Piper Seminole for FSX by WS Simulations

By Bill Stack
11 December 2009


Screen shots by WS Simulations

The Piper Seminole is a twin-engine light aircraft with a T tail manufactured by Piper Aircraft. Introduced in 1979, its use is primarily for multi-engine training. The right engine turns in the opposite direction of the left engine to make the aircraft more stable.

William T Piper is sometimes thought of as a Henry Ford of aviation because he saw a need and market for inexpensive, easy-to-operate aircraft. The company built the famous Piper Cub, which was the first inexpensive aircraft produced in large numbers (akin to the Model T Ford). The company is also known for its Apache, Cherokee, Malibu, Saratoga, and Seneca models.

WS Simulations is part of Wydler Studios, an architecture studio in Buenos Aires, Argentina, specializing in architecture visualization since 2000, according to Manlio Wydler. This developer also made a Diamond DA-20 C1 Eclipse.

The Piper Seminole was chosen because "it is a very well-known plane for the training that was not available at Flight Simulator X," according to Manlio Wydler of WS Simulations.

PURCHASE FEATURES

Instant download from the Pilot Shop

YES

Installation program

YES

Registration key required

YES

License agreement required

NO

Uninstall program included

NO

Manual included

YES

Major Features

WS Simulations shows these among many features of its Piper Seminole:

Five liveries: Red on white, blue on white, brown on white, red and blue on white, and black and gray on white
Animated exterior with moving ailerons, flaps, rudder, wheels, doors, and cowl flaps
Animated 3D virtual cockpit, made with Gmax, with clickable and moveable switches, handles, and levers

Brown on White	Red on White	Blue on White	Red/Blue on White	Black/Gray on White
Examples of Piper Seminole Liveries
Screen Shots by Bill Stack

Visual Features

Appropriate attention to detail, accuracy, and display are apparent inside and out.

The basic aircraft, its cabin and instrument panel are accurate compared with real-world photographs I found on the Internet.
WS Simulations says "almost all gauges" are exclusive to this aircraft.
Controls inside the cockpit and outside the aircraft move realistically.
Night effects are good inside and out.
The contra-rotating propellers are evident from outside views, especially when power levels are changing.
Frame rates are good. They ranged between 15 and 30 during my vigorous flight tests, and the simulator never hesitated or skipped.
The radio stack in the 3D panel is blurry, even when the view is zoomed in for a closeup, and especially when compared to instruments next to it. The radio stack in the popup window is clear, however.

Back Seat View	Outside View	Front Seat View
Piper Seminole Cabin
Screen shots by Bill Stack

Left View	Pilot's View	Right View
Piper Seminole Panel
Screen shots by Bill Stack


Night & Dusk Effects
Screen shots by Bill Stack

Technical Features

Controls such as throttle, mixture, propeller, and carburetor heat are clickable and moveable.

Electrical switches (lights, battery, starter, etc.) are clickable and moveable.

Sound files are included instead of referring to other FSX aircraft sounds. They seem realistic, too. Having never seen or heard a real-world Seminole, I have no idea what it sounds like, but these sounds seem appropriate for this type of aircraft.

The GPS unit and the radio stack are available in a typical popup windows.

Checklists and reference sheets in the manual and the aircraft's kneeboard are easily readable and include steps for all important functions and tasks.

Because all five models are intended to be flown from the virtual cockpit, no 2D panel is offered.

There are no popups for engine controls (throttles, mixture, propeller pitch) as is typical in most MSFS aircraft. Users must zoom in on the 3D panel and pan left and right to read instruments and control labels. This can be awkward during demanding maneuvers such as take-offs and landings.

Checklist
Reference Sheet

Seminole Kneeboards

Screen shots by Bill Stack

Flight Modeling

I tested this aircraft thoroughly, including high power, low power, climbs, rolls, glides, and landings. Because it was a trainer, I performed maneuvers and mistakes that a trainee might do, such as turning too sharply, pulling up too sharply, overcorrecting, and forcing low-power and high-power stalls. I also flew with one engine out.

If the checklist is followed precisely, the aircraft rotates and lifts off at the recommended 75 KIAS. At the recommended climbout airspeed of 105 KIAS, it climbed at about 1,200 feet per minute. This climb rate seems excessive for a nonpressurized aircraft because the rapid pressure changes hurt people's ears. I had to reduce power to achieve a balance of 105 KTS and a more reasonable 750 feet per minute vertical speed. In response to my question, WW Simulations said: "When I configured flight dynamics and I tried to get all the values the most exactly; I realized that if I reduced the power, I would reduce to the values of cruise speed too."
Once aloft, this aircraft flies easily. It banks, turns, climbs, and descends with little effort. It recovers easily from all control input whether normal or excessive.
When I pulled both throttles to zero after cruising at 7,000 feet for a while, the aircraft quickly nosed down and began to descend at more than 1,000 feet per minute. When I pulled back on the yoke (i.e. pitched up) to bring the descent rate to 500 feet per minute, the aircraft decelerated to about 90 knots. I was able to maintain a 750-foot per minute descent at around 90 to 100 knots. I don't know if this is as the real aircraft performs, but it seems reasonable for such an aircraft.
It doesn't stall readily. I had to force a stall by reducing power and pitching up. It recovered easily and quickly from my forced stall.
With either engine out, the aircraft handles easily. It veers toward the out-engine side as expected, and it can be flown with only one operating engine but with constant attention from the pilot.
As specified in the manual, it maintains 169 KTS true airspeed at 6,000 feet.
It easily climbs to around 13,000 feet at 500 feet per minute. It stalled at 14,000 feet and about 60 KIAS. After a while, I was able to climb to 15,500 feet, where it leveled off and cruised at 90 KIAS, but only after simply letting it climb gradually for quite a while.

I found several inconsistencies among the specified performance data:

The checklist and manual mention flaps verification before taking off and flaps retraction during climb out, but no flaps deflections are specified for taking off in the checklist or manual. In response to my question, Manlio Wydler said: "I considered that if there was not a special SETTING, the value was 0." Apparently the flaps reference in the checklist is for ensuring they are at zero.
The Details window in the Aircraft Selection menu (from the aircraft.cfg file) says the service ceiling is 17,100 FT, while the manual says it's 15,000 feet. At first, the aircraft stalled around 14,000 feet. Later, it climbed to and cruised at 15,500 feet and 90 KIAS. It never reached higher than that. Apparently the 17,100-foot reference is wrong, but I did not receive an answer to my question about this. [Ed. note: the official Piper specs say 15,000 feet]

Climbing Out	Turning	Cruising at 12,000 Feet	Left Engine Out
Piper Seminole in Flight
Screen shots by Bill Stack

Nice Features

The 23-page user manual in Adobe Acrobat format explains computer and simulator requirements, and it contains aircraft specifications, checklists, and many annotated screen shots.

The kneeboard checklists and reference sheet are easy to read and handy to use.

Door Closed Door Open Door Open Cowl Flap Open

Piper Seminole Details

Screen shots by Bill Stack

Cover Page
Checklist
Cockpit

Piper Seminole Manual

Screen shots by Bill Stack

Screen Shots

My screen shots were made with FSX display settings on "default" because that's what I presume most flight simmers would be using and the developer does not recommend any special settings. I tested with the frame rate set on "30" and "unlimited" to see what rates were possible while flying this aircraft, and they were always within acceptable range, usually in the 20s and 30s.

Summary

This aircraft for FSX is perfect for simulating multi-engine flight training, as the real-world model was intended. It handles easily and forgives pilot errors. It's realistic inside and out, and it's adequately detailed without diminishing frame rates. The manual helps users understand basic requirements and aircraft performance and handling. The radio stack in the 3D panel needs clarity. I hope WS Simulations releases a patch or update to resolve this issue. Otherwise, this aircraft is worth the price.

Bill Stack
Learn More Here

Bill Stack is author of several books about flight simulation, a regular author in flight-sim magazines, and a contributor to Flight Sim Com. His website is www.topskills.com

PURCHASE FEATURES
Instant download from the Pilot Shop	YES
Installation program	YES
Registration key required	YES
License agreement required	NO
Uninstall program included	NO
Manual included	YES

Checklist	Reference Sheet
Seminole Kneeboards
Screen shots by Bill Stack

Door Closed	Door Open	Door Open	Cowl Flap Open
Piper Seminole Details
Screen shots by Bill Stack

Cover Page	Checklist	Cockpit
Piper Seminole Manual
Screen shots by Bill Stack