Fly The Lakes

Now here's a scenery package that's not only beautiful to look at, but it's also fun to fly in! This is not your typical Scenery Package. Having not "flown" too much in Italy, I was pleasantly surprised at the beautiful mountains and terrain that was found in this northern region of Italy. Fly the Lakes is just that, flying the lakes.This Scenery Package covers a huge area, where you will find lakes of various sizes, rivers, hills and mountains. Very detailed cities and villages are depicted as well, with no shortage of building scenery, be it an office building or a small farm! A challenging IFR approach awaits you at the airport of Lugano, along with the Como seaplane station. The possibilities for floatplane flying are many! That's why cloud9 also includes the Seamax, a small floatplane with this scenery package. The Seamax is built in Brazil, where a sprawling coastline, many lakes, rivers, and dams craves this type of aircraft for sightseeing. Being able to lput it down either on land or on the water is a big plus with this simple little aircraft. Land on the water and then pull up onto the ramp and get dried off! Just because I call it simple, does not mean it can't perform! Great flying characteristics include the exceptionally low stall speed of 36 mph, and a cruising speed of around 115 mph. This aircraft comes with an aircraft manual and checklist.

An ideal mix for low and slow flights. With the Seamax included, this product is the ideal and complete package to discover an amazingly beautiful area between North Italy and Switzerland. The airport of Lugano, situated in a strategic geographic position in the south of the Alps between Zurich and Milan, has always been important for the economy and tourism of the city of Lugano. The airport, with its medium size infrastructures, is efficiently offering fast and accurate services and it’s very appreciated by the business customers. The Como seaplanes stations, located on the western part of the Como lake, is the best starting point for endless flights to discover the landscapes of the area and the small villages with famous villas around the lake. The Como aeroclub is one of the few European schools for seaplanes pilots.

The scenery for Fly the Lakes was developed using hundreds of ground and in-flight pictures. Airports are fully integrated into the terrain, with runways, taxiways and aprons reproduced with loads of details. Other features of this package include, animations and special effects, airports and buildings designed using 3d studio Max, with photorealistic textures being used for all airports, and customized AI traffic. The high detail mesh for the area has been completely designed to reduce impact on frame rates. This package is also compatible with other third party photorealistic mesh and add ons.

The Seamax is designed and developed from real aircraft drawings, with lots of animated components, i.e. canopy pops forward for you, and it also utilizes a detailed photorealistic cockpit. The cockpit is basic and not difficult to get used to. Normal gauges and GPS are included. The flight dynamics are very realistic, as well as the sounds package, which was created from the actual sounds of the Seamax. In all, this is a very fun little aircraft to fly and explore in!

The info that you have read up to now has been information that is from cloud9's website on the product, with the exception of a few random comments here and there. Now here's what I truly think of this package in my own words, FUN, FUN, FUN!!! The last few months has seen me "flying" more trips that require a flight plan. I am ceaselessly (O.K. I stop to sleep eat, and write reviews!) practicing my navagational skills in preparation for my license. Somehow I forgot how fun it is to explore areas that have gone unnoticed before! "What's over that hill" kind of flying. As I said earlier, Northern Italy has not been a focal point of my wanderings. This package displays for you just how truly wonderous and diverse this big blue marble that we call earth is! You're very close to Switzerland, so need I say more about beautiful mountain scenery! Cloud9 has done a great job with the terrain mesh and the details of land and buildings. I particularly liked the rolling hills. Reminds me of where I live in Northern California. Hmmm, I think I have that package! I would suggest this add on for anyone who enjoys; Exploring, Waterlandings, and a little bit of fun! Cloud9 has included a challenge for you with this package. Find the two "Easter Eggs" (that's all I know!) that are placed somewhere in the scenery and you'll win fscloud9 products! With the Seamax's capability of slow flight, this could be a lot of fun!! As of this writing, I don't believe anyone has found the "Eggs" yet, but check their forum to make sure.

Installation and buying the package
There are a couple of hoops that you have to jump through, but there easy hoops!

1 - Go to the link at the bottom of this review.
2 - Download the file by clicking on the button on the left of that page, or by going to the downloads link.
3 - Go to where you downloaded the package to and run the ".exe" file in the zip. The installer will automatically copy all
     files to your PC.
4 - Start MSFS with a default aircraft and reduce to window, ALT + ENTER keys, and from the add on manager pull down,
     select "Fly the Lakes" and click on "Buy".
5 - Follow the onscreen instructions and insert your personal information to purchase the product. At the end of the transaction
     the product will be active, and you'll be ready for those water landings!

Service Pack Updates are also available with improvments to airports.

The product is on sale at $24.99 USD plus VAT. For all that this package has, this seems like a very reasonable price! Exchange rate is variable. VAT is applied as required in each country. The product activation requires a working internet connection. The product can be used with FS2004 and Windows XP or Windows 2000 operating systems. Further details and technical support can only be gotten through the cloud9 forum.

System Requirements: Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004 - Windows XP - CPU 1.8Ghz - RAM 512Mb - 80Mb hard disk space - 128Mb video card - Sound card - DirectX 8.0 or higher

For more information on this great add on visit www.fscloud9.com