Pilot's Boeing Clipper B314 revisited...

Post by **DaveB** » 14 May 2006, 16:01

This is for Garry really as I wanted to show him the old Pilot's B314 model without taking the Alpha Martin Mars thread too far off course

I've not used this for longer than I can remember but the Mars thread got me digging and I found it in an old fsim hangar. Seems that somewhere along the line, the default prop blur has been overwritten with the item you see in the shots (looking suspiciously like it came off the Argosy) :shock: An easy enough fix to sort out

The BOAC paint you see below is one of 3 that comes with the pack, one very similar to this with a different reg and the other, the WWII camo livery. Often overlooked, the B314A (the version below) provided one of the few.. possibly only transatlantic services between the UK and USA during WWII and even though this model is very old now dating back to 2002, it doesn't do too badly in 2004 and remains the best seaplane of it's type I've ever seen.

Enjoy.. or otherwise!

ATB

DaveB :tab:

John · Post by **John** » 14 May 2006, 17:10

Nice ship (in more than one way!)

Does it feel like it's dated much since it was first launched (no pun intented)

Regards

John

Post by **DaveB** » 14 May 2006, 18:08

Hi John,

It's not really that bad. I've spent a little more time in her this afternoon and other than the fact it's trim effectiveness is a tad OTT.. it still flies really well. The 2D panel is.. well, a bit boring but is pretty much what you'd expect and it stands up very well to what is currently offerred by the likes of Alphasim. I've not wound up the TrackIR to see how she feel's in VC but certainly, it is not photo-quality. Look around at the engineers position when you open the throttles and you'll see his throttles move too!! Outside.. the textures are of a pretty high standard anyway. First release versions had a blurring problem (I sufferred this too) but PILOT'S sorted it by using 1024 textures.
You'll see from the shot's below that I sorted the prop blur issue too. I have a feeling that the model responsible for overwriting the original was the AFG YS11 but like all good boy scouts, I still had the original in one of my old 2004 installations. I don't use the YS11 anyway so nothing lost

Here are a few more shots shown at her current homebase at McLeland Field. She does pleasure trips up and down the coast and McL Field is handy for maintainance having low gradient beaches that can be used as a slipway. Gear-Down enables/shows the beaching gear

Nice and smokey..

Low pass for the QM2..

Shark watching..

ATB

DaveB :tab:

Post by **Garry Russell** » 14 May 2006, 19:37

Cheers for digging her out Dave

She must have been ground breaking....well water breaking the time,

Still looks up to acceptable FS9 standard.

But you wouldn't want too many popup windows open on approach.

I does show thought was a bit of a handful it could be for one guy although a least we can pause it while we look for whats wrong.

Thanks again for that.

Garry

Post by **DaveB** » 14 May 2006, 20:25

No problem Garry.. I quite enjoyed it

Seaplanes (or flying boats) have never been my 'thing' but as I said earlier.. the lure of BOAC was too strong for me to resist.. even on dialup!!

I started to do a RTW in her years ago but it took a considerable time to get as far as Djibouti (not quite the back of beyond but you can see it from there.. I know as I've actually been there a couple of times!!). I decided after a couple of weeks to head back home as I could never see me completing the trip so I headed (eventually) back up the Red Sea where I anchored offshore.. for about 3 months! :shock: In between doing bits and bobs, I set off from 'said' anchorage and pointed her in the direction (roughly.. too roughly as it turned out) of Port Said. Noting that I've already mentioned she does not hold Alt particularly well on AP.. I trimmed her to a very shallow climb and went to bed. Going anywhere at around 125kts takes too long in daylight!!

I got up the next morning and dashed up to the toyroom to find her sitting on some bloody hillside in Egypt (a hill I'd not anticipated being there!!) and that, sadly, was it for me and the 314. I don't like crashing at all.. even when I'm farting around doing displays from the tower so my B314 days ended there and then. Wonder if there's a monument at the crash site??? :think:

Anyway.. all of those window buttons (S T E G F R) all open and all of the switches and gauges did work in 2002 though I notice my CAT, FF and MAP look a tad low on that shot!!

What I'd really like to know is what the hell happened to the Tristar PILOT'S were advertising when the Clipper was released?? It's had a gestation period even greater than the CS130!!

ATB

DaveB :tab:

Post by **Garry Russell** » 14 May 2006, 20:41

Like you Dave I'm not into seaplanes or flying boats much.

I do still get water landing experience flying the Budgie

But now and then if I get to do some flying I will call one up as it is something a bit different.

And that fills a BOAC gap so there is a case.

It is supprising how long a flight can be in a slow aeroplane.

I remember flying the Cessna from Aberdeen to Norway and being supprised how far it was at that pace.

It's easy to imagin a jet being four times faster but at the same time expecting the Cessna to take only twice as long :think:

But your fifty minuet hop takes nigh on four hours :huf:

Garry