Previous Next

Solo Flight is an American real-time flight simulator which has been around quite some time. This is an updated version, providing a better cockpit control layout and a built-it flight trainer.

The simulation is based around the light monoplanes of the late 1920s and early 1930s, particularly the Ryan S-T series, and offers flying practice together with a Mail Pilot game in which you can put your learned flight skills to a considerably sterner test.

The screen display is unusual. The bottom half is taken up with the expected cockpit controls while the remainder provides a view not only of the landscape but also, oddly enough, of your plane.

Your viewpoint is from just above and behind your plane, from which a shadow is cast at low altitudes. You can also switch to a left, right or backward view from the cockpit.

While it might seem a bit strange at first, it works out quite well and makes flying the plane that much easier.

The comprehensive and clear instrumentation includes indicators for throttle, air-speed, altitude, artificial horizon, vertical velocity, flaps and VOR radial. There is also an altimeter, fuel gauge, lights for brake, landing gear and engine overheat, DME (direct measuring equipment), ILS glidescope indicator and magnetic compass.

In Flying Practice mode you can select the American state you will fly across (Kansas, Washington or Colorado) and the weather conditions: clear, windy or IFR (instrument flight rules - low cloud).

Or if you prefer, you can simply practice landing.

You can also be accompanied by an on-board flying instructor. The instructions takes the form of text messages such as, "You are too high. Push forward," which appear across the bottom of the screen.

Each message repeats until you obey it, but the tuition can be switched off at any time by a single command. There is no speech synthesis in the Atari version.

In Mail Run mode your job is to deliver sacks of mail across different states to their destinations in as short a time as possible. You can select the level of difficulty from student (easiest) to command pilot (most difficult) and decide which destinations and how much mail and fuel to carry.

As the game progresses weather conditions deteriorate and, depending on the skill level selected, your plane may develop mechanical and instrument malfunctions.

The graphics are fairly rudimentary and the display a little slow and jerky.

Even so, this unusual flight simulator is pleasantly easy to get to grips with, particularly given the presence of the onboard instructor. The Mail Run option is an added bonus.

Enjoyable and entertaining, the new Solo Flight has much to commend it.