FSX free aircraft downloads don't work

[notatechguy]

Hi all, I am not a tech kind of guy. I download free aircraft then I extract it to the right folder. (x86, Steam, Steamapps, common, sim objects, aircraft etc but....although it shows up in the list, only like 1 in 30 actually show up in the game and work! What am I doing wrong? Are there any that just work or do I have to copy and paste things? I'm not a young person so I have no idea how to do all kinds of complicated computer stuff. I just want to do a few easy clicks and have it work! Nothing computer related ever works right or is easy. Thanks in advance for any help!

[TextRich]

That particular plane you want - it seems its original files (the .ZIP and patch files) were lost so some features of that plane are unusable anyway. See this link:
http://www.sim-outhouse.com/sohforums/showthread.php/81433-Looking-for-Fairchild-C82-Files

It looks like you did everything right. Try going to this link and download the FIRST plane in the list first. It seems to be more complete than the other two. You will need a free account if you don't already have one to download from that site.
https://www.flightsim.com/vbfs/fslib.php?searchid=55823463

After downloading, follow all instructions. One folder copied and pasted into the FSX/Simobjects/Airplanes folder. One other file should be copied and pasted in the main FSX effects folder (for the smoke effect) - FSX/effects. It has the same name as an original file in that folder, so you may want to move the original file to a different folder or rename it with ORIGINAL in its name in case you need it back later on.

When you relaunch FSX, say yes to all questions if you want to add the plane to the sim. I just took it for a test flight and unfortunately the missing files means the plane doesn't have a complete virtual cockpit and you will basically see through it when you are inside. Other than that it looks good in the outside and seems to fly OK. Unfortunately it looks like there isn't any high-quality payware version available if the C82 is your favorite plane. :-(

As for elevator trim, if you don't know what it is yet, go to the in-game flying lessons, Student Pilot, Lesson 1, and scroll down to the "Time for a Trim" heading. I didn't know what it was for until I started simming, either. :-) It lets you make fine adjustments to your elevator (up/down on your control stick or yoke) without actually needing your hands on said controllers.

Some planes require trimming before you actually take off so you will be able to lift more easily, or for your plane's case, not lift too much and risk stalling. When you are at the altitude you want, trim as needed to keep from gaining or losing altitude (straight and level flying).

[geomodelrailroader]

some aircraft will work others won't always check your sources before you download. Trusted Freewere sites are: Flyaway Simulations, AV Sim, Premiere Aircraft Designs, Simviation, and Project Openski Archive. Do not get aircraft off of Rikoooo or FSX Mods.Net these are copies of other peoples models, they don't work, the sites are fake, downloading them will erase your game, they contain viruses, and editing the Aircraft Config and the RNI files will delete all your downloads and aircraft. Before you download answer these questions: Is the aircraft made with a program that is compatible DXP? Is the aircraft aliased to your controls? Does the panel work? Do the instruments work? Does the plane have an unobstructed view? Can you load passengers or cargo? Does your aircraft have a working HUD? Does the Autopilot work? Has the plane been checked by a certified pilot? Is the website IPA certified? Has the Aircraft Config folder been scanned for viruses? Does the aircraft come from a country that does not have any DMCA citations? Is the software certified by Microsoft Corp? Can the Aircraft Config be edited? Is the Aircraft Config illegal characters? Are the files in ANSI format and do they match the Aircraft Config? if the answer to any of these questions is NO! don't download that aircraft and if it is installed erase it and get one from a certified site and run programs like Revo, and Malwerebytes to clear your system. DON'T DOWNLOAD THIRD PARTY AIRCRAFT FROM NON CERTIFIED SITES! Rikoooo, FSX Mods.Net, and several European and Asian websites can not be trusted aircraft from these guys has been stolen, copied, blinded, altered, and contain bad code which will damage any computers in America and the UK. These guys don't go by our laws and any aircraft from them is faulty and will crash your system and you will get viruses. Please don't download any aircraft from these sites only go to one that is certified by Microsoft Corp, IPA, the FAA, or any organization that uses these for training or for simulation purposes.

[gspectre]

Originally posted by geomodelrailroader:

some aircraft will work others won't always check your sources before you download. Trusted Freewere sites are: Flyaway Simulations, AV Sim, Premiere Aircraft Designs, Simviation, and Project Openski Archive. Do not get aircraft off of Rikoooo or FSX Mods.Net these are copies of other peoples models, they don't work, the sites are fake, downloading them will erase your game, they contain viruses, and editing the Aircraft Config and the RNI files will delete all your downloads and aircraft. Before you download answer these questions: Is the aircraft made with a program that is compatible DXP? Is the aircraft aliased to your controls? Does the panel work? Do the instruments work? Does the plane have an unobstructed view? Can you load passengers or cargo? Does your aircraft have a working HUD? Does the Autopilot work? Has the plane been checked by a certified pilot? Is the website IPA certified? Has the Aircraft Config folder been scanned for viruses? Does the aircraft come from a country that does not have any DMCA citations? Is the software certified by Microsoft Corp? Can the Aircraft Config be edited? Is the Aircraft Config illegal characters? Are the files in ANSI format and do they match the Aircraft Config? if the answer to any of these questions is NO! don't download that aircraft and if it is installed erase it and get one from a certified site and run programs like Revo, and Malwerebytes to clear your system. DON'T DOWNLOAD THIRD PARTY AIRCRAFT FROM NON CERTIFIED SITES! Rikoooo, FSX Mods.Net, and several European and Asian websites can not be trusted aircraft from these guys has been stolen, copied, blinded, altered, and contain bad code which will damage any computers in America and the UK. These guys don't go by our laws and any aircraft from them is faulty and will crash your system and you will get viruses. Please don't download any aircraft from these sites only go to one that is certified by Microsoft Corp, IPA, the FAA, or any organization that uses these for training or for simulation purposes.

Just how would anyone even be able to answer most of those questions without 1st downloading the questionable aircraft?

As for most of those questions, I could not answer most of them because I have no clue where to even get the information and I get my aircraft from safe sites.

I'm so glad I did not get advice from you when I 1st got into Flight Sims from MS, or I never would have even started, back in 2004, with Century of Flight.

By the way, my 1st Flight sim was from SubLogic but hated the wireframe design and swapped it for an F-15 flight Sim and bought about every Flight Sim from MicroProse. :-D

[3 Wire]

Originally posted by gspectre:

By the way, my 1st Flight sim was from SubLogic but hated the wireframe design and swapped it for an F-15 flight Sim and bought about every Flight Sim from MicroProse. :-D

LOL I had almost forgotten about those, but I had them all too, man, that's really a step back in time...!!

To the original poster....

Make sure you have the box "show all variations" checked off in the aircraft selection screen, it's at the bottom and easy to miss.

This really shouldn't be that difficult, like gspectre said, the readme files that come with most of these freeware add on AC usually have detailed installation instructions.

I would recommend un-zipping the downloaded files in the same folder you downloaded them in (by default it's usually just called "downloads") or you can create temporary one. Read the install instructions carefully, then drag and drop the necessary folders you unpacked into the appropriate folders in FSX. I would recommend doing it this way versus unzipping the whole archive directly into the FSX/SimObjects/Airplanes folder, which can cause problems unless you know exactly what you are doing.

Try getting your freeware packages from well known established flight simulator websites, I would recommend Flightsim.com, AVSIM, and Simviation. There are others around, but I've found these to be the best overall. These almost always contain detailed and easy to follow installation instructions in the downloaded Zip file.