FSX - Area 51 Mission

[all-fired-up]

WARNING SPOILER - don't proceed if you didn't fly this mission in FSX yet. For those who have, proceed.


Microsoft was smart to add missions to the new FSX sim. It really gives the sim extra incentive to fly it, and I found that the missions are down right fun! This mission was to fly workers on the secret red/white 737's to Area 51 - no questions asked, don't talk to anyone about anything, we never made this flight, etc...

I'm flying "Janet" out of Las Vegas to Area 51. While, enroute, a fast UFO passes me by. Area 51 just calls it "fast mover" It was pretty cool, but hard to get a shot of it, I only got one pic of that flying "pie-pan" of a UFO

As I got closer to Groom lake I noticed something very odd on the ramp, and it was gigantic!

Check out the flight. Thumbs Up MS for making this a fun mission!


http://img97.imageshack.us/img97/8284/2006112419493140ni3.jpg
The mysterious red and white 737 climbing out of Las Vegas, early in the morning.

http://img301.imageshack.us/img301/74/2006112420551453gs0.jpg
We are VFR all this time so we don't leave a "paper trail"

http://img293.imageshack.us/img293/6282/2006112420645172copyro2.jpg
Crossing the desert, it's pretty...well... deserted out here, good place for a secret base.

http://img166.imageshack.us/img166/6836/200611242043531copybb9.jpg
Got a shot of "Fast Mover" - a UFO that nearly ran me over, hehe.

http://img222.imageshack.us/img222/3520/20061124201545203copyll9.jpg
Coming into Area 51. What the heck is that on the ramp?!?!?! :bigeyes:
Good one MS.

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I had to get a closeup shot of, whatever that monster ship was, hope they don't confiscate my camera.

http://img86.imageshack.us/img86/4986/20061124203818750copylc8.jpg
As I taxied to the parking to drop off my secret workers, I got closer to that huge ship. I heard some radio chatter and then the thing dissappeared and these wierd flashing lights where all I could see of it along with a very loud noise. I had to get a closer shot, but it looked liked it would zap my plane.]

http://img19.imageshack.us/img19/8113/20061124203840937copytz0.jpg
From this close proximity the sound was deafening and this is all I could see of it. So this is what the government is working on! hehe, I think the developers had a lot of fun with this one.

Fly some missions on FSX, you'll be rewarded with a lot of eye candy

[Bogusheadbox]

Sorry to burst your bubble on this one... But this mission has major flaws.

Mission starts by rambling about forgetting what you see... Yadda yadda yadda - that is fine.

Then you are asked to start the engines.

Unfortunatley you cannot start the engines in 3d pit. You can hear the starter spooling up, but you cannot get ignite.

However, if you switch to 2d view and regardless of your power supply input, ignition switches open or closed. All you do is flick the fuel cock and the engines start automatically. :nono:

Not to mention the APU is just a silly mindless item that shows a few numbers on the O/H panel and makes no difference to power if on or off.

Also ground navigation lined me up on wrong runway - which i managed to land after a wild final.

Also take note of the switch positions between the 2d pit and the 3d pit. If you change them in one view, they won't be moved in the other.

It lacks a lot of polish!

But agreed. Adding missions is a bonus. But i would have preferred more detailed craft than what they have provided.

[all-fired-up]

Sorry to burst your bubble on this one... But this mission has major flaws.

Mission starts by rambling about forgetting what you see... Yadda yadda yadda - that is fine.

Then you are asked to start the engines.

Unfortunatley you cannot start the engines in 3d pit. You can hear the starter spooling up, but you cannot get ignite.

However, if you switch to 2d view and regardless of your power supply input, ignition switches open or closed. All you do is flick the fuel cock and the engines start automatically. :nono:

Not to mention the APU is just a silly mindless item that shows a few numbers on the O/H panel and makes no difference to power if on or off.

Also ground navigation lined me up on wrong runway - which i managed to land after a wild final.

Also take note of the switch positions between the 2d pit and the 3d pit. If you change them in one view, they won't be moved in the other.

It lacks a lot of polish!

But agreed. Adding missions is a bonus. But i would have preferred more detailed craft than what they have provided.

My bubble can't be burst, no one can change my mind about FSX, I still love it, it's enjoyable, it's educational, and it has great potential and abilities to be added on to. :plane

Sure, I agree that the defaults could be much more detailed, that's why they leave it an open source for the hard-core simmers like us. There was a 737 on FS2004, that was absolutely amazing and much more detailed than the default planes and how they start up and fly. FSX is just, in my opinion, a base to jump off of...and MSFS provides the base graphic engine, and the hard-core simmers do the rest. The point is, that FSX is fun to fly, and they are opening the market to the average person, and this is who it is generally marketed to, in my opinion. The standard version for the average joe, and the delux to the hard-core simmers. I have loved every FS release, and this one is the best so far, I can't wait to see all the add-ons with scenery, panels, and better textured aircraft that will be pouring in, as people have done with other versions. I'm an optimist, if you haven't notied :bigsmile:

:thumb:

[Bogusheadbox]

I enjoy your enthusiasm. And don't get me wrong. I can see the potential behind FSX in the future.

However, i am not quite "savvy" with the accepted ideals of the consumer towards developers these days.

We seem to accept poor production values more and more and respond with a happy smile and a thank you. Consumers now expect games to be shipped with bugs (and i am not talking minor ones here).
Why? Well becuase we have such great modders out there.

But when does modding stop becomming additional improvements and starts entering the realm of fixing what was not done correctly by the developer in the first place?

Take for instance the area 1 mission. The mission directives ask you to start the engines. You cannot continue without starting them. Yet in 3d view, this is not possible.

This is not an easter egg for modders to complete. This is poor production values, poor bug testing and down right lazy quality control.

Here are a few more examples.

The grumman Goose.

The tail wheel lock lever on the 3d pit sits in the unlocked position when in actual fact the lever is locked. You can only read the correct position of the lever when in the 2d pit. Switches don't work in the 3d pit but work in the 2d pit.

A switch moved in the 2d pit won't be in the same position when in the 3d pit. But on some swithces if you hover over in the 3d pit it may or may not read the correct setting even though the switch points to the wrong setting.


These are all bits and pieces that shipped with the default game. These are all bits and pieces that DON'T work.

If they are a feature of the game at release then i expect them to work as advertised !

Sure i can get by on the terrible 3d pit resolutions. Sure i can get by on simple engine management (well almost no engine management). These i expect to be enhanced with 3rd party add ons.

But where does microsoft get off on letting the OBVIOUS bugs and piss poor production ship with our copies expecting the modding community to fix those as well.

Would you be happy in Falcon 4 if your landing gear said down when it was up? Switches didn't move or illuminate when you changed modes? I wouldn't and I expect the same from the stock standard from microsoft.

But we sit here and say thank you to microsoft for not finishing what we have purchased.

Baaah....... Consumers are directly responisble for crap we are dealt and producers know that.

Now that i have ranted. MSFSX will be great. But 3rd party add ons will make that.

[Cobra]

However, if you switch to 2d view and regardless of your power supply input, ignition switches open or closed. All you do is flick the fuel cock and the engines start automatically. :nono:


You are talking about the 737 here aren't you??

Cause on the 737 you have 3 ignition switch settings. L - BOTH - R.

L selects the Left igniter on both engines, R selects the Right igniter on both engines and Both energises both L & R igniter's on both engines.

First flight of the day we start on R and then switch it between L and R for each subsequent sector.

:smile:

[Bogusheadbox]

Yeah there are the 3 modes.

Unfortunatley they don't work. I tried left, i tried right, i tried both, i tried ejecting, fire extinguishers, frying bacon on the MFD, and asking the stewardess for a snog.

(and yes i had the fuel cocks open and closed and thrown out the window :wink2: )

But alas, without scotty down there to gimme more power, i just couldn't get the damn things to work.

But regardless of power to ignition, or which ignition selector i chose. 2d pit fuel cock will start that engine.

[EDIT]

Any chance for a job - I am a lowly hour learner PPL ;-)

[Cobra]

rofl!

yeah .. my point was that is shouldn't matter what position the ignition switch is in .. the engine will start (assuming no failures).

i feel your pain of FSX just from reading above.

PMDG for 2004 wasn't too bad .. i wonder if they will make it available for FSX?

:smile:

there might be a job as a comedian flight sim reviewer going on these boards.

:lol

[Bogusheadbox]

Done !!!
_____

Ok apologies for hijacking the thread.

[all-fired-up]

Yeah I definitely agree that the engine start sequence should be very realistic, the APU, well it just doesn't work. I used APU system on the KC-135R which had a dual apu system. And I've started up the engines on the real KC's. That's the realism that I'd like to see. :smile: