This is a continuation of my flight in the Latecoere 631 from Latecoere Airport (LFB4) that I first documented here, back in December.
Leg 2
My second leg took me from Marseille (LFML) to Fertilia (LIEA):
Being towed out of the harbor at Porte de la Mede:
Turning south over LFML:
En-route, with Corsica in the distance:
Landfall in Sardinia at Capo Argentiera:
Lining up for a landing in the bay at Alghero:
On final, whilst keeping an eye out for maritime traffic on the runway:
Being towed into the harbor:
Docked:
Leg 3
The next leg took me across the Mediterranean to Carthage.
Leaving Fertilia on a blustery winter morning:
Skirting clouds the whole way:
Landfall at Bizerte:
Lining up for the landing in the bay just past the harbor at La Goulette:
Tunis-Carthage airport, with Tunis in the background:
On final:
Touchdown!
Being towed into the harbor:
I think I’ll moor right about… here:
Leg 4
A short flight today, just 180 NM down the coast to Zarzis:
The ever-fathful “Mistral”, towing me out of the harbor:
I’m only going to climb to 5,000 ft today, considering it’s only a short 1-hour flight:
Zarzis dead ahead:
Landing outside the harbor entrance:
The harbor is too small for this aircraft, so I’m going to moor by the Ghazi Mustapha Fortress, which is right by the Municipal Theatre and Houmt Souk, represented in MSFS as a round building. In real life the building is much more interesting & attractive:
The Ghazi Mustapha Fortress is not modelled at all in MSFS, which is a shame, as it is an imposing structure, well worth a bespoke model if this area is ever included in a future WU or CU:
The view of the two buildings from above in real life:
Leg 5
Today’s flight took me along the nort Africa coast from Zarzis to Misurata.
Taking off from the harbor. It’s another cloudy morning:
Cruising along the coast at 3,500 ft:
Flying over the port of Tripoli:
Approaching Misurata. I’m planning to land in the harbor, if it is free of shipping:
Looks OK to me!
Descending a bit too steeply here, but I want to touch down just past the water’s edge. I’ll flair just above the water:
Being towed back to what I think was the old dock area, before they built the adjacent container terminal:
Docked & ship-shape:
[MSFS 2024 v1.7.10.0]
Hi Smothery, how are you binding the 3 engines, props, mixture on 6 engines and which throttle set up are you using please? I have Honeycomb.
I would also like to see African and Arabian peninsula countries updated. There are so many interesting sights there.
Hi @Pilotfirst9999
These are my throttle bindings for my VelocityOne Flight Yoke & Rudder:
Basically,
- Lever 1 on my throttle quadrant is bound to Joystick Slider Y (Throttle Axis) that controls all 6 engines.
- Engines 1, 2 & 3 are bound to RAxis X (Lever 2 on my throttle quadrant).
- Engine 4 is bound to RAxis Y (Lever 3 on my throttle quadrant).
There is no way to bind engines 5 or 6 to an individual throttle lever - they can only be controlled using “Throttle Axis” which affects all six engines.
Of course, one can use the mouse to control each engine independently for maximum differentlial thrust.
Props and mixture for all engines are each contolled by one lever - Mixture uses Joystick LAxis Z and Props use LAxis Y
Thank you very much. We really do need more axis don’t we.
I was wondering, is it not possible to use this second box in the axis binding to add more throttles? Do you know?
@Pilotfirst9999
No, that won’t work. That box is for a secondary binding to the same control - in your example above, Throttle 1 Axis. There is no way users can add more throttle controls (5, 6…etc.). That can only be done by MS/As, plus developers would then need to modify their aircraft to map engines 5, 6… etc. to those new controls. Only once that is done can users then map the new controls to their particular hardware device levers, buttons, etc.
Thanks Smothery 
Just to add, since they knew they were giving us this A/c, why it was not planned for in advance?
No idea. The same could be asked w.r.t the Spruce Goose. Perhaps the number of users who have hardware that can be configured to individually control multiple engines is relatively small compared to those that fly with, say, a joystick with only one throttle lever / wheel, so it was not considered a high enough priority.
If you look at the number of votes for the wish item for this (here), 17 votes in almost 3 years hardly constitutes an overwhelming desire on behalf of the community to have this feature added to MSFS.
I see your point. I think that you have flown this quite a bit and your pictures have piqued my curiosity. Hopefully the more folk that see it being flown it will pique theirs too. I am in the cockpit now and it certainly looks like a learning curve - which I will enjoy but it will take some time to learn it I expect. It is so very different from anything I have previously had time with.
I had already voted yesterday just to add.
Making more throttles available should really have been on the agenda since they were promoting the AN225 heavily as a charitable promotion and it has 6 engines has it not? Anyway, I hope it comes to Jorg’s attention.
Leg 6
I’ve changed to the F-BDRJ livery, and today’s flight will take me over the Gulf of Sidra from Misurata to Benghazi.
Surface winds permitting, one can take-off from the harbor entrance at Misurata, keep on a 91-degree course and arrive on the other side of the gulf at the harbor entrance at Benghazi in about an hour and a half.
Starting the take-off run:
There’s not a lot to see along the way:
an hour into the flight, sun setting in the west:
Benghazi. Before landing by the harbor, I thought I’d wow the locals with a fly-by:
On the downwind leg. I plan to land parallel to the breakwater:
OK, not quite parallel, but good enough for this old pilot!
Moored in the harbor. I think I’ll stretch my legs by taking a walk down the promenade and check out Hakim’s Kebab on Shari’ al Aquriyyah before checking into the Al-Nouran hotel a couple of blocks away.
[MSFS 2024 v1.7.10.0]
Leg 7
Benghazi to Sallum, via Torbruk.
Another fine day in live weather for flying. Here we are, having left Benghazi harbor, turning into the wind for take-off:
Climbing to today’s cruising altitude of 4,500 ft:
A heading of 87 degrees will take us over the Libyan Plateau to the harbor at Torbruk, and roughly following some of the routes of WWII’s North Africa Campaign - Operation Compass (December 1940 - Februrary 1941), Rommel’s first offensive between March & April 1941, and Operation Crusader (November 1941 to January 1942):
The harbor at Torbruk is the waypoint for the turn down the coast to Sallum:
Sallum lies on the coastal plain below an escarpment, and was site of the start of Italy’s invasion of Egypt in September 1940. We’re going to spend the night in the small harbor:
Making the turn to base:
Peacefully moored for the night:
[MSFS 2024 v1.7.10.0]
Leg 8
Sallum to Alexandria
Back in the air, we prepare to turn to the east to continue our journey along the coast of Egypt:
Our mid-flight waypoint is Modon Abu Dhabi, by the town of Ras El-Kanayis:
Making landfall at Qaryat Siyahiyyah:
The Borg El Arab stadium is hard to miss:
We turn back to the coast and head for the harbor at Alexandia:
The harbor is large enough that we can safely land within the breakwater:
and taxi to the old harbor:
The entrance to the old harbor is too small for our aircraft, so we moor just outside at Quay #6:
[MSFS 2024 v1.7.10.0]
Love your flight journey as chronicled in detail (including the details about local sights!).
You’re in the USA, yes?
What is your method for setting up weather/time when flying outside of US time zones, so you have decent daylight?
The 631 is one of the best of the LL/FF, by far.
Hi @NixonRedgrave
Yes, I’m in the USA. I generally use live weather. Since Europe & the Mediterranean are 8-10 hours ahead of me, sometimes I can use the real-time option, but mostly I use the “historical” option by - once I have selected my departure point - sliding the timer to the time that I want to fly.
E.g. from Real-time live weather at Carthage:
to a morning flight:
Of course, one can change the time from within the weather toolbar once one has entered the flight too:
Leg 9
Alexandia to Luxor.
Part 1: Cario and the Pyramids.
Today, I’ll be flying down the Nile river to Luxor. Here we are, taxiing in the harbor to get pointed into the wind:
Making the turn over the city to the heading that will take us to Cairo:
I meet up with the Nile river at Al Qantir Al Khayriyyah. I’m trying to keep below the clouds, so am only at ~ 2,400 ft:
Cairo, with the pyramids at Giza in the distance:
A close up:
The Giza complex:
Continuing south, we fly over the Pyramid of Djoser and Bent Pyramid, with the Nile in the distance
and finally, the Meidum Pyramid:
Now on to Luxor:
[MSFS 2024 v1.7.10.0]
Part 2: Luxor
My next waypoint was the airport at El Minya:
From there, I flew direct to Luxor along the eastern side of the Nile over some pretty inhospitable, but geologically very interesting terrain:
Before landing at Luxor, I took in the archeological sights on the west bank of the river. Here we are, approaching the Valley of the Kings, with the Nile & Luxor in the distance:
The Valley of the Kings:
The Mortuary Temples of Hatshepsut and Mentuhotep II:
And what appears to be a Japanese shrine on the mountaintop above the Horus Temple. I’m not quite sure what this is doing here!
Time to call it a day. I’m splurging out and have booked a Royal Villa at the Jollie Ville Resort for a week, conveniently placed on Kings island in the Nile, so perfect for those arriving by flying boat:
[Yes, a villa costs almost $2,000 a night, but I own my very-own flying boat, so can well afford it!
]
Making the base turn over the river:
Touchdown. In real life I’d expect to see a few dahabiya sailing boats on the river, but in MSFS the river is devoid of any riverine traffic:
Moored at the Jetty. The resort looks much better in real life than depicted here:
[MSFS 2024 v1.7.10.0]
