October 12, 20222 yr The Optica looks like an interesting project. Good luck and I hope to see it available soon. Jim Morgan
October 13, 20222 yr Very nice! Often saw this flying around Farnborough, think it was being tested for Police observation use.
October 13, 20222 yr Polars for the "proper" airfoil is available I notice: http://airfoiltools.com/airfoil/details?airfoil=ls417-il A promising aircraft that suffered from an accident at a crucial time early in its operational life. Marketed as an observation helicopter replacement, it really didn't help that the accident was stated as caused by turning too tight whilst going too slow... Make it about the ❤️, not the $'s
October 13, 20222 yr Author 1 hour ago, Scaley said: Very nice! Often saw this flying around Farnborough, think it was being tested for Police observation use. Depending on the year, it was possibly one of these two: C/N 004 (1985) Ex. G-BLFD, G-KATY, Hampshire Constabulary, destroyed in crash (15 May) C/N 016 (1987) G-BMPL Ex. Hampshire Constabulary, now in UK Storage https://www.optica.co.uk/Aircraft Histories.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgley_Optica Here is the first draft of the cabin area: Nothing is animated yet. That's going to take a while!
October 14, 20222 yr Go for it John, I've been hoping someone would develop a model of this aircraft. Thank You.
October 15, 20222 yr Hey, great work John, you are one of the dedicated people that make flying X Plane enjoyable. well Done Bay Pilot
October 22, 20222 yr Author Here is a preview for XP11. It's a bit scrappy in parts but basically flyable. Mainly in need of more animations. Optica_preview.zip
October 22, 20222 yr Basically - I agree. Nice, docile little GA aircraft. A bit overpowered would be my main reaction, and there may need to be either a CG tweak or a control geometry tweak for slow speed flight. But it seems pleasant to fly. The cockpit mesh could stand to be a bit finer since you can see faceting on the curves of the frame pretty easily - and with X-Plane's ability to fill polygons, you need not worry too much about sacrificing visual fidelity for frame rate. Good job...don't stop now! 😉 Steve "Unicorn" WilsonX-Crafts FMS & Autoflight Developer
October 22, 20222 yr Author Thanks for taking the time to look at it and comment, Steve. The engine is supposed to run at 2,700 rpm but I haven't managed to get that under control yet. The CG was a bit tricky on the real thing apparently. In the real aircraft, there is a rack for weights ahead of the instrument pylon and the tail booms conceal adjustable sliding weights. Some trim may be required at times and 10-20% flaps are useful for low-speed loitering. The cockpit resolution/mesh complexity is on my to-do list 🙂
October 22, 20222 yr Most welcome, and awesome. The Optica hasn't been front and center in my aviation dreams, but back in the day when I used to doodle designs (long, long before X-Plane) the idea of a pusher like the Optica did surface a few times. I just hated the idea of having that silly prop spinning in front of me, spoiling the view. I was envious of the Bell 47 for the longest time too.... and then came the Oblivion "Bubbleship." So let's just say I'm a fan of this kind of design, so I wish you well as you progress. You've made an excellent start! Steve "Unicorn" WilsonX-Crafts FMS & Autoflight Developer
October 23, 20222 yr Author Here is an acf file which has a modified flight model, including some CG tweaks. I think it handles better now. It also adds interior/exterior lights. Optica.acf.zip
October 23, 20222 yr John: WOW!! Never heard of this aircraft before so thanks for bringing her to my attention. What a unique concept. Love everything about her in just a very short flight. The new .acf file really works well. Thanks again.
October 23, 20222 yr Thank you for building this John, it's been on my wish list for a while... V1Sim.com Twitter Instagram Gumroad My systems running XP: Razer Blade 15 - Full HD 360Hz - GeForce RTX 3080 Ti - Black i7-2600K OC'd 3.9GHz, CM Hyper 212 EVO, Gigabyte GA-Z68X-UD7-B3, 32GB DDR3 RAM, Gigabyte GTX1070 G1, Silverstone ST1200 PSU, Samsung 860 Evo 500GB SSD, CM 690 II Adv. nVidia Edition mid-tower case, Windows 10 Pro 64bit. Retired: MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Mid 2015), 2.5 GHz i7, 16 GB 1600 MHz DDR3 not dead, just out to pasture.
October 24, 20222 yr Hey John: Just for a laugh here is something I thru together for myself last night. I call her "Fireball" (C-FBAL) Good thing is she has her own power so "NO CATAPULT REQUIRED." Thought you might get a kick out of this one.
October 24, 20222 yr I had a play. Did a custom airfoil, flight model tweaks and an Fmod. stored here Could do with a better "fan" noise - the one here is a sample of the original, but I can't find a good quality video with that sound in it. If anyone can point me to a better one I'd be grateful. Regards Dan H Make it about the ❤️, not the $'s
October 26, 20222 yr Thank you John, this is brilliant V1Sim.com Twitter Instagram Gumroad My systems running XP: Razer Blade 15 - Full HD 360Hz - GeForce RTX 3080 Ti - Black i7-2600K OC'd 3.9GHz, CM Hyper 212 EVO, Gigabyte GA-Z68X-UD7-B3, 32GB DDR3 RAM, Gigabyte GTX1070 G1, Silverstone ST1200 PSU, Samsung 860 Evo 500GB SSD, CM 690 II Adv. nVidia Edition mid-tower case, Windows 10 Pro 64bit. Retired: MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Mid 2015), 2.5 GHz i7, 16 GB 1600 MHz DDR3 not dead, just out to pasture.
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.