FS2004 Consolidated C-87 Liberator Express, Version 2. This updated version introduces some new features for the C87: 1. New model.mdl with VC panel, working cowl flaps, passenger cabin night lighting, wheel chocks and pilot's heads which turn in direction of the bank along with all original Version 1 features such as opening cargo door, ramp and textures for both the USAAF and RAF. 2. The panel folder contains the basic Alphasim B-24D panel with a modified panel.bmp which omits the astrodome fitted just forward of the B-24D bomber cockpit. Wing/engine views can now be seen from the cockpit side windows. Please be aware that if you use an alternative 2D panel then the VC instruments will appear slightly blurred, we have not been able to cure this problem. Notes: 1. Passenger cabin night lighting is activated by pressing the L key but as with the Alphasim B-24D bomber the landing lights although visible in the outside views cannot be seen from the cockpit view. 2. The loading ramp keyboard command has been changed - see animations section below. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This representation of a C87 was a first attempt at producing an aircraft for flight simulator and was created by modifying the Alphasim B-24 Gmax source file with other people's textures adapted to suit. The complex nose section was reworked by Jaap de Baare who also made many other refinements and all of the animations. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Way back in the early 1960's, I read what to me is the best aviation book ever written: Ernest K Gann's "Fate is the Hunter". A factual account of his experiences as a pre-war airline pilot flying DC2's and DC3's in the USA. During WW2 he flew various USAAF transport aircraft in different parts of the world and one of those wartime types was the C-87 which Gann referred to in his book as "an evil bastard contraption". The scene shown on screenshot C87_taj will not be lost on anyone who has read the book, I believe it is still in print. Jim Nelson ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The first batch of C-87's were basic B-24D Liberator bombers modified to a transport configuration. The gun turrets were removed, the rear fuselage faired in and the nose glazing panels sheeted over, windows were installed in the lower fuselage along with a large cargo loading door on the port side. The C-87 must have been a very useful asset to the USAAF and RAF because of its long range capabilities however it had many vices and by all accounts appears to have been a much "unloved" aircraft. As a matter of interest, the British purchased a number of Liberator (LB30A) bombers early on in WW2 which were eventually converted to transports in a similar manner to the C-87's and used during and after WW2 by BOAC; Scottish Airlines and Hellenic Airlines retaining the type until 1950. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Specification of Consolidated C-87 Liberator Express: 4 x Pratt & Whitney R-1830-43 fourteen-cylinder air-cooled radial engines with General Electric turbosuperchargers rated at 1,200 hp at 2,700 rpm for takeoff. Performance: Maximum speed 300 mph at 25,000 feet, an altitude of 20,000 feet could be reached in 60 minutes. Service ceiling: 28,000 feet at 56,000 lbs takeoff weight. Normal range: 1,400 miles at 215 mph (60 percent power) at 10,000 feet. Maximum range: 3,300 miles at 188 mph at 10,000 feet. Weights: 30,645 lbs empty, 56,000 lbs normal loaded. Dimensions: Wingspan 110 feet 0 inches, length 66 feet 4 inches, height 17 feet 11 inches, wing area 1048 square feet. Fuel: 2,910 US gallons. Crew: Normally four (pilot, copilot, navigator, radio operator) plus up to 25 passengers or 12,000 lbs of cargo. For ranges of 1000 miles or less, average cargo capacity was 10,000 lbs. On trans-oceanic routes, cargo capacity was 6000 lbs. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- INSTALLATION: 1. If you already have the C-87 Version 1 installed on your flight simulator then please remove it completely. 2. Unzip this file into a temporary folder and copy the folder (C-87 Liberator Express v2) into the AIRCRAFT folder of FS2004. 3. There are several alternative 2D panels available such as the B-24 panel (B24Panel.zip) by Major (R) AAF Guillermo Posadas and the payware Wings of Power B24 panel. 4. In order to reduce the file size, the sound.cfg files are aliased to the default FS2004 Douglas_DC3. However should you already have a B-24 in your AIRCRAFT folder then alias the sound.cfg files to reflect the new reference or use a suitable alternative sound such as the B-17 sound package (B17sndpk.zip) by Des Braban. 5. The original Alphasim B-24 gauge files are included in the gauges zip folder in case you don't have them in your FS2004 gauges folder. ANIMATIONS: 1. COWL FLAPS: Use the normal FS2004 keyboard commands or allocate appropriate buttons on your flight yoke. 2. CARGO DOOR: Use (Shift + E) to operate the forward door, (Shift + E + 2) for the after door. 3. LOADING RAMP: Use wingfold command (Shift + W) to bring up the loading ramp. The ramp is based on one seen in a photograph in the Propliner magazine No.104 of a Scottish Airlines Liberator on a turn around at Prestwick. 4. WHEEL CHOCKS: Use (Control + Dot). 5. CREW: Press the backslash key ( / ) and the crew will disappear, press again and they will reappear in their seats. GENERAL: 1. AIRCRAFT.CFG: This is a modified Alphasim B-24 aircraft.cfg file. 2. AIR FILE: This is the original Alphasim B-24 air file. The C-87 seems to fly well enough on this but it should be noted that the Alphasim model lists the B-24 fuel capacity as 2,344 US gallons whereas the C-87 appears to have had a capacity of some 2,910 US gallons. 3. MODEL: Photographs of B-24's and C-87's show different types of aerial fits varying from masts to whips, this model carries no visible aerials. 4. TEXTURES: We have not been able to find any colour plates for the C-87 so have used the B-24 textures as being representative of USAAF and RAF paint schemes of the time. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: 1. Our thanks to Phil Perrott of Alphasim for allowing us to use the Alphasim B-24 Gmax source file and other necessary files from (alphab24.zip) for the USAAF version. 2. To Major (R) AAF Giullermo Posadas for allowing us to use his (B24Polsk.zip) textures as a basis for the RAF version. LEGAL: This project is released as freeware. You may modify it, repaint it, etc., upload to another website as long as it is not for profit. This FS2004 aircraft works well enough on our computer set ups and should not cause any damage to your computer but please be advised that we are not responsible for any problems which may arise. Jim Nelson Jaap de Baare January 2011 January 2011 jayn2004@tiscali.co.uk jp1508@hetnet.nl