Just Flight de Havilland Tiger Moth Review

There are very few add-ons that change my initial impression of them, but I am glad to say that the Just Flight de Havilland Tiger Moth is one of them!As you read the review you will see why.

The download and installation process is simple, but slightly different to other download add-ons which I have purchased. After downloading the product, you will need to validate your copy with Just Flight. This is a very quick and easy process, and once it is done you wont have to do it again. After that has been completed, installation is quick and easy. I like the fact that Just Flight have opted to use the policy of validating your copy before installing it, as it helps crack down on the amount of pirate copies. After installing the Tiger Moth it will appear in the aircraft selection menu under “JF_de Havilland”. When you purchase the Tiger Moth, you don't just get one model, as is fast becoming the norm you will be purchasing several models and variants of the aircraft to give you more value for money. In all with the Tiger Moth you will get highly detailed 3D models of the dh82A Trainer, dh82A Civilian and dh82C Canadian version, along with 8 liveries and the option to fly from either the front or rear seats, as well as the option to have a co-pilot or not. I found flying from the rear seat without a co-pilot in the front to be the easiest way to fly, as it was sometimes very difficult to see where I was going when flying from the front seat, or from the rear seat with the co-pilot in the front. But this is one of those things that is very much down to personal preference. When seated at the front, if you look back the co-pilot is animated and his head bobs around as you fly. This is something new and adds something different to the package, but personally isn't something that would make me rush out to by the Moth.

The co-pilot's head moves around during flight

 Wherever possible, each model of the Moth is a near-exact replica of the real world aircraft it represents. The fact the the package has been given authentication from the de Havilland Moth Club and the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum speaks volumes about how much work has gone into this package by the developers over at Aeroplane Heaven. The models are incredibly realistic and each one is slightly different, not just the liveries, but the model itself. If the real world airplane had autoslats (which help to delay the stall), then so does the sim model. The airframe performance and flight characteristics are all as close as can be the the real thing, all helping to give you a superbly immersive experience from your desktop.

After loading up the aircraft for the first time, depending on your default flight settings, most users will be greeted with the 2D cockpit, which is what their first impression will come from. My first impression was 'yes this is a nice cockpit, but nothing amazing and the view is very restricted'. Remember though, this aircraft is a tail dragger, so the view is very restricted anyway. Something I liked about the cockpit was the addition of the mirror so that during combat pilots could see what was happening behind them. Although you cannot see what is happening behind you, the image in the mirror does appear to change during flight.

The dials and gauges in the 2D cockpit are all very clear and easy to read and have a good refresh rate whilst in flight. Also during flight, frame rates are brilliant, i constantly achieved over 30fps on my system.

Ok, now onto the 3D (virtual) cockpit. The view from here is far better than the 2D cockpit and you have a much greater field of vision. The one aspect I didn't like about the VC was that the dials and gauges were not visible from the default position. This was very much a process of trial and error until I managed to get the viewpoint just right to allow me to see where I was going and being able to see the dials as well. But this is only a small cockpit, so I wasn't expecting to be able to see everything at the same time. After panning around the VC it is easy to see that lots of work has gone into making it very realistic and fully flyable. As  I said before, my preference for flying the Moth is from the VC. The VC is fully functional and easy to fly from once you have sorted out being able to see the gauges.
 The exterior of the aircraft can be summed up easily. It's brilliant. The lines are some of the smoothest I have see in FS, and the attention to detail superb. Even the engine looks great once you pop open the side panel. The animations are ultra smooth, even the wheels and propeller look great. So already I was getting a good impression of this product, and I'd not even got off the ground!

After following the included manual to get the engine going, I taxied out to the active, only I set off a little too fast and only then did i discover that this plane doesn't have any brakes. So I ended up making a very wide turn over the grass to get back onto the taxiway, and then proceeded at a more leisurely pace. After getting her up in the air it was quite a struggle to hold her steady and fly in a straight line due to the torque from the propeller pulling us to one side. So i decided to fly the circuit a few times to try and get used to her and then attempt to land. Well I think the FAA would call it more of a crash than a landing! On approach I found it very difficult to see where I was going out of the cockpit, and without a GPS things were made even harder than normal, and I made it down with a big crunch just short of the runway, and then rolled off the end of the runway. From this I gathered that I had landed far too fast. This was a new concept for me having to land without brakes or reverse thrust, and one that would prove quite tough to get the hang of, for such a small plane with a low take off and landing speed, the Tiger Moth is difficult to successfully land, and bring to a halt, on a short runway. If landing without brakes proves too tough for you, then you can fly the 82C model, which has wheel brakes included, as on the real thing. After taxing around for a while in the Moth to get the hang of handling her on the ground without brakes, I began to realise just how much I use the brakes when using other aircraft.

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