FlightGear
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FlightGear is a collaborative project that aims to create a sophisticated free software flight simulator framework. It is licensed under the GNU GPL and runs on multiple platforms.
The simulation engine in FlightGear is called SimGear. It is used both as an end-user application and in academic and research environments, for the development and pursuit of flight simulation ideas.
A drawback of proprietary flight simulators is that it is not possible to add more features to the simulator or control the simulated environment oneself. Proponents of an open source flight simulator argue that such freedom is desirable for research projects and end users. For example, much of the aircraft and engine data is defined in XML files, allowing countless parameters be edited by users who want to explore the effects of various changes.
This freedom also is illustrated by the wide range of aircraft models that are available in FlightGear, from gliders to helicopters, and from airliners to fighter jets. These aircraft models have been contributed by many different people.
External links
- The FlightGear project (http://www.flightgear.org)
- Category at ODP (http://dmoz.org/Games/Video_Games/Simulation/Flight/Independent_Developers/Flight_Gear/)de:FlightGear