vbazillio

Thank you all It's always hard to find the good balance between uncut video and shorter one. There is a mix of short (some with time acceleration) and longer videos on my Youtube channel. I, once, survey readers and watchers on my blog for the length of videos they want to watch. I reached almost a 50/50 situation

Dear Simmers, I continue my flight report based on my real flights trip in California last May. After visiting Oceano (L52) (see screen shots comparison here) and Big Bear (screens are here), here are screen shots comparison at Kern Valley airport. Real pics were take the 4 of May, this day the runway 17 is in use. Flight Sim is Prepar3D 4.5 with Orbx Kern Valley. Right downwind Turning right base Turning final Final runway 17 Touch down. Look at the campground at the right Our plane (old goodies C172 180 hp) at Kern Valley main ramp in front of the restaurant The restaurant on the field. Look at the bended propeler From the restaurant's terrasse The Weather Forecasting Stone For the record, I fly as much as I can from San Diego despite I leave in France. This time, I wanted to visit some famous Orbx fields. You know, sceneries you practise much in front of my PC, here from Paris, France. I'm only PPL/VFR and learn as many of simmers the basis and more in front my PC, thanks to great addons like Orbx and innovative network. I'm really fortunate to be able to choose destinations based on my sim experience And if you want to see Kern Valley from the cockpit of a Cessna 172, here is the video I capture :

General Aviation in Prepar3D as I love ! Thanks for the trip report

Dear all, I continue to make some screen shots comparison (see my Big Bear screen captures in this thread) between real and Prepar3D screen shots. All is feed by my recent flight trips in south western California with a Cessna 172. This time it's not a dedicated payware Orbx scenery. It's Oceano L52 part of Orbx SOCAL or the free Orbx Global Airport Pack. Short final 29, Oceano L52 At the fuel pomp (ACI). Low price in the region. The yellow line is too much close to the tank in Prepar3D The yellow Boeing Stearman is replaced by a Piper Cub. When I taxied I remember of something biplan and yellow. This small details make you feel deja-vue.

Here's the catch :t he dynamic altitude display was INOP in the real world (last May 3rd 2019) but I can fix the SODE gauge in the L35 Orbx/Turbulent Designs P3D scenery !

Oh ! Thank you A flight instructor tought me 10 years ago how to travel with my Cessna in this area (US). I do my best to re-share what he tough me, his knowledge. Everytime I have opportunity to fly in real in these sim. sceneries environment that I know and practise so often in front of my PC from here in Europe, I pinch myself and capture as much as I can from these moments. I run a blog where since 15 years I collect and share my sim and real experience since my first pattern training It's in french at this address : http://20-100-video.blogspot.com/ I also plan to translate all the stories I wrote from this last flight trip (Farwest'19) but don't know if it fits on some of this Orbx Forum. At least, the episode where Orbx sceneries are involved will get copy/paste on this forum.

Thanks it worst than that ! Obviously, I didn't limit to Big Bear. I'll have TwentyNine Palms (KTNP), Oceano (L52) and Kern Valley (L05) to share with you, just name some of the field I never flew before (I fly regularly from San Diego) and know in the sim. Here is the full trip (San Diego, Barkersfield, Monterey, Mojave, Las Vegas, Page, Monument Valley, Marble Canyon, Sedona, 29Palms, Big Bear, San Luis Obispo, Oceano, Kern Valley, Torrance, San Diego) :

Thank for all your kind messages ! Here are other comparison shots. It's really a matter of relativity. When you fly there in real, you - without doubt - recognize more or less everything, it looks familiar. Take the red Robinson R44 for example. Is not exactly the same, it's simulated and reproduced and enough hints help make it familiar (position, color). This is the role of the sim in 2019 and it's far better than 25 years ago when I started and it will be better and better in the futur. Actually, screen shots comparison deserve the talent and work of developers. When you sit back at your desktop and compare pictures, it's another story. There a lot of things missing and color doesn't always matched. Things look the same and different and the same time. Look at mountain for example, there are there but seems to be (as an example) less tall. But there are where they are supposed to be. Obviously, the scenery is 4 years old and the field has a real life in between. The major big update is the fuel island. The old single fuel pump has been removed and replaced by a brand new multi-positions (island) fuel station. To summarize. The flight simulation with this top notch quality addons does the job. Period. Thanks to talented developers. They simulate our environnement so well that they make you familiar with the real world. And , don't compare pixels in my previous screen shots

I'm just back from a awesome flight trip in south California (and Neveda, Utah...) with a small Cessna 172. As destinations, I picked some airfields I love and practice so much times in my flight simulator. Some are Orbx scenery obviously. Here is a teaser of upcoming screen shots

Yep, I think there were nothing quite new in all this thing The Orbx Freeware and the BlueSkyscenery. I frankly didn't check the border of the photorealistic BlueSkyscenery. It was just a test for Marble Canyon as I really hate not having any autogen objects.

Which NEW photoreal ? And with which Orbx scenery you are refering to ? I only know the freeware Orbx stuff.

Thank you to all for your comment. Glade this kind of post reaches audience. Is it Foreflight you're asking for ? It's the most (real) use mobile app used in US for General Aviation planning and flying : https://foreflight.com

Always cool to see this great (and greatly reproduced) landscape ! Thank you !

Page, Horseshoe bend and Marble Canyon. What a great agenda within few minutes flight. Page (KPGA), I know quite good. I flew there several time. It's a base camp when flying to Monument Valley because of cheap avgas 100LL availability. The town is awful. Hotels as well. But the runway 15/33 worth to get up there. Departing above Lake Powell is eye blowing. The Horseshoe bend is fantastic from the ground. And this spectacular attraction is on the way to a field I never went in real : Marble Canyon (L41). I overfly it several time to or from Page field. But I never land and descend into the Marble Canyon. It's on my wishlist for my next Cessna's trip Farwest'19. So let's dream a little. But most of all, let's use Prepar3D to train. For this small hop, here are the technical details : - Prepar3D v4.4 - Photorealistic scenary of Page and Marble Canyon by BlueSkyScenery : http://www.blueskyscenery.com/CNY_South3West3.html - Page (KPGA) and Marble Canyon (L41) come from d'Orbx Freeware Global Airport : https://orbxdirect.com/product/ftx-global-airport-pack - A2A C172 Trainer - EnvTex for cloud textures - Active Sky as the weather generator - Flight1 GTN 650 GPS gauge Very short flight ! Marble Canyon (L41) is less than 6 minutes south of Page (KPGA). Nav. log is... Straight ahead ! N4975F parked on the huge ramp. Full of planes.... As in real finally. The ramp is use by two FBO's who drive you with golfcart FBO's golfcarts catch you as soon as you exist the runway. Come in my FBO ! The pilot has to choose on radio or by signaling to the golfcart driver One of the criteria to choose one FBO or another is the fuel price. Here, on Foreflight (mobile app), it shows very differences. And the price is not all : infrastructure, services, shuttle to hotel or courtesy car are among other criteria. Foreflight displays fuel price updated by FBO or customers. With Foreflight, you can also check for customer's review. As it's the major tool for small GA in US, there's often a lot of recent comments And finally, you'd better know where is your FBO when arriving on a field. At Page (KPGA), there is golfcart but on most field it may complicated to prepare/brief you on advance. Airnav.com is a choice and here, still on Foreflight, you have the position on the ground chart. The real N4975F parked at Page, AZ. With A2A tool, I welcome my copilot (always useful) and load luggages. As real as it gets, as in real Farwest As in real, oups... The real ramp on a great july A small rain arrives... It may be not a good idea to fly today At least, this will lower temperature (better performance). Anyway, I simulate an early departure (Foreflight) Holding Point 33 at Page. Runup completed (Foreflight) The digital voice announce "Entered runway 33, 5 900 feet remaining". Far more than needed (at that very moment) for my C172 Initial climb, look at the left over the field. The Blueskyscenery removed all 3D autogen objects over the town. Anyway the building weren't much realistic. Let's look somewhere else On the other way, the great Lake Powell. This remind me a little bit the red and blue I have in mind. Weather generated by Active Sky is far from perfect. I turn to the right to departure via the right downwind departure. I climb above the circuit. Glenn Canyon Dam The same in 2010 as seen from my Cessna during a Farwest with my family Still in 2010, arriving at Page. You can see the dam and the Lake Powell, then the Marble Canyon And just after the dam, the Horseshoe Bend Just after leaving the circuit, the Horseshoe Bend Let's have a look from the right front seat to take pictures ... High wings are great... But the strut ;( On top view Over another "horseshoe bend" south of Marble Canyon. Photo taken from the N4975F with two other friends. A formation flying at 10'000 feet And I let the Horseshoe bend behind me to prepare for the arrival at Marble Canyon The real Horseshoe bend as seen from the ground. I'm fear of height and can get closer to the rift (Foreflight) After the 360 over Horseshoe Bend, then direct Marble Canyon I'm not that high isn't it ? 5'500 feet... anyway I'll have to descend The chart for Marble Canyon. Nothing specific regarding pattern altitude. I take 1'000 feet above the circuit (3'600 feet + 1'000 feet). Marble Canyon airfield is inside the SFRA of Grand Canyon where you're are not allowed to go wherever you want. Hopefully a special regulation permit to descent : "Landing/Take-off operations below 3000' above airport elevation within 3 NM of the airport are authorized by 14 CFR section 93" With Foreflight, you can have some feedback from Marble Canyon users. No official information but useful as well. We can have some info on the ramp conditions. No one on the circuit. No one on the radio. No ASOS/AWOS. I go overhead to check the filed and look at the windsock. What is the runway in use ? Start of left downwind runway 3. We are in a canyon. Unbelievable environment. Can't wait to be there. End of downwind. 10 degrees of flaps. Lights on. Turning final runway 3 Final runway 3. Narrow runway and no threshold indicator painted. It's the free Orbx scenery The Blueskyscenery kills the autogen... too bad ? Or no big deal because it's much about desert ? ... In real life there's a lot of detail on the ground as seen from the real N4975F last year Taxi to the parking. I missed a lot of 3D object. I'll let you know when I'll be there soon. Let's open the door. Still raining. Strange idea to keep the real weather As seen from the Marble Canyon in 2008. At that very moment, I wasn't courage enough to land there and only friends of mine in another plane did it The whole track (in green) as seen from Foreflight

Let's continue these short hops to be as-real-as-it-gts on Califonia. These flights on Prepar3D are real trainer for me. I can practise Foreflight mobile app on my iPad. In France, I use Skydemon, so because I plan next month to be in California, I need to be current with Foreflight. And as I'm not using anymore paper chart, I had to be efficient. Thanks to Orbx, I choose to depart from Monterey (KMRY) and FBO Monterey Jet Center FBO. My plan is to fly along the coast and below the class Bravo airspace. To do so, let's use the FLY chart on the San Francisco TAC (Terminal Area Chart) : This chart is unusual for me. I'm french and I'm not use to have a official chart which explains me how to fly below a specific airspace. With big blue arrows, it shows how to interfere with the Bravo airspace which protect big airport, like here San Francisco International KSFO. So, let's fly around the San Francisco Bay, by the west coast, from Half Moon Bay via the Golden Gate to end at Concord Buchanan (KCCR). If I want to be out of contact of anyone, let's fly below 6'000 feet, then after Half Moon Bay, let's descend below 4'000 feet, then a left-right to descend below 2'000 feet because we are right in the KSFO departure (if 28 in service) : Then, we can climb 3'000 to overfly the Golden Gate. Or we can stay lower. If I want I can to straight northbound (see the empty magenta arrow), there is a VFR transition named Coastline VFR Transition. But it requires an ATC clairance. And this clairance process is not delivered by the pretty much old ATC under FSx/Prepar3D. The route as seen from Foreflight with Navlog on top ... and the navigation log automatically generated by Foreflight... That I don't use. Let's continue with the same plane. I take N4975F (with the A2A C172 Trainer). The author of the previous texture has enhanced (better resolution) his work. We'll be 2 on board. I top-off and few luggages. N4975F is a 180 hp and we are far from the max weight. chevaux et on est loin de la masse max. As in my last trip in Monterey, I depart from Monterey Jet Center (Orbx KMRY) : I enter quickly the route in the Flight1 GTN 650. Just in case of. Just to have a backup. And to read some ETA : Taxi clairance is for holding point November, runway 28L. I draw it in green with annotate tool in Foreflight Taxi at Monterey. At the holding point, I wait 10 minutes. Ultimate Traffic Live is great... but at 100% it creates the same issue as in real. You wait I also look at arrival from the Foreflight map which display AI traffic from P3D. It helps understanding the ATC work : Then, it's time to take-off ! There is a FEW at 2'500 feet. The plan is to turn right after departure. Right turn on initial climb toward Half Moon Bay Local advice as seen from the FBO Cloud are here. I had to slalom to stay VMC Look at the beautiful brand new hi-rez texture of N4975F ! Santa Cruz is far away, I head north over the Monterey bay From Foreflight in the middle of the bay Overt Half Moon Bay And if we look closely at the chart... we are just few miles from KSFO Here is a real screen shot... I mean a screen shot taken during a real life flight Look at the ADSB traffic displayed (and visible) by the app. ADSB antenna are strong there Is there more or less traffic than my PC can generate with constant framerate with Ultimate Traffic Live ? ;))))) Again some clouds And even with a good preparation, I didn't manage correctly my altitude and flew into the Bravo without a clairance Sutro Tower at Twin Peaks just before San Francisco Merced Lake at the right and the Golden Gate Park in the left. And the Golden Gate ahead ! As I descend below 2'000 feet And don't forget all this flight is perfectly legal and possible in the real life ! Without PPR, without complicated clairance, in VFR... San Francisco skyline, Oakland Bay Bridge and Treasure Island Almost overhead The Skyline and the Golden Gate in 2016 as seen from a C172 ... and the classical weather Golden Gate in 2008 as seen from the real 4975F Ok, let's leave the bay and all the touristic attractions : Golden Gate, Alcatraz, and San Francisco downtown A little climb to go over hills before reaching Concord (KCCR) ATC clairance is to join the left downwind 32L Turning final 32L Approach 32L is weird with this path so close to the tower ! Concord is really tricky (to taxi). I never were confident. Let's draw in green the taxi clairance to go to the Pacific State Aviation FBO Concord has a lot of school trafic Default scenery by Orbx NORCAL. Better than the default FSx/P3D ! Parked at Pacific State Aviation FBO That's it ! I hope you enjoy this short flight ! See my previous posts : From Bakerfield to Kern Valley : From Victorville to Vegas with Orbx SOCAL :