Having read, and also enjoyed a number of articles here at FlightSim.Comp concentrating on freeware add-ons, I thought I would offer my own thoughts on what I feel are three standout files worthy of your attention (a slight departure from my tutorials and reviews).

As many of you know, I am a scenery man, and thoroughly enjoy creating my own airports. Many, if not most of the sceneries I have created over the years, contain objects I have designed in SketchUp, and these are used so as to create a degree of realism in the sceneries I build. They also help with the overall atmosphere, and while there is much debate about the level of artistic licence employed in X-Plane sceneries, I think, for the most part, developers get it spot on.

Graz Airport

Which brings me nicely to my first X-Plane 'must have' file; Graz Airport by Stefan Verjee-Lorenz.

This is a particularly well done scenery, as it utilises 3rd party library objects to such good effect. I really admire the way that Stefan has brought this scenery to life, especially when you consider that only three libraries were used in total (one of those being my very own Ground Texture Library)!

For those of you not familiar with this airport, Graz Airport, known as Flughafen Graz in German, is an international airport serving southern Austria. It is located near Graz, the second-largest city in Austria and makes for a great starting point in which to explore the amazing alpine scenery situated to the west. The main passenger terminal building includes shops, travel agencies, a restaurant and cafes, a bank, car rental and service counters. The airport apron provides stands for aircraft up to the size of a Boeing 747, but there are no jet bridges - mobile stairways are used instead for boarding.

As you can see from the images, Stefan has done a superb job at bringing the airport to life in X-Plane 11.

Download LOWG Graz Scenery

Airport Environment X

My second 'must have' X-Plane file, has to be Airport Environment X by the highly talented Justin K, or as everybody knows him by, MisterX.

X-Plane in my opinion, is the best civil PC flight simulator money can buy. The level of detail it now includes by default, puts most other offerings to shame, and because it's in constant development, new and exciting features are being added all the time. However...that's not to say that there are areas currently which can be improved on (there are many), and this is where Airport Environment X comes into play.

To many, and myself included, X-Plane's default airport ground textures can often appear bland and dull, and what MisterX has managed to do, is to give X-Plane's airports a big makeover. The enhancements on offer, include new versions of the following: runway and taxiway textures, blast pads, runway shoulders, skid marks (no jokes please), taxiway signs, apron lights, fuel tanks, baggage carts, tractors and cargo trucks, painted ground signs, ramp markings, taxi lines, and lastly, terrain textures on airport areas.

As you can see, it's quite a comprehensive list of improvements, and the results when seen are readily apparent. The textures used in the enhancement look authentic, especially those that cover large areas.

Even up close, the detail remains high, and this is something the default textures (for the most part) failed on. The new ground vehicles are also very nicely done, and a welcome change from those that ship with X-Plane. In all, the many features included in this fantastic enhancement make the default world of X-Plane, a much richer and rewarding experience.

Download Airport Environment

PA-18 Super Cub

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My third, and last 'must have' X-Plane file, concerns a much loved aircraft, and one I thoroughly enjoy flying - the Piper PA-18 Super Cub; brought to you by Alex Jenns, otherwise know as A-Pilot.

This superb freeware offering contains a total of three different variants of the PA-18: standard wheels, float, and tundra!

Much like its younger, albeit, less powerful brother, the J-3 Cub; the PA-18 is a go anywhere aircraft, and one that is ideally suited to exploring the outback and the far reaches of the wilderness.

For airports and strips with a decent landing area, the standard PA-18 is ideal, and the smaller wheels mean less drag, more speed! For those pilots who enjoy exploring the mountains and lakes of BC, then the float version is well suited. And for those wishing to pack their flask, wear their Kurt Russell Parker jacket, and enjoy hot soup for a few weeks, the tundra version is the perfect companion!

No matter what version of the PA-18 you decide to venture out in, you'll be greeted with friendly flight dynamics, sounds which are faithful to the real aircraft, and an authentic visual model which would do the real Super Cub proud!

So there you have it, three add-ons, which I feel make X-Plane an even more enjoyable experience.

To be honest, there have been so many quality files uploaded in recent months, that it was a challenge to decide on just three. I could easily have chosen twenty, but...rules are rules!

One final point. If you do decide to download any of the above add-ons, could I possibly ask you to leave a comment? From a freeware developer's perspective, it's quite depressing to see hundreds of downloads on one file, and then zero comments, so please, try and leave some feedback.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Download PA-18 Super Cub

 

Paul Mort

Download LOWG Graz Scenery
Download Airport Environment
Download PA-18 Super Cub