Freight Dogs

Have you ever wondered what it was like to be a Bush Pilot in the Alaska and Canadian regions? That's where you'll find some of the most challenging airstrips to operate out of, that's for sure! Aerosoft has brought you a step closer to being a "Virtual Bush Pilot" with their product, Freight Dogs. Freight Dogs is a nickname for the folks that haul cargo and some small party passenger services. People in the wildnerness areas that have no other way in or out of where they are, rely heavily on these pilots for vital supplies. They go anywhere, anytime and usually operate in and out of airstrips that would be considered rough taxiways or dirt roads anywhere else. Cargo pilots are one of the oldest lines of business in the aviation industry. It began with carrying the mail, and from the start, Freight Dogs were used to flying in unusual and dangerous conditions. This is a line of work that's is definitely not for the feint of heart! As stated in the manual, a Bush Pilot landed at a large conventional airport one time and commented on how nice the runway was, but why did they make it so wide? This product will take you to places that you might not have discovered on your own yet, and I think that you will find yourself visiting this region often!

Alaska and Canada are not the only regions on the earth that "Freight Dogs" operate, but they are the regions where you will have your skill as a Bush Pilot tested in this product. Aerosoft (in combination with FSAddon) bring this type of unique and exiting flying to you with Freight Dogs, a combination of three aircraft, six airports and the module based (meaning it actually expands what flight simulator can do) FS Cargo. FSCargo is a utility that enables you to create cargo missions to and from the various airfields that are included in this product. It is, what one would call a lite version, operating only with Freight Dogs, but the full version is also available from the developers at FSAddon. At the FSAddon website, you can download more cargo missions for free. The full version of FSCargo comes with an editor that enables you to create cargo areas anywhere in the world. It is a simple and easy to use utility.

You are definitely in for a challenge if you max out your realism settings for these aircraft! The flight dynamics are very well done, and do a great job of portraying what these aircraft might be like in real life (never flown one myself, unfortunately!). You may want to get some practice in landing on obscure, hard to see airstrips of varying surface textures, because that's your job in this role as a Bush Pilot. Flying the amphibian version of the DHC2 was also a bit more of a challenge than normal, especially when landing it on a solid surface. Since the water textures in MSFS 2004 are what might be called "sticky", you really have to take care while taxiing the aircraft on the water. With the realism settings on high, it's fairly easy to flip the aircraft right over and dump you for a swim! the Tundra version of the DHC2 is no different when it comes to handling. It's pure fun landing this aircraft in tight, short spaces, and then getting off the ground again! The size of those tires just amazes me, but are absolutely necessary for the types of strips that it was designed to land on. There's a bit of "eye candy" for you while you are on the ground in the manner of having chocks and tie downs in place on both aircraft models, until you release the parking brake. If you look close enough from the external view, you'll notice the crew moving their heads about in a very realistic manner.

The aircraft that you get with this product are the aircraft that are typically used by the Bush pilots, the DHC2 Beaver and the Beech 18. The Beaver comes in two liveries and gives you the option of flying the tundra wheel version or the amphibian version. the Beech 18 comes in two liveries also. The DHC2 is an incredibly durable aircraft and with the tundra version, you will find yourself dropping in on some very small fields with ease! Well easier than say, a Cessna 172! The Beaver was designed with small airfields in mind, and is also a favorite aircraft for its ease of maintenance. The float version also comes with wheels for runway landings. The Beech 18 is a more suitable aircraft for the larger strips, but is still one of the most durable twin enginge aircraft around. Both of these aircraft have been around for over 50

years, a testament to the heartiness of the aircraft's designs. The models represented in Aerosoft's product are beautifully done, with great attention to detail in many areas. The exterior modeling of both the Beaver and the Twin Beech are quite detailed with some very nice liveries included. it is stated by Aerosoft that the Beech 18 is a scaled down version of their addon Beech 18 product, however, I really did not notice much "scaling down" with this aircraft. The developers have done a fine job with these models, but my two favorites are the DHC2 Amphibion and the DHC2 Tundra. I admit that I'm a big fan of DeHavilland aircraft!

Inside each of the aircraft, you will find some outstanding renditions of both the DHC2 and the Beech 18 panels. Both are very authentic looking, and extremely easy to understand and view. Remember, these are older aircraft, so no rocket science degree is needed to understand the workings of the panels. In the 2D mode, you will notice a handwritten checklist "pinned" up on your center piece of your windshield. Clicking on each of the items listed will bring up an audio voice, reciting the particulars regarding the checklist topic. On the list you will find the following; Pre-Flight, Cockpit, Start-Up, Run-Up, Take-Off, Landing, and Shutdown. realism is certainly enhanced when you can click and switch as your "co-pilot" reads the checklists in a smooth and easy to understand manner. It helps to be familiar with the various functions and locations of the instruments and avionics on each of the aircraft, as you cannot pause the reading of the checklist. Although the audio is not read in a rapid fashion, you still need to pay attention and follow along smoothly, but quickly. I thought this to be a great feature, and wondered why it was not included in the Beech 18. Authenicity purposes perhaps. The refresh rate of the gauges while in 2D mode was smooth, but while in the VC mode, they were a bit jumpy. Adjustments to the graphics settings cured this without any severe degradation of what you were seeing outside of the plane. Night lighting for the panels is well done, easy on the eyes, and enables strain-free viewing of the gauges. A host of pop-up sub-panels are available, some accessible through icons, others through the use of keystroke inputs. One other feature that you can find on the VC panel, is the windshield wiper switch, which operates workable wipers. While flying in inclement weather, the wipers actually cleared a rain free space on the windshield. Personally, I like the classic look of the DHC-2 panel, but both are done in a manner to make them look very realistic. Here are a few shots of the panels and the interiors for you:

Now, this sounds so far like a review of just an aircraft product, but there's more! This is one of those products that are packed with extras. As the name of the product states, you are asuming the role of a Freight Dog, hauling cargo from one location to another. What cargo you may ask? The cargo is assigned utilizing the FSCargo module that comes with the product. It is accessed after you place your aircraft in one of six locations that have been specially prepared for you. There are two larger airports; PAWG - Wrangell, AK and CZST - Stewart, BC, two smaller airports; CBM5 - Telegraph Creek, BC, and Shorty's Farm, Alaska, which is a fictional airfield and one of the toughest to find. It is lit at night by fire burning in barrells alongside the runway! Good luck! All I have to say is that Shorty must be loaded with cash, because i wouldn't fly into this airstrip for for just a few dollars! There are also two seaplane ports; 2Z1 - Entrance island Seaplane base, AK and Moose Bar fishing Camp, BC, another fictional strip. The airstrips are usually hard to find and you will find yourself making a few

passes over the area to determine which way is the best to get it on the ground in one piece. Canyons and mountains that are often hidden by clouds await you, and believe me, if you see a mountain goat in the clouds, you may have some issues to deal with! Enhancements to the terrain and mesh, and some excellent looking buildings and cargo areas are provided in these six areas, three of which are in Alaska, and three in British Columbia, Canada. Scenery enhancements were made by Bill Womack and Holger Sandmann, and I must say, these areas will leave you breathless! The product merges with Misty Fjords Scenery as stated in the manual. I personally do not have that scenery addon, but I think I'm going to rectify that situation ASAP! The area challenges your aviation skills in a few different ways than your normal, everyday flying, and this is what makes the product an interesting addon..

I'm going to take you on a little trip from PAWG - Wrangell, AK to Shorty's farm - SF1, which is a fictitious airstrip. It is said that "Shorty is of the grumpy persuassion, which explains why he lives out in the middle of nowhere on a finger of land! Placeing the aircraft at PAWG, you hit the Alt key which brings up your menu. VistaMare should be listed, scroll down to "Get Assignment" and click. You will be presented with a dialog box that gives you the options of how long (1 hour to unlimited) your flight assignment can be, and you can keep hitting the "Generate" button until you find an assignment that you like. From PAWG to Shorty's farm is in the 1 hour time category. Pick-Up and Unloading areas are either marked by lights and four cones or in the case of seaplane ops, a pier with four bueys. You must be in these areas to grab the goods.

It is strongly suggested that you use your GPS system while navigating in these regions, and it will also help if you turn on the Terrian (Terr) option on the GPS. It won't give you the altitudes of the mountains that lie in your path, but it will give you a general idea! The route takes you over some truly beautiful landscapes. Even though the Alaskan and Canadian areas are some of my favorites to explore, there's a large chunk I haveen't seen yet! I also suggest that you fly a few assignments while in the daytime hours, just to get a feel of what the terrain is like around these airfields. Flying into one of

The product comes in one of those handy cases, with a very nice job done on the cover of both the box and the manual, depicting the Beaver's tied up at dockside. It gives you an immediate feel for what you're in for! Installation was a snap, with aircraft and scenery all being put in their proper places The manual itself is in German and English, with each section about 35 pages long. There's some important info in the manual regarding the airfields and a basic map of the area that you will be operating in. The utility FSCargo is also explained. Aerosoft does a great job with the manuals for their products, keeping things simple and to the point, however, I would have liked to have seen some basic information on the aircraft's spec's and abilities. These are things that you should definitely know when operating any aircraft. Here's a bit of info on the aircraft...

The de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver is one of the most famous bush planes in the world. After World War II , de Havilland Canada was looking to produce a plane suited to operations in the rugged Canadian north. After extensive consultation with pilots, they began production of the Beaver, a reliable, single-engine monoplane that could be easily fitted with wheels, skis, or floats. Over 1,600 Beavers were produced.

DHC2 Beaver

General Characteristics
·Crew: one pilot
·Capacity: 7 passengers
·Length: 9.22 m (30 ft 3 in)
·Wingspan: 14.63 m (48 ft 0 in)
·Height: 2.74 m (9 ft 0 in)
·Wing area: 250 ft² (23.2 m²)
·Empty: 3,000 lb (1,360 kg)
·Loaded: 5,100 lb (2,310 kg)
·Useful load: 2,100 lb (950 kg)
·Powerplant: 1 Pratt & Whitney R-985 Wasp Jr. radial engine, 450 hp (335 kW)

Performance
·Maximum speed: 255 km/h (158 mph)
·Range: 732 km (455 miles)
·Service ceiling: 18,000 ft (5,500 m)
·Rate of climb: 1,020 ft/min (5.2 m/s)

The Beechcraft Model 18 was a small six- to 11-place, twin-engine, low-wing, conventional-gear aircraft manufactured by the Beech Aircraft Corporation of Wichita, Kansas. Construction was all-metal semi-monocoque with fabric covered control surfaces. The aircraft was powered by two Pratt and Whitney R-985 radial engines. This model saw service during and after World War II in a number of versions including the C-45 Expeditor and AT-11 Kansan for the U.S. Army Air Corps and SNB for the U.S. Navy . A number of them were operated as passenger aircraft, and many are now in private hands.

Twin Beech 18

General characteristics
·Crew: two pilots
·Capacity: 6 passengers
·Length: 34 ft 2 in (10.41 m)
·Wingspan : 47 ft 8 in (14.53 m)
·Height: 9 ft 8 in (2.95 m)
·Wing area: 349 ft² (32.4 m²)
·Empty weight: 6,175 lb (2,801 kg)
·Loaded weight: 7,500 lb (3,405 kg)
·Max takeoff weight 8,727 lb (3,959 kg)
·Powerplant: 2× Pratt & Whitney R-985 -AN-1 radial engines , 450 hp (336 kW) each

Performance
·Maximum speed : 225 mph (360 km/h)
·Range : 1,200 mi at 160 mph (1,930 km at 256 km/h)
·Service ceiling : 26,000 ft (7,930 m)
·Rate of climb : 1,850 ft/min (9.4 m/s)
·Wing loading : lb/ft² (kg/m²)

Needless to say, you can probably tell that I like this product and enjoy flying the assinments and taking on the challenges that obscure airstrips can pose! It also happens to take place in one of my all-time favorite regions to explore! I think just about any simmer would enjoy this product. If you are new to the hobby, you may find it quite challenging and a bit frustrating trying to find and then land at the airstrips that are provided for you. My suggestion here is to turn down your realism settings and turn your detect crashes off until you get a good feel for these aircraft. They have their own personalities and particular quirks that you need to get used to. Either way, you are in for a treat, both visually and intellectually with what this product has to offer! There were no "bugs" that I could see as far as the operation of the product went, and I have flown about a half dozen assignments so far.!

The product is very reasonably priced, considering what you are getting. The Box/CD-Version is US$ 29.99, and the Download-Version is (103 MB )US $37.73. I'm not really sure why the boxed version is cheaper, so it's your choice. In my humble opinion, you can't really go wrong with this product!

For more information on this product, visit www.aerosoft.com.