New Blog Direction

Having thrashed around wondering what to do with this blog, it occurred to me eventually -- in the way obvious things eventually make an impression even on my slow (but steadily) turning brain -- that the name I gave it suggests I really want to talk about flying. That is what I'm going to do.

I am a virtual aviator. My vehicle of choice is Microsoft's Flight Simulator, FS2004 aka FS9 to those in-the-know. I don't currently have a machine strong enough to run FSX, and "advanced graphics capabilities" are not really my interest in flying anyway. I like to learn a bit about geography, such things as where Samarkand is and the names of small towns in Canada, and I like to rehearse and develop my flying skills. FSX is not necessary for any of that, so this blog will be about flying with FS9.

Oh. And I do most of my flying after the sun goes down. Hence "Midnight Flyer." I am one of those strange dudes who likes to do the occasional night flight. I think FS9 does a decent, to good job of rendering the night visual world with city lights, airport beacons, runway lighting, etc. You never get to see any of that if you only fly in daylight.

I make extensive use of independently developed add-ons, particularly aircraft. Project Opensky and iFDG are notable examples, and Barry Blaisdell's group, Premair. I also use some add-on scenery. And from where do these wonderful add-ons come to enhance our flying environment? Avsim, of course, one of the finest online web sites available for the virtual flying enthusiast.

But I'm not here to advertise. Occasionally I will give some product reviews about freeware add-ons, but I am not paid to plug products. Any such reviews are meant only to inform the reader.

My real focus is to talk about my flights. I fly every day, and some of these flights are worth documenting, whether because the little air strip out in the backwoods of Canada is worth seeing, or because of the flying challenge involved in getting there, or because of scenery seen along the way. The Flight sim world may be virtual, but it really is as large as the real world, and there is a lot to see. You can think of me as an occasional guide into that world.

So put your flying suit on, choose your airplane, and let's go!