Tropical Solomon Islands 2
an
MV Challenge for FS2002 Pro
freeware by Michael Vone
Installation and background information |
© Copyright 2001 Michael Vone |
|
Installation: |
|
Background
information: |
|
Flight descriptions: |
|
This package includes the
following files.
Documentation:
· TropSolomons-FlightDescriptions.html
(and associated subfolder);
· TropSolomons-InstallationAndInfo.html
(and associated subfolder) ;
· MVChallenges-FS2002-GeneralInformation.html.
Flight and weather files:
· TropSolomons-[flight_label]-[DepAirport]-[ArrAirport]-Caravan.FLT
and *.WX.
· install.txt
(installation instructions);
· M2trpsol.txt
and file_id.diz
(summary description for web sites);
· desc.txt
(summary description for FS2002);
· M2trpsol.gif
(thumbnail for web sites).
Suggestion:
· Use this page
on-line (on-screen), while you install the Challenge (and any add-ons)
into FS2002, and while you read the background information about the region,
routes and weather.
· Print out the page
with Flight descriptions, for use during your flights.
In general, I recommend
installing FSUIPC (get the latest version from any major flight sim
web site as file fsuipc.zip; or find it
at http://www.schiratti.com under the
name Pete Dowson), if you have not done so yet: this add-on software improves various aspects of running FS2002 (for
example, it allows smooth weather transitions, and makes the visibility
decrease gradually with altitude, rather than abruptly); I will assume only FSUIPC's default
settings. You can fly this Challenge
without FSUIPC.
Unzip all included files to the FS2002
folder, USING PATH NAMES. This will automatically create a new
subfolder of the FS2002 FLIGHTS folder, named "Challenge - Tropical
Solomon Islands 2", containing all the files of this package. That is all that you need to do.
If you wish to install replacement
aircraft, follow their author's
installation instructions (they remain valid in FS2002), except for some
changes described below.
For those flights that in
reality use a Twin Otter, I recommend the Solomon Airlines Twin Otter for
FS2000 by Premier Aircraft Design: file
dhc6ie2k.zip (download directly from Avsim). A panel and sounds for FS2002 Pro by the
same authors are available (files propnl22.zip from Avsim,
prosnd-1.zip from Avsim,
and prosnd-2.zip from Avsim). (All these files are also available from FlightSim, after logging in).
For the flights that in
reality use an Islander, I recommend the Air Seychelles Britten-Norman
Islander, which includes a simple panel, by Mike Stone and Jean-Jacques Parel
(file britas.zip from Avsim or FlightSim), and optionally the corresponding
sounds by Marcel Kuhnt (file bnsounds.zip from FlightSim). (There is also a version of the Islander available in Italian
Wings colors for FS2000 Pro, by Mike Stone and Marcello Lugari, with a more detailed
panel, and fix, but this panel does not work in FS2002: the files are bnislander.zip and islndrp.zip
or islanderpnl.zip, in case you know how to convert a panel.)
For add-on aircraft designed for FS2000 or
earlier, you need to make some changes. You may use the Aircraft Editor
(FSedit) supplied with FS2002 Pro.
Otherwise you could check the How To and FAQ sections at FlightSim, when they have information for
FS2002. With the Aircraft Editor, set,
for example:
Title |
DHC6-300S Twin Otter
Solomon Airlines (2K) |
Manufacturer |
DeHavilland |
Type |
DHC6
Twin Otter |
Variation |
Solomon
Airlines |
Airline |
Solomon
Airlines |
ATC
Type |
TWINOTTER |
Model |
DHC6-300 |
Flight |
120 |
ID |
H4-SIB |
Title |
Britten-Norman Islander
Air Seychelles (2K) |
Manufacturer |
Britten-Norman |
Type |
Islander |
Variation |
Air
Seychelles |
Airline |
Air
Seychelles |
ATC
Type |
BRITTENNORMAN |
Model |
BN2B20 |
Flight |
276 |
ID |
S7-AAA |
ATC will not be able to
pronounce these airline names, so ATC will only call you by your flight number
or ID. The flight number can be changed
for each flight: to do so, before
flying, press Alt, then A, then A again, then select Change
under ATC Name,
then enter the desired Flight number, and finally press OK twice. If your aircraft does not have a flight
number, ATC will use its "Tail number", called ID in the Aircraft
Editor.
The ATC Type and Model
should be typed as shown. The ID is the
registration number painted on the recommended aircraft.
Solomon Airlines has a fleet of
two De Havilland DHC6-300S Twin Otters and three Britten-Norman BN-2 Islanders
(they also have one B737-300 leased from Qantas for international
flights).
The default FS2002 Pro
Cessna Grand Caravan is suitable as substitute for both. In cruise it is comparable in speed to the
Twin Otter, and somewhat faster than the Islander.
If you wish, use a Twin
Otter with Solomon Airlines livery, or an Islander with Air Seychelles livery
(the Seychelles are nowhere near the Solomon Islands, but are equally tropical!): see under Installation instructions.
The Solomon Islands lie east
of Papua New Guinea in the Pacific Ocean.
According the Solomon Airlines' web site (from
which the photographs shown here were taken), the Solomon Islands are "a
western style democracy within the British Commonwealth, independent since
1978. Nearly one thousand islands
covering about 80,000 square kilometres make the Solomon Islands the third
largest archipelago in the South Pacific, stretching between 5 and 12 degrees
south of the equator. Its average temperature is 29C (84F)."
"Of its population of
320,000, only 104,000 live and work in an urban environment, while most remain
within a subsistence economy. The
capital Honiara has about 35,000 inhabitants [its harbor is shown below], and
one of only two other towns of any size is Gizo, with a population of about
2,000. The majority of its citizens are Solomon Islanders, with some
Polynesians and Gilbertese among them."
For more information about
the Solomon Islands, visit "The
official web site". There you
will read, for example:
"Guadalcanal witnessed some of the worst naval battles of WWII and
it was here that the tide was turned in the Pacific campaign. As such, "Iron Bottom Sound", near
Honiara, is strewn with many wrecks.
The wrecks, having created artificial reefs, attract masses of fish and
an incredible variety of coral life."
"A tourist spot for
those with a sense of history is Kennedy Island [shown below]. In August 1943, a future US President, John
F. Kennedy, swam to shore here after his patrol boat PT-109 was rammed by a
Japanese destroyer."
Solomon Airlines has an
extensive network centered on Honiara's Henderson Airport, as shown on their
route map.
The following topographical
map (assembled from http://www.calle.com/world/
courtesy of Carl Rosenberg) shows all the airports present in FS2002, with
runway information. Note that only
Honiara has an asphalt runway: all
other runways are made of dirt or coral!
And note the scarcity of navaids.
(You can print this map by itself by looking for it in the
TropSolomons-InstallationAndInfo_files folder of this Challenge; it should be called image011.gif.)
In this Challenge, you will
simulate several of these routes, following the airline's own schedule (valid
2001/11/10 - 2002/03/31). The weather
will be quite variable. You will find
that it can be difficult to respect the schedule!
Cruising levels: The Solomon
Islands use the "quadrantal system" to determine IFR cruising
levels. I suggest you use them also in
VFR flights: the appropriate flight
levels are listed for each flight. The
quadrantal system assigns the following flight levels depending on flight
direction:
Bearing (magnetic) |
Cruising levels |
0-89° |
1000, 3000, 5000,
,
29000, 31000,
|
90-179° |
1500, 3500, 5500,
,
29500, 31500,
|
180-269° |
2000, 4000, 6000,
,
30000, 32000,
|
270-359° |
2500, 4500, 6500,
,
30500, 32500,
|
The weather is preset for
our flights. It will change from flight
to flight and from one area to another.
Nomenclature for wind direction/speed: 120/06g10
means a wind blowing from 120° (true, not magnetic), at 6 knots, gusting to 10
knots.
I am not a real pilot or a
professional in aviation. These
challenges are based only on experience gained during flight simming, and
should not be taken to suggest the best procedures to use in practice!
I thank Premier Aircraft
Design for their Solomon Airlines Twin Otter, Mike Stone and Jean-Jacques Parel
for their Britten-Norman Islander (in Air Seychelles livery) and Marcel Kuhnt
for its sounds.
This package is released as Freeware. © Michael Vone. As freeware you are permitted to distribute this archive subject
to the following conditions:
· The archive
must be distributed without modification to the contents of the archive. Redistributing this archive with any files
added, removed or modified is prohibited.
· The
inclusion of any individual file from this archive in another archive without
the prior permission of the author is prohibited.
· No charge
may be made for this archive other than that to cover the cost of its
distribution. If a fee is charged it
must be made clear to the purchaser that the archive is freeware and that the
fee is to cover the distributor's costs of providing the archive.
· The author's
rights and wishes concerning this archive must be respected.