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*Free* addon glider mission for the Discus B


B21

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Download the free mission here

This is a mission wrapped around the 3-turnpoint task defined by Peter Luerkens (aka Task 1), and assumes Peter's freeware CumulusX is installed to generate the thermals.

To install the mission, simply drag the three folders (Missions, Categories, Rewards) from the Zip file into your FSXBASE folder. Next time you start FSX you'll see a new mission (SOAR Task 1) in the 'Soaring' category.

This mission is fairly tough, although I have significantly boosted the thermals compared to Peter's original Wx. Round-trip time should be 2.5 to 3 hours.

Have fun.

B21

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Download the free mission here

This is a mission wrapped around the 3-turnpoint task defined by Peter Luerkens (aka Task 1), and assumes Peter's freeware CumulusX is installed to generate the thermals.

To install the mission, simply drag the three folders (Missions, Categories, Rewards) from the Zip file into your FSXBASE folder. Next time you start FSX you'll see a new mission (SOAR Task 1) in the 'Soaring' category.

This mission is fairly tough, although I have significantly boosted the thermals compared to Peter's original Wx. Round-trip time should be 2.5 to 3 hours.

Have fun.

B21

B21

I am having a problem with your new task. As soon as I click on "Go to Briefing", CumulusX turns off. It won't come back on if I back out, and choose a different soaring task, either. If I close FSX, and then open it again, I can fly any other soaring task but this new one, without losing CumulusX.

binky9

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You still have an Addon menu option CumulusX->Unlock UI. Then you can view the Cx menu and change your Cx settings.

The new logger (Peter Luerkens and I are collaborating on the features needed for a good soaring logger) will detect if you choose 'Unlock UI' and record that in the log, so we have a secure way of knowing a pilot flew the mission with the original weather.

Pleased to see the mission install went smoothly...

B21

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How about 1:53:24 for a start. I think 1:45:00 should be possible.

Bert

yay the first mission completion! Makes it worthwhile creating it. I'm pleased it seems less gruelling that the original WX, which is what I intended. Bert do you want to give any comments on the trip? I'm interested to know how far out you were able to do the final glide, and whether you came in a supersonic speed or came in at a more measured pace, and whether you used the arrival height on the C4 and how that went - with the reducing windspeed as you get lower, and the good conditions, with a bit of luck the final glide improved rather than you ending up scraping the trees. Did you fly with the mission points-of-interest highlighting the turnpoints or go hardcore and navigate with them off ? Did you use the map display on the iPaq?

Congratulations on the 1:53:24 - I'll make sure I beat it.

cheers

B21

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yay the first mission completion! Makes it worthwhile creating it. I'm pleased it seems less gruelling that the original WX, which is what I intended. Bert do you want to give any comments on the trip? I'm interested to know how far out you were able to do the final glide, and whether you came in a supersonic speed or came in at a more measured pace, and whether you used the arrival height on the C4 and how that went - with the reducing windspeed as you get lower, and the good conditions, with a bit of luck the final glide improved rather than you ending up scraping the trees. Did you fly with the mission points-of-interest highlighting the turnpoints or go hardcore and navigate with them off ? Did you use the map display on the iPaq?

Congratulations on the 1:53:24 - I'll make sure I beat it.

cheers

B21

Damn! I was hoping to be the first. Congratulations, and I'll make sure I beat 1:53:24, also. Someday.

binky9

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Wow Ian, that are a lot of questions. Here is my comment:

I'm pleased it seems less gruelling that the original WX, which is what I intended.

Well, to be honest, it was more exiting,flying the original. In the mission it was quit easy to find the right path, the thermal clouds were almost everywhere and under almost all of them there was a lot of lift.

I'm interested to know how far out you were able to do the final glide, and whether you came in a supersonic speed or came in at a more measured pace, and whether you used the arrival height on the C4 and how that went - with the reducing windspeed as you get lower, and the good conditions, with a bit of luck the final glide improved rather than you ending up scraping the trees.

If I remember correctly, I was around 30nm out when I had +200m altitude on my C4 when I started the final glide with speed around 180-200km/h. From there I flew as hard as possible, while trying to keep the +200m altitude, for that I sometimes got a little off-course to pick up some extra height while flying under a thermal cloud. The last part of the glide, as I came lower, I had to reduce speed to around 130km/h to keep C4 at +200m.

Did you fly with the mission points-of-interest highlighting the turnpoints or go hardcore and navigate with them off ? Did you use the map display on the iPaq?

I used mission-point-of-interest as well as display on the iPaq to navigate. the mission POI mostly to see the distance to the next waypaiont and the Ipaq to see what course to fly.

Attached is my igc-file so you can do some more analyzing.

Bert

D-6945_2009-09-29_2215_bruin.zip

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Wow Ian, that are a lot of questions. Here is my comment:

Well, to be honest, it was more exiting,flying the original. In the mission it was quit easy to find the right path, the thermal clouds were almost everywhere and under almost all of them there was a lot of lift.

If I remember correctly, I was around 30nm out when I had +200m altitude on my C4 when I started the final glide with speed around 180-200km/h. From there I flew as hard as possible, while trying to keep the +200m altitude, for that I sometimes got a little off-course to pick up some extra height while flying under a thermal cloud. The last part of the glide, as I came lower, I had to reduce speed to around 130km/h to keep C4 at +200m.

I used mission-point-of-interest as well as display on the iPaq to navigate. the mission POI mostly to see the distance to the next waypaiont and the Ipaq to see what course to fly.

Attached is my igc-file so you can do some more analyzing.

Bert

I did 2 hours and 12 minutes last night. I was so low at the finish that I didn't have time to take take a picture, though. I don't think I ever got above 5,000 feet. The thermals I was in all seemed to start dying at about 4,800 feet. I did pretty well, until I got past the last TP. Up until then, I thought I had a slight chance to beat 1:53. But, it was not to be.

It was a good flight, and I'll be doing it again.

binky9

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I don't think I ever got above 5,000 feet. The thermals I was in all seemed to start dying at about 4,800 feet.

That's strange. Once being above 6.000ft under the first thermal cloud right after the startline, I think I was only twice or three times below 4.800ft the whole course and the thermals brought me to 6.250ft easily (+2.0 m/s).

You know the lift-column leans upwind downwind under the cloud and the glider gets pushed downwind due to the wind, while the cloud stays at it's place?

Bert

Edit: of course the thermal column leans downwind (from the thermal source to cloudbase)

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That's strange. Once being above 6.000ft under the first thermal cloud right after the startline, I think I was only twice or three times below 4.800ft the whole course and the thermals brought me to 6.250ft easily (+2.0 m/s).

You know the lift-column leans upwind under the cloud and the glider gets pushed downwind due to the wind, while the cloud stays at it's place?

Bert

LOL this is exactly the same as in real gliding - you struggle round in scraps of lift and some other b*st*rd says "well what a day, I never got below 4800 feet"! I think there's a basic rule in this task which is to get high early and don't get detatched too far from cloudbase, and the climbs will come easier.

Thanks for the update Bert - I was really interested to hear your experience.

B21

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That's strange. Once being above 6.000ft under the first thermal cloud right after the startline, I think I was only twice or three times below 4.800ft the whole course and the thermals brought me to 6.250ft easily (+2.0 m/s).

You know the lift-column leans upwind under the cloud and the glider gets pushed downwind due to the wind, while the cloud stays at it's place?

Bert

The column, the cloud, and the glider can't move in different directions.

In RL, the cloud moves in the same direction as the wind, as does the glider. The source of the lift stays in the same place, thus making the thermal column lean downwind. A track of the glider in the thermal would show it being a series of overlapping circles being pushed in the same direction as the wind. I' sure hope CumulusX makes things happen the same way.

I went straight through several thermals, just getting what lift I could, and only stopping to thermal when I got too low, because I thought my time might be better that way. It's always a balancing act. How much time do I spend time thermaling, but not going forward, as opposed to doing as little thermaling as possible, and moving toward the finish line?

binky9

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The column, the cloud, and the glider can't move in different directions.

How right you are. I edited my early post (in my earlier post I was looking from cloudbase to thermal source. From that perspective it leans upwind, but i admit my pespectives aren't always the most common :-)

In RL, the cloud moves in the same direction as the wind, as does the glider. The source of the lift stays in the same place, thus making the thermal column lean downwind. A track of the glider in the thermal would show it being a series of overlapping circles being pushed in the same direction as the wind. I' sure hope CumulusX makes things happen the same way.

In the current version of CumulusX the clouds don't move. And it is my experience that while being in a leaning thermal I have to reposision my circles to stay centered (could be I'm climbing too fast or too slow, or I just can't fly in nice circles :-))

It's always a balancing act. How much time do I spend time thermaling, but not going forward, as opposed to doing as little thermaling as possible, and moving toward the finish line?.

My strategy was to gain as much height after start as possible, take as much thermals as I could on the way, and fly around 160-170km/h between the thermals, just a little faster than the speed-to-fly indicator of the C4 advised me most of the time.

Bert

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A track of the glider in the thermal would show it being a series of overlapping circles being pushed in the same direction as the wind. I' sure hope CumulusX makes things happen the same way.

CumulusX! does mostly right, but. There is a limitation on evaluating wind layers in different altitudes.

Thermal column ends always in the cloud above you, meaning the lower end is placed somewhat upwind. How much depends on the actual wind at the aircraft. If wind is uniform over all altiudes, that's fine.

If wind is varying over altitude, then the leaning angle is still determined by the current wind, which requires the low end of the column to be adjusted. This done with a pretty long time constant, that should give enough time to readjust the circling, but it is not exactly the vertical profile you'll get in RL. Indeed, also in RL lift centre is frequently moving, meaning that it's not totally unrealistic.

best regards,

Peter

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How right you are. I edited my early post (in my earlier post I was looking from cloudbase to thermal source. From that perspective it leans upwind, but i admit my pespectives aren't always the most common :-)

In the current version of CumulusX the clouds don't move. And it is my experience that while being in a leaning thermal I have to reposision my circles to stay centered (could be I'm climbing too fast or too slow, or I just can't fly in nice circles :-))

My strategy was to gain as much height after start as possible, take as much thermals as I could on the way, and fly around 160-170km/h between the thermals, just a little faster than the speed-to-fly indicator of the C4 advised me most of the time.

Bert

Bert,

Nice circles are the result of both constant bank angle and constant speed. The center of the thermal does seem to change in FSX, but not in Condor. I wish there was a thermal track indicator option on the PDA in the Discus, as there is in Condor's.

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just a little faster than the speed-to-fly indicator of the C4 advised me

aha, that's what the 'maccready' setting (expected climb rate) on the C4 is for (the bottom right cursor position I think)... I've defaulted it to 3 knots / 1.5 m/s but you can (are 'sposed to) adjust it. The default on the real device is a McCready setting of ZERO but I guessed you dopes would not go in there for a few flights so I quietly helped out...

The original school of thought was "you set the McCready to the expected climb rate" but I reckon most pilots use the technique of "fly at the speed you think makes sense for the current conditions and adjust the McCready until the speed-to-fly indication shows zero".

B21

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OK Guys

1st I want to thank Peter for "FANTASTIC" CumulusX clouds. CumulusX "ROCKS". My time for the task was 1:46:50. It was my third attempt but one of those should not count because my wife made me get up and help turn the mattress over on the bed.

I was not ever capable of finishing Peter's version. I always landed out somewhere between turn two and the home stretch. I found one thermal just after turn point two, that was off the scale. It shot me up to 6,000 ft in no time. It seems that the Discus rises pretty fast, almost unreal. I don't pay much attention to my altitude when I am in a thermal. I have to concentrate pretty hard on the turn and staying centered. I glance over and "Oh Crap, I am wasting time getting to high". I guess some would say getting high is never a waste but never the less I was on a time schedule. One time, on Peter's version, at a low altitude, I suffered from spin and buried the discus so hard in the ground it started to hop, from the pain I am sure.

In any case the Discus is quite a fine flying machine. I still preffer the Soar DG, mainly because of the flaps. Peter, Ian, The Aerosoft team and who ever else, thank you so much, from the bottom of my heart, for the trills of all of this stuff.

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It seems that the Discus rises pretty fast, almost unreal.

No, if there is something "unreal", than the thermals. But you can't say even this. Long ago I've got a 7 meters/second NATURAL thermal in the flat area of germany near river Rhein. So even these outstanding climbs are possible.

The flightmodel has not much to do with the climb rates.

The discus was made with real polars, and has the maximum of possible realism regarding the performance. In fact it is VERY real there.

Just wanted to clarify this. And yes, I read the "seems" and "almost" so don't worry ;-)

Have nice flights, Joachim

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It is funny you should mention "Natrual Thermals". It might explain my flight with the Soar DG, I just had. I finished the course with a time of 1:38:42. Between tp2 and tp3, I was at about 5,000 ft and not a thermal in sight, heading for tp3. I decided I needed the practice anyhow and headed straight for tp3. I experienced three, what I beleived to be at the time, wave lifts. But now, that you have mentioned it, maybe they were "Natural Thermals". I only slowed down in these "Waves" but what a flight saving surprise to find lift where I truly beleived I was heading for a land out.

Between tp3 and the finish, I also experienced some unexpected lift. Again I was headed for a land out at about 900 ft about 20 miles from the finish. I found lift that I used to get to 3,000 ft and headed in a hurry, for the thermal that just appeared to the right about 4 or 5 miles away. It saved my bacon, again. I really need to loose some weight so I can get into a real sailplane. I am 6'2" and 245. Last month, We took a trip to Boston. We rented a car and drove to aplace where I fly alot in FSX, called Sugarbush. The weight limit @ Sugarbush was 225. I still enjoyed the drive up there but I need to experience this in real life, even if it is just once.

OK, that being said and you knowing that I am overweight, I took a picture of my finish with the DG, I missed taking a picture with Discus, But I have both "IGC" files. How do I save the picture and post it? In my Zip file is an excel spreadsheet with the picture in it. Being an Accountant, Excel is what I use everyday so I apoligize for the method I used.

SOAR_Task_1.zip

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Maybe it is funny, but I've spoken about a reall life experience, not FSX. That was only to compare what can happen in reallife also.

Of course this was only one time I had this great luck to get such a outstanding lift and that at 6PM!!! But it CAN happen.

I am 6'2" and 245

First I thought, you meant KILOS!!! LOL, but ok. Lets say it this way: I am on the limit, too, who cares? The plane will not fall appart if there are a few kilos more.

But this is quiet a good way to get rid off the kilos :D

Man, try it! Really! You should try gliding in real life.

I wish you good luck there.

Cheers, Joachim

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Dude, personal foul!!! I am giving you a penalty or on your side of world are they called red cards? In any case 245 Kilos? That would be a momumental task to accomplish and most definitely longer accomplish than this mission. LOL

But what I was trying to say is that the Discus rises faster than I would have imagined, given the fact, that it does use "Real Life" polars. You can almost feel it in the seat of your pants when it hits rising air.

I am excited that someone, some Company has started to build, at least for FSX, sailplanes that are good enough to rival "Real Life" experiences. The Soar DG is still my favorite because I have learned to fly it, tight & close. (My 1st, love, can do no wrong in my eyes). If this were the real life and I had a DG I most difinitly be changing the flaps for more movement down and moving the CG back. I am sure that the reason that in the Discus I feel the rising air is because the balance point is further back. "Moving the CG back Livens up the plane".

Sunday Afternoon, I took the ASH-25, through the course with a time of 1:52:xx, This plane comes from "Rosey Max". This is a nice sailplane also but it needs some tweaking for competition flying. You can feel the 25 meters of wings in those turns. It has a defintate delay and the reaction to flap movements. Instead of making new sailpanes, what about just making the older planes, more real. Wouldn't it be nice to have a race with MiniMoa's. If my time allows I am going to try and fly the course with a MiniMoa. I will report back on my findings but I don't think I am going to be do it without a potty break or two so I will have pauses.

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The Soar DG is still my favorite because I have learned to fly it, tight & close. (My 1st, love, can do no wrong in my eyes).

I didn't want to change your opinion. This is your personal feeling.

Instead of making new sailpanes, what about just making the older planes, more real.

Maybe an option for freewaredevelopers, but don't forget, that we earn our money with making add ons. Who would pay for flightdynamics for a freewareplane? No sorry, if this was, what you wanted to say, this is no option for us

Wouldn't it be nice to have a race with MiniMoa's

Indeed, this would be very cool.

I am looking forward to your time with a Minimoa.

Cheers Joachim

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I didn't want to change your opinion. This is your personal feeling.

Maybe an option for freewaredevelopers, but don't forget, that we earn our money with making add ons. Who would pay for flightdynamics for a freewareplane? No sorry, if this was, what you wanted to say, this is no option for us

Indeed, this would be very cool.

I am looking forward to your time with a Minimoa.

Cheers Joachim

Joachim,

I don't want to put words in his mouth, but I think he means build and sell some of the vintage gliders with the same attention to detail and realism as the Discus. If you did, I would vote for the Libelle 201B or the Phoebus B-1. Both have good performance, good looks, and are fun to fly.

binky9

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The Minimoa is one of the all-time most beautiful aircraft...

57457.jpg

I guessing with the low wing-loading it climbs like a homesick angel, but it would never make it around a 234km triangle (i.e. Task 1) because it can't penetrate into wind - but hey, I hope someone tries it and I get proved wrong...

But before you try that, we should get some good cross-country ridge missions set up for the Discus and you can see how fast you can go.

B21

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OK, could be a misunderstanding.

The Minimoa is one of the all-time most beautiful aircraft...

Yes, she really is!

but it would never make it around a 234km triangle

sure? I am not! In these old times such distances were flowen, too. And 234km is not a big deal.

The question is, how exact is the FSX plane?

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  • 4 months later...

What a nice mission B)

Unfortunaly it was for me a bit to much as n00b. I didn't have enough height after Dahlemer-binz and landed on a field :lol: I waited a few hours for the Aerosoft resque team but they couldn't find me.

By the way it is very, very nice if you bought the addon Germany VFR West. It is almost real wen you are flying around. I hope Aerosoft will produce some "flugplatz" scenery for Dahlemer-binz because I visit this place quite often during my holliday last summer

I hope the soaring-cracks here wil make some missions for learning the C4. I like the standard tutorial missions in FSX. They are a good start to understand more about soaring.

Well, thank you anyway for this mission B21 :wub:

regards,

Arthur

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