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Seriously good looking BeechJet. I really never thought anything would rival the FU3 version. Gosh darn it! And just look at those pilots inside! You don't think the Abacus team is inside do you?
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NOTE: I took screenshots in a variety of quality levels. Please note actual product may look far better than in these screenshots. Some pictures are lower quality to save loading time. If your monitor is not running in 32-bit resolution, you will not see same quality.
What I am talking about is the new Abacus product, Corporate Pilot. I choose to review one aircraft only to start things off. Since I just recently wrote about the BeechJet 400A from Flight III, it's still in my mind. It couldn't have been better timing. There has never been a release of a BeechJet 400A for FS, or at least more than one or two. And, they left lots to be desired. Abacus has jumped on the bandwagon here, and produced a lineup of quality corporate aircraft for FS2000 - something that has not really been done before. Airliners, old props and light aircraft are popular, but for some reason there are few corporate jets and cabin-class twins to fly.
The wait is over. While this is not yet an entire review on Corporate Pilot, it is a review of the early version of the program I received, with concentration on the BeechJet 400A. I happen to have real -400A operating manuals in my home (buried somewhere here in the basement), and thought I could use the real figures to compare the Abacus jet. I can't find my manuals. Somewhat dusty in my noggin are the figures. So, I used that instead. What I could come up with is that this flight model is very, very close to being perfect. Fuel flow, IAS, TAS, Mach #, etc. etc....all seemed great. Takeoff, landing, cruising, and taxiing are excellent. In fact, the ground steering is better than in FU3, and overall climb performance is better than in FU3, which is one area I felt that BeechJet was in slight error. I do believe the FU3 BeechJet was a tad under powered on takeoff and climbout. I'll venture to say the Abacus BeechJet looks better than the FU3 version! Wow. I can't believe it's true, but it is. The nose is better shaped, more blunt and round, much more like the real thing. Again, great job Terry!
Now that I have touted the Abacus BeechJet as the best I've ever come across in terms of minor handling qualities and overall external design, I will point out the rest of the package. The instrument panel is again, very, very well done. I was surprised I'd like it so much, as lately, I am always getting panels too big and tall to see outside. Even with my recent article on how to fix your forward views, most panels require some "pushing down" the screen and hacking to remove unwanted posts and overhead extras that destroy frame rate. Not so here. Even though I did take away the center post to enhance frame rate a bit, this panel was quite frame rate friendly! The gauges and size of everything were nicely thought out. There are about six [shift] number combinations that will bring up various panels, each looking something like that in the real BeechJet. The weird thing is that the panels are fixed, sometimes illogically, in places that hide the view or other parts of the panel. You cannot manipulate them nor resize them. Hmmm. So, they are to be used, then hidden again. This was a little cumbersome, but not overly so. I found it not a big problem. The FMS display, never really sits nicely on the panel, it overhangs a bit. Oddly enough, no one built in a Mach meter on the panel display.
The really cool thing is that Abacus has included a great FMS system. Even without instructions in my version, I found I could work this thing good enough to get a trip plotted. Great addition!
The only drawback to this BeechJet is that they did not include any unique sound sets, with any of the airplanes. So, you'll have to use the default Lear sounds, or any others you may find. For now, I am just using the LearJet sounds, saddened by the fact they are not real BJ sounds. Shame on you Abacus, for not including sound sets in this product! Double Shame! Drat! There's always something...
The interior artwork is okay. Corner cockpit views are great, side and rear views a bit blurry and of poor photo quality. Also, perspective is from the inside, mid-cabin, and not what you would see from the cockpit looking back. In addition, they chose not to make the aircraft visible from the inside, so you cannot see your wings or engines which would show up from these cabin views. I must ask again, why doesn't anyone out there make their planes visible!?!?
Perfect side view. I can't find anything wrong here. I'm looking...
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Great panel shot showing the FMS display in compass rose mode.
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Left front view showing a great perspective with the panel being as you'd really see it. Not like a lot of designers that show you the corner panels as if you were a two year old in the seat.
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Ready for takeoff shot.
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Panel with FMS showing at cruise.
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Overhead panel in use, showing some neat extras.
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I love this one! Featured inside are Tim Dickens, Jim Rhodes and Arnie Lee. Arnie is in the rear-most seat, facing forward. Someone else is in the front seat, reading an Abacus paper! What great detail. I really love these real cabin views! At night, you will see lights inside and other things.
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Wow! You know the rest.
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Cool night shot with the instrument panel showing.
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Ramp view at KTVL with the high mountains surrounding the field, using Eddie Denny's Mesh Scenery
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The Abacus BeechJet 400A is a great little corporate jet, with near-perfect looks and flight model. It is perhaps, the best one of the jets included in this package in terms of overall quality. However, I will state at this time, anyone ordering Corporate Pilot or waiting for it, will be very pleased with all the other aircraft. Abacus has made a niche product that up until now, has been sadly forgotten about. All the little panel details, external design and flight physics make this a grand replacement for the default overly-sensitive Lear45. It's also a corporate jet worthy of retail sale and provides a big reason getting Corporate Pilot in the first place.
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