Sikorsky S43

[Brian_Gladden]

Terry, the one in your pics was a one off built for Howard Hughes for an around the world record attempt (I used to have a copy of the magazine article the pics are from) so it's likely that it has a different - engine than a "regular" airline version. I know it has fewer windows and extended fuel tankage.

[OBIO]

The vintage pics that are clear and large enough to make out good details show the S-43 as having a single exhaust pipe on the upper nacelle area, to the right of the air intakes.....well, to the left if you are standing in front of the plane and looking toward the plane. I suppose it is possible that Bill may have had reference material for a plane that had replacement engines and exhaust pipes in non-stock locations...or maybe he could not find reference to the exhaust location and used artistic license to place them.....reglardless, Bill's S-43 is a classic sim aircraft that has more than stood the test of time. All of his aircraft are classics that, even after all these years, still amaze flight simmers world wide. The things he was doing in his planes was so far ahead of the time....Bill was a genious!

OBIO

[TeiscoDelRay]

Hi,



Methink .. panel

Not only does it load slower than the Wings of Power B-29 but it gets less frame rates. Panning around the WOP 29 virtual cockpit gives me 59 fps (capped at 59),,panning around the S-43 virtual cockpit gives me 52 to 43 fps.

[Moses03]

Here is everything I could readily find in my library on the S-43. Hope it helps shed some light. If anything some good info on it-

Moses

[robert41]

Thanks for the mods Obio.

[Willy]

And I thought I had some info hidden away on the S43! Thanks Moses!

[Mick]

Been dabbling with a couple JRS-1 skins, but it's coming along very slowly because I have so much else going on right now.

The Navy's VJ-1 in Hawaii used the JRS-1. They used a solid Willow Green tail, and even though they weren't a tactical unit and virtually never flew in formation, they painted eighteen of their aircraft in tactical section markings, with the JRS making up the first (red) and second (white) sections.

The Marines' VMJ-1 and VMJ-2 used the JRS-1. They painted vertical red. white and blue stripes on the rudders.

I'll keep fiddling, but I think I'll go slow until I see if the promised paint kit might make it easier to do a better job.

Or better yet, maybe someone else will do the military skins and save me the trouble. If anyone wants to tackle them and needs references, sing out.

[SIAI S81]

The aicraft is really nice but the radio in the panel is "out of time". I replaced it with the DC3 one.

[TARPSBird]

I am working on a paint kit for the plane......getting the panel lines on the fuselage as close to the real deal is going to take some time...and the wings will take some trial and error as they presently have nothing there to work off of.
OBIO

Obio, this kit box art isn't too bad for wing detail...

[OBIO]

Tarps...I have that same pic saved with the same thought to use it to add the detailing to the upper wings.

[TARPSBird]

Great minds think alike.

[MM]

Thanks to Moses for the great pieces. Here is a less technical article on Howard Hughes and the S-43...by Budd Davisson in 1999's Flight Journal:
"Howard Hughes' Sikorsky: S-43 the legend lives on."
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articl...02/ai_n8851476

[TeiscoDelRay]

It would be interesting to find a picture or know what William Vanderbilt's s-43 looked like.

[OBIO]

Wing top panel lines are 80% done...lower wing panel lines about 50% done. Rear 2/3 of the fuselage panel lines are done...front 1/3 panel lines are done but need a few adjustments to line up with the center portion of the fuselage. With the beautiful weather here the last couple days, I have been working out side getting my shed organized, installing some more shelves, cleaning the garage, putting up some new bird feeders, getting the grill ready for this year's grilling season (which officially kicked off today with a pack of Hebrew National All Beef Franks...yum yum!.....tomorrow...boneless skinless chicken breasts and pineapple slices). Will continue to work on the paint kit for the S-43 and the new Pratt and Whitney R-1690 sound pack to go along with it. Tomorrow I have some brush clearing to do...so not sure how much PC time I will have.

OBIO

[Moses03]

Ever wonder how the passengers boarded?

[Ferry_vO]

This S43 is a very nice aircraft, but I also found that Mr. Diemer's S42 had a VC added and his VS-44 had been updated too in the past. Now I have three new Sikorsky's in the hangar!

[Lionheart]

Dang! This is nice.. Great to see a new plane for FS2004.

Love that interior!

:ernae: :ernae:


Bill

[Mick]

Obio, this kit box art isn't too bad for wing detail...

Bill Larkins' book has the photo that this artwork was copied from, and I can't see any signs of those big black walkways on the upper wing surface. That photo's not crystal clear, but I'm pretty sure I could tell. There's also another photo, a very clear one, that shows a Navy JRS from similar angle and there's no sign of the walkways in that shot either. I think we can safely say that the Navy's and Marines' JRSs didn't have those walkways, even though their absence is quite unusual for a big boat like the JRS.

See my next post about possible differently shaped walkways on this plane, but I believe what might seem like walkways around the nacelles is just an artifact of light and shadow.

Another definite mistake in this artwork is the absence of the Marine Corps globe and anchor insignia, which was carrier on the bow just ahead of the identification group ("modex.") It's clearly visible in the photograph.

[Mick]

I have the Larkins and Elliott books, the most comprehensive and authoritative references on the subject of pre-WW2 Navy and Marine aircraft colors and markings, and they have several photos of Navy and Marine JRS-1s, plus some further information beyond the photos.

Both Navy utility squadrons flew the JRS-1. VJ-1 and VJ-2 were both based at NAS Pearl Harbor, aboard the tender U.S.S. Rigel in the late 1930s and into 1940 (possibly 1941?.)

VJ-1, despite its utility designation, was mainly a heavy transport squadron. It had a variety of types, but the type it had the most of, eight of them, were JRS-1s.

VJ-2 was a true utility squadron, with a few each of a large variety of planes, and they provided light transport, target towing and other fleet requirements services. Among its menagerie of types were a pair of JRS-1s.

VJ-1 painted its tails Willow Green. The squadron indulged in a curious practice, but one that must appeal to those of us who are overly fond of the Navy's interwar color and markings system. Though their planes had no tactical mission and almost never flew in formation, they applied tactical section markings to the first eighteen planes in the squadron. On their JRS-1s, presumably due to the size of the planes, they omitted the upper wing chevron and individual aircraft number. Photos show that they started with the first (red) and second (white) sections. Photos in Larkins and Elliott show that the "modex" was placed on the bow, as on the Marines plane pictures above in this thread, with the squadron insignia behind it and raised a bit higher so it's in line with the fuselage portholes rather than the centerline of the "modex." The section color on the cowlings covered only the forward half of the cowls, actually slightly more than half. I intend to paint 1-J-1 (red section leader) and 1-J-4 (white section leader.)

VJ-2 painted its tail surfaces Lemon Yellow (paler and less red than the "Orange Yellow" applied to the upper surface of the wings). As a utility squadron, it didn't apply tactical section markings, so its JRS-1s would have looked pretty standardized, with the identification group ("modex") on the bow with the squadron insignia behind it, in line with the fuselage portholes. I can't find a photo of a VJ-2 JRS-1, so I can't confirm their individual aircraft numbers. Since it was common practice to assign the newest and/or niftiest plane to the squadron commander, it's a fair bet that one of their JRS-1s wore the code 2-J-1. I'll use that code when I paint a VJ-1 plane. If it's not completely authentic, the only possible error will be the individual aircraft number, 1.

As for the Marines, VMJ-1 and VMJ-2 both operated one JRS-1, though VMJ-2 apparently didn't keep their for very long.

In the Larkins book there's a photo of 1-MJ-4 with a slightly non-standard identification group (1MJ-4 instead of 1-MJ-4) and without the rudder stripes that were supposed to be mandatory for Marine aircraft. The Marine Corps globe and anchor is located at the extreme nose. It may have been mis-marked at the factory (in those days, aircraft were painted in full unit markings prior to delivery) and I have no way of telling whether the errors were corrected. This plane also has black de-icer boots on the wings and tail surfaces.

The same book has a photo of VJ-2's 2-MJ-4. It looks pretty much like the model kit box art posted above, with the vertical red, white and blue rudder stripes, and the individual aircraft number on the white stripe, except that it has the globe and anchor ahead of the "modex" and it lacks the walkways on top of the wings that are shown in the box art. However, it might have different walkways around the edges of the nacelles; the photo isn't perfectly clear and it's not at an optimum angle to see this. Also, there are definitely no such walkways on the Navy's JRS-1s, and that makes me think that what seems like walkways on the Marine plane are an artifact of light and shadow; it seems highly unlikely that this feature would be different between Navy and Marine planes. I plan to paint 2-MJ-4.

I'm holding off on finishing my paintings because silver lacquer, the base color for all the Navy and Marine planes, gives me fits, and because I thought the upcoming paint kit might make it easier to finish the job(s). Also, I'm in the middle of the P-59 project I'm working on with David.

Well, we'll see how this shapes up, but I'm quite sure that we'll have a few colorful JRS-1s in our hangars soon.

[TomSteber]

A sound pack reflecting the Pratt and Whitney R-1690 Hornet will be forthcoming in a day or two for use on the S-43...well, any plane that used this engine actually. I will include config files for single, twin, triple and quad engine use. The lengths I go to for you knuckle draggin, cigar chewin, tater chip eatin, ale and lager gulpin, stained t-shirt wearin, unshaved and unshowered degenerates...my brothers one and all!

OBIO

How's this coming?

[OBIO]

I had a sound pack for the R-1690 about 1/2 way done...then I found some new plug-ins for the wav editor I use....and not have a very nice multi-channel EQ to use to tweak sounds....I am trashing the original R-1690 sounds and going to redo them with far more control over the entire frequency range. The new EQ will allow me to make more distinct and unique sound packs from the same base package.

OBIO

[Terry]

Just posted at Flightsim.

FS2004 (ACOF) - FS2004 Early Aircraft FS2004 Panair do Brasil Sikorsky S-43B
[ Download | View ]
Name: s43bpaa.zip Size: 10,370,292 Date: 03-25-2010
FS2004 Panair do Brasil Sikorsky S-43B, registration PP-PBM. Sikorsky twin-engine amphibian built in 1936. S-43B had twin vertical tails for greater stability, and an extended nose section as an attempt to cut down water spray. Two versions included: PP-PBM used by Panair do Brasil, and NC16927 for Pan Am. These were the same aircraft. NC16927 was allocated to Panair after delivery to Pan Am. Top speed over 190 mph. Range 820 miles at cruising speed of 171 mph. Carries 15 passengers. FSDS3.5 model with virtual cockpit and passenger cabin. By George Diemer. Air file mods by Randy Cain.

[Daube]

I like it a lot, and George has been my hero ever since making the S-38/S-39's for FS2004. Attached are some images from FSX Acceleration - I just have to create some new prop disc textures, but everything else is just fine. This has got to be his finest work to-date. (I had to take a full-tour of the interior, a number of times, to take in all of the details).

Thanks for those screenshots. I didn't expect the vc to look that good, and the plane to work in Acceleration. I will definitely give it a try.

[Moses03]

This is interesting-

"Known issues:
-Flight dynamics:
Previous .air file had difficulty slowing down for landing. A modified .air file is included, courtesy Randy Cain. Lowering the gear now increases drag and pitch-down. This may require excessive nose-up trim at landing stall speed of about 65 mph. If you want to revert to the original .air file, it is included as "Original Sikorsky S-43B PAA.air". Just re-name it to "Sikorsky S-43B PAA.air".

[Mick]

There's a pre-war Navy JRS-1 repaint at SimV, but it has several errors. Section color on the whole cowl, not just the front half; fuselage marked as 1-J-2, a wingman with no fuselage band, but the cowls are colored all around as a section leader; the squadron insignia is missing; the letters and numbers are in an inappropriate font. I don't know who released it - they didn't put their name on it.

I've done four accurate pre-war JRS paints, Navy and Marines, but I've been holding them back from release, waiting on the promised paint kit to see if that might make it easer to do a better silver paint background color. I'm not crazy about George's base color, but I can't do any better myself, at least not without turning it into a major project that I don't have time for now. (And maybe not even then; painted silver gives me fits!)

Maybe I should release what I've got for now. If the paint kit comes out and helps me do a better job, I can always release updates. Maybe later today I'll get time to package up my paints and upload them. We'll see...

Edit: OK, now it's at FlightSim and it's by Mike Barnes.

I'm uploading my four repaints as I type this.

Edit: They're up and they're already available on the download list! Holy cow, files sure are available quickly with the new system! Like instantaneously! Wow!