A320 Pilot In Command review

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Computer 30 PPiilloott MMaaggaazziinnee VV88II99 In the spring of 2001, Wilco
Publishing released 767 Pilot in
Command for FS2000, which turned
out to be one of the most highly acclaimed
MSFS add-ons ever. It proved that there
was a substantial (and largely untapped)
demand for simulations that strove
specifically to emulate the complexity of
an airliner’s flight deck. Even now, over
three years later, this product still has a
dedicated following.
In early 2003, Wilco followed up with a
new add-on product for FS2002, called A320
Pilot in Command. Although it was made
by a different group of developers, many
naturally associated it with 767 PIC and
great things were expected of it. Pre-release
marketing confirmed rumors that it would be
the first MSFS payware aircraft not to have
A320 Pilot In Command review...
a 2D cockpit at all. This was revolutionary.
Every switch, knob, and button would be
accessible by mouse from within the 3D
virtual cockpit environment. Remember that
in FS2002, this was not normally possible.
Moreover, it included proprietary technology
that would allow one to actually get up and
wander around the passenger cabin.
However, when A320 PIC was actually
released, it received a surprisingly tepid
reception. Although there were a considerable
number of bugs, this was not the biggest
complaint. After all, it is hardly uncommon
for such a complex product to have its share
of teething problems upon release. Judging
both from reviews of the time and from user
commentaries in Internet forums, there was a
bigger problem - performance. Out of the box,
users consistently reported extremely poor
frame rates, even on high-end machines. It is
true that with extensive tweaking performance
could be somewhat improved, but even so, the
plane would only fly acceptably with MSFS
graphics, AI, and weather settings tuned
way down. Over time a number of patches
and improvements were released, including
one that made it fully functional in FS2004.
Nevertheless, A320 PIC remained a very
power hungry product and gradually faded
into the background.
Haven’t I Seen this Before?
Now, more than a year later, I suspect I
am not the only flight simmer out there to
be surprised and even confused to see A320
Pilot In Command suddenly reappear in
new packaging from a different publisher,
Aerosoft GmbH of Germany.
By ANDREW D. JONES
31
Having now thoroughly explored
this package, I shall reveal to you the
basic facts. The package, which retails
for US$39.95, is indeed a re-release of
the same product originally produced by
Wilco. The Aerosoft release is listed as
version 3.0, and contains all of the patches
and updates, as well as a generous supply
of liveries. Beyond that, however, no
new features or improvements have been
introduced specifically for this release.
Thus, if you already own the original
version and have kept up with the patches
and updates, there is no reason to purchase
this one, except for the simple convenience
of having the fully patched product on a
single CD.
Installation and
Configuration
The software is contained on a single
CD in a DVD style case with a printed
installation guide. Although the printed
guide looks thick, this is primarily
because it is printed in several languages.
The real user’s manual is installed from
the CD in PDF format. Installation is
easy. Since this package is fully updated,
there is obviously no need to worry
about the proper order of installing
patches. The installer will simply
ask you into which version of MSFS
(FS2002 or FS2004) you are installing
the product and everything else is taken
care of for you.
Once installation is complete, take
a good look at the PDF manuals. In
addition to a detailed guide to the
aircraft there are also some important
instructions for configuring your
installation of MSFS. This product
has some unusual characteristics and
without configuring MSFS it will
not work properly. In particular, the
virtual cockpit gauge detail MUST
be set to low, no matter what type of
machine you have (don’t worry: the
A320 flight deck will still look fine).
Secondly, you must manually set up
your controller through the A320PIC
options menu from within MSFS.
This is an independent process and
will not interfere with your normal
controller settings. Furthermore, you
must disable your joystick within
MSFS in order for the fly by wire
system to work properly (A320 PIC
reads control inputs independently of
MSFS. There are also a number of other
options available here including a choice
of whether or not to implement the A320
“normal landing law” (flare mode), which
we will get to later.
REINTRODUCING A320 PILOT IN COMMAND
WELCOME ABOARD! THE SPACIOUS CABIN
HAVE A SEAT IN ECONOMY CLASS…
OR HEAD UP TO THE FLIGHT DECK
FOR SOME STICK TIME
OFF WE GO!
REVIEW
Computer 32 Pilot Magazine V8I9
Flying the New, Old A320 PIC
As already mentioned, A320 PIC
eliminated the 2D-cockpit altogether,
so when you first load the aircraft you
will be greeted with a sign in large bold
letters stating, “2D-panel not available.”
This is normal. Simply press the “S” key
to cycle the view to the 3D virtual flight
deck. Most controls are clickable, and if
you need to see a smaller item up-close
(such as the MCDU interface) simply
use the +/- keys to zoom in and out as
necessary. I found this to work quite
well, but I still feel that leaving out
the 2D panel was a mistake. There are
still times when a well done 2D panel
would be useful to have around.
Next, I tested my controller to
verify that all axes were responding
properly. Even with the instructions
provided, I had to make several
attempts at configuration to get my
controller to function the way I wanted
it to. Once more, I remind users that a
considerable amount of tweaking may
be necessary to get the product set up
to your liking.
As I readied the ship for flight
I encountered a problem with the
documentation. The publisher/
developers failed to include
performance charts for the aircraft.
This is an especially large oversight
since the Airbus Flight Management
System is not capable of calculating
V-speeds. Thus, without these charts it
is impossible to properly program the
computer. It seems ironic to me that the
most convenient source I found for this
missing information was the website of a
direct competitor for this product.
The autopilot, FMS, and other systems
were all very well implemented and were
comparable in detail to the respective
systems in the PSS Airbus product which I
reviewed last month. However, A320 PIC
offers a somewhat different interpretation
of the autothrottle system. Rather than
using the “+/-” keys to simulate the heavy
detents on the Power levers that activate
different autothrottle modes, they are
incorporated into the throttle axis on
your controller. The detents themselves
are signified by audible clicks (they are
audible on the real world aircraft as well).
More importantly, the areas in between
the detents continue to be dynamically
responsive, even when the autothrottle is
on (I am told that this is also realistic).
Perhaps the most interesting feature of
A320 PIC is that it attempts to implement
the Airbus flare mode system as a part
THE TEXTURES ARE A BIT SIMPLISTIC IN PLACES
THE OVERHEAD THE EXTERIOR DETAILING IS NOT BAD.
GEAR UP! THE OPTIONAL FO
THAT CLASSIC A320 PROFILE
REVIEW
33
of its normal flight control law. What this
means is that during a manual landing,
at 50 feet RA, the fly-by-wire system
will pitch the nose of the aircraft down
in order to force the pilot to pull up and
flare the aircraft. This sounds bizarre, and
indeed if the pilot is not expecting this he
may overcorrect, or even feel prompted
to attempt a last second go-around. In
the “options” menu this feature may be
deactivated if desired.
Overall, I found that A320 PIC did a
remarkably effective job of illustrating
the feel of the Airbus fly-by-wire system.
This is especially evident in the pitch axis
where the joystick no longer commands
pitch angle but rather the rate of change
in pitch. That is to say, if you pull back on
the stick until the nose rises 10 degrees,
and then return the stick to center, the nose
will not remain pitched up at 10 degrees
without the pilot having to manually apply
stabilizer trim. Other MSFS-based Airbus
sims I have tried did not accomplish this
effect convincingly. Unfortunately, I fear
the system’s awkward implementation
(see the configuration section above) will
prevent many from discovering how well it
actually works.
Performance:
During most phases of flight, performance
was adequate, if not stellar. Certainly it is
better than what many users reported when
the product was originally released. For a
benchmark, in most phases of flight I found
frame rates to be comparable on my machine
to PMDG’s 737NG. A320 PIC benefits from
the fact that CPU speeds have significantly
improved since the time of its original
release, but on the other hand it is also
visually dated. Again, if we compare it to
PMDG’s 737-800/900, the latter product has
a much sharper, more graphically intensive
virtual flight deck. Thus, one would generally
expect to get better frame rates from A320
PIC. Alas, this is not quite the case.
Visuals
Visually, A320 PIC is clearly showing
its age. The virtual cockpit is crude in
appearance by comparison to newer
products. The virtual passenger cabin feature
is also not as sharp as it could be, if this
even matters to you? I feel it would have
been better to leave it out to save memory
and CPU power for more important tasks.
The plane’s exterior is not bad but is notably
lacking animated thrust reversers.
Sound
The sound set is among the true
highlights of A320 PIC. It is among the
best sounding flight sim add-ons I have
encountered.
Conclusions
There can be no question that the fully
patched version of A320 PIC marks a very
significant improvement over the original
out-of-the-box version we saw more than
a year ago. It still does suffer from some
of the primary problems with which it was
plagued originally. Firstly, it requires a lot
of configuring by the user, and many flight
simmers will not have the patience for this,
especially when much of it will then have
to be undone when they want to fly another
aircraft. Secondly, in spite of its age, it is as
power hungry (or nearly so) as the newest,
most complex add-ons on the market today,
but without as many frills. A320 PIC has
some very innovative features and should
have been a fantastic add-on. Today, even
with corrected bugs and a shiny new DVD
case, it is still, in essence, a one-and-a-halfyear-
old product. If you are prepared to give
it the time it needs, then it might be worth
a try. Q

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A320 Pilot In Command review