The ability to fly has fascinated mankind since time immemorial.  Just over 220 years ago, the first balloon flight took place.  Just over 100 years ago the Wright brothers along with many other pioneers took to the air in the first powered airplane flights.  Since then, the field of aviation has exploded.  For those who want to fly but are unable for some reason or other, or for just practicing when not in the cockpit, the advent of personal computers brought us Flight Simulator for the PC.  The latest version of this software is Flight Simulator 2004: A Century of Flight by Microsoft.  With this version, you can now experience the flying of and systems of aircraft from the simplest homebuilt to the most complex airliner, all in the comfort of your living room.  And thanks to the expandability built into the software and the hard work of many, many enthusiasts, the realism of the systems, flight models, and scenery has grown tremendously.  Flying'sCool! uses an enhanced version Microsoft Flight Simulator combined with educational tools and hardware which simulate the controls of an airplane to introduce its customers to what it is like to fly an airplane and what they need to know to do it. Compiled here are lists of available aircraft, hardware, and scenery addons to enhance the New England, USA area in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004. I have deliberately tried to show only those addons I use or know to be best in class, so as not to flood you with more options than you can imagine.   There is also a list of links to many web sites run by enthusiasts and companies, offering for free or for sale, software which further enhance Flight Simulator. Finally, a number of tutorials on how to use and enhance Flight Simulator have been included.  These pages are updated frequently, so come back often.  And if you have any questions regarding anything about Flight Simulator, from flying to installation or if you are searching for a particular scenery file, don't hesitate to join us either at the forums or contact me directly by email. With the release of Flight Simulator X in October, 2006, several of these addons are useful for it, but in general FSX has rendered most obsolete.  But they still work great in FS2004! With each class, you'll get a free DVD with much of this software ready to install on your system, and directions on how to obtain and install the rest. Flying'sCool! is not associated in any way with Microsoft (tm) or its product groups.

Essential Scenery Addons for your
Microsoft Flight Simulator installation
for flying in the Northeastern US and Eastern Canada

I've collected links to a number of scenery and support addons for Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004: A Century of Flight for flying in the Northeastern US and Eastern Canada, as well as a number of sceneries for other areas around the U.S.. If you are looking for scenery for other locations, I suggest you also go here or here.  I highly recommend purchasing Ultimate Terrain - USA (and also Ultimate Terrain - Canada and Alaska if you plan to fly up north), as well as FSGenesis US Landclass.  The freeware FSGenesis Mesh (see below) is excellent, but unsupported.  But I have so far only found a couple of very, almost unnoticeable issues in the Northeast.  The mesh available for purchase from FSGenesis is under continual revision and is fully supported.

Freeware (All links to www.Avsim.com unless otherwise noted)
(* - Not needed if Ultimate Terrain:USA is installed)(** - Not needed if Ultimate Terrain:Canada is installed)

Mesh/Landclass/Water - Makes the ground elevation and lakes/rivers/roads, etc. more accurate
	Description	Author	Filename
Download	FreeFlow New England v1.0	Scott Gridley	freeflow_new_england_v1.0.zip
Download	FreeFlow New England v1.0 KBOS Fix	Scott Gridley	ffnekbos.zip
Download	**Canada Roads v2.0	Joel Gill	canada_road_system.zip
Download	**Canada Roads v2.0 - British Columbia Update	Joel Gill	british_columbia_road_system.zip
Download	**Canada Roads v2.0 - New Brunswick Update	Joel Gill	new_brunswick_road_system.zip
Flightsim.com	*United States Roads and Railways file 1	Raimondo Taburet	login and search for usaroad*.zip
Download	* Maine Coastlines	Jim Keir	Maine.zip
Download	* Long Island Coastlines	Dan Baisley	long_island_coastlines.zip
Download	* NY Lakes v1.2	Peter Ricciardiello	nylakes12.zip
Download	Nova Scotia Landclass v2	Rick Zenkner	nova_scotia_landclass.zip
Download	Quebec Landclass	Pascal Fleury	quebec_landclass.zip
Download	Ottawa Landclass	Roger Wensley	Ottland1.zip
Download	Canada Mesh 76m - Maritime States Mesh 1	Gilles Gauthier	Maritimes09a.zip
Download	Canada Mesh 76m - Maritime States Mesh 2	Gilles Gauthier	Maritimes09b.zip
Download	Canada Mesh 76m - Maritime States Mesh Update	Gilles Gauthier	Maritimes09_update.zip
Download	Canada Mesh 76m - St. Laurence Islands Mesh	Gilles Gauthier	ilesstlaurentqc.zip
Download	Canada Mesh 76m - Quebec 1	Gilles Gauthier	qc09_2k4a.zip
Download	Canada Mesh 76m - Quebec 2	Gilles Gauthier	qc09_2k4b.zip
Download	Canada Mesh 76m - Quebec 3	Gilles Gauthier	qc09_2k4c.zip
Download	Canada Mesh 76m - Quebec 4	Gilles Gauthier	qc09_2k4d.zip
Download	Canada Mesh 76m - Scenery Enhancement	Gilles Gauthier	scenes_du_quebec_2k4.zip
Download	Canada Mesh 76m - Scenery Update	Gilles Gauthier	scenes_du_quebec_2k4_maj1.zip
Download	Canada Mesh 76m - NW Ontario	Paul Morrison	nwont_133320.zip
Download	Canada Mesh 76m - Southern Ontario	David Voogd	NEOnt.zip
Download	Canada Mesh 76m - NE Ontario	David Voogd	Sontmesh.zip
Download	Canada Mesh 76m - Southern Canadian Rockies	Holger Sandmann	sebclod9.zip
Download	USA Mesh 38.2m - West Full Install	FSGenesis/Justin Tyme
Download	USA Mesh 38.2m - Rockies Full Install	FSGenesis/Justin Tyme
Download	USA Mesh 38.2m - NE & Applachians - Blue Ridge, VA	FSGenesis/Justin Tyme
Download	USA Mesh 38.2m - NE & Applachians - Boston, MA	FSGenesis/Justin Tyme
Download	USA Mesh 38.2m - NE & Applachians - Cape Hatteras	FSGenesis/Justin Tyme
Download	USA Mesh 38.2m - NE & Applachians - Chesapeake Bay	FSGenesis/Justin Tyme
Download	USA Mesh 38.2m - NE & Applachians - Chicago, Ill	FSGenesis/Justin Tyme
Download	USA Mesh 38.2m - NE & Applachians - Hudson River	FSGenesis/Justin Tyme
Download	USA Mesh 38.2m - NE & Applachians - Lake Erie	FSGenesis/Justin Tyme
Download	USA Mesh 38.2m - NE & Applachians - Lake Superior	FSGenesis/Justin Tyme
Download	USA Mesh 38.2m - NE & Applachians - Lookout Mtns	FSGenesis/Justin Tyme
Download	USA Mesh 38.2m - NE & Applachians - Louisville, KY	FSGenesis/Justin Tyme
Download	USA Mesh 38.2m - NE & Applachians - Ottawa	FSGenesis/Justin Tyme
Download	USA Mesh 38.2m - NE & Applachians - Quebec	FSGenesis/Justin Tyme
Download	USA Mesh 38.2m - NE & Applachians - Savannah, GA	FSGenesis/Justin Tyme
Download	USA Mesh 38.2m - NE & Applachians - Sudsbury	FSGenesis/Justin Tyme
Search	USA Mesh 38.2m	FSGenesis/Justin Tyme
Download	Beta evaluation version of USA Landclass	FSGenesis

 

Enhanced Airports
	Description	Author	Filename
Download	KBOS v2.0	George Grimshaw	boston_logan_1.1.zip
Download	Cape Cod Airports - KACK Nantucket, MA	William Shea	kack.zip
Download	Cape Cod Airports - KACK Nantucket, MA Fix	William Shea	kackfix.zip
Download	Cape Cod Airports - KMVY Martha's Vineyard, MA	William Shea	kmvy.zip
Download	Cape Cod Airports - 1B2 Katana Airpark, Martha's Vineyard, MA	William Shea	k1b2.zip
Download	Cape Cod Airports - KHYN Hyannis, MA	William Shea	khyn.zip
Download	Cape Cod Airports - KBID Block Island, RI	William Shea	kbid.zip
Download	KASH - Nashua, NH	Thomas Perry	kashb.zip
Download	8B1 - Hillsboro, NH	Thomas Perry	k8b1b.zip
Download	KBDL - Bradley Airport, Windsor Locks, CT	Phil Chimbolo	bdl2005_v1-00.zip
Download	KBUF - Buffalo, NY	Simon Baldwin	buffalo.zip
Download	KROC - Rochester, NY	Simon Baldwin	rochester.zip
Download	KROC - Rochester, NY Fix	Simon Baldwin	rochester_fix.zip
Download	KISP - LI MacArthur, Islip, NY	Phil Perlman	ksip_fs2004v2.zip
Download	KISP - LI MacArthur, Islip, NY AFCAD	Phil Perlman	af2_kisp2.zip
Download	KLGA - LaGuardia Airport, NY, NY	Shehryar Ansari	lga2004.zip
Download	KLGA - LaGuardia Airport, NY, NY fix	Shehryar Ansari	lga2004fix.zip
Download	Airports of Newfoundland - AFCADs	Lee Brompton	lb_nfld.zip
Download	Airports of Vermont - AFCADs	Brian Gladden	vt_airports_04.zip
Download	6B0 - Middlebury, VT	Robert Williams	6b0_scen.zip
Download	CYHZ - Halifax, Nova Scotia	Steve Mosher, Craig Mosher	CYHZ_v10.zip
Download	CYQM - Moncton, New Brunswick	Steve Mosher, Craig Mosher	CYQM_v10.zip
Download	CYYT - St. John's, Newfoundland	Steve Mosher, Craig Mosher	CYYT_v10.zip
Download	CYHZ - Halifax, Nova Scotia AFCAD	Lee Brompton	lb_yhzxw.zip
Download	CYQM - Moncton, New Brunswick AFCAD	Lee Brompton	lb_yqmxw.zip
Download	CYYT - St. John's, Newfoundland AFCAD	Lee Brompton	lb_yytxw.zip
Download	FS2k4 Update for Mosher Brothers' CYHZ, CYQM, CYYT	Shane Strong	maritime.zip
Download	CYGK - Norman Rogers Airport Kingston, Ontario	Keith Murphy	cygk.zip
Download	CYQG - Windsor, Ontario	Garvin Barnicoat	cyqg_04.zip
Search	Quebec Short Hops Series - Search for files at www.avsim.com	Leon Louis
Search	John Loney has recreated many, many airports in the Northeast US and elsewhere.	John B. Loney, Jr.

 

Enhanced Scenery
	Description	Author	Filename
Download	Tyngsboro Bridge - Tyngsboro, MA	Thomas Perry	tyngsboro.zip
Download	Haystack Observatory - Westford, MA	Larry Silsby	haystack_149932.zip
Download	NY Bridges	Thomas Perry	nybrdg21.zip
Download	Statue of Liberty	Daniel Buechter	liberty3.zip
Download	NYC Buildings updates	Tatu Kantomaa	nyc_obj3.zip
Download	Greater Toronto Part 1	Team Flight Ontario	flight_ontario_part1.zip
Download	Greater Toronto Part 2	Team Flight Ontario	flight_ontario_part2.zip
Download	Thunder Bay Ontario inc. CYQT & CKG8 v2	Team Flight Ontario	Thunderbay2.zip
Download	*Lake Erie Coastline Fix	Scott Smart	lkeriehp.zip
Download	*Pelee Island Coastline Fix	Garvin Barnicoat	peleisnd_zip.zip
Download	*Great Lakes Coastline Fix	Garvin Barnicoat	grt_lks_sndbar_fix.zip

 

Essential Files
	Description	Author	Filename
Download	FSUIPC - This is a must!!! Be sure to get latest version.	Pete Dowson	fsuipc.zip
Download	Flightsim Manager v2.85 - This is a must!!!	Rana Hossain - Ranainside	fsm285.zip
Download	TreeGen tree texture replacements - This is a must!!! Trees become more realistic in size and multiply without affecting framerate	Feng Zhu	treegen.zip
Download	Wood and Desert Environment Textures	Marcel Aerni	2004_wood_desert.zip
Download	Runway Textures	Nazim Ali Patel	airland1.zip
Download	Nova Textures 1 - Needed for many scenery addons.	Rafael Garcia Sánchez	NovaTxt1.zip
Download	Nova Textures 2 - Needed for many scenery addons.	Rafael Garcia Sánchez	NovaTxt2.zip
Download	Nova Textures 3 - Needed for many scenery addons.	Rafael Garcia Sánchez	NovaTxt3.zip
Download	Nova Gold Textures - Needed for many scenery addons.	Rafael Garcia Sánchez	NovaGt1.zip
Download	NovaSim Textures - Needed for many scenery addons.	Rafael Garcia Sánchez	Nstext1.zip
Download	Airport for Windows Textures - Needed for many scenery addons.	Tom Hiscox	Airport%20v2.60%20Textures.zip
Download	Airport & Scenery Designer Textures - Needed for many scenery addons.	Abacus	asdv21_textures.zip
Download	Gerrish Gray's Tree Library	Gerrish Gray	trees_v3.zip
Download	RWY 12 Scenery Design tool and library Be sure to download all libraries, too.	Israel Roth and Seev Kahn	rwy12_program_v1.2.zip

 

Environment Addons - Try them out, see which ones you like.
	Description	Author	Filename
Download	Cloud Replacement Library v3	Brian Selb	cloudfix_v3.zip
Download	Cloud Replacement Library	Sascha Rieger	realskies.zip
Download	Cloud Replacement Library	Sascha Rieger	realskies.zip
Download	Cloud Replacement Library v2 128x128 85kb	Bart Dylkiewicz	res3dcloudtexv2.zip
Download	Cloud Replacement Library v4 128x128 22kb	Bart Dylkiewicz	res3dcloudtexv4.zip
Download	Cloud Replacement Library v5 128x128 16kb	Bart Dylkiewicz	res3dcloudtexv5.zip
Download	EnvMap Replacement file - Controls Reflections	Bart Dylkiewicz	resenvmaptex.zip
Download	EnvMap Replacement file - Controls Reflections	Maxwell Wells	new_envmap.zip

 

Special Mention - Not in the NE, but too good to miss.
	Description	Author	Filename
Search	Holger Sandmann's Scenery addons and mesh; including scenery for NW US and Western Canada and Alaska, as well as new mesh for the Alps and Himalayas	Holger Sandmann	See this thread to determine which files you need

 

Payware

Payware Products you must have.
To Order	Description	Author
Ultimate Terrain: USA	Road/Water/Landclass Enhancement Kit for the USA	Scenery Solutions
Ultimate Terrain: Canada & Alaska	Road/Water/Landclass Enhancement Kit for Canada and Alaska	Scenery Solutions
Ultimate Terrain: Europe	Road/Water/Landclass Enhancement Kit for Europe	Scenery Solutions
US Landclass	Landclass Enhancement Kit for the USA	FSGenesis
38m Mesh	Elevation Enhancement for the world	FSGenesis
Misty Fjords	Scenery enhancement for Alaska	Misty Moorings

 

Highly recommended Payware Products
To Order	Description	Author
Active Sky	Weather Enhancement	HiFi Simulation Software
Bird'sEyeView	Texture Replacement for the USA and World	BirdsEyeView
Flight Environment	Weather replacement textures	Peter Wilding
Ground Environment	Texture Replacement for the World	Peter Wilding & Anthony Vos
FS Water	Replacement water textures	Peter Wilding
Active Camera	Enhance your views	AnitCyclonE Software

Essential Aircraft Addons for your
Microsoft Flight Simulator installation

I've collected some links to a few my favorite aircraft available for Flight Simulator, both Freeware and Payware. This is just a small sampling of what is available, I highly recommend searching the many websites available for the aircraft you like. I list a number of great sites under the "Links" section.  Notably Tom Gibson's "California Classics" for classic propliners is great, as well as Milton Shupe's aircraft and Bill Lyons'.  There are many others.  I fly almost exclusively from the Virtual Cockpit view, so you will note that all the aircraft I have chosen here have a VC Cockpit.

Default Aircraft
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Beechcraft B-58 Baron

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Beechcraft King Air 350

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Bell 206

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Boeing 737-400

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Boeing 747-400

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Boeing 777-300

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Cessna 172

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Cessna 182

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Cessna 208

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Curtiss Jenny

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De Havilland DH88 Comet

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Douglas DC-3

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Extra 300

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Ford Trimotor

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Gates Learjet 45

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Lockheed Vega

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Mooney Bravo

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Piper J3 Cub

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Robinson R22

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Ryan Spirit of St. Louis

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Vickers Vimy

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Wright Flyer 1903

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Freeware Aircraft
(Click on the name to download the aircraft.  Use the selection boxes on the top row to filter by type.)
(All download links to www.Avsim.com unless otherwise noted) - Don't forget to search for repaints, too!
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Flying'sCool!

Aeronca Champ - LI Classics

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Air Tractor AT-802A - Brian Gladden

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Albatros - Stuart Green

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ATR 42/72 - F. Sánchez-Castañer

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Ayres Turbo Thrush - Marcel du Plessis

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BAC 111 - David Maltby

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Beechcraft B-58 Baron 1 2

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Beechcraft 17S Staggerwing - SimTech

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Beechcraft Model 18 1 2 3

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Bell 206 - Owen Hewitt

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Bell 412 - Jordan Moore

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Bell UH1D - Deane Baunton

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Bell UH1H - Jordan Moore

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Bellanca 8KCAB Decathlon - LI Classics

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Boeing 737-700 - F & G Falanghe

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Boeing 747-400 - iFly

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Boeing 757-200 - Project Opensky

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Boeing 777-300 - MelJet

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Boeing F-18 Super Hornet - Team FS KBT

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Boeing-Stearman 75 - Robert Sanderson

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Cessna 172 - RealAir

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Christen Eagle II - LI Classics

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Cirrus SR20 - Guenter Kraemer

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DH DH89a Dragon Rapide - Dave Garwood

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DH Canada DHC-2 Beaver - J. Woodward

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DHC-3 Otter PZL - Eugene Heyart

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DH Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter - PAD

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DH Canada DHC-8 Dash8 - PAD

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Douglas DC-4 - J.Kristensen

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Fairchild C-119 - Daisuke Yamamoto

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Gates Learjet 25 - Yann Koun

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Grumman G21 Goose - Bill Lyons

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Hawker Hurricane - Robert Sanderson

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Lockheed C-130 - Brian Franklin

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Lockheed Martin F-16 Viper - Kirk Olsson

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Lockheed P-3C - Team FS KBT

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Lockheed P-38J,L - David Copley

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McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle - Coral-FLT

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Messerschmitt ME-109

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North American AT-6F Texan - Cliff Presley

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North Ashmerican P-51D - Warwick Carter

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North American F-86F - Dog Patch Crew

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North American/Ryan Navion - Tim Conrad

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North American T-28A,C - Tim Conrad

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Pilatus PC-12 - AFG

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Piper J3 Cub - Bill Lyons

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Quad City Challenger - Bill Lyons

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Republic P-47M Thunderbolt - Tom Kohler

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Rockwell AC 520 - Milton Shupe

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Rockwell AC 680 - Milton Shupe

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Sopwith Camel - Dave Eckert

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Spad VII - Stuart Green

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Vought F4U-7/AU-1 Corsair - Hulin Guy

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Payware Aircraft
(Click on the name to purchase the airplane.  Use the selection boxes on the top row to filter by type.)
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ATR 72-500 - Flight One

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Beechcraft T-34 - Carenado

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Beechcraft Baron - Dreamfleet

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Beechcraft Bonanza - Dreamfleet

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Beechcraft B-200 - Aeroworx

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Boeing 727   -   Dreamfleet

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Boeing 737-600   -   PMDG

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Boeing 747-400   -   PMDG

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Boeing 757-200 - CaptainSim

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Boeing 767-400 - Level-D

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Cessna 182 RG - Carenado

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Cessna 206 - Carenado

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Cirrus SR-20/22 - Eaglesoft

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Decathalon  - RealAir Simulations

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DHC-2 Beaver  - Aerosoft

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Douglas R4D (DC-3) - MAAM-Sim

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Lockheed C-130 - CaptainSim

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NA P-51 Mustang - Wings of Power

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NA B-25 Mitchell - MAAM-Sim

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Piper Cherokee 180 - Carenado

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Piper Archer II - Carenado

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Piper Archer - Dreamfleet

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Piper Warrior - Australian Simulations

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Piper Seneca II - Just Flight.

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Supermarine Spitfire  - RealAir Simulations

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Vought Corsair  - Aeroplane Heaven

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Installing Microsoft Flight Simulator
Daunted by the amount of software available and wondering how to get a good, working installation installed?

Click Here for a step by step process sheet I use when I install Microsoft Flight Simulator on a system. In order to understand this process, you must be familiar with moving and copying files in Windows.  Please see FS9 Directory Structure for a description of where FS9 expects to find the files you will be installing.  If you are not familiar with how to manipulate and move files around, I offer services to help you install the software.  Give me a call and we can set up an agreement and I'll help you get set up.  I charge $25/hour ($15 minimum on first call), or you can choose a package installation deal.  Quick email help is free.  The references to Disk1 and Disk2 are the disks I give away with my class, but all the files listed below, except those that are payware, are freeware available at www.Avsim.com and www.flightsim.com and other sites.  FS9 is the directory you installed Flight Simulator.

Installation tips: Aircraft
Installation tips: Scenery

Whenever you are installing software, it is a good idea to back up the files which are about to be overwritten with newer versions, or to deactivate instead of deleting files which are no longer needed.  To deactivate a file, you need only change its extension to something unrecognizable to FS.  And make sure to VERY CAREFULLY follow the author's installation instructions in every addon you install.  You will almost always find a readme file with each addon you download.

Aircraft:   (top)
Downloaded aircraft come in two forms, those with self-installers, and those in .zip files that you need to install.  In the end, they both install the same thing.  They will typically contain files for the Aircraft, Effects, and Gauges directories, and every so often a few files in the FS9\Textures directory  (see FS9 Directory Structure).  Always be careful to read the installation instructions.  I'll cover installation of aircraft in two steps, that of .zip files, and that of self-installers. 

Zip Files: Open the zip file.  They will come in many different variations of how the author stored the files in the zip file.  Look for a directory containing the aircraft directories and place this directory in FS9/Aircraft.  You may want to edit the aircraft.cfg file to modify the manufacturer, type, and variation to your liking.  Then look for any gauges and/or effects files you'll need to install.  Often, they will have their own directories that you can just copy their contents to the FS9/Gauges and FS9/Effects directories respectively.  Sometimes, you'll find gauge files in the Aircraft\PlaneXXX\Panel directory that need to be put in the main FS9\Gauges directory.  Finally, once the plane is installed, I'll run FlightSim Manager and use its diagnostic tools to make sure all the gauges and effects and components have been correctly installed.  This should be all you need to do to install the aircraft.

Self-Installers: Self-installers can be a good thing.  They offer the ability to ease installation for those unfamiliar with the process.  They usually allow you to uninstall the product when you don't want it any more.  For many reasons, however, I prefer to install most addons in FS9 by hand.  For instance, an uninstaller may delete a gauge that is being used by another aircraft.  So for payware aircraft, mostly out of fear of screwing up the security, I'll just use the installer as it was designed.  But for most freeware aircraft, I'll normally install the aircraft to C:\wutemp\Flight Simulator 9, check out what files were installed, and then install them where they need to go.  This way, I won't accidentally overwrite any existing files that may be newer, and it gives me more control over the installation.  After that, as above, I'll run FlightSim Manager to make sure the installation is ok.

Definitely check out  FS9 Directory Structure to understand the directory structure of Aircraft, and look through a few aircraft.cfg files to become more familiar with how this structrue works.

In Flight Simulator X, the procedure is basically the same, the only difference now being that the aircraft directory is now in the FSX\SimObjects\ directory.  Everything else is pretty much the same, except that the user now has more control over where files can be stored.  I'll write more about that after the SDK has been released.

Scenery:   (top)
When adding scenery to Flight Simulator (FS), you must tell FS where to find it. To do this, start FS and go to Settings/Scenery Library. You will see a screen which looks like this (fig. 1).  Use the "Add Area..." command to add new scenery libraries to your installation once you have copied them appropriately to the Addon Scenery directory or installed them with their installer (if they came with one)..

Scenery is stored in directories on your disk (see FS9 Directory Structure).  Typically, a given scenery or airport library is installed in a directory under FS9\Addon Scenery.  For instance FS9\Addon Scenery\XXX, where XXX is the name of the directory containing the scenery library.  The XXX directory will contain two more directories, one called "Scenery" and the other called "Texture" (NOT "Textures"!).  Their spelling is very important!

Once you have added a scenery library to the list, the order of the libraries in the "Area List" is very important.  For all the different types of sceneries, except for mesh, having a lower number value in the list gives it a higher priority, 1 being the highest priority.  Those items (except for mesh) at the bottom of the list are read first, and then the libraries are successively drawn on top of the last result as you move higher in the list (towards lower number values).  So you will typically want the more important libraries you install higher in the list.  I put my terrain files lowest, landclass on top of that, sceneries on top of that, and then the airports.  Despite what you might read in some places, landclass is like all other scenery and follows the same priority rules.  Most developers suggest you install their landclass libraries with a lower priority than their scenery libraries, but read the directions to be sure.

Mesh libraries are read in the opposite direction.  The Mesh library with the lowest number (higher in the list) is read first, and then subsequent mesh libraries are read going downward (towards higher number values).  For this reason, I typically move the default LOD 8, 9, and 10 mesh files into their own library, so I can install that library as item 1 in the list.  That way, if any scenery has its own mesh, the mesh files of the addon scenery will have a higher priority than the default mesh.  Despite the priority order of the mesh, it is my understanding that FS will use an LOD 10 mesh instead of an LOD 9 mesh, and so on.  But if you have two LOD 10 meshes, the mesh with the higher priority (higher priority value) will take precedence.

Given these rules, my Addon scenery libraries are in the following order in the Flight Simulator Scenery Library manager window:

1. "Default  Mesh" library
2. Addon Mesh libraries
3. Airport libraries
4. General Scenery libraries
5. Roads libraries
6. Default and addon photoreal city libraries
7. Landclass libraries
6. UT City landclass library
7. FSGenesis Landclass library
8. Ultimate Terrain libraries
9. "FreeFlow NE" (normal and modified for UT (see above)) libraries
10. Default Regional Scenery libraries (Scenery\Afri, NAME, etc.)
11. "Corrected Airport Elevations"Library (see Moving Default Airports)
12. "Default Scenery" library
13. "Default Terrain" library

I highly recommend downloading and installing "Flightsim Manager" (FSM) by Ranainside.  Rather than using the primitive Move Up/Move Down buttons in FS's scenery library manager, FSM allows you to easily move items around in groups in the list once you've added the libraries using FS's Scenery Library Editor.  And every time I install new addons, I use FSM's checking facilities to check the scenery.cfg file and repair it if necessary (which is often).

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Portals

Online - One of THE BEST Flight Simulator portals/File Library/Forum sites "The World's #1 Flightsim Site" SimHQ - The Simulation Community's Headquarters Planesimulation - Flight Simulator 2000, 2002, 2004 and CFS2 add-ons Simviation - taking PC Flight Simulation to the max! - Some great scenery for Florida, New England, Bermuda, and the Bahamas, as well as tutorials and other great stuff - Dedicated to the development and support of combat aircraft for MSFS, CFS2, CFS3 and other simulations

Education

Flight Simulator Navigation FlightSim.Com How To - VOR-DME Arc Approaches for Pilots Stoenworks Aviation Home Page Videos from many types of aircraft showing procedures and flight from takeoff to landing

Multiplayer

VATSIM.net - Virtual Air Traffic Flight Simulation Network IVAO - International Virtual Aviation Organization Bush Flying Unlimited - At Home in the Wild !

System Performance

FS-GS - Looking to increase your system performance?  Here is an excellent resource!

Addons and Utilities

Freeware

Aircraft Developers

FlightsimOnline - Milton Shupe Long Island Classics daviator.com - Vintage Aircraft for Microsoft Flight Simulator Günters Flusi Seite  Project Open Sky FDX AMM improves aircraft and more... DM Flight Sim - Classic British Jet Airliners for MSFS - David Maltby SimShed - Brian Franklin

Scenery Developers

fly-heather.avsim.net - If you're looking for freeware scenery, you'll find it here. - Some great scenery for Florida, New England, Bermuda, and the Bahamas, as well as tutorials and other great stuff Misty Moorings, Inc - Addons, information, and a gathering place for Misty Fjords Alaskan Scenery. Misty Fjords can be purchased at simMarket.com. - Creating realistic representations of Canadian airports FS Nordic File Library FlightSim.no Filer FS2004-Scenery-Europa-Norge John B. Loney, Jr.'s Flight Sim Scenery Design

Utilities

The Official Peter Dowson Page - FSUIPC, WideFS, and much more... Airport for Windows - Graphical Airport Design Software SCASM - the scenery assembler FlightSim Stuff - Jim Keir's Utilities Ultimate GA SquawkBox AirEd and More - Microsoft FS Aircraft Dynamics and Navdata - Software, links and documentation (Scroll down page to find file) RanaInside - new media design company Runway 12

Payware

Full Service Providers

Aircraft Developers

Help support the restoration and maintenance  of some classic birds

Scenery Developers

. . . enhancing the nature of Microsoft Flight Simulator since 1996 . . . Misty Fjords Alaskan Scenery by Holger Sandmann - Do NOT miss this!. Misty Fjords can be purchased at simMarket.com. Scenery Texture Enhancements "It's a new world of flying!" Airport scenery around the world

Utilities

Enhance your weather for MSFS The Premier Cockpit Environment for FS2004 "Edit Flight Simulator Panels with ease!" Enhance the realism of your MSFS ATC Voice Buddy Interactive Voice Control Version 3.0 Voice Activated Interactive ATC for MSFS

Tutorials
Looking to Learn?

Here are some links to tutorials covering various aspects or Microsoft Flight Simulator, from navigation to scenery design and other topics.  At the bottom of the list are links to other sites containing even more tutorials.

Flying

Av8n.com - A new spin on the perceptions, procedures, and principles of flying

Navigation

Flight Simulator Navigation

FlightSim.Com How To - VOR-DME Arc Approaches for Pilots

Stoenworks Aviation Home Page

Scenery Design

Moving Default Airports

Moving Default Airports 2 - Scott Gridley

Installation Management

Further sites with tutorials and other learning tools and forums

Microsoft Flight Simulator Century of Flight Portals

Online - One of THE BEST Flight Simulator portals/File Library/Forum sites

  - "The World's #1 Flightsim Site"

SimHQ - The Simulation Community's Headquarters

Planesimulation - Flight Simulator 2000, 2002, 2004 and CFS2 add-ons

Simviation - taking PC Flight Simulation to the max!

  FS-GS - Great forum for learning to use Paint Shop Pro and Photoshop!

- Some great scenery for Florida, New England, Bermuda, and the Bahamas, as well as tutorials and other great stuff

- Dedicated to the development and support of combat aircraft for MSFS, CFS2, CFS3 and other simulations