Chapter 7: Features and Flight in X-Plane Racing

X-Plane Racing is the first ever X-Plane application (for any platform, including desktop) with timed race courses that allow users to race against the computer or friends using the multiplayer mode. It is the most polished and optimized mobile version of X-Plane yet, with a great deal of testing done to perfect the AI and multiplayer modes.

X-Plane Racing comes with four regions and six planes, with a race course for each plane in each region, for a total of twenty-four race courses. These courses are presented as “highway-in-the-sky” “hoops” that the user flies though, racing against the clock and the AI’s aircraft. When the course is finished, X-Plane will display the user’s time through the course and the number of hoops missed. Some courses race down river valleys, others through mountain ranges, clouds, deserts, or snow-covered mountains. All the standard settings configurations (described in Chapter 2) are available, but there is a special twist—rather than just flying alongside another user, multiplayer in X-Plane Racing allows timed trials against an opponent.

To our knowledge, X-Plane Racing has the most realistic flight physics for any aerial racing simulator ever created for any platform.

New tweaks in the X-Plane Racing aircraft include things like visible afterburners, a basic autopilot, and tire skidding sounds that are accurately linked to the street racing-accurate tire physics model. Of course, all of these improvements have also been released for the other iPhone/iPod apps as a free update.

Aircraft
The following aircraft are included in X-Plane Racing:
 * F4U Corsair
 * P-51 Mustang
 * F-4 Phantom
 * F-15 Eagle
 * F-86 Sabre
 * Gee Bee Super Sportster

The F4U Corsair is a World War II-era high-speed fighter. Because of its taildragger landing gear configuration, it is very tricky to land. The pilot must land in a full-stall, nose-high attitude. Be sure to hold the stick at full aft (meaning the iPhone/iPod is tilted all the way back) on the takeoff roll in this plane in order to hold the tail wheel down for steering authority. The P-51 Mustang was the premier fighter of the Second World War. It must be taken off and landed with the same technique as the Corsair due to the taildragger landing gear.

Note also that both of these World War II-era, propeller-driven fighters have very powerful engines and very large propellers. As a result, the torque delivered by the engine and propeller will try to roll the plane to the left. This is most noticeable at very low airspeeds (when taking off, for example), when the aerodynamic forces created by the ailerons to counteract this are at a minimum. Thus, be prepared to roll hard towards the right (by rolling your iPhone/iPod right) as the plane lifts off and the wheels are no longer supporting the weight of the airplane on the ground. As the craft’s airspeed builds you will be able to use less and less right aileron to counteract the torque from the propeller and engine.

The F-4 Phantom, the king of the “Jet Age,” held fifteen world records during the 1960s (listed near the bottom of this page), among which were a number of fastest times to altitude, the fastest time across the continental US, and the highest zoom climb. It makes for an incredible ride through the canyons at Mach 1.25.

The F-15 Eagle is the pinnacle of pilot-friendly jet power... If the pilot can handle Mach 1.25 between the mountain peaks of Alaska and the other regions.

The F-86 Sabre saw a great deal of action during the Korean War, where it battled the Soviet MiG-15s. In the late 1940s, the Sabre was the fastest jet aircraft in the world, reaching a speed of 570 mph in 1948. It eventually saw speeds as high as 680 mph.

The Gee Bee Model R Super Sportster was the aircraft racing king of the 1930s. With a top speed of nearly 300 mph, it was untouchable in its time. Be careful, though—its small control surfaces make it a bit of an unruly ride!

Listed below are the approximate takeoff speeds for the aircraft in X-Plane Racing. Note that it is a good idea to add a few knots to these speeds in order to provide a “speed cushion” that prevents stalling.


 * {| width="300" border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1"


 * + Approximate Takeoff Speeds
 * Aircraft
 * Approx. Takeoff Speed (knots)
 * F4U
 * 85
 * P-51
 * 85
 * F-4
 * 175
 * F-15
 * 150
 * Gee Bee
 * 115
 * F-86
 * 185
 * }
 * Gee Bee
 * 115
 * F-86
 * 185
 * }
 * 185
 * }

Regions and Courses
X-Plane Racing has four flight regions available—Canyons (a fictional area filled with its namesake), Juneau and Anchorage, Alaska, and Provost, Canada.

Within each region are four different race courses—one for each aircraft; changing the aircraft changes the course. Each course is appropriate to the craft—for instance, courses for the F-15 may have 90 degree climbs, followed by an abrupt dive, whereas the P-51 courses, due to limitations of the craft, will not be so extreme. The courses also vary in length, with the jet courses being longest due to their higher speeds.

Note': When a different airport is selected in the Map tab of the Settings menu, the race course will disappear. To bring it back, load the first airport in the list. For example, in the Canyons region, this is done with the button labeled RAC4 32 takeoff, which denotes the Race 4 airport, runway 32).

Racing
Upon opening X-Plane Racing, the simulator will place the default F-15 Eagle at the end of the runway, facing the course.

Tap the BRAKES button in the lower left of the screen to turn the brakes off. While flaps (controlled with the scrolling bar on the right side of the screen) could be used to take off, they aren’t required. Instead, drag the throttle, found on the left side of the screen, all the way to the top.

With the throttle at full, tilt the phone/iPod left and right to steer down the runway, holding the device at about a 45 degree pitch (for a neutral elevator).

Note that when flying a taildragger (the P-51 and the F4U), the device needs to be tilted nearly all the way back (for full aft deflection of the flight controls) in order to keep the tail wheel on the ground for control. Additionally, hold a good bit of right aileron to help the aircraft lift off cleanly or else it will roll very sharply to the left as the wheels lift off the ground, possibly crashing and killing the pilot.

When the craft reaches around 150 knots (indicated by the scrolling tape on the left side of the screen), tilt the device back toward you to raise the nose, and away you go. Note that less speed will be needed for the piston-engined aircraft (that is, those with a propeller), as they are significantly lighter and designed for slower airspeeds.

With the craft in the air, tilt the phone/iPod left and right to steer, and tilt it forward and back to climb or descend. Once it is safely in the air, hit the GEAR button to raise the landing gear. Now the real fun begins. Steer the aircraft through the green squares until you reach the end of the course, at which point X-Plane will give both the user’s and the opponent’s times and number of “hoops” missed.

You may find it easiest in the F-15 and F-4 to roll inverted as you come up on a mountain range and pull back as you clear the ridge to pull hard up into the ground (since you’re inverted). This will more easily allow you to track the ground as you fly aggressively through the peaks.

For a greater challenge, try changing the time of day and the sky conditions, or lowering the cloud heights and visibility. Low cloud cover (where the hoops are partially obscured) makes things especially interesting!

Also (and this is the hardest part), try and follow the lead aircraft around to a full-stop landing. The last hoop is defined to be the point at which the lead pilot begins to pull the power back. Use it to judge when you pull your power as well and try and follow him back to the airport. The airports in this application are fictitious and have been placed in blind canyons or at the top of a plateau with very little room left over to get the aircraft stopped under control. Try not to go sliding off of a mountain!