The Hercules is and aircraft that has filled a unique market for a mid size transport that can land almost anywhere, it is a testament to the tough aircraft that they are still flying and being improved, and there is not a true successor or true competitor on the market. RNZAF is still flying some of the first Hercules to be manufactured.
anyways enough of the history lesson, on to the A/C.
Sorry but i don't have any RNZAF repaints installed, so the Americans and British have paid us a visit.
Captain Sims C130 was greatly anticipated by me as i grew up watching them fly around the place, and loved going to air shows just for the Herc. THe outside model is very well done, and to my eye looks spot on, with the different versions having differences that the more updated models had applied. outside anmiations extend to remove before flight tags, chocks, flares and fuel dump effects and the classic herc some trails that are controled by the amount of power applied to the engines
Moving to the interior, the full interior is modeled, including the cargo bay, work areas and ladders leading to the cockpit, also included is a flight crew (non animated) in the 2D cockpit, these are removable to help reduce the loading on your system, infact the whole aircraft can be configured for your system.
Options also include the options of having the classic steam gauges or the more modern ecais system installed on the more modern c130s. there are alot of sub panels, covering the fuel systems, prop controls electrical systems, ramp and door controls. and so much more. this is not an aircraft that you can jump into and fly, but the time spent reading and studying the systems are hughly rewarding when you start the aircraft from cold, selecting every switch in the right order and having an aircraft ready to go
The virtual cockpit is fully usable, and almost everything is clickable. you can choose to have reflections on the glass, and even what type of night lighting ion the cockpit, red, white or green.
this is a great aircraft to fly, and from what i have been told about the aircraft, it flies like it should and is right on the numbers as far as performance is concerned.
the sounds are top notch, and it gives you the feeling that you are really sitting in front of the four turboprops. it is the best sounding herc for some time.
overall this is a great addon, cheap enough for FS9, but is rather expensive for FSX. i thouroughly recommend it for anyone who loves the herc.
