The Airbus A320 is a very flexible
aircraft. From short hops of 20 minutes to intercontinental travels,
the A320 handles it all with ease. The aircraft was first flown on
February 22, 1987 and the first delivery was made in 1988.
The A320 family pioneered the use of several new ideas. For the first time in commercial aviation history, a large portion of the aircraft was constructed of composite materials. Also, the Electronic Centralized Aircraft Monitoring System (ECAM) was a first for the Airbus. The ECAM is a system that displays information concerning the aircraft systems such as the engines, flight controls, pneumatics and hydraulics. Finally, the fly-by-wire technology that is now a staple of every Airbus product, made its debut in the A320.
With a wingspan of 111 feet and a length of 123 feet, the A320 fits nicely into an airline's fleet. It is able to land at out of the way destinations that may not be able to handle a bigger narrow-body aircraft (like the 757).
All in all, the baby 'bus (A318, A319, A320) line has been a gold mine for Airbus. With over 4,000 aircraft built and an additional 3,200 on order, it looks to be a profitable venture for some time.
The developer has modeled the A320-200 which is the only A320 variant available. There are 20 liveries included along with a paint kit. The liveries run the gamut of operators across the world, from Air Asia to Virgin America. There is something for everyone. The boxed version comes with a 68 page manual of pilots operating instructions. These consist of how to install the jet, a pretty comprehensive manual of the FMS, key commands, and a tutorial flight.
A walk around of the aircraft shows the time that Just Flight has poured into their A320. The aerodynamic lines of the baby 'bus look almost exactly like its real world counterpart. There are numerous animations, the usual ailerons, rudder, gear, speed brakes, and so on.
Just Flight bills the F-lite range of FSX aircraft as "aircraft that are not only extremely high in detail and visually impressive but are also less demanding to fly than complex procedural simulators." The A320 virtual cockpit, at first glance, looks almost exactly like the default A321 with better quality textures. On closer inspection, there are more systems modeled and most of the buttons work.
The FMS is where this simulation pulls away from the default aircraft. The FMC has an interesting screen that controls the lights during each phase of the flight...a really neat addition. There are no SIDS or STARS in the FMC, but I find that comforting, not everyone wants to fly "by the book." Sometimes it is just nice to start up the flight simulator after a long day at work and fly...it eases a lot of tension. That is what this aircraft is for, to experience the pure joy of flying. Overall, the FMC is pretty basic, it loads the default flight plan, flies it and expects you to land and take off. Lately it seems like there has been an upward trend to cram every bell and whistle into a simulation. We don't all want to spend an hour and a half getting an aircraft ready to fly. I just want to hop in and go.
The sounds on the Just Flight A320 are worth the price of admission. You get to hear the gear bogies bouncing over all the potholes in the taxiway, the speed brakes in operation and most of the buttons in the cockpit have a custom sound. The crowning achievement are the flaps. When they are in transition, it makes a horrendous noise that is unmistakable. Lastly, the engines spooling up, taxiing and taking off sound exactly like the A320's I hear taking off from KDEN.
I took the Virgin America A320 "gogo dancer" from KIWA (Williams-Gateway Phoenix, AZ) to KCOS (Colorado Springs Municipal, Colorado Springs, CO) to test all phases of flight.
I punched the flight plan into the the FSX flight planner, the JF A320 loaded it and we were ready to push back. The light screen in the FMC is cool...I punched in that I was in the prestart mode and the correct lights came on. I started the engines, set the light pattern and the top strobe turned on just like clockwork. I got the correct permissions, taxied to the active and commenced the take off roll. This thing does not take off like I had imagined. You pull up the nose wheel and the MLG follows when it decides to, no 5000 ft/min takeoffs in this bird. Climbout is a nonevent, just set the throttles and V/S and you are off. Cruise comes quickly, the JF A320 feels a little overpowered as it is easy to get 250 IAS in a 2500-3000 ft/min climb rate. However, I am not sure if that is realistic. The cruise is routine, the autopilot takes over, the pilot sits and watches. The descent and subsequent approach is where things get interesting. No fighter pilot style approaches in this Airbus as it takes a second or two for the controls to get from the joystick to the flight controls. If you are coming in a little fast, high etc., you better go around or it is going to get aggravating trying to line up with the runway. This style of flying really throws you off the first few times, but is easy to get used to. Overall, the Just Flight A320 performs like I would think an Airbus would perform.
In the end, I love this bird, not too complex not too simple. It does what Just Flight marketed it to do, looks good, and flies realistically. What more could you ask for?
Remington Box
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