Blue Arrow's Lockheed P-38J-25-LO
By Bill Womack (25 July 2001)
f there's one thing
you have as a user of Microsoft Flight Simulators, it's choices.
There are an almost endless variety of downloads and add-ons,
especially aircraft. And I've heard, on more than one occasion, a
denizen of the online forums complain about this or that developer
that had the nerve to actually charge people for their work. The
logic goes something like this: why should I pay for a plane when
there are so many free ones available for download? Why, indeed? The
new Blue Arrow P-38J-25-LO, that's why. And after you read this,
you'll see that it's all the answer you'll ever need.
Setup
There are two versions of this plane, one for Flight Simulator 2000, and another for Combat Flight Simulator 2. No matter which you choose, however, you get the other for free. For flyers like me who have both simulators, that makes this package even more of a bargain. The installer is as easy as they get and blasts the plane, scenery, missions and other add-ons right where they belong once you point it in the direction of your sim's root directory. For purposes of brevity, I'm going to focus on CFS2 for this review. That is, brevity and the fact that my performance was a little better in the combat sim as well, which wasn't really a surprise, given the overall performance differences between the sims. Besides, there are a few laws barring one from blasting another civilian aircraft out of the sky on a whim, and that's one of the things this plane does best! As an aside, if you choose to fly this warbird in FS2000, my advice is to start with a night flight, for no other reason than to see the subtly rendered panel lighting. It's not to be missed.
Getting An Eyeful
In order to fully understand the amount of work that went into this add-on, try starting a free flight at the BA King's Cliffe airfield that was installed along with the plane. On loading a new plane for the first time, I usually take the time to step outside and give it a thorough once-over from nose to rudder. And that's precisely when it hit me that Blue Arrow had just raised the bar for payware aircraft quality. Not just a notch or two, but a nautical mile. To put it simply, this is a gorgeous plane! You have a choice of either O.D. or bare metal finishes, and they're both equally beautiful to behold. Not to take anything away from the developers of CFS2, but if you load their earlier version of this craft, you'll see what I mean. Details that had been relegated to textures in the stock Lightning stand out in their full 3D glory in this new version. In particular, the detailing in the superchargers is a cut above. Also, the canopy has a nice tint that gives more of the impression of glass than most other add-ons. Okay, that's enough gawking at her - time to climb into the gondola and get busy!
If you've flown the stock P-38 in CFS2, you will be more than a little
surprised at the panel before you. In fact, I have a sense that if you
actually flew one of these babies in the "real" world - and there must be at
least one or two simmers who have - then you'll feel right at home. BA
obviously took great pains to make the gauge layout and overall feel as
close to the real thing as possible. Gone is the stylized panel of the stock
plane with its exaggerated textures. What you are looking at now is a very
business-like set of gauges that are an almost identical match with
photographs of real thing. But the 2D cockpit is just the beginning. Click
over to virtual cockpit. And stop whining about how hard it is to fly in
that mode because you can't really see the gauges. You are in for a treat!
The readability of the gauges is such that I've actually taken to using this
view for takeoffs and landings. And although I've heard virtual cockpits
derided for their low frame rates, using this one actually doubled my frame
rate performance over either cockpit or spot-plane views!
What? Sorry, I can't hear you!
Okay, now that you're familiar with the layout of the cockpit, it's time to fire this bird up! Set the parking brake. Turn up your speakers. Then hit the 'E' key to start those massive Allison V-16 engines. If you invested in a sub-woofer powered speaker system, you're about to feel really smug - Mike Hambly, the prince of flightsim noise, has done it again. As the engines roar to life, you'll notice that they sound deeper, more powerful and a lot more menacing than those of the stock plane. Being careful to leave that parking brake on, go ahead and run them up and down, soaking in that enormous roar.Now that you've heard it sing, you can tell that this bird is made for one thing - going fast. And that's what we're going to do next. Put down a couple notches of flaps and gently rock the throttles forward. Once they've run up let go of the brake and start your roll. One of the joys of flying a P-38 is that, unlike single-engine aircraft, there's no pulling to the side on taxi. It just glides forward on the runway, straight as an arrow. If you need to turn, it's best done via differential braking, 'cause true to the original the nose wheel doesn't turn. That said, it's very easy to point this plane exactly where you want her to go. Rotation should happen right around 130 mph, which sneaks up on you quickly. Here's the takeoff procedure pulled straight from Blue Arrow's docs: "The initial climb should be set around 2000 fpm. Retract flaps at 200 mph. Adjust the trim for 3000 feet of climb. Adjust throttle and prop pitch to climb around 250 mph. At altitude you can trim out for level flight and adjust throttle for cruise speed or full military power, which should bring you to 400 mph in true airspeed."
The next realization will be that, if you're used to flying
single-engine fighters, you'll need to retrain your thinking about
maneuvers. The P-38 has speed in spades, but try to turn around at
300 mph + and you'll need God's entire half acre to do it. That's
where another feature that originated on the J-25-LO comes in:
maneuvering flaps. Putting down one notch of flaps (something you
dare not do in previous models at speed) will increase the
maneuvering performance, but of course, at the cost of speed. Making
that turn a little more nimbly might just save your life later!
Another trick is to put it into a steep dive. Watch that airspeed
indicator soar -- 300, 350, 400, 450...at this point in a earlier
model, you're just about doomed. Compressibility has set in, and
pulling out of the dive has become damned near impossible. However,
it's not time to say your prayers just yet in this new model. You've
got another feature to call on: dive flaps. Pressing the "/" or "d"
key (depending on your setup) will activate this control, and the
plane will almost immediately nose up. The flow of air over the wing
has been disrupted, your elevator controls have become responsive
again, and you've lived to fight another day!
Here's an overview of the action supplied:
BA Ace:
This mission simulates an encounter by one Lt. Jack Ilfrey, in which he
(you) flies into a hornet's nest of enemy fighters. This one is going to
take all your skill and then some in handling this massive plane in close
combat. Remember: boom and zoom, or go home in pine.
BA Defend King's Cliffe:
This is an all too typical situation. You hear the sirens begin to blare.
Enemy fighters have been spotted by patrols as they crossed the coastline.
You've got to scramble, and try and gain some altitude for the coming fight.
There aren't too many of them, but they're fast little buggers! Defend your
turf!
BA Airfield Assault:
This time, your mission is to hit an enemy airfield while they're refueling
after a flight. They should be ripe for the picking in this disadvantaged
state, but you know better, don't you? They're on the ground for now, but
they won't stay there for long, so get moving. By the way, remember to focus
on the fact that this is a ground attack mission. You're loaded with two 500 lb
bombs when you get there, so don't get too caught up in aerial combat before
dropping your load. You'll know you haven't released them yet, 'cause your
ship will handle like a pig with those weights on.
BA Freighter Sinking:
Like the name says, you've got some serious damage to do to a group of
freighters that have been spotted off the English coast. They're escorted by
a destroyer, and while you've got a salvo of 5-inch rockets, it's going to
take a lot to sink even one of those babies.
BA Sub Sinking:
This one is a little lighter fare than the others, so it's a good starting
point. Your squadron has spotted two German U-Boats. You've got the rockets,
so now is a good time to practice your strafing/bombing techniques.
Fortunately for you, these U-Boats have forgotten that they can dive (anyone
see "Das Boot" lately?), so they're sitting ducks if you line up right and
concentrate. Just take your time. Yeah, they've got guns, but the gunners
are woozy from weeks at sea and can't aim well.
Pros:
Cons (and these are really nit-picking, mind you):
Enjoy!
Bill Womack
Nice Plane. Let's Go Kill Something!
Throughout this review I've termed this package an add-on, rather than a
plane. And that's for good reason; for your money, you get oh so much more
than a simple aircraft. In addition to the aforementioned dual versions
(CFS2/FS2000) and King's Cliffe Airfield, you also get six realistic
missions, all designed to be within the normal scope of operations for the
20th F.G. To quote late-night TV ads, wait, there's more! Since CFS2 is
essentially concerned with the war in the Pacific, Blue Arrow have been kind
enough to include a worthy adversary for your new bird; a crop of Germans
flying AI versions of the famed BF-109. They will be your principal
opponents in the air-to-air missions. However, the missions themselves are
varied, and while there are certainly several very tough dogfighting
workouts, there are also some air-to-ground jobs that are challenging as
well in a different way.
BA Reconnaissance:
This is a routine recon mission over the channel. Yeah, right! It wouldn't
be a mission without running into some wayward 109s. Again, get them before
they can get you.
Wrapping It All Up
Just when you thought we'd never get there, here we are at the summary. My
overall impression of this fine add-on is that the authors obviously spent a
great deal of time on their research, and it shows. The aircraft itself is a
fascinating subject, and the ancillary files and documentation included
provide an immersive environment the likes of which I've not seen in a CFS2
package, ever. The bottom line: this plane may actually provide a reason for
a seasoned FS2000 sufferer to make the jump to CFS2. It's that good! Here is
the comparison grid to which you've become accustomed for a review:
As a footnote, one way I discovered to squeeze even more enjoyment from this
package is to visit a very interesting web site before beginning your
missions; that of the actual 20th Fighter Group based in King's Cliffe. It
can be found at
http://www.geocities.com/pentagon/quarters/6940/20thfg.html
and is a must for those seeking to enhance the experience of "being there".
There is even a section devoted to descriptions of various missions the
group flew, so you mission builders have a lot of ammo to work with when
doing your thing!
bw@spottedantelope.com