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Captain Sim’s Legendary 707

Reviewed by BenÂ Wertsch (Aka Insured Disaster)

I was clapping my hands with glee as I downloaded Captain Sim's Legendary 707. I had looked at the screen shots and saw the numerous gauges, dials, and other toys. The website even said they all worked. I was not disspointed.

Indeed, the manual had a 16 page section just on the gauges. There was also a 24 page section on flying the thing. However, I wish the manuals were a bit more in depth. They did list every switch, guage, etc, and where it was located, but they really didn’t say what it did or how it was used. I would have liked that. The check list could have been layed out a bit better. It had a wealth of information, but it was scattered through the check list. It was a pdf format (not on the knee board) and most people would probably print it off.

For engine start, you turn on the battery, then turn on the APU. This takes a moment to start up, but as it does, a quite whine can be heard as the temp guage winds up.

The manual said that one could either hit Ctrl+3 for an auto engine start after this, or manually start the engines. I tried to do it manually, but they would never quite fire up. I ended up using the auto engine start.

Taxing the plane is fairly easy. It turns well with

Note the many gauges and levers. Nearly everything is clickable or moves. Even the windows can be opened. The wipers will also move.

Note the detailed textures, working thrust reversers, and the really cool gear and flaps. It seems like no detail was spared on this plane.

Take off is easy but don't space out!

The gear are super detailed with the doors having many moving elements.

No tendency to over steer. I was amazed at its ability to maneuver onto the runway while using very little space.

This airplane use the whole runway if you load it up. This can surprise you if you are not watching closely. In addition, if the plane is loaded improperly (you can load it according to your whim) it will have a tendency to bank. So if the cg is not right on the center, don't space off.

The autopilot is something strange compared to the modern autopilots found in planes such as the 747 and 777. It is actually more like the one you would find in the DC-3. But at least this one has an approach mode and an altitude hold mode. The DC-3 AP can't make that claim. But in flight, it works well above 250knts. Under that speed, you might notice the plane banks from one side to the other. Despite this, you should have no problems using it for the approach. (Note, this AP is not a full auto-landing system.)

The landing is fairly easy, with the main issues being thrust. The plane doesn't slow down too well until you deploy the flaps. With full flaps, it will slow down and then keep decelerating. The engines spool up slowly, and you need a lot of power to keep the speed up on final.

This is one of many variations you may fly. You can also fly an AWACS version, as well as a cargo and passenger version. All of them are really well textured.

Landing is not too hard but care should be taken to watch the speed. Going too slow on final may mean the end as the engines are slow to spool up, as was the case on early jets. Notice how the landing gear are level with the ground despite the angle. This is one of the many cool features of this plane.

The plane also has passenger views. This view shows the detail of the rivets and the flaps and textures in general. The spoilerons and ailerons all move too when turning.

Overall, I found flying the plane to be fairly easy. But as there is no GPS, one will have to do some planning on their own. Programs like FS Navigator will probably be greatly appreciated. When flying this plane.

One cool feature is the fuel dumping switch. You can dump the fuel and watch the gauge wind down even faster. Outside, two fuel streams appear close to the plane.

Other than the manuals and the engines not starting properly (although it could have been my fault) I found this plane to be pretty good. There was one other problem and that was the "bunny bounce" effect when the plane was on the runway. This bounce would stop on its own, and was not anything major.

It was easy enough to fly and the details on this model were very good, with a level of workmanship not seen on a lot of models. The textures were top notch with rivets and wear shown as well.

Pros: Great detail, textures were superb. Wonderful cockpit.

Cons: Manuals could have been improved, Plane would wobble when below 250kts on AP. Engine Start issues. "Bunny Bounce Effect"

Overall rating: 9.5 out of 10

Here is a view of everything down. As you can see, the flaps are very detailed.

Here is a view with all of the lights illumitated. The fire switches also can be pulled and the engines shut down. Most of the lights above the attitude indicator are the autopilot mode indicator lights. Notice the lack of high tech displays.

You may not be able to fly the mansion, but at least you can fly the jet.