Freeware Reviews

Gee Bee Z Model by Warwick Carter. Paint textures done by Garry J. Smith. This is a wildly beautiful model of one of the most unique racing aircraft ever built...This model was the Feature CD download for PC Pilot in the Sept. 2006 issue of the magazine and they were so impressed with Warwick and Garry's model that the artwork was even used for the Cover of the Magazine...and now, of course, the required dose of history that accompanies all legendary aircraft!

Back in the Great Depression days, not a whole lot of people could afford to buy airplanes, but the interest in air racing and aviation hadn't stopped. A very large sum of money was being offered up as a prize in the 1931 Cleveland National Air Races. This got the attention of a man by the name of Robert Hall, who was the Granville brothers' engineer. He was able to persuade them that he could build a winning aircraft that would take the Thompson Trophy.

Hall sought the aid of Pratt & Whitney, and was loaned the R-985 engine that was used in the Laird Super Solution to take it into the winners circle the year before. Glenn Curtiss threw in a prop. To help raise a few more dollars, the town of Springfield, Mass., (one of the liveries is the Spirit of Springfield) organized the Springfield Air Racing Association (SARA) and shares in the association were sold to local businessmen. Thus began the short, but impressive life of the Gee Bee Z Racer. The Gee Bee models were flown by some very notable airmen, amongst them, Jimmy Doolittle. The Gee Bee also took the lives of a few pilots, trying to get that top speed. Air Racing was and is a very dangerous sport, and I can only imagine what it would have been like to have pushed the Gee Bee to its limits!

The aircraft's gross weight was 2,280 pounds, with the factory modified engine pumping out 535 h.p. Robert Hall was made the first run in the Gee Bee Z on August 22, 1931, and in the same year took many of the events, using the Z, Y, D, and E models, but the Z model stole the show. Lowell Bayles, another of the Granville Pilot's, won the Shell Speed dash at an average of 267.342, which was the fastest speed ever recorded for a land plane, then went on to win the Goodyear Trophy race with an average of 206 mph.

Carter and Smith have put together some beautiful aircraft in the past, and this is another beauty that can be added to that list! The modeling of the aircraft gives you an authentic feel with great 2D and VC views, with gauges that are easily read and very detailed. This is a challenging model to fly when you have the realism settings maxed out. Tough to land, for obvious reasons! You're sitting rear of center in the aircraft, so your line of site is not very good at all! If you decide to land in the 2D or VC mode, and not with the "no panel view", keep an eye out from side to side for reference.

Garry Smith has done an artfully wonderful job with the aircraft liveries of this model, which was designed by Warwick Carter. My personal favorite is the one with the flames, but they are all finely rendered and extremely detailed. When you see work like this, you just know that hours and hours of work went into making this model and creating the beautiful liveries, and the most beautiful thing about it is that it's FREEWARE!!! Thanks guys for the obvious dedication to the hobby we all love, and one more thing...Keep them coming... PLEASE !!! :-)

To check out some more information on other liveries and aircraft, along with tutorials and loads of other information, you can visit Garry's site at www.gjsmith.net. Just do a search for Warwick Carter and you can come up with some more of his models on sites such as Avsim.

Enjoy the Gee Bee Z!