28.12.2008, 08:01
I am interested in a program that duplicates real spitfire brakes. English airplanes of the WWII period did not have toe activated brakes as did te US and LW planes, but had a bicycle like lever on the control column that released compressed air into the main wheel brakes proportionally to the amount of rudder input to one side or the other.
In other words, to activate the left brake, the left rudder was pushed, then the lever on the joystick sqeezed, and the air flowed to the left brake, giving braking action. If the rudder was centered air flowed equally to each wheel brake and onehad a parking brake so to speak.
I had the opportunity to fly a spitfire simulator on a trip to England. It had been flown earlier by two spitfire pilots from the RAF Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.
http://www.simcontrol.co.uk/offboard.htm
It took some tweaking--read the Review--but the two pilots said, "If you can fly this, you can fly the real thing".
But, they said, the braking was very unrealistic, compared to an actual spitfire. The problem is, they said, that the rudder on a spit is totally ineffectual for steering on the ground until a speed of 40 knots or so is reached. Up to that point, all steering is done with the brakes. So far as I know, no program yet exists in any Flight Simulator program that realistically simulates real spitfire braking.
So it seems to me that there is a crying need for an accurate spitfire (Hurricane, etc, which is the same) braking program, for all of us who desire ultimate realism in our flight sims.
In other words, to activate the left brake, the left rudder was pushed, then the lever on the joystick sqeezed, and the air flowed to the left brake, giving braking action. If the rudder was centered air flowed equally to each wheel brake and onehad a parking brake so to speak.
I had the opportunity to fly a spitfire simulator on a trip to England. It had been flown earlier by two spitfire pilots from the RAF Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.
http://www.simcontrol.co.uk/offboard.htm
It took some tweaking--read the Review--but the two pilots said, "If you can fly this, you can fly the real thing".
But, they said, the braking was very unrealistic, compared to an actual spitfire. The problem is, they said, that the rudder on a spit is totally ineffectual for steering on the ground until a speed of 40 knots or so is reached. Up to that point, all steering is done with the brakes. So far as I know, no program yet exists in any Flight Simulator program that realistically simulates real spitfire braking.
So it seems to me that there is a crying need for an accurate spitfire (Hurricane, etc, which is the same) braking program, for all of us who desire ultimate realism in our flight sims.