Search the Community

/images/notams/notams20/care0813/carenado-1.jpgToday in a brief Facebook post, aircraft developer Carenadoannounced they are working on two aircraft for the new Microsoft FlightSimulator. The new aircraft are the CT182T Skylane and the M20R Ovation,both of which they have previously released for other sims. They saythese will be ready soon. /images/notams/notams20/care0813/carenado-2.jpg /images/notams/notams20/care0813/carenado-3.jpgSource

M20R OvationPublisher: AlabeoReview Author: Bruno EsperancaSuggested Price: $32.95/images/fsc/wbicons/store-buy-now-button.pngHistoryThe Mooney M20 is a family ofpiston-powered, propeller-driven, general aviation aircraft producedby the Mooney International Corporation. It was introduced in 1955,and since then almost twenty different variations have been produced, allof them featuring low wings and tricycle gear. In total, more than11,000 aircraft of this family have been manufactured. /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_23.jpg /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_11.jpgThe Mooney M20 family gained attention due to its top speeds ofroughly 170 miles per hour, housing a 150 hp (110 kW) Lycoming O-320engine. Popularity of the Mooneys rose due to the good combination ofspeed and efficiency. Later in 1958, Mooney introduced the M20A, andthe company finally made a profit. This model was, however, the lastmodel to feature a wooden tail, as several incident were reported withbroken tails, due to water damage and the resulting rot. Finally, in 1994, Mooney introduced the M20R Ovation. This modelhouses a 6 cylinder, naturally aspirated Continental IO-550-G 280 hp(210 kW) powerhouse, with a maximum takeoff weight of 3368 lb (1528kg). 266 units were manufactured, between 1994 and 2001. /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_12.jpg /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_13.jpgAircraft SpecificationsGeneral M20 Family DimensionsLength 26 ft 8 in (8.13 m)Wingspan 36 ft 6 in (11.125 m)Height 8 ft 4 in (2.5 m)Wingspan 36 ft 6 in (11.125 m)EngineModel Continental IO-550-GNo. Cylinders 6Displacement 552 cu. in.Power 280 hp (210 kW)Fuel injectedConstant speed propellerWeightsEmpty weight varies with equipment - empty weight on one aircraft was listed as 2267 lbs.Maximum take-off/landing weight 3368/3200 lbs (1528/1451 kg)Maximum baggage weight 120 lbs (54 kg) Baggage Area, 340 lbs (154 kg) cargo area with rear seats folded down /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_45.jpg /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_46.jpgFuel And OilFuel capacity 108 US gallonsAvg. fuel burn at 75% power in standard conditions per hour 14.3-16 US gallonsOil capacity 8 US quartsPerformanceVNE (never exceed speed) 196 KCASVNO (max. cruising speed) 175 KCASVSO (stall speed) 59 KIAS (landing configuration)VS1 (stall speed) 66.5 KIAS (clean configuration)Climb best rate 1240 fpmWing loading 19.26 lbs/sq.ft.Power loading 12.03 lbs/hpService ceiling 20,000 ft /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_16.jpg /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_63.jpgIntroductionAlabeoneeds no introduction. They have been creating high quality add-onsfor the main flight simulators available today - FSX, Prepar3D andX-Plane - since 2011. Their catalog includes dozens of products,mostly within the general aviation category. This time around, Alabeo brings us the Mooney M20R Ovation forX-Plane 11. This add-on was created specifically for X-Plane 11, it isnot an adaptation. Therefore, it utilizes the new advanced features inX-Plane 11 to its full extent. This add-on features, among others,custom sounds (FMOD). This means sounds are placed correctly in the 3Dworld, and feel 3D. Super material shines and reflections (fullPBR). The look of the surfaces match the reflection of the real worldcounterpart, with metal surfaces having that very strong reflectivelook, and interior plastic surfaces having a less reflectivesurface. Volumetric side view prop effect, high quality 3D model andtextures (we'll be the judge of that), accurately reproduced flightcharacteristics and an FPS-optimized model. Let's jump into the pilot seat and take this beauty for a spin! /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_18.jpg /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_21.jpgInstallationAlabeo's M20R installation file is not too heavy, at approximately 375MB. This is enough to get your money's worth (which, by the way, thisadd-on is priced at $33 USD). Installation continues to follow thetraditional procedure. Simply unzip the main folder directly into the"Aircraft" folder of X-Plane, and that's it for the installation. Whenloading up the simulator and starting a flight for the first time withthis aircraft, you will be prompted to enter your product key. Thereis a button to reload the aircraft in the popup (which you arerequired to do), but this continues to fail for me for some reason, asin other add-ons. I still need to reload the flight, but it worksperfectly after that. /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_47.jpg /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_48.jpgInteriorAlabeo really did a fantastic job on the interior of thisaircraft. Particularly, the 3D modeling is second to none. I tried tolook for something that was just a 2D texture but I was not ableto. Every single switch, knob, fuse, you name it, is modeled in 3D. Asyou'll see in the pictures, it is also becoming popular to have allinstruments modeled in 3D, and this definitely adds a degree of depthand provides a more authentic feel to the cockpit. Something I alsoenjoyed was that the cockpit feels consistent. In many add-ons, youcan feel a visual discrepancy, due to the attempt of mixing defaultinstrumentation from the simulator, and aircraft specificinstrumentation, which creates a visual asymmetry, in terms ofquality, colors, resolution, etc. But on Alabeo's M20R you don't getthat, which is great. On a less positive note, the low resolution onthe panel texture is apparent. As the instruments in general are quitedetailed with very easy to read labels and generally a pretty highquality, it's hard not to notice this. /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_25.jpg /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_29.jpgFor a change, there's hardly any wear and tear on the interior ofthis aircraft, with no noticeable difference between liveryoptions. Even though some wear and tear makes the aircraft look morerealistic, I have to admit that it's also nice to feel like you'vejust bought yourself a new plane. You'll still find, however, somedirty windows. Night lighting, as expected, takes full advantage of X-Plane 11'snew features, Physical-Based Rendering and Dynamic Lighting. You havea few different options internally. Each seat comes with acorresponding overhead cabin light. The one for the pilot can bedimmed. The instrument panel features a couple of knobs, one for thepanel glareshield and one for the panel lights. All these lookfantastic, however there was one disappointing detail. The reflectionof the instrument panel on the pilot window is not dynamic. It issimply a 2D texture similar to what was done on the days of the oldFSX and P3D v3 (or earlier). I assume Alabeo tested real reflectionsbut the result was either not visually convincing, or too demanding interms of performance. X-Plane still needs a bit of polishinghowever. For example, at dusk or dawn there are no shadows inside thecockpit. This makes for quite unrealistic reflections on differentsurfaces inside the aircraft, but this is out of control of thedevelopers. /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_19.jpg /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_58.jpgInstrumentationAs mentioned above, Alabeo's M20R has a very balanced lookinginstrumentation panel. Even if it's using X-Plane's GNS530, itintegrates seamlessly in the radio stack, everything looks like it's inthe right place. On the top left you have several gauges to measurefuel flow, ammeter, vacuum gauge, manifold pressure, cylinder headtemperature, oil temperature and pressure, tachometer, among a fewothers. All the gauges are detailed in 3D, and also have a slightflicker component. Honestly, I think they are very well done. To addto the realism of this aircraft, the instruments also have a smallamount of uncertainty, or "flickering", even when there are no inputson any controls. The six-pack includes an HSI, and you can adjust the IAS to get thetrue airspeed indication. To adjust the altimeter you have to know thealtimeter value in inches of mercury. For those flying in Europe,which uses hectopascals, this can be a bit of a nuisance. To feed theHSI you can choose between VOR1 and GPS. You also have a secondaryVOR, and an ADF to complete the pack. Above the comm panel, you'llfind an annunciator panel with multiple warning and indicator lightswhich you can test. The radio stack is then filled with the standardequipment. The GNS530 from X-Plane, the BENDIX gear for the secondaryVOR, ADF and transponder. /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_56.jpg /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_60.jpgSomething that is usually a pain to handle is the autopilot. Inmany add-ons I have trouble getting the autopilot to follow a heading,or maintain altitude, I have trouble setting it, etc. In this aircrafthowever, everything was easy and is working correctly, as far as Icould tell. I tested following a VOR radial, a heading, maintainingaltitude, climbing and descending, all worked without issues, andallows for some carefree sightseeing. ExteriorThe exterior is astonishing. Try as I might, I cannot find acompromise between number of polygons and performance. The modelingboth seems to be extremely detailed, but also extremely light onperformance. I have to congratulate Alabeo on that. This might soundas an overstatement, but this must be the aircraft with the best bumpmapping, normals and PBR work I have seen so far. The reflections onwings, cowlings and other exterior surfaces are a real pleasure tolook at, simply outstanding. I hope I was able to catch this greatwork on my screen shots. All the small details, such as engine airinlets and cowlings, 3D lights with the transparent protections, andothers, were all meticulously crafted and look fantastic. The lightsalso come with their own textures, to replace the lower resolutiondefault textures. /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_52.jpg /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_62.jpgAs for moving parts and animations, you also have a fair amount ofdetail. Apart from the obvious ailerons, elevator, rudder, flaps,propeller and gear, you can also open the passenger and baggagedoors. On the ground you also get chocks and a ground power unit, fora nice, realistic walkaround before your flight. When looking at theaircraft from an outside view, you are also presented with both pilotand copilot models, so it doesn't look like the aircraft is flying onits own. SoundsSounds are usually an underestimated part of the package. Howeversounds are extremely important to complete the package and to reachthat higher level of immersion, particularly now that the virtualreality era is at the door. It's nice to see that Alabeo didn't cutcorners when it comes to sounds, which is not surprising consideringother add-ons from them. Actions such as raising/lowering the landinggear or flaps have natural, good quality sounds and the volumes arewell balanced. /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_27.jpg /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_7.jpgIt is apparent that Alabeo made good use of X-Plane 11's new FMODtechnology, as sounds have a good 3D placement and while moving thecamera it is easy to distinguish where the different sounds are comingfrom. It's also interesting to hear how the the engine sounds with thesmall pilot window open, but unfortunately this can only be done onthe ground. How are we supposed to take nice pictures from up in theair if we can't open the small window while flying? On a more seriousnote, the sounds are quite complete (maybe the only thing missingwould be the stronger outside wind on higher speeds), quality is greatand I couldn't notice any unnatural effects, so Alabeo did, onceagain, a very nice job in this area. Camera And OptionsAlabeo's Mooney Ovation comes with the basic options you've come toexpect. Basically we've got three different popups we can use on theleft side. The first one is the autopilot option, which is helpful ifyou are viewing the aircraft from outside and wish to change theautopilot from NAV to HDG setting, for example, or simply to turn iton. Otherwise, I'm not sure if there's a whole lot to do on theautopilot without the information from the HSI and remaininginstruments. Nonetheless, it's there if you want it. /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_20.jpg /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_3.jpgThe second popup is the Camera popup. Here we can jump to one ofthe many default cameras that Alabeo prepared for us. With X-Plane'scamera system, I very seldom use this, but the option to control thefield of view is nice, as it is not so easy to find in X-Plane'ssettings. Last but definitely not least, the Options popup. Here you can turnon or off the reflections on instruments and windows, if you need alittle performance boost, and, while on the ground, we can use thispopup to open our doors and set or remove our chocks. This is the mostuseful popup as I don't think there's another way to control thestatic elements. DocumentationWe can find the documentation for this aircraft, unsurprisingly, ina folder called "Documentation" inside the aircraft's folder. In ityou'll find, among others, copyright information, emergency and normalprocedures, performance tables and the version history. First of all, I have to thank Alabeo for including the performancetables, which is a document very often missing in aircraft add-ons. Ican't really understand why this is the case, but it is. Theinteresting part in this case, is that we don't even need theperformance tables, as we can find a very useful summary on thepilot's sun visor. /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_30.jpg /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_31.jpgThe normal procedures document is very complete and fits perfectlyto this aircraft, except perhaps for a very small detail. In one itemit mentions an ammeter needle, but the ammeter in this aircraft isdigital. Otherwise, we can happily follow the checklists withoutgetting stuck at some item which was meant for another aircraft. Flight CharacteristicsThe Mooney Ovation is a low-wing aircraft with extraordinary fuelefficiency. Part of the fuel efficiency comes from a very slick designwhich translates to a very smooth flight. The 280 HP from theContinental engine are quick to spool up. This engine is extremelyeasy to start and operate. Something I noticed, which I'm not surehappens on the real counterpart, is that switching between fuel tanksmakes no noticeable difference on the fuel flow, even ifinstantaneously. Using the boost pump while switching fuel tanks (orfor that matter not) also makes no noticeable difference. Taxiing requires very minimal power input, as would be expectedfrom such a young aircraft. The powerhouse allows for very comfortabletakeoff with plenty of room. However, I'm a bit surprised with the lowelevator authority on low speeds, both for takeoff and landing. Afterchecking a few videos of the real aircraft, I would consider this tobe a bug. /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_32.jpg /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_6.jpgBe careful with that airspeed after takeoff. If you're not payingattention to your airspeed you'll easily exceed the flaps extendedspeed and rip one off. I speak from experience. Climbing is easy andwe can reach this aircraft's service ceiling of 20,000 feetcomfortably. The EGT gauge is very helpful in setting the mixture correctly, andit should be checked often during climbs and descents. Following theperformance charts you'll get cruise speeds around 170 to 180 KIAS,which is very close to the maximum structural cruise speed, so keep aneye on that as well. In case you were distracted sightseeing, it's possible to perform agear-down descent to get your aircraft down quickly. Setting up forthe approach is easy, and the aircraft is very stable. It's easy tomaintain a stable approach speed, which in this case I would recommendto keep between 80 to 90 KIAS, not below, because as mentioned above,you'll lose elevator authority very quickly and you might end up in anunpleasant situation. /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_34.jpg /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_5.jpgPerformanceIf you're worried to get an add-on aircraft because you're alreadyon the limit in terms of performance, you don't need to worry aboutAlabeo's Mooney Ovation. It seems to me that, taking the level ofdetail into account of course, this add-on has the best performanceI've seen so far. Even with reflections turned on, on both windows andinstruments, my flights are always smooth and a great stutter-freeexperience. ConclusionGeneral aviation sometimes means sightseeing and leisure, sometimesit is a means of transportation. With Alabeo's Mooney Ovation you canhave the best of both worlds without any compromise. There's plenty ofspeed and plenty of range, so it has become one of my favorites forlong coastal rides or cross-country flights. This add-on does a goodjob regarding the sounds, options, interior texturing, and even if theflight modeling and systems may have a flaw or two, it is in the 3Dmodeling and exterior texturing that this aircraft truly shines. Ifyou were in the market for a GA aircraft to take a few absolutelystunning snapshots, this is the one. The documentation is also verycomplete and you won't have to go through the frustration of lookingonline for performance charts. At its price tag, you'll probably notbe disappointed. /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_65.jpg /images/reviews/alabm20r/t/M20R_Ovation_37.jpgResourceshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mooney_M20 https://www.aopa.org/go-fly/aircraft-and-ownership/aircraft-fact-sheets/mooney-ovation /images/notams/notams18/alab0313/alab0315.jpgBruno Esperanca Purchase Alabeo - M20R Ovation for X-Plane 11

/images/notams/notams18/alab0313/alab0315.jpgFeaturesCustom sounds (FMOD)Full X-Plane 11 compatibleRealityXP GTN750 compatible.GoodWay CompatibleSuperb material shines and reflections (full PBR).Volumetric side view prop effect.High quality 3D model and textures.Blank texture for creating your own designsAccurately reproduced flight characteristics64-bitFPS-optimized model /images/notams/notams18/alab0313/mooney1.jpgIncludes5 HD liveries1 Blank textureNormal Procedures PDFEmergency Procedures PDFPerformance tables PDFQuick Reference PDFRecommended Settings PDF /images/notams/notams18/alab0313/mooney2.jpgTechnical RequirementsFlight SimulatorX-Plane 11Operating SystemWindows 7 or higherMAC OS 10.8 (or higher)LinuxComputeri5 (or equivalent) 2.5 GHz8GB RAM2GB Video card520MB available hard disk space Purchase Alabeo - M20R Ovation for X-Plane 11 /images/notams/notams18/alab0313/mooney3.jpg