Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 Fishbed (Part 4).  I present a comprehensive AI traffic model package for this iconic aircraft of modern military history.  With over 15,000 airframes of all types, including license-manufacture, the MiG-21 is the second-highest produced jet fighter of all time (next to the MiG-15 at 18,000+); and is the highest-produced jet fighter in the post-1960 'missile' age.  The model is an 8-LOD model, with quite a bit of XML animation and effects.  This aircraft has been used operationally by 53 countries across fifty years, with extensive combat experience world-wide, and hundreds are still in service to this day.  Part 4 is the bis-series, the final-production Fishbeds.  Included variants are the MiG-21bis-75A and MiG-21bis-75B.  With loadout options, there are a total of 24 models and 24 paints in this package.  Multiple credits are given in the documentation for everybody who pitched in to help on this one.  Base model, paint kit, and textures by Michael Pearson.

Enjoy

Mike Pearson
Glendale, Arizona
MADE IN THE USA

tj_ap97@msn.com




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TECHNICAL STUFF AND DETAILS (THE BRAGGING SECTION)
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This is where I tell you all about technical stuff like LODs, animation, and other stuff.  I will keep it as short as possible....

LODs: 8 (main model + 7 levels-of-detail).  The polygon count varies, so the listed counts are rough averages.

LOD_400: 3101
LOD_200: 2836
LOD_150: 2706
LOD_100: 2273
LOD_050: 1415
LOD_015: 456
LOD_005: 30

My main computer is a Dell/Alienware custom-build with Pentium i7 3.33GHz processor and 6GB RAM/2GB VRAM; running Win7 and third-party (not Microsoft) virtual Win XP; and my laptop is a Dell custom-build with the top-speed i5 processor, 4GB RAM/1GB VRAM, and the same operating systems.  I have had over 100 of these aircraft set up in my sim at a single airfield, with no frame-rate hits; and the overall polygon counts are about half of Nick's F-4 models (my comparison models).  My test airfield was UAFM Mary AB in Turkmenistan, a nice place in former Soviet Central Asia with lots of flying room and not too much civilian traffic around.  I actually figured out how to use Rysiek's AI traffic generator this time around, so I could set up 24/7 flight operations at one spot.

Animations:  The following list details the (intended) animations for this aircraft, some are default, and some are XML-programmed, some are written into the FDE.

Retractable landing gear with compressing struts and wheel movement (FS default)
3-position flaps, half-down on takeoff and full-down on landing (XML-programmed)
Navigation, Strobe, Taxi, and Landing lights as appropriate (FS default)
Animated canopy, asynchronous for two-seaters (XML-programmed)
Animated pilot head movement, asynchronous for two-seaters (XML-programmed)
Ground ladder, warning flags, intake covers, and wheel chocks (XML-programmed)
Animated drogue parachute, early round and later cruciform  (XML-programmed)
Spoilers  (XML-programmed)
Bypass air intake doors, little doors in front of the wing roots (XML-programmed)
Full smoke, reheat and heat shimmer effects (FDE)
Optional VFR variants for most major versions, without the drogue chute

A Word on Loadouts:  The MiG-21 was designed from the start as a multi-role fighter, but the early F series did not carry missiles until late in its career, when most were converted into the F-13, plus a legion of F-13 follow-on builds.    Over its life, the Fishbed carried increasing and more advanced loadouts, and my models reflect that.  I based my loadouts upon known used weapons by country, and weapons the MiG-21 is certified to carry; but a lot of the loads are speculative; simply because there few times if any that true multi-role war-loads have been photographed.  Not counting the Chinese packages still pending, there are a total of 200 model variations and 200 paints across the Russian release packages (God, that hurt.....).  If you can envision a MiG-21 loaded with something from the appropriate time period, I think I have it covered, lol.

A Word on Paints:  I didn't cover all 53 country users, but I sure tried.... paint kits will be forthcoming.

.... I will concede that I really jumped down the rabbit hole on this one, but it's done, and I'm still here, so it's okay.



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CREDITS (MY MOST FAVORITE SECTION)
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I made this aircraft, from start-to-finish, in about 2.5 months (but I've had eight years practice, lol); that wouldn't have happened without a LOT of help.....



Aircraft Model, Paint Kit, Release Repaints:  Michael Pearson

Flight Dynamics:  Michael MacIntyre, the second true workhorse on this project, thanks Mike, and to a future of continued dreams-come-to-life.....

Historical Consultation:  Steve Holland; for pushing me to do far better (and helping me identify the sanity/accuracy threshold, lol).  Steve also afforded me with some excellent reference material.  We will meet again on the Tooms.

Technical Consultation:  Kevin Reed; for teaching me the dark art of making light....  hell, I thought that was funny....  And Kevin Reed/Steve Holland for continued XML-education.

Reference Material:  too numerous to mention, everybody in this section

Beta Testing:  Michael MacIntyre, Daryl Payne, Miljan Korac

Inspiration:  Nick Black, Jake Burrus, Sergey Bunevich, John Stinstrom, and any other person who gives freely back to the hobby, regardless of experience or ability (all ya have to do is try...).

Effects:  Nick Needham, Kirk Olsson, Graham King; these are also listed in each aircraft's FDE.


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LEGAL CRAP (MY LEAST FAVORITE SECTION)
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This is a freeware aircraft; and in today's electronic age of little-to-no regard for copyrights of people's intellectual property, that really doesn't mean too much.  I will ask some things of this aircraft, and try to my best extent to see that they are followed.

1.  DO NOT UPLOAD THIS AIRCRAFT ANYWHERE ELSE WITHOUT MY PERMISSION; I am pretty generous with people in the past who want to use my stuff in packages, or mirror my files at AVSIM; I just like to keep track.  If you want to use my stuff for your site, or mirror my stuff back to AVSIM, just drop me a and 999 times out of 1,000 I will oblige you.

2.  DO NOT UPLOAD THIS AIRCRAFT ANYWHERE WHERE MONEY IS CHARGED FOR BASIC FILE DOWNLOAD ACCESS.  Freeware means free, if I charged money for it, it would be payware.  I understand that websites have to pay the bills, and that some sites charge money for faster bandwidth or unlmited downloads; as long as the end-user doesn't have to pay money to have access to this file at least one time per day.

3.  With regard to #2, I upload exclusively to AVSIM and AVSIMRus, it's a loyalty quirk with me.  I know this will wind up on Flightsim because somebody won't read this (or doesn't care), but Flightsim and Simviation are okay.  I just don't want to see my stuff on FSPlanet, SurClaro, or FlyAway Simulations; or other similar sites.  To that end, I do keep tabs on where my stuff goes.

4.  As I stated before, paint kits will be released separately.  That means you can repaint them in an un-restricted manner and upload them back to AVSIM or other approved sites without asking me; but please just upload your paints without the models, and refer back to this model for the base package.  If you include my model with your paints, without asking me first, I will see that they are removed from the website until you can fix the oversight.  If you read this carefully, you will figure out that all you have to do is ask me.......



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DISCLAIMERS (THE FUN SECTION)
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1.  THIS IS A FREEWARE AIRCRAFT, WHAT DO YOU WANT, A REFUND?  All complainers, whiners, and the trully un-fulfilled may refer back to this statement, it's my complaint department slogan.....

.....  That being said, this aircraft was carefully and lovingly designed by a imperfect human at, no cost to the end-user, and it's one of my first complete aircraft projects; so it ain't perfect, and I really don't care.  I work in the real world, have a career/mortgage/family/dogs/life outside FS, and there is a certain sanity threshold vs. absolute accuracy in the freeware realm.  If I was trying to make money off of this model, the attitude of my effort would be quite different.  This is a virtual hobby up against the real modern world, with both artistic and functional limitations; so art perfectly imitating life just isn't my priority.  This doesn't mean I didn't give it my best effort to make it a really nice AI aircraft, but in the end it is really very nice auto-gen scenery.  If I made a large error, like modeling a nosegear sticking out of the tail, by all means please drop me a line, and I will happily fix it; but if you are writing to complain that XXX Squadron's logo is 4 inches off center by scale in the repaint with relation to the ejection warning stickers, or a similar modeling complaint, don't bother.  I wouldn't write it if similar things hadn't happened in the past.  If you don't like the aircraft, please feel free to delete it from your sim and your computer.

2. Known Issues:  There are some limitations with the AI engine and certain peculiar flight characteristics of this aircraft.  Mike Mac and I can't make it true-to-life with the AI engine of FS9; so that's as good as it gets.  I did make VFR models with no drogue chute, but from the start VFR flightplans have been discouraged with FS9 due to unpredictability, so I can't make any promises....

3.  This is a freeware aircraft designed by a person who has little knowledge of computer stuff outside the realm of what he has to know to survive in the electronic age.  This product has been tested for rendering and functionality on at least eight different computers; by multiple people world-wide; in XP, Vista, and Win7 environments.  I am not responsible if your computer locks up, slows down, takes a nap, soils itself, or has a seizure when rendering this product.



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FUTURE PROJECTS (THE LAST SECTION)
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This is where the fans try to read my mind...... that's a scary place, lol.

.... the word of the day is 'Skybolt'.......




Mike Pearson
30 May 2012

