Alabeo Free Cropdusting Scenery/Mission IL57

[jcj78]

Alabeo has a free scenery and a free mission that uses the scenery available on their website.


http://www.alabeo.com/pages/Cottonwood.php
http://www.alabeo.com/pages/Cottonwoodmission.php


It is a depiction of a fictional agricultural application operation that flies PA-36 Pawnee Braves out of IL 57, Cottonwood in Rockford, Illinois. It works great with their PA-36 Pawnee Brave 375 and Cessna 188B Ag Truck models, both of which I have and recommend. Or if you're the freeware type, fly it with the recently uploaded FS2004 previously-payware Cera C188 that Michael E. Roberts posted with my old update so the glass isn't opaque in FSX, or Andrew Holden's freeware Thrush, or Marcel du Plessis FS2004 Grumman G-164A Ag-Cat, or Stuart Greene's AT-301, or Brian Gladden's AT-802, all of which Michael E. Roberts has recently updated.

I'm a long time "on-again, off-again lurker" here, and very occasional poster of updates to other people's models. Finally decided to register on the forum so I could tell y'all about this scenery. Hope somebody out there enjoys it.

josh jones

[Fozzer]

EXCELLENT!

Many thanks, Josh!

It makes a nice alternative to my usual Crop Dusting, etc, in and around California Central Valley, with its similar, flat, agricultural scenery!

Installation went well, and the scenery appears to be based on the copy of my trusty "Instant Scenery 3", which enables me to add some more interesting objects to the surrounding area!
http://www.flight1.com/products.asp?product=iscen3

I just have to be well aware of the dangerous chemicals in the hopper.....and the low-slung telephone/ and electric cables surrounding the fields!

Paul...live to dust another day!... ...!

Tip: Airfield ICAO = IL 57 Cottonwood.

[jcj78]

Hope you enjoy it Fozzer. I'm gonna ry out that Instant Scenery 3. Maybe I'll post a few more strips we can use if I can get the hang of it. I'm not very SDK oriented, but it looks more my speed than most scenery software.

I grew up around ag app operations. My father owns and operates a C188A Agwagon 300. He has six thousand or so hours and 14,000+ takeoff and landings in it and the Agwagon 230 he operated before it, and the Pawnee 150 he started in the summer of 1983, when I was five. My late uncle owned and operated a Pawnee 235, an Agwagon 230, and finally an AgCat 450 before he died of liver disease in 1994. I've spent a lot of time on a load pit, or standing on the wing root pumping gas, or cutting the grass on either side of the 1100' long, thirteen foot wide asphalt strip my pops flies off of (yeah, that's 14,000 TO and landings on a 13' wide runway, having about a foot on each side of the mains).
Once the FAA regs for commercial UAVs comes online I expect that this type of flying has seen its sunset (and firefighting, and fish spotting) outside of the FS world, anyway.

[Fozzer]

Hope you enjoy it Fozzer. I'm gonna ry out that Instant Scenery 3. Maybe I'll post a few more strips we can use if I can get the hang of it. I'm not very SDK oriented, but it looks more my speed than most scenery software.

I grew up around ag app operations. My father owns and operates a C188A Agwagon 300. He has six thousand or so hours and 14,000+ takeoff and landings in it and the Agwagon 230 he operated before it, and the Pawnee 150 he started in the summer of 1983, when I was five. My late uncle owned and operated a Pawnee 235, an Agwagon 230, and finally an AgCat 450 before he died of liver disease in 1994. I've spent a lot of time on a load pit, or standing on the wing root pumping gas, or cutting the grass on either side of the 1100' long, thirteen foot wide asphalt strip my pops flies off of (yeah, that's 14,000 TO and landings on a 13' wide runway, having about a foot on each side of the mains).
Once the FAA regs for commercial UAVs comes online I expect that this type of flying has seen its sunset (and firefighting, and fish spotting) outside of the FS world, anyway.

Hello Josh...

Interesting read!

I note that there are a few more AG strips in the same area, just waiting for me to add some more interesting objects there, with my Instant Scenery 3, select-drag-and drop objects!

If you like populating your own scenery, or adding to existing scenery, Instant Scenery 3 is a joy to use. (Similar to LAGO FSE; Flight Sim Enhancer was/is for FS 2004). Well worth getting!

Paul...Have Cement Mixer, will travel!.... ...!

[jandjfrench]

Hi,
Loaded the scenery and mission. I substituted a Stearman Speedmail for the PA36. When I started the mission I wasn't sure that I was really in the mission or simply in free flight. I didn't know if the PA36s that surrounded me were added by the mission or the scenery. I have neither on screen mission text nor mission pointers enabled. I eventually checked the kneeboard for a clue and saw mission messages but had heard no audio. I also saw markers in the dusting location. I exited FSX and checked the mission sound folder and saw there were no speech audio files. Now my remaining question is "Does the PA36 have some crop dusting effect that is necessary for the mission?"
Jim F.

[Fozzer]

I completed (failed) the mission using the default Air Creation Buggy 582SL Trike, using its extreme manoeuvrability and Compass to observe the headings...!

http://www.alabeo.com/pages/Cottonwoodmission.php

The airfield runway and the crop field both lie due North and South.
So take off. Turn sharply Eastwards. Locate the start of the run (Hoops). Turn sharply South.
At the end of the South run, spin round Northwards to start the next run.
At the end of the North run, turn sharply South again to start the next run.
...and so on...
When completed the 10th (final) run, turn Westwards to locate the Airfield again!

All of the mission (for me) was done with reference to the spinning compass headings on the Trike...N.S.E.W...!

I ran out of TIME due to admiring the scenery en-route!... ...!

It was good fun tho'!

Paul....Dusting down!