Hello all, new user here. I had posted this on a YouTube video earlier and it dawned on me that forums still exist, so here I am.
This blimp alone was the reason i got msfs again after many years so I’m happy to share what I’ve found a of launch week.
The biggest issue we have here is that there isn’t a tutorial, and the checklist is huge as far as finding all your cockpit controls, as well as the default keybindings not being intuitive, especially for those who just want to get in and go. I know this is what will put many off, but don’t fret, I’ve learned a few things. I don’t think that this aircraft was released broken.
It was trial and error for my first 2 days, but i can say that this blimp does work well and is a joy to fly.
Here’s some things I’ve figured out to help others interested get going
1.The Dampers are directly above you. They are set to auto, which is problem #1 and it’s why you are falling back to the ground right after taking off. Set them both to Unlocked so you can balance your pressure properly.
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Right above you are 2 switches - your Ballonet fans, you’ll want to use these for take off, hovering/slow speed cruising and landing.
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The box to your left with the 3 gauges is your pressure, from left to right they are your Rear/Middle/Front pressure
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To your left are 4 air valves, while grounded you can test them out and see how the blimp will respond without ever leaving the ground, again, make sure your Dampers are unlocked and your ballonet fans are on and watch as the pressure in the gauges change.
While there are 4 air valves, i have had a lot of success by just using the middle two, #2 and #3
Also - air valves are default in ‘auto’ but this also has the same effect as them being locked.
Things I’ve noticed about the 3 gauges while flying.
Again - Rear/middle/front %%%
0/50/50 - nose up and ascend
0/25/0 - balanced for cruising
50/50/50 - balanced for hovering/ slow speeds
50/50/0 - nose down and descent.
- Your engines (vectors) rotate up and down but default bindings arent good at all.
45 degrees up for takeoff.
If you go full down they will point slightly behind meaning you can keep yourself from moving forward on the ground after spawning in or landing. They will also slow you down in the air but remember they will be pulling you down to earth.
Also, while ‘trim’ is displayed on the ui it is 100% useless, you need to ignore it. I got around this issue by going into the keybindings and using elevator (pitch up and down) on my dpad so i can make the adjustments in small increments and avoid thumb fatigue on my left stick.
This is a long winded comment and there is more to figure out about this aircraft but for anyone who is truly interested in it, this a place to start and I’ll be waiting for someone with even more knowledge to put their info out there as well.
Happy flying, and safe travels all.