfiles in one folder (Shtl-edw.zip), but this made the landings in AFB Edwards not very easy. There was a drift sidewards, I could not explain. Sorry for inconvinience. You can keep my flights of that download, but then you should load first another aircraft and then this new easyflight shuttle. Then please store the flights again.
This new airfile provides excellent flight handling for very easy landings and allows also unrealistic flights from A to B (just for fun). It makes fun to fligh the shuttle even for new pilots in the flightsimmer world.
INSTALLATION:
To have a complete alternate flightbehavior makes it necessary to create a second folder for a second shuttle.
Copy my folder Space Shuttle easyflights into the airplane directory of FSX.
The model, the panel and the sound can be aliased, but there is no proper function by aliasing the texture folder. Please copy the textures from the original into this easyflight shuttle. Then copy the thumbnail into that texturefolder and overwrite YES.
For the sound I personally prefer the sond from a glider, because the real shuttle does his approaches and landings as a high speed glider. It does not use its rocket propellants. Therfore I have aliased the sound from the default FSX glider DG808S. If you prefer another sound, f.i. a jetsound for flights from A to B, then don't hesitate to change the filename in the sound.cfg.
If you like the effects from the launch shuttle into the easyflight&landing shuttle then copy the light and smokesystem also into my aircraft.cfg:
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CREDITS
Many thanks to Bruce Fitzgerald for his fantastic animated Space Shuttle
Many thanks to Alex Hassey for his permission to use his bitmap for my panel
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This file is FREEWARE. It should not harm your computer, but you install it on your own risk.
Feel free to copy or to distribute it, but don't make any money with it. It is not permitted to use it for commercial-purpose.
