Last time, I showed you how to turn a plane in Google Earth Flight Simulator. This was a 180 degree turn, achieved by turning the plane upside down in a loop-de-loop. Now, I’ll show you how to execute some other turns using other aerial maneuvers.
First, you’ll need to get in the air. You can either take off from the ground or start airborne by going up in the air and pressing Ctrl + A. This tutorial will assume basic knowledge of controls, as well as how to keep a plane afloat. Google’s official flight control manual may also be helpful.
Let’s start out by flying horizontally in our F-16. In this tutorial I will demonstrate two types of turns, one making primary use of the aileron, the other making primary use of the rudder.
The aileron turn
Adjusting the ailerons will cause the plane to roll. From the pilot’s point of view, this means that the horizon will appear to tilt. The ailerons are controlled by the Left and Right keys, which adjust the ailerons in their respective directions.
For this tutorial, we will make a sharp left turn. Press Left until the left wing is perpendicular to the ground. Then, press C to stabilize the ailerons. After your plane’s wings form a 90-degree angle to the ground, press Down. This pulls the elevator and, given your plane’s position, causes the plane to turn rapidly.
If you pull or push the elevator very hard, there is a good chance your plane may stall. This is all right as long as you are far above the ground and going at above 300 miles per hour. We will recover from the stall while pulling out of the turn.
To pull out of the turn, adjust the aileron to its original position by pressing Right. At the same time, push the elevator by pressing Up. Once you see the wing tilt indicator approaching the level mark, press C to center the aileron and rudder.
If you do not push on the elevator, your plane will climb rapidly as you pull out of the turn. Coordinating the aileron right and elevator push is very tricky and takes many tries to get it correct.
Recipes
- Slow turn: minimize adjustment of the elevator
- Fast turn: pull or push the elevator all the way to the limit
- Left turn: bank left and pull elevator, or bank right and push elevator
- Right turn: bank right and pull elevator, or bank left and push elevator
The rudder turn
On an airplane, the rudder is not actually used primarily for turning. It is instead used to counteract forces during a roll. However, we can use the rudder to turn.
This maneuver is much simpler than the aileron turn. Simply move the rudder to the left with Shift + Left. To pull out of the turn, press Shift + Right until the rudder is centered, or press C to center immediately. Pulling out of a rudder turn will cause the plane to jerk in the direction opposite the turn, so you want to overcompensate by turning more than you need, before centering the rudder.
The rudder turn is much slower than the aileron turn, but is often effective for making small adjustments to the yaw of the plane. It is also easier to control than the aileron turn, as only one dimension of the plane is changing.
Recipes
- Slow turn: Adjust rudder minimally
- Fast turn: Push rudder to its limit
- Left turn: Shift + Left
- Right turn: Shift + Right
Bonus! Turning on the ground
When you land a plane, you hold down both wheel brakes to bring the plane to a stop. Holding down one of the wheel brakes (comma or period) will cause the plane to turn in the direction of the brake being held down. You can also turn with the rudder (see previous section).
Which one to use?
If you don’t have a ton of flying hours in GEFS, I recommend starting out with the rudder turn. After you get acclimated to the controls, the aileron turn will be very fun to pick up.
Enjoyed this tutorial? Let’s land the plane now. Check out the tutorial, How to land a plane in Google Earth flight simulator.
