P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

I just put together my P-51 Trainer and have been practicing on the sim. From the pilot view and chase view I do fine and can go around the pattern and land for about 3-4 touch & Go's no problem.

(Previous pilot) These settings have also helped to see how to trim the plane for faster and slower speeds while getting used to the controller. When I switch to the normal view like I was on the field I can't make it around the field once.

So my question as a brand new RC pilot for those that have the P-51 as a trainer, which view helps the most to learn. I will be hooked up to an IP for all my initial flights until he feels I can take over. I've also read the pro's and con's on this trainer vs. others so I'd just like some input on which view using the sim will help me the most.

I find that after flying in pilot mode I can then visualize the field view better at least after only a few hours on the sim.:eek:

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

Abaco24,
When I was in the Army we had a saying "train as you fight". What that means is that your training needs to be as close to real as possible. Translate that to your situation means that any viewing perspective other than what you will be when you fly the real plane is worthless to you as a pilot. You need to fly the sim with the same viewpoint as you will have at the flying field, which is standing on the ground looking at the plane.

Hope this helps

Ken

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

Use normal ground view. After all you won't be in that P51 when it really flies.
Isn't that SIM a version of Real Flight? If so you can go to View and select "look at ground" This way you can always see where the runway is.

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

It doesn't have a ground view, other than a wing over! I find that I tend to fly away from the field from gound view, lose sight of the plane then over compesate and crash.

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

That sounds pretty realistic to me. Lots of new pilots have this same problem when they first start flying. That's what the instructor is there for, to keep that from happening.

Ken

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

You probably can't adjust the visual size of your airplane either?
In the full version you can edit the airplane to make it look bigger (easier to see) without changing the flight caracteristics.

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

When I first started flying on the sim, they only way I could do it at all was from the pilot behind aircraft view. However this wasn't gonna teach me what I needed to learn. It was fun because I could actually do it & fly all over the place to get to know every nook & cranny of the airfield I was playing on at the time. It did give me some control touch eventually as far as getting to know what the various planes would do. Then I switched it to look at ground mode. This allways keeps an R/C type view. You are at your flying position from the ground & watching your plane grow smaller & smaller as it is flying away from you & growing in size as it is returning. It has all the same orientation problems that real R/C flying does. I started out just practicng small patterns around the field & lining back up on final for touch & go's & landings. Eventually I could do pretty much anything I wanted to with it in this look at ground mode. I don't know what view options come with the P-51 sim. It may be called something else, but try to find the view that puts you on the ground, keeping the ground in your view as well as following the airplane, like I said it should get smaller as it gets further away from you & grow bigger as it comes back to you. This is the most realistic view I have found in G2 & the NexStar sim. Hope that helps

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

I'm gonna ask Hangar 9 for some help I read that I was supposed to get a discount on upgrading to Real Flight but I missed it in the box I guess. No doubt I'm having fun learning after just 3 days into the sport. I'll be content to let my IP guide me each week, keeping the perspective of baby steps to each level. Having it hang from the ceiling is an inspiration for my first solo, just like my real 182.

The damn sim does make it to small to see the attitude for correction when it flys away...I'm glad I pick this trainer which will hoprfully take me from beginner to IM to Sport which is a great concept. Keep the help coming....

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

Real Flight is distributed by Great Planes, which is Hangar 9's competitor. There definitely is not an upgrade path from the p-51 PTS sim to Real Flight.

Hangar 9 is releasing a standalone sim "FS One" in mid July to compete with Real Flight. If an upgrade exists, that's what it will be.

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

Makes sense, thanks for the input on the sim software.

Any other P-51 PTS Newbies want to contribute?

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

Off to fly some more....all perspectives seem to be helping, but a 6 of Becks for my instructor seems to be the key.

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

Happy to say I can now make it around the pattern and keep the plane in sight after more time on the sim with the ground perspective. This sport is very addictive!

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

I just flew my pts mustang last weekend for the first time.Never flew any airplanes before but have hovered and done slow forward flight on helis.Also took flying lessons about 20 yrs ago but never soloes-ran outa money.
I flew various Mustangs in my IPACS AFPD for almost 9 months.Crashed MANY planes MANY times-cost me NOTHING!
FLew the PTS with no problems.
IMHO,the sim that comes with the PTS is useless.ANY other flight sim is FAR superior.My instructer said it was obvious I learned a lot with the AFPD since I only needed him to take off and land-he just watched while I made circuits of the field.
Get a good sim-youll never regret it

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

IPACS AFPD ??? What does this stand for? I'm trying not to spend another $200 on a sim just yet so I hope this sim will give me the basics.

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

Abaco24,

If this is going to be your first flight with the P-51 trainer ill tell you something the sim does'nt show and that's how fast when coming into land the plane is really coming in real the plane comes in alot faster than what it does on the sim, the good side of the sim is that it keeps your thumbs in tune by doing rolls turns inverted flights and so on, just keep in mind there is nothing like the real thing and when you do take it up go to a safe height so that way if something does go wrong with the plane in flight you have time to recover and also remember don't panic! :)

Happy Flying
Paul

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

The SIM which comes with the PTS is pure unadulterated GARBAGE.

There is NO flight model to speak off, the plane rolls around it's axis as if it's wheels are on the surface of a bowling ball, etc. etc. etc.

You will NOT learn to fly a plane with Cockpitmaster.... the crappy sim that is included.

Even FMS (which is still bad IMHO) works better, and BTW it does work with the included PC cord.

Reflex, Aerofly Deluxe Pro (AFDP) and of course G3 do much better jobs at this.

G3 has pretty high computer system requirements. Though if you have a beefy and well equipped computer it beats the others hands down.

We've modeled the P-51 PTS and it is available for download from the G3 swap pages FORUM.

The investment in any of these sims will pay off in terms of crashes which you will avoid, and the ability to log flight time while in the comfort of your home. The sims pay for themselves if used properly.... though they will NOT teach you everything you need to know to grab your plane and fly.

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

I agree the sim is no good. I ordered the new FS One from Hangar 9, just waiting on it to ship.

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

do you need any special software to get the sim to work right mine was really bulky and not very helpful...help.....

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

Which sim are you talking about?

The one which is included with the PTS?

Don't even bother installing it. It really IS that bad.

Get yourself a decent sim.

G3, Reflex, AFDP (and maybe FS One, although I have yet to test it... FS One comes with a native PTS P-51 model!) will all help you learn.

While it may initially seem like a lot to spend, the sims will pay for themselves over and over again.

Thanks to the sims I soloed on my first day at this and brought my plane home intact from the field, instead of a bunch of bits of balsa.

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

just got the G3 its a great sim although had to update my video card the minimum recomended was a Gforce 5600 video card I went with the 6600 A little pricey and I had some software glitches, the driver suplied crashed my computer so I had to get a driver from the web site make sure your box can handle the graphics, after that its sweet, its realistic and was worth the $ if you are worried about the $ after using it you will be stoked at all the options planes,views,and fields.

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

trash the sim and get a buddy cord and someone to teach you how to fly.

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

There's little doubt that the real thing is best...

But a good sim permits a newbie to get the crashing business out of the way first w/o additional expense. It also lessens the amount of time required to learn, at the stick.

"Trashing" Sims is not a good idea.

A GOOD sim is worth it's cost.

That said, the one which comes with the PTS is still worthless.

RE: P-51 PTS Sim Question -Pilot Perspective?
 

If you have a computer that can't handle the graphics ect... of the newer sims there is always G2. You can usually find it on Ebay. I can even run G2 on my laptop with no problem at all.