Hi,
I've been away from flightsimming due to my studies. For the past few weeks I've been rewriting everything to add functionality to Aerotow.
Here's an brief overview.
BACKGROUND
Aerotow now consists of two parts:
1) Configure.exe
http://img215.imageshack.us/img215/4968/aerotowconfigurekp4.png
This is an configuration utility.
Settings:
Aerotow state - enables you to turn custom towing functionality on or off without the need to install or uninstall Aerotow. Changes take effect next time you activate towing.
Towing aircraft - lists all aircraft found in FSX\SimObjects\Airplanes folder. Note that not all of them are suitable for towing. Changes take effect after FS is restarted.
Pitch of towing aircraft - the pitch towing plane tries to keep while towing you. Default is 8 degrees up. Changes take effect after FS is restarted.
Minimum turning altitude - altitude AGL to reach before doing any turns when flying non-straight route. Default is 500 feet AGL. Changes take effect next time you activate towing.
Time between pattern turns - time between two turns when flying left-hand or right-hand climbing patterns. Default is 30 seconds. Changes take effect next time you activate towing.
Delay between turning altitude and first pattern turn - delay between reaching turning altitude and making the first turn when flying patterns. Enables you to direct pattern away from airport. Default is 0 seconds, which means that the towing plane starts making patterns after reaching minimum turning altitude. Please note that the towplane does not correct it's heading for wind, so the pattern may end up "drifting" with the wind. (Patterns will be developed further in the future to remove stated limitations.) Changes take effect next time you activate towing.
Save changes - saves changes!
2) Aerotow.exe
This is SimConnect client that communicates with FS and makes complex towing operations available. The following entry should be added to EXE.xml in Application Data\Microsoft\FSX, so Aerotow.exe is started automatically when flight simulator starts.
<Launch.Addon>
<Disabled>False</Disabled>
<ManualLoad>False</ManualLoad>
<Name>Aerotow</Name>
<Path>Aerotow\Aerotow.exe</Path>
<CommandLine></CommandLine>
<NewConsole>True</NewConsole>
</Launch.Addon>
USAGE
Aerotow is easy to use if everything works as it should (I'm not very sure, I've not tested Aerotow much). Fire up flight simulator and press ctrl+shift+y or whatever you have mapped to towing. If Aerotow is activated, the following menu appears:
http://img292.imageshack.us/img292/3812/aerotowmenuru4.png
Fly straight out - towplane will tow you straight out of the runway just as the default towing.
Fly left-hand circles - towplane will climb to minimum turning altitude, then it will wait number of seconds specified in delay between turning altitude and first pattern turn and make a 180-degree turn left. After the turn the towplane flies straight for a number of seconds specified in time between pattern turns and will then make another turn to the left. Then another straight leg, then another turn - until terminated by the user by releasing the tow rope.
Fly right-hand circles - same as above, but the turns are to the right.
Fly active flightplan - towplane will climb to minimum turning altitude and then it will make a turn to the first waypoint in the flightplan on the GPS. After reaching the first waypoint, the towplane will fly to another one. If towplane reaches the last wayoint, a message is displayed on the screen (a green bar will appear) and the towplane will keep flying the heading it flew prior to reaching the waypoint. Please note that it actually does not have to be a flightplan, but it can be a "direct to" waypoint on the GPS, too. I don't know why, but "direct to" waypoint can not be activated on the GPS while being on the ground and not further from the waypoint than 3-4 miles.
(To cancel towing and remove the menu, press tow rope release combination (default is shift+y). The tow plane will immidiately take off and fly away. Please allow it to take off before activating the towing again.)
After choosing the towing path, the menu disappears and towing will start. When you feel you're high enough, press shift+y to release tow rope. The towplane will make a left turn and fly away.
INSTALLATION
Aerotow is currently under development and has been tested only under WinXP SP2 + English version of FSX SP2. It is by no means something you can rely on. Although the maximum damage it can make is messing up your fsx.cfg (be sure to back it up!), use it at your own risk.
Since it's not finished, it does not have an installer yet. You'll have to install it manually. First, download the latest version of Aerotow from the following location:
http://lennundus.orgkaos.org/failid/workinprogress/aerotow/?M=D
Unzip the files to [FSX]\Aerotow. So Aerotow.exe, Aerotow.ini and Configure.exe would be in folder called Aerotow right in the main folder of FSX like in the following picture:
http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/4190/aerotowfiletreemj6.png
Now locate or create EXE.xml (use Google if you don't know what it is and where it is) and add the following entry to that file:
<Launch.Addon>
<Disabled>False</Disabled>
<ManualLoad>False</ManualLoad>
<Name>Aerotow</Name>
<Path>Aerotow\Aerotow.exe</Path>
<CommandLine></CommandLine>
<NewConsole>True</NewConsole>
</Launch.Addon>
Close and save it. Run flight simulator. During the first startup FSX will ask you if you trust Aerotow.exe enough to let FSX run it. Press yes if you are willing to try out what Aerotow is. Use Configure.exe found in FSX\Aerotow folder to change settings of towing operations.
EXAMPLE
Here I used Halifax bomber and Waco glider by Paul Clawson to offer eyecandy to WWII buffs. With Aerotow and it's "Fly active flightplan", you can even make the towplane to tow you from your airfield in Britain to the coast of Normandy to recreate the invasion! (Don't forget that you can add custom waypoints in flight planner, so you don't have to fly along jetways.)
http://img232.imageshack.us/img232/4553/aerotowwacogliderpv0.png
http://img232.imageshack.us/img232/6752/aerotowwacoglider2rp9.png
ISSUES
1) Towplane does not raise it's gear/flaps after takeoff - solution available, will fix soon.
2) Towplane tends to bank violently during turns - solution available, will fix soon.
3) Towplane keeps climbing until user releases tow rope. Needs "maximum altitude" feature at which towplane would stop climbing - solution theoretically available, needs verifying.