So, with crazy desire to fulfill my Stuka needs, I downloaded this for NZ$20. 4.89mb download, not bad. Unzipping it, though, you see why it's so small. No sound file, aliased to the FS9 default DH88 Comet. I always thought the Jumo would sound a bit gruntier.....
Two variants - D, with three paint schemes (winter, desert, splinter camo), and the G tankbuster with the stonking great underwing cannons.
First impressions. Hmm. Not too bad to look at, lacking in detail with the crew and with absolutely no weathering. Turning on the lights on the D model - the only one I've tried so far - gives you four small underwing bombs and one big'un under the fuse. The two "Jericho trumpet" sirens are on the spats, and as soon as the engine's on, they start to turn.
2d cockpit. Again, the bare essentials and no frills.
VC. The pic says it all, I think. The rudder pedals and throttle move, but not the stick.....the aiming window between the pedals is modelled.
In the air she's speedy, clocking 250km/h at just over 1/2 throttle. Heavy on the ailerons so you can't really throw it around the sky, climbs fairly well (unlike the freeware Stukas available), but you need a long approach for landing as it seems very slippery. It just doesn't want to slow down.
I'm a Stuka fan. But to tell the truth I was let down by this. The aircraft overall seems like it was designed for FS2000 or CFS, with the paint just not seeming right to me. Too amateurish. The lack of ANY sound is a big F in my book, as one of the main attractions of the Stuka is the distinctive dive siren. The flight model feels right though, but it does seem odd that for an aircraft always characterised as pondering and cumbersome, that it is so fast - especially on landing.
If you've REALLY got to have a D/G model Stuka, this is it. No freeware! If you want a more aesthetically pleasing model, which feels more like you'd imagine the "real thing" would, then trawl for freeware models. For $20 this really isn't worth it. I think it's about time Alpha put this into their own freeware library.