IndiaFoxTecho Sukhoi Su-31 Released

[Bomber_12th]

I recall this one has been in development since even before or just after MSFS was released, and I've been looking forward to it ever since the first screenshots were shared.

https://secure.simmarket.com/indiafo...-31-msfs.phtml

This is yet another fantastic product by Dino Cattaneo. I've always liked the looks of the design, and I was thinking of possibly doing a US Navy Bearcat inspired repaint for it. The visuals and sounds are excellent, and it is very aerobatic in feel. I still need to spend more time with it to see how much you can do with it "aerobatically". The smoke system works by using the "L" key.

[Bomber_12th]

[Paul K]

Not my sort of plane in simming, but it looks gorgeous. And coming from Dino, it's bound to fly just as nicely.

[Tom Clayton]

Is that supposed to be Svetlana Kapanina in the cockpit?

[Bomber_12th]

Is that supposed to be Svetlana Kapanina in the cockpit?

I sort of thought that way, but it is the same pilot model as one of those which Dino also used in his Rutan Long-EZ as well.

[Bomber_12th]

I finally made time to do some flying today with the 1.0.1 update installed which was released a few days ago.

The Version 1.0.1 update features:
- Changed engine gills outlet painting
- Increased smoke effect persistence and tweaked transparency and size
- Fixed engine sounds cones orientation
- Fixed position of wheel chocks
- Fixed throttle lever animation length
- Fixed minor misalignment in wing texturing
- Fixed minor modeling alignment in wing tip geometry

[Bomber_12th]

[LostPilot]

I know that some aerobatics are not yet possible given sim limitations, but regardless this is the most fun I've had in sim in a long time. I'm not even into this type of plane normally, but it's a ton of fun to fly.

[Javis]

I know that some aerobatics are not yet possible given sim limitations..

1995, i mean, 27 years ago !

We, flitesimnuts, could hop inside a Decathlon, Extra 300S, Pitts Special or Su-31 and learn about the ins and outs of aerobatic flying "on the fly" by a real world aerobatic champignon instructor virtually sitting behind us in the cockpit. 'Flight Unlimited' it was called and i had some of the best ever exiting experiences with a flightsimulator ever ! Feelings that even today have not been surpassed. When it comes to virtual aerobatics never ever has there been anything like Flight Unlimited again.

How in our virtual flying world could something like that happen ??!! Don't we like aerobatics ?? Then why all these Pitts-Specials, Extra's and Sukhoi's still being delivered to our virtual hangars ?.... Can we fly a Cuban 8 by the book ? No, not really, because there's no instructor to teach us. Can we fly a Knife Edge Pass ? No, not at all, because our precious sim can't handle that.

We deffinately could with Flight Unlimited ! 27 years ago !!

It's like releasing a wonderful float plane and yet do nothing about the deplorable state of water effects. Like releasing an airrace theme but no racing against AI. And thus releasing aerobatic planes but find out yourself how to actually fly aerobatics, if the sim will let you in the first place.

You know what we call something like that in the Netherlands ?? "Er met de pet naar gooien !" ( " throw a hat at it !" ;-)

Old people always say " everything was better in the old days" and i hate that ( i'm old people too but take care not to fall into that trap) but when it comes to simulated aerobatics i can't do nothing else than agree to that 100%.

Just saying

[LostPilot]

'Flight Unlimited' it was called and i had some of the best ever exiting experiences with a flightsimulator ever !

Oh absolutely. Flight Unlimited is why I'm a simmer today!

[Javis]

Oh absolutely. Flight Unlimited is why I'm a simmer today!

Good for you !

It was flightsimming but from quite a different angle as we were used to with FS. A strong point and also the beauty of it. I am really surprised no flightsim dev seems to have ever thought about developing a sort of 'Flight Unlimited Today' i.e. a flightsim totally and only focused on aerobatics (and maybe airracing alongside..) concentrated on various beautiful sceneries around the world which could be bought seperately (sorta like the 'Real Flight' RC sim). Well, "Flight Unlimited 22" so to speak.

That would be cool, wouldn't it !

[modelr]

I well remember Flight Unlimited. An updated version would definitely compete with MSFS! The flight dynamics were much better than most anything MS has ever put out.

[jmig]

Good for you !

It was flightsimming but from quite a different angle as we were used to with FS. A strong point and also the beauty of it. I am really surprised no flightsim dev seems to have ever thought about developing a sort of 'Flight Unlimited Today' i.e. a flightsim totally and only focused on aerobatics (and maybe airracing alongside..) concentrated on various beautiful sceneries around the world which could be bought seperately (sorta like the 'Real Flight' RC sim). Well, "Flight Unlimited 22" so to speak.

That would be cool, wouldn't it !

DCS has a couple of aerobatic aircraft. I bought one and flew it a couple of times. I find simulated aerobatics become boring quickly. Without the seat of the pants feel, something is really missing to me.

[ak416]

Does anyone own this and the GotFriends Gee Bee R3? I'm curious how the flight model compares because the Gee Bee is something special. If you think the sim is the limiting factor for aerobatics the Gee Bee R3 puts that notion to rest. Stalls, spins, knife edges, hammerheads, you name it and it's capable of doing it. Which is why I am so curious to see how it compares to the Sukhoi. I'll end up picking it up eventually because I always support Dino's work but I haven't had time to fly lately and want to know how excited I should be for this.

[Priller]

Does anyone own this and the GotFriends Gee Bee R3? I'm curious how the flight model compares because the Gee Bee is something special. If you think the sim is the limiting factor for aerobatics the Gee Bee R3 puts that notion to rest. Stalls, spins, knife edges, hammerheads, you name it and it's capable of doing it. Which is why I am so curious to see how it compares to the Sukhoi. I'll end up picking it up eventually because I always support Dino's work but I haven't had time to fly lately and want to know how excited I should be for this.

There's a big difference. The Gee Bee is a racer, whereby this one is an aerobatic plane!

Priller

[ak416]

There's a big difference. The Gee Bee is a racer, whereby this one is an aerobatic plane!

Priller

It's both but my point is that the GotFriends Gee Bee is actually capable of aerobatics and performs them as you would expect, while something like the default Pitts, an aircraft that is more than capable of aerobatics, will fight you every step of the way when trying to perform the same maneuvers. I want to know if Dino's Su-31 is capable performing aerobatics in the sim, the same way it's capable of performing them in real life.

The sim is not the determining factor here, the flight model is.

[Javis]

DCS has a couple of aerobatic aircraft. I bought one and flew it a couple of times.

Didn't know that, thanks for the tip ! You mean Christen Eagle ?...

I found this under 'key features' : Interactive voice-over training missions. Learn to start up, taxi, takeoff, and land like a real pilot.

What's blatantly missing here is : "Learn the basic aerobatic manoeuvres like a real pilot" ... It's always like that, isn't it, when it comes down to the nitty-gritty nobody's home....

I find simulated aerobatics become boring quickly. Without the seat of the pants feel, something is really missing to me.

Well, that can only be true if you've flown aerobatics for real, right ?

Did you ever have Flight Unlimited ? ( alright, 27 years ago! ) I assume not because that just wasn't boring at all. Far from it ! Great challenge to try and fly all aerobatic manoeuvres in a row like it's done for real. And having learned to fly them 'by the book' thru instructor instructions. ( can't remember exactly but that may have been even without a replay option... Replay your aerobatic skylarking can never be boring, can it ;-)

Boring to me is : flying an aerobatic plane and do a loop, a roll and even an immelman and that's about it. And with our precious MSFS we can't even play that back or see it as a spectator, atleast not by just clicking the option.

In DCS doing aerobatics must be great because it has one of the best Fly-By views i've ever seen ( and heard !! ) But no aerobatics instructor is no enthusiasm for me.

Btw, this looks pretty cool to me and not boring at all : https://youtu.be/2PTbEiPRMrA

[Bomber_12th]

I don't have the GotFriends Gee Bee R3 (not interested in a fantasy plane), so I can't compare. I do know that I can't seem to get this one to snap roll, and it takes the torque of the prop to do a good hammerhead. It will spin out of a stall. I am curious, with the Gotfriends Gee Bee R3, if it can be stalled inverted? That seems to be a limiting factor of both MSFS and DCS, that no plane can do so in either of the sims, which prevents one from being able to do such things as an inverted spin.

I personally get most enjoyment out of these planes just for their looks, sounds, performance, and mastering takeoffs/landings/pattern work, etc. However, I have a history of having enjoyed doing aerobatics (namely with single-engine warbirds) in FS substantially more than just point A to point B flights - that all of course changed with MSFS, however, since taking in the scenery is now such a big part of the enjoyment as well. Even if all I'm doing is flying straight in level, cross-country, it is awfully darn cool to be doing so looking out of the cockpit, or "flying alongside", of a Sukhoi Su-31.

[Javis]

The sim is not the determining factor here, the flight model is.

Certainly no expert but any flightsim coming from MS will not let you fly a plane 90 deg on its side in a straight line using rudder as elevator and elevator as rudder. No flightmodel (yet) that can deal with that. AFAIK the only flightsim ever that would let you do a proper Knife Edge was Flight Unlimited in 1995....

Not really exactly true... With the RC simulator 'Real Flight' you can do a perfect Knife Edge pass if you're good enough... ( sjeeesh....i've seen Real Flight vids where RC helicopters are being thrown around the virtual sky like a leave playing in the wind. I was happy i could get a (practise) heli to take off and stay in the air for a minute or two.. I *did* learn to vertically take-off, fly and vertically land the Convair XFY-1 Pogo. Pretty proud of that! ;-)

[jmig]

Didn't know that, thanks for the tip ! You mean Christen Eagle ?... Yes! I think they have a Sukhoi also.


Well, that can only be true if you've flown aerobatics for real, right ? Again yes!

Did you ever have Flight Unlimited ? ( alright, 27 years ago! ) If I did, I didn't fly it enough to remember. I am aware of the program.

Boring to me is : flying an aerobatic plane and do a loop, a roll and even an immelman and that's about it. That will be me. I did once put together a series of maneuvers to fly. I even drew up one of those cards that has the symbols of each maneuver. Maybe I should try that again.

[Javis]

I well remember Flight Unlimited. An updated version would definitely compete with MSFS! The flight dynamics were much better than most anything MS has ever put out.

Indeed!

Project leader Seamus Blackley, a particle physicist and amateur pilot, conceived the game in 1992. He felt that other flight simulators failed to convey the experience of real flight, and he reacted by coding a simulated atmosphere for Flight Unlimited based on real-time computational fluid dynamics. Aerobatic pilot Michael Goulian endorsed the game and assisted the team in making it more true to life.

It is said that Mr. Blackley now works for MS' Xbox project so he is atleast at the right place. Time will tell...