
(NOTE: This product requires the
A2A Wings
of POWER II: B17 Flying Fortress to be installed)
The philosophy behind Accu-Sim was born many
years ago. This has all been a dream for us, until now. After many years of hard
work, we are proud to present our dream to you, our customer.
A2A Simulations has made it
possible for all of us to have the opportunity to enjoy the unique, challenging
and fascinating experience of flying the most authentic, complete and accurate
simulation of the legendary B-17 ever created. The creation and application of
the unique, proprietary A2A Accu-Sim system enables us to truly put you in the
B-17’s cockpit in a way that only flying the real thing could match. You can
almost smell the leather seats, the hot oil, and the pungent exhaust from those
four Wright R-1820-97 "Cyclone" turbo-supercharged, 1,200 horsepower radial
engines.
To insure the accuracy and fidelity of the
simulation, A2A developers have been privileged to take flights in carefully and
lovingly maintained B-17’s today with eyes and ears wide open. With multiple
cameras rolling and microphones in hand, A2A developers crawled within every
nook and cranny of the cockpit so that every sound and sight that a B-17 Pilot
would experience is there for you, right down to the wind rushing over the
airframe and the characteristic vibrations and tremors of the real aircraft.
As you have come to expect from A2A Accu-Sim
aircraft, nothing has been left out that operates in the real aircraft. In fact,
there are many features that are included in this simulation that have never
before been modeled or included in any other aircraft simulation.
What this means is that when you are flying and
operating the A2A Accu-Sim B-17G you will have the uncanny feeling that you are
actually in command of a real world B-17. If the engines and the various systems
of the simulated B-17 are not operated correctly and as the aircraft manual
provides, the airplane will perform less than optimally, and if taken to the
extreme, damage and failures will occur just as they would under similar
circumstances in the real world.
Occasionally, parts of the airplane will become
worn or fail from ordinary use, just as occurs in a real airplane. There is a
complete and comprehensive maintenance hanger that you can take your airplane to
when on the ground with engines shut down. There you will get a fully detailed,
written and illustrated report about the condition of the airplane, and can then
authorize recommended repairs. When in the maintenance hanger you will hear
typical noises of a repair facility echoing around the vast space such as
machinery running, parts and tools falling and clanging to the floor, etc. This
kind of intense, authentic pilot experience helps to gives you a sense of total
immersion and involvement in day to day life with such a magnificent airplane.
The electrical system seems as if it has
actually been wired and hooked up and consists of the lights, landing gear
retraction system, flaps, turbochargers, fuel pumps, bomb bay doors, radios and
more. They are all electrically powered by the batteries, generators and even an
Auxiliary Power Unit (APU) which you can order one of your waist gunners to turn
on and off. The voltmeters’ readings vary authentically as each item is brought
on or taken off line, and as each of the three independent batteries are
selected to be read. Electric motors whine with their own unique, authentic
sound. You can even hear the sounds of the hydraulic pumps and fluid rushing
through the pipes. Vital batteries, motors, and pumps can unexpectedly fail
which will test your metal as pilot in command. As a result of this realism, you
will get used to going to the maintenance hanger before each flight the see what
needs to be done to keep your B-17 in safe and reliable flying condition.
Your crew is interactive and various crewmen
will speak to you from time to time to remind you to do various things that you
may have forgotten to so (see “THE CREW” below). The Flight Engineer watches the
engines and may remind you to give the guys in the back a little heat and your
Co-Pilot can even manage the engines for you. If you fly the airplane too
roughly, you may get complaints from the crew. Your landings may get compliments
if they are good and the reverse if they are not. Various crewmen will report to
you as to the position of the landing gear and flaps when you raise or lower
them. You are definitely not alone when you are the pilot in command of a
capable crew.
Every aspect of the engines and the fuel system
has been faithfully modeled as well. Fuel is supplied through gravity-fed tanks,
through electrical booster pumps, mechanical fuel pumps, transfer pumps, to
large, thirsty rumbling radial engines.
You can select the grades of the fuel and oil
to be used on each flight, which will appropriately change how the engines
perform. Loading the bird with fuel and feeding one tank with fuel from another
in flight is fully functional and accurate in operation to the actual aircraft.
You can also cross feed fuel from tanks in one wing to tanks in the other wing.
You can opt to carry a center fuselage bomb bay fuel tank for extra range, or
bombs, as you choose.
The cowl flaps and inter-cooler doors are fully
adjustable; and just as with the propellers, you can set them yourself, or
command the Co-Pilot to do it. When you command him to monitor these functions,
he will continually set them to keep the engines running cool and at their peak.
The B-17G has a unique turbocharger control --
a numbered wheel for pre-setting the maximum amount of manifold pressure desired
when the throttles are fully opened. In the A2A Accu-Sim
B-17G you will find this turbocharger control fully and authentically modeled in
every detail exactly as in the real world B-17G. You can even calibrate
individual turbochargers, just like the real pilots and crew-chiefs do, so that
each engine will almost purr in harmony with another.
The Pilot’s and Co-Pilot’s left and right side
windows can be opened to any amount desired. They will fog up if not vented
properly, or if the cabin heater is incorrectly set for the outside air
temperature.
From time to time, your radioman will contact
you on the intercom to well you that he has picked up something that you might
like to hear and that you should switch to the “liaison” channel of your com
radio. When you do this, you might hear a song, a news program with a speech by
Winston Churchill, a sports report, or some other radio program that would have
been broadcast over the radio in Europe during WWII. These recordings are all
taken from authentic 1940’s broadcasts. At first you will hear static as you
approach the station, then the program will get clearer; and, as you fly away
from the station, you will hear static again until the program cannot be heard
anymore, as if it was really coming in on a low frequency radio band typical of
those days. As you go out of range of the broadcast, the radioman will comment
on that. This is a real first in flight simulation, and it adds an uncanny sense
of realism, depth, time and place to your sim experience. It’s one of my
favorite parts of this incredible simulation, and it is a remarkable A2A flight
simulation first.
Another nice touch is the feature which allows
you to open the bomb bay doors or command the bombardier to do so, and drop the
bombs. From the outside, you can watch them fall away, or from inside, you can
hear the latches release as your aircraft instantly becomes 6,000 pounds
lighter. You can also jettison your internal bomb bay tanks if you wish, which
make a characteristic ‘whoosh’ as those enormous, tall tanks fall into the
airstream below.
Here’s a real treat for aviation historians and
everyone who loves the B-17: A2A has modeled a fully functional, completely
accurate and authentic Honeywell 1-C automatic pilot in this simulation. When
you access it through 2D pop-up, you will find an exact replica of the C-1
control panel upon which every knob and switch operates and functions exactly as
did the real one. Also, you can communicate through the 2D panel with your
bombardier, who was a necessary team-mate when operating of this piece of
equipment. While this very early auto-pilot was finicky and did not have the
simplicity of operation or many of the features of the more modern auto-pilots
that we have become accustomed to using, operating this C-1 simulation will let
you share the experience which Pilots of the B-17 (as well Pilots of the B-24
and B-29) had when they used this historical piece of aviation equipment. A2A’s
fully functioning model of the C-1 is but another of the many groundbreaking
flight simulation firsts contained in A2A’s Accu-Sim B-17G simulation.
The flight model of the A2A Accu-Sim B-17G has
been meticulously created to give you the true feeling of flying this heavy,
four-engine bomber. Close reference to B-17 Pilot’s reports and A2A staff
flights in a real B-17 have informed us to the greatest extent possible what
flying this airplane feels like. That enormous fin and rudder made turns very
smooth and easy. The elevators were sensitive and never lost their effect, even
at slow speeds. There was power to spare in those four Wright R-1820-97, 1,200
horsepower engines. Accordingly, the “Fortress” carried herself with grace and
ease at all times. Altogether, she was a majestic and gentle airplane and every
B-17 pilot we have spoken to and every pilot’s report we have come across has
said without reservation that she was a joy to fly.
The A2A staff has meticulously and
professionally recorded every sound that is heard when operating and flying a
B-17G, from the powerful engines to the smallest switch in the cockpit. The
airframe groans if you strain it too hard, the wind whistles outside according
to the airspeed and, if you open either or both of the cockpit windows you will
hear the engines louder outside the window and hear the wind whip into the
cockpit, just as with the real airplane. The brakes and tires squeal
appropriately when they are pushed hard. Every control, switch, knob and device
that makes a sound in the real-world B-17G has been recorded and included in
this simulation in order to immerse and involve you as completely as possible.
Switches and knobs click from position to position with a visceral feel that is
uncanny. Everything in the cockpit moves and operates exactly as it does in the
real B-17G.
All of these features and much more await you
in the A2A Accu-Sim B-17. This is not a generic “B-17”, and this simulation is
not like any other you have ever experienced before. Great care has been taken
by A2A to replicate the actual “G” model of this airplane. It is historically
accurate down to the rivets, instruments, handles, controls, cables, wires and
tubes of the B-17G. Nothing has been left out and everything moves and operates
authentically. A2A’s exclusive and proprietary Accu-Sim matrix provides features
and controls far beyond that which FSX normally allows. That is why A2A has been
able to create the most accurate, historically correct and complete simulation
of the B-17G ever offered.
Mitchell Glicksman
© 2010
The A2A B-17 Accu-Sim Expansion Pack FEATURES:
New internal cockpit lighting system
includes fluorescent lights and glow-in-the-dark radiant gauges
Real-time fuel management including fuel
transfer pump and gravity-fed Tokyo Tanks for long range
Two fuel grades (100 / 91 octane) and three
oil grades available for proper cold and hot weather operations
3D model upgraded to Wings of POWER III
standards with crisp, new modeling and texturing for stunning visuals
Fourth Generation Accu-Sim lives and
breathes under the hood
-
Piston
combustion engine modeling. Air comes in, it mixes with fuel and
ignites, parts move, heat up, and all work in harmony to produce the
wonderful sound of a big radial engine. Now the gauges look beneath the
skin of your aircraft and show you what Accu-Sim is all about.
-
Airflow,
density, and it's temperature not only affect the way your aircraft
flies, but how the internal systems operate.
-
Real-world
conditions affect system conditions, including engine temperatures and
authentic cowl flap management.
-
Use
intercooler flaps to cool Carburetor Air Temperatures (CAT), as high
temperatures can adversely affect engine performance while low
temperatures can lead to carburetor icing.
-
Spark plugs
can clog and eventually foul if the engine is allowed to idle too low
for too long. Throttling up an engine with oil-soaked spark plugs can
help clear them out and smoke will pour out of exhausts as oil is burned
off.
-
Overheating
can cause scoring of cylinder head walls which could ultimately lead to
failure if warnings are ignored and overly abused.
-
On hot
summer days, you will need to pay very close attention to your systems,
possibly expediting your takeoff to avoid overheating due to radiant
ground heat.
-
Latest
generation Accu-Sound now allows for a direct connection to the Accu-Sim
and FSX physics engine with airflow through the airframe, windows,
structural creaks, bumps, jolts etc. with over 500 sounds in all.
-
Engine
vibrations travel through the airframe. Front pilots panel is mounted on
6 shock mounts.
-
Authentic
component drag. Drop your gear, deploy your flaps, or just try a dive,
and listen to your airframe. It's all there and it's all real.
-
System
failures. For example, if you deploy your flaps at too high of a speed,
you will likely hear the flap motor stressing against the forces. Using
bad habits like this can lead to a shorter life of components.
-
Total
audible cockpit made with recordings from the actual aircraft. Before
you fly, enjoy clicking everything.
-
Primer
system modeled. Accu-Sim monitors the amount of fuel injected and its
effectiveness to start the engine. Roughly 2-4 shots needed in hot
weather and 4-8 in cold weather.
-
Authentic
battery. The battery capacity is based on temperature. The major draw
comes from engine starting.
-
Oil
pressure system is affected by oil viscosity (oil thickness). Oil
viscosity is affected by oil temp and oil dilution level. Now when you
start the engine, you need to be careful and not raise RPM too much
until oil temp is high enough to give proper oil pressure. If you raise
RPM too high on a cold engine, especially very cold, oil pressure can
raise to over 150psi. Oil pump failure can result. Also, extended
inverted flight (negative g) can uncover the oil sump and reduce oil
pressure. Do not fly in a negative g situation for more than 5 seconds.
-
Oxygen
starvation (hypoxia) is modeled. Just take off and climb without oxygen
to see.
-
Experience
realistic startups with an authentic inertia starter. Wind it up and
engage.
-
Authentic
engine sounds. When possible, we visit and fly the actual aircraft,
capturing every area that makes sounds, namely the engine and how it not
only sounds inside and outside, but based on where you are outside. We
also have sounds to indicate how your engine is performing. For example,
it may cough if the cylinders start getting fouled, or you may hear
components start knocking when pushed too hard. This all contributes to
you, the pilot, knowing your aircraft and how to read how it is
functioning throughout every flight.
Developed for

A2A B-17 Accu-Sim Movie
View the
A2A B-17 Accu-Sim Manual
SCREENSHOTS
and MORE INFO
HERE
Interactive Cockpit Panorama
HERE
This product was added to our catalog on Tuesday 30 March, 2010.