| Just Flight P-38 Lightning |
| Tuesday, 08 January 2008 | |
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The Lockheed P-38 Lightning was an American WWII fighter aircraft with a very distinctive shape. The aircraft was used in a number of roles during it’s lifetime from bombing to reconnaissance and long range escort missions. It was the primary fighter of the United States Army Air Forces until the arrival of the P-51 Mustang towards the end of WWII.
Just Flight along with Aeroplane Heaven (Spitfire, Tiger Moth) have now brought this iconic WWII fighter to our desktops for both FS2004 and FSX as both a download (104mb) and DVD boxed version for the price of £.24.99/€37.95/$49.99. At first I though that this price was a little high, but after flying many hours in the P-38 the price is entirely justified. For this review I was using the download package, which costs the same as the DVD-ROM package, for FSX.
In this pack you get a highly detailed and fully functional virtual cockpit, which is so good they didn’t feel the need to add in a 2D cockpit, and after a few minutes in the VC you’ll see why. The cockpit features unique Liqui-Drive smooth gauges to make flying in the VC a trouble-free experience. Several aircraft I have suffer from the problem of the gauges being very jerky when flown from the VC, not with the P-38 though. The aircraft also come with working guns, by use of the strobe key along with the cartridges being ejected and falling to the ground. There are 3 models included in this package; P-38F, P-38 J and Glacier Girl. As with all Just Flight products there is an easy to read PDF manual that doesn’t get you bogged down in technical jargon, you can just get on with the flying more or less as soon as you have installed the aircraft. Each aircraft comes with its unique artwork, so no two aircraft are the same. Installation is very quick and easy and takes up around 850mb on your hard-drive.
The only problem I had with this package was deciding which aircraft to fly! Each on is different and there are lots to choose from when you get to the aircraft menu. The aircraft can easily be started and flown by the numbers from a cold and dark start up, with all the info needed to get her started in the manual. I also found that by cheating and using the default Ctrl+E command to get the engines running I was able to perform a trouble free flight too. After you have stated the engines I strongly suggest that you take a step outside the cockpit and pan around the aircraft in spot view and listen to the fantastic sound set. It sounds fantastic in FSX when the engine note changes as you pan around the aircraft; it really feels like you are there. Taxing the P-38 around the airport is a long easier than with the Spitfire which I previously reviewed, http://www.fsstation.com/reviews/just-flight-spitfire.html, due to the fact that it isn’t a tail dragger.
On take-off roll the aircraft practically lifts itself into the skies. You only need to use the minimum of back-pressure on the yoke to get her airborne. Retract the gear quickly to help the aerodynamics and she flies gracefully off into the skies. If you follow the advice in the manual and get her set up correctly, the aircraft will fly herself on climb out. Once I had reached my cruise height I found that the aircraft was very easy to trim to maintain the correct altitude and when executing some manoeuvres she was very easy to handle. With the amount of care and dedication that has gone into making this aircraft, I feel confident that these handling characteristics are a good representation of what the real thing was like to fly. I found that the P-38 made a great touring aircraft, very stable and a lot quicker than the Cessna’s and Piper’s which I usually fly, and also a lot more fun to fly! Long cross country trips can be done in a reasonable amount of time, but you aren’t moving so quickly that you miss what is below you on the ground. The aircraft was also far more stable at lower speeds than some of the aircraft which I normally use, plus it made a welcome change to using something a little different to my normal aircraft.
For an aircraft that can pass the 400mph barrier landing speeds are only a little higher than a Cessna, which is helped by the huge flaps! As with take-off and cruise, if you set her up as described in the manual, the aircraft will more or less land itself with only minimal inputs required from you. And because of the slow landing speeds, you can make use of just about any runway you choose to, and those huge flaps will help you get airborne again in no-time, which is what you will want to do.
After spending many hours in the cockpit I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this product to anyone. The price may seem a little high, but trust me when I say it is well worth it. She is an absolute joy to fly and is a welcome change from the normal GA aircraft and commercial aircraft that most simmers will be used to flying. The fast speeds and great handling, coupled with the fantastic looks, make this a great aircraft to fly cross country and take in the scenery. Each aircraft is different due to the artwork on the fuselage and the differences in each variant, so you really do get a lot for your money. This is easily the best military aircraft I have flown and will give you hours of enjoyment should you decided to buy it.
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
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