REALISM

Aesthetically very similar to the original, it actually has several differences and several simplifications.

DIFFERENCES

The original was not symmetrical! The right wing was 10/15 cm (4/6 inches) longer than the left, due to the weight of the engine being greater than the weight of the pilot. This is symmetrical, I have simplified my life a lot. If I hadn't done so I probably would never have seen this plane posted on my account.

Roll in the original - as you all know - was controlled by twisting the wings. I wanted to avoid trying to replicate this, the only way I had found was to make hundreds and hundreds of "slices" for each wingtip with a miniature rotator between each slice, and rotate each section by a fraction of a degree. It seemed useless to make a creation of 3000 or 4000 pieces so as not to see it downloaded by anyone and without even a vote or a positive comment. I think it was better to stay under 350 pieces, as was my program from the beginning, and make it usable also by users of the mobile version.

The original barely made a few leaps which, despite being a real flight, would be little fun in a game like this. My creation actually flies. It takes off, lands and can fly (with a lot of patience) even between one airport and another on the various islands.

And I'm sorry to admit, mine has wheels. I haven't found a way to take off without it. At least, not without doing the whole sled and the track (to tell the truth I wanted to do them, but even here the number of parts would have flown high. Furthermore, once landed it would have been impossible to leave again.)

The relationship between weight and wing area of ??the original for some reason sends the game engine into crisis. The plane begins to have vibration phenomena and becomes uncontrollable. I had to reduce the effective surface of the real wings (not the false ones that simulate them, of course)

SIMPLIFICATIONS

Many parts are only "hinted". The engine, the chain drive, the front wheel drive transmission, all these things are pretty much just "sketched out" to improve the aesthetics, but out of the need to keep the number of parts down they are really stripped down. They look like the originals, let's say. They remember the concept.

The tie rods of the bracing were MANY more, really many. Just to put them all (I might as well have) I would have added another 70/80 parts at least. Probably more.

There are far fewer ribs in mine (or rather, the wing simulates far fewer of them. In reality we don't have any in mine) and the reason is always the same.

HOW IT FLIES

Maximum speed 66 Mph
Takeoff at 47+ Mph

It inherits some flaws of the real plane, for example pitch instability. It is due to the limited distance between the canards and the wings, and I had to settle for it. However, it is much more stable than the original. You just have to be nice with the commands. It is not an aerobatic plane.

The AI ??does not like to keep this plane stable because it should in theory be slightly upright, the AI ??instead levels the wings horizontally and you find yourself slowly losing altitude. In other words, you don't have autopilot, but I really think the original didn't.

INSTRUMENTATION

Thanks to patch 1.11 we now have beautiful dashboard tools available. I didn't even wear one, of course. You have to go "by eye".

COMPATIBILITY WITH VR

I couldn't find a way to make the sled movement that the rider moved with his hips compatible with the VR controllers. If you want to fly with a 3D headset, do it (the experience could also be beautiful and engaging) but you will have to keep your hands on the controller or keyboard.