Wind Riders Hot Air Balloon Simulation Kit, Golden Eagles Squadron, 2002

Although Fs2002 does not support true lighter than air craft we can simulate that flight envelope to provide an enjoyable virtual ballooning experience. This package will install 12 Wind Rider hot air balloons and two practice flights. It is presented as a kit with easily repainted textures so that each flyer can personally customize his or her balloon with a myriad of beautiful color schemes. This new concept is aimed at creating on-line virtual balloon meets and competitions and as well as peaceful solo flights on calm summer evenings.. With the superb scenery and weather in fs2002 we can now set up balloon flights anywhere in the world. Try exploring the African Veldt or playing Hare and Hound in the Rocky Mountains. When you feel like flying alone there is a whole virtual world to quietly explore. Just remember, every balloon flight ends with a champagne toast so lets get going..:o)

INSTALLATION:
Just unzip the the enclosed file, InstallB.zip directly into your main fs2002 folder. This will place all the files in the correct folders and allow you to boot up and get to the enclosed practice flights under Flights/Windrider AFTER you have read the information below on virtual ballooning.. If you have a fast computer and are happy with the default pan rate in the virtual cockpit mode then you are finished installing... If you would like a faster pan rate open the fs2002.cfg file using Notepad and increase the pan rate under [Controls] from 400 to 900... This will allow a faster, more realistic view change as you swing your virtual view around or up and down using the hat switch.


VIRTUAL BALLOONING:

CONTROLS:
Because Fs2002 does not support true lighter than air we must simulate it in virtual ballooning.. The variables available to us are the burners which generate heat to make the balloon rise, the rip vent at the top of the balloon which allows the hot air to escape, the side vents by which we can rotate the balloon and the winds which take us where we want to go or maybe where we don't want to go...:o) The flow of propane fuel to the two burners is controlled by the throttle from pilot light to a full "burn" which generates maximum heat and therefore maximum lift. Envelope temperature is monitored by use of the thermistor gauge on the instrument panel.. If the thermistor fails to work on starting use the L key to start it. The L key will also light the instruments for those dawn and dusk flights. The rip vent or flap at the top of the balloon is controlled by the flaps button on your joystick or the F5 and F8 keys. It is either open or closed.. The rudder pedals, twist knob or appropriate kb keys can be used to slowly rotate the balloon to face the wind or turn to drift with the prevailing winds as desired..


LAUNCH:
The balloon may face any direction at time of launch. The rip vent should be left open to keep lift to a minimum till ascension(F5). Use M+ to ignite the pilot lights.. Check the wind sock or flare smoke to determine surface wind direction and strength. Winds aloft may vary in direction and intensity.. When ready to launch close the rip vent(F8) and very slowly increase the envelope temperature using the throttle lever till 90 degrees centigrade is registered on the thermistor gauge. You should now lift off and attain a rate of climb of about 100fpm. To ascend faster gradually increase the throttle till you achieve a full burn and the temperature rises to the optimum 100 degrees centigrade. You should be able to achieve a rate of climb of about 300fpm. Back off the propane flow a little to stop the burn and you will continue to ascend quietly to your desired altitude. Further reduce flow to maintain the desired constant altitude.

FLIGHT:
We can use the weather provided in fs2002 to slowly and majestically sail on the invisible ocean of wind and clouds. Ballooning is the ultimate VFR experience! Depending on whether you have downloaded real weather, have set up your own wind layers or are participating in a flight prepared by a balloon master, you'll find yourself drifting with the clouds over the earth as it unfolds below. To practice flying set up wind layers in the four compass directions at different levels. Ascending or decending to these levels will allow you to navigate in the direction you want to go.. Try to keep light surface winds at 5 knots or below to keep your balloon from being blown about prior to launch. The basket will float so if you like to drag a lake as they do in full scale it is possible!! Use tower view to track the balloon for some neat views. Do a dawn or dusk flight to see the envelope glow when a burn is in progress. If you are in a festive mood use the "i" key to drop some fireworks over the side..:o)) When you want to land plan your descent carefully to avoid trees and other obstacles. Aim for a large open area if possible. If it appears you will hit something close the rip vent and do a burn to climb over the obstacle.

DESCENT and LANDING:
To descend quickly fully reduce propane flow and open the rip vent(F5) This will result in a descent rate of about 300fpm. When you are about to land close the vent(F8) and add some propane to soften the landing. As stated above water landings are ok.

MEETS and COMPETITIONS:

Ballooning is as much a social event as a flying experience. With fs2002 and Roger Wilco installed on your computer you can initiate and host a balloon gathering or attend and compete with other balloonists in a wide variety of events. Just drifting about and new scenery sightseeing with a fellow balloonist while talking on the radios to each other is a fun experience! I would recommend that you check your local library for books on ballooning to learn about the many types of meets and competitions. A very popular competition is called the Hare and Hound where one balloon, the Hare, launches 10 minutes ahead of the others, the Hounds. The Hare lands and Hound that lands closest to the Hare wins the race. It's harder than it sounds..:o)) Another game is to find and land closest to a pre-arranged marker or smoke flare placed there by the balloon master. This is simulated in the enclosed test flight, Wind Riders/ Woodford Test where you must find a second green smoke flare somewhere downwind and land close to it:o)) Watch the direction the airfield flare smoke is drifting as it will help in your flight strategy!! To learn about Roger Wilco go the site http://rogerwilco.gamespy.com/ and download the installation program. It is relatively easy to use and all you need is a microphone and fs2002 to get started. If you would decide to host a meet then you should pick a site, configure the weather the way you want and save it as the event flight. An example might be a dawn H&H launching from Rockford airport. You would set up the time weather etc and save it as a flight called Rockford Hare and Hound. This flight can be mailed to your friends in advance so that when the event held all will be flying in the same conditions and at the same time.. The event can be held at any time convenient to the participants but in flightsim it will be dawn and wind conditions will be the same for all. When the meet is actually held the host will initiate the multiplayer session in Fs2002 and Roger Wilco and send the required addresses to the participants by e-mail. He may also at that time send the pre-prepared flight if he wants to avoid practice flights by the balloonists..:o)) When all are present at the site the Balloon designated as the Hare will launch and begin the race. Groups of balloonists can schedule regular meets with the host duties rotating to provide a variety of scenarios and competitions... It could be a lot of laid back fun!!!

PAINTING YOUR OWN BALLOON:
There are 11 decorated balloons included with a variety of example color schemes. The last balloon is painted with a plain white texture and can be decorated any way you wish. Also new balloons can be added using the aircraft.cfg file and following the routine on the first 12. There are three types of painting schemes possible. To help frame rates the provided envelope textures are simple 256x256x256 bmp files which can be made in any paint program. If a higher resolution is desired they may be increased to 512x512x256 or you can use any size square texture in 16 or 32 bit format. The base Model uses two alternating gore textures, B1 and B2. This model is good for stripes and wild color schemes. The second, Model.1, is textured with a single texture, B4 which repeats on each side. This scheme is best for picture images or text on the envelope. The third type, Model.2, is the same as Model.1 except that there is no passenger in the basket. For the night lit burn a second darker set of textures should be made with the _lm added. Use the provided textures as examples. The pilot face is a simple 256x256x256 bmp file. Follow the examples to add your own image to your balloon. Try to line up the facial features with the supplied examples. The passenger texture, burner3.bmp, is a 16bit 256x256 image and can be accessed and modified using the MS Image Tool included in fs2002. A standard 256x256x256 8bit bmp can also be substituted if you want to change it.

Conclusion:
We hope you have fun with these virtual hot air balloons. Thanks to Louis Sinclair for FSDS, to Mike Crosthwaite for SDL Edit, to Terry Dutton for the enclosed Old Faithful adventure flight, to the MS Team who developed Fs2002 and anyone else who I may have omitted. Most thanks go to the members of the Golden Eagles Squadron who are great bunch of flightsim artists who have joined together to help each other keep the tradition of low key fun freeware alive in Fs2002.. Emphasis is on classic and vintage aircraft. This package is one of many you will be seeing in the coming months as we explore the wonderful new world of fs2002 that Microsoft has provided us. Please do not use our work in any commercial product. Other than that restriction our work can be freely distributed as an intact package. Please visit our site at http://home.earthlink.net/%7Epgrubich/goldeneagles.htm and let us know what you think of our flightsim offerings,make suggestions or check out future plans..
Good flying, Bill Lyons, Member of The Golden Eagles squadron, 2002, windride@netexpress.net