How To: Get Back Your Wing Views!
By Ali Mujtaba
This article shows you how to reposition the pilot's point of view to bring back views of the wing as seen from inside the plane. Recently, so many great FS2000 airliners have virtual cockpits. Personally, I hate them as they block the view around you, and take extra time to load. I would like to look out during replays at my wings and engines, especially now with all the great animations we're getting. But, for some reason, most designers are really into clunky virtual cockpits. Until virtual cockpits come with operating equipement, I have no interest in them. But that is my opinion only. A great member of FlightSim.Com recently wrote me and told me how to get the wing views back! Let's take a look at Ali's How-To?
You'll want to use the Aircraft and Dynamics Editor (ADE98), located here at FlightSim.Com.
GETTING STARTED
You can edit the "pilot's point of view" values in the aircraft Dynamics Editor or "ADE" of the original .air file which came with the aircraft. It only works on certain .air files as most of them are not compatible with "ADE". Here I will try to explain both procedures on how to edit the .air file using "ADE" & overwriting the .air file of the aircraft, with virtual cockpit with the same type of model in case the .air file doesn't work with "ADE".
EDITING THE .AIR FILE THROUGH ADE
As you may already be acquainted with the fact that Bill Alderson's latest 747 models come with a virtual cockpit window which completely prevents wing views from being seen. The reason being that your "View Point" has been placed in a cell like container in the transparent window cockpit. All you need to do is to slide the view point back so as to move outside the container.
Now execute "ADE" & press the "general" tab. Locate the "Pilot's view point" option. Underneath the pilot's view point you will see the "fore(+)/aft box. All we have to do is reduce the values of this option so as to move back or out of the virtual cockpit. In this particular aircraft the default values of the "fore(+)/aft are "813 in". Reduce the values to "630 in" (it's up to you to enter the values, but the ones stated above are the best) and then save the .air file, or if you prefer to see the rotation of flaps from the back of the wings, the best possible values for this aircraft would be "-600 in".
Wing view with "fore(+)/aft" values of "630 in"
Wing view with "fore(+)/aft" values of "-600 in"
In some cases a run time error message pops out of nowhere when trying to load .air files of various kinds. This is where frustration starts to creep in. The only possible solution to this dreaded problem is to replace the .air file of the aircraft with the one which has the same visual model but is of a different author's make. You have to be specific & careful when choosing an .air file of the aircraft, as you may end up seeing the aircraft sink into the ground or sitting in midair. The only possible solution to this nagging problem is to change the values in "gear location foot print" option depending upon the situation in ADE. Here I have given an example of Euro Wing's excellent A-310 aircraft by Jens Dohrn. Since I was unable to open the .air file in ADE so I decided to replace its .air file with Brian Quayle's A310 model. Brian's A310 model .air file is by far the best substitute as it caused no erronous displays and the flight dynamics are excellent. To replace the .air file, I renamed Brian Quayle's .air file to Euro Wings 310 .air file (pk310.air to a310-300.air) & then overwrote it.
Wing view with "fore(+)/aft" values of "550 in" (Brian Quayle's .air file in use)
Wing view with "fore(+)/aft" values of "-200 in" (Brian Quayle's .air file in use)
Please note that the A310 aircraft has got some restrictions as far as the modification is concerned, so all this stuff is intended to be for private use and must not to be uploaded to any site without the plane's author's written consent. As for the 747, Bill Alderson has given full permission to modify his planes located at FreeFlight Design Shop. I hope these tips would help you to resolve the problems in eradicating the virtual cockpit topic. Please do give a reply & state your opinion on this.
Your's Sincerely,
Ali Mujtaba