Cessna 172 – Photography, aviation and flight simulation

The Key West (KEYW) virtual airport by FSDreamteam for the MSFS 2020 flight simulator.

This is the Key West Airport (KEYW) in Florida, as reproduced for flight simulation by FSDreamteam for the Microsoft MSFS2020 flight simulator.

There is a clear advantage to acquiring this virtual airport rather than using the MSFS2020 airport. Indeed, the FSDreamteam KEYW airport doesn’t come alone: the company offers two other sites in accompaniment and for the same price: Fort Jefferson and the Loggerhead lighthouse.

A small virtual flight with a Cessna C-172 on floats allows you to fly over these sites and land on the water when appropriate.

Airborne from Key West KEYW with the MSFS 2020 flight simulator.

The Cessna takes off from Key West under ideal weather conditions.

Part of the Key West Wildlife National Refuge using MSFS 2020

Shortly after takeoff and established at 3000 feet, we fly over the Key West National Wildlife Refuge.

Descending towards Fort Jefferson with MSFS 2020

The Garmin G-1000 allows a stable flight during screen captures.

Flying over Fort Jefferson in Key West with MSFS 2020.

This is Fort Jefferson photographed as the Cessna flies at about 1500 feet ASL. The winds have increased slightly and foam is becoming visible on the waves.

Flying over Loggerhead Lighthouse in Key West using thge MSFS 2020 flight simulator.

A little further along the flight path is the Loggerhead Lighthouse. The beach is beautiful and gently sloping. It will be possible to do a water landing, put the landing gear down while on the water and then park on the beach.

Making a sea-landing by Loggerhead Lighthouse in Key West, with MSFS 2020.

The landing is done without too much difficulty.

On the beach at Loggerhead Lighthouse, in Florida, using MSFS 2020.

With a little engine power, it is possible to get out of the water and park on the beach for a while. After turning off the engine, the MSFS2020 flight simulator allows the pilot to listen to the sound of the waves and wind in a realistic way. If there are birds in the area, it will also be possible to hear them.

For those who want to repeat the experience, it is only a matter of programming the starting point in MSFS2020 as KEYW and the destination KYW1 (Fort Jefferson). Once through Fort Jefferson, continue straight for a few minutes and you’ll arrive at the Loggerhead Lighthouse. Take a few moments to relax and listen to the waves before taking off again…!

Click on the link for more standard virtual flights on my blog using either MSFS2020 or FSX.

Flight service specialist (FSS) at work in Rouyn-Noranda around 1986

On a nice summer day of July, at the Rouyn-Noranda airport, a pilot from a local flying club called our Transport Canada flight service station to get the latest airport advisory for a takeoff. He wanted to use a Cessna 172. He got the details and started taxiing. I quickly noticed that the aircraft was pulling an object. Using the binoculars, I could see that it was a cement block of about 100 kilos, attached to a rope. That cement block was normally used to immobilize an aircraft after a flight.

Aircraft Cessna C172 C-GUCU in Rouyn-Noranda around 1986

It was now obvious that the pilot had not done his walk around the aircraft, a mandatory procedure to ensure that everything is normal. Pulling that cement block on the asphalt must have required more power from the engine. I asked the pilot: “Don’t you find that more power is required to taxi today?” He answered that, in fact, he noted the need to increase the engine’s revolutions and that it was possibly due to the outside high temperature and moisture.

Without further delays, I replied: “Did you walk around your aircraft before the flight to make sure that everything was OK?” At that very moment, he understood that something needed to be done. He stopped the aircraft on the taxiway, got out and realized why a higher RPM was needed to taxi. Without saying anything that could imply his personal negligence, since he knew the radio communications were recorded, he announced that he was returning to the flying club. He had “forgotten something”…

The working position of the old Rouyn-Noranda flight service station allowed only a partial view of runway 08/26, but a complete view of the taxiway where the Cessna 172 was pulling its cement block.

For more real life stories on the Rouyn-Noranda flight service station and flight service specialists, click here:

Real life stories as a FSS in Rouyn-Noranda