Stormworks: Build and Rescue – 6 Tips For Making More Realistic And Successful Planes In SW

#1 (Proper NWS)

 
I Have Never Seen A Proper General Aviation NWS (Nose-Wheel Steering) System On A General Aviation Plane On The Workshop. Maybe Its Just Because People Don’t Know How They Really Work? 
 
How To Make A Proper Fixed-Gear NWS System: 
Fixed Gear, General Aviation Planes Have A Type Of NWS That Only Turns When The Nose-Gear Is Holding It’s Portion Of The Planes Weight When On The Ground. 
 
The System Works By Pushing The Nose-Gear Upwards Into A Gear/Slot That Will Lock It In Place And Turn It With The Pedals. When The Nose-Gear Is Off The Ground It Drops Downwards With Its Weight And Out Of The Gear/Slot That Turns It And Therefore Will Disconnect And Remain Loose Until It Is Pushed Upwards Again. The Airflow Running Over The Wheel Or It’s Cover If It Has One Keeps It In Place When In The Air. 
 
In Most Modern Airliners The Nose-Wheel Is Turned With A Handle Called A “Steering Tiller” To The Side Of The Pilot’s (And Sometimes Co-Pilot’s) Seat. It Looks Like This: 
 
 
These Steering Tillers Are Used To Turn The Aircraft. I Could Not Find Out If They Are Disabled When The Gear Is Retracted, Though I Think They Probably Are. 
 
Ideas For Making It In SW 
For General Aviation NWS Systems You Could Use A Distance Senor Facing Down And Have It Lead Into A Less-Then That Would Trigger A Switchbox To Allow The Nose-Wheel To Turn When The Fuselage Is Near The Ground. If You Are Feeling Brave You Could Have Suspension That Will Compress With The Weight Of The Aircraft And Trigger A Contact Sensor When The Nose-Gear Is Compressed. Have It Wired Into A Switchbox That Allows The Nose-Wheel To Turn When Triggered. 
 
 

#2 (Landing Gear)

 
Landing Gear Of Some Sort Can Be Found On Most Planes So They Can Taxi, Takeoff, And Land Without Severely Damaging Themselves. Some Seaplanes Do Not Have Landing Gear Because They Don’t Need It Do Carry Out The Mission They Were Created For. I Recommend That When You Make Your Landing Gear That You Don’t Make It A Forest Of Landing Gear, I Learned That The Hard Way. (I Made Something Like That For Fun.) 
 
Where To Put Landing Gear: 
Where Should Your Landing Gear Go? It Depends. I Will Make A Table To Show Some Places They Can Go. 
 

 
 
 
This Plane Has A Type Of A “Four Gear Configuration” Setup  
 
 
Here Is Another Type Of Four Gear Configuration.  
 
You Can Try Things Like Planes With Two Main Wheels And Some Small Wheels That Drop Off Of The Plane In Mid-Flight. The U-2 Spy Plane Has Small Wheels That Detach On Takeoff And Larger Landing Wheels That Were Used To Land. Some Planes With 4 Gear Config Have Small Wheels At The Wingtips. These Were Seen On The B-52. 
 
 

#3 (Instrument Panel Choices)

 
This Section Refers To The Front Instrument Panels/PFD’s Contents. This Section Will Also Give Some Tips For Other Panels.  
 
Lets Face It, Instrument Choice Matters. You Shouldn’t Have All Dial Panels On Something Like A 787 Or Other Modern Planes. It Also Matters What Type Of Screens You Have In A Modern Plane. PFDs That Have The Artificial Horizon, Speed, Altitude, And Other Information May Look Good On An Airliner Or Helicopter But Maybe Not On A Fighter Jet Or Bomber. Instruments Like PenguinO’s Instruments Look Good In Most Modern (And Older Too) Aircraft. I Will Link Some Instruments And Screens I Can Recommend Later On. Do Note That Default Or Instrument Panel Dials For Airspeed Or Altitude Are Not Realistic. Altitude Gauges Need Two Needles, Not Just One, To Work Properly. Airspeed Gauges Have Colors For Too High Speeds. 
 
Instruments I Can Recommend: 
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1766909974 
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1744477495 
 
Where To Put Intruments 
It Is Fairly Well Known That Artificial Horizons Look Best Centered To Your Seat In Some Aircraft. However The Position Of The Airspeed, Altitude, Heading, And Other Instruments Is Not As Known. Generally You Want The Panel Laid Out Like This 
 
 
(PenguinO’s Instruments Shown) 
 
Generally Just Choose What Instruments You Use And Where To Put Them And You Have Potential For A Good Instrument Panel. 
(Quick Tip: Airliners Have Trim So Why Shouldn’t Your Plane? Trust Me It Helps To Have It) 
 
 

#4 (Wing Types)

 
This One Is Commonly Done As Realistic As Possible In SW. I Figured I Would Still Include It For New Players. This Section Is More Straightforward Then Some Of The Others. Chose How You Build Your Wing And Where You Put It And Your Fine In That Aspect. 
 
Types Of Wings: 
There Are A Few Different Types Of Wings And They All Have Different Use Cases. Here Is A List Of Some Of Them.

• Straight Wing: This Wing Can Be Seen On Most Older Types Of Planes And Still Some Small General Aviation Planes. 
• Swept Wing: This Is The Type Of Wing Used On Most Airliners And Regional Jets. 
• Reversed Swept Wing: This Type Of Wing Is Very Rare And Was Only Used On Experiential Fighter Jets. 
• Delta Wing: This Wing Is Used Mostly On Fighter Jets Or Small Ultra-Lights And Is Shaped Like A Pizza Slice. There Are Multiple Types Of Delta Wings Including Ones Simaler To Concorde Or Avro-Bomber Wings 
• Gull Wing: These Wings Look Simaler To A Stretched Out V From The Front Or Back. 
• Inverted Gull: A Gull Wing That Is Inverted. The “F4U Corsair” Featured An Inverted Gull Wing

 
Wing Placement: 
There Are 5 Main Places A Wing Is Put. List Here: [/list] 

• Low-Wing: This Is A Very Common Wing Level. It’s Wing Mounted At The Lower Part Of The Fuselage… . 
• Mid-Wing: A Wing Mounted Near The Middle Of The Fuselage. This Is Not A Very Common Design. 
• Shoulder-Wing: This Means A Wing Mounted Near The Top Of The Fuselage, Though Not All The Way At The Top. This Is Also Not A Very Common Design. 
• High-Wing These Are Also Very Common Wing Levels. These Are Wings Mounted At The Very Top Of The Fuselage. The Cessna 172 Is A Notable Example Of This Configuration. 
• Parasol Wing This Is A Wing Raised Up Above The Fuselage. Often Times This Is Done By Mounting It On Struts Or Pylons. Parasol Wings Are Often Seen On Ultralight Aircraft.

 
You Can Use Different Wings Then Those I Mentioned And They Still Can Be Realistic. The Concorde And Tu-144 Had The First Delta Wings Ever Implemented On An Airliner. The X-15 Had Wing Stubs To Not Give Too Much Lift. Some Aircraft Need Different Wing Designs To Work At The Top Performance They Can. You Can Build Your Own Wings For Your Own Plane If You Want To Do So. 
 
 

#5 (Engines)

 
Engines Are Nice To Have In A Plane. That Is Unless It Is A Glider. Well This Section Isn’t A Glider Section So I Will Just Move On. There Are 5 Main Types Of Engines In Stormworks That Can Be Effectively Used For A Plane. And I Have To Make Another List… 
 
Engine Types: 
 

 
 
 
 
This Plane Utilizes Two Turboprop Engines 
 
Engine Placement: 
Engine Placement Is Important As It Decides Your Center Of Thrust. If Your Center Of Thrust Is Too High Up And Your Center Of Ma*s Is Too Far Down You End Up With A Plane That Does Front-Flips, Not Ideal For An Nice To Fly Plane. Having A Center Of Thrust Or Center Of Lift Far Off From The Center Of Ma*s Is Why Trim Is Important To Have. And Balancing All Of Those Centers Of Things Is Hard To Do While Maintaining A Good Looking Plane. Again, Do I Need To Say, Trim? Trim Doesn’t Really Need An MC Anyways (Though It Is Very Nice To Have). It Only Requires An U/D Counter And An Addition Block. (Yea I Know The Seats Have Trim But Still Its Good To Have.) 
 
 

#6 (Naming Of Aircraft)

 
A Good Name Is Important For All Creations. However Plane Or Helicopter Names Are Not Like Those Of Cars, Boats, Or Trains. Planes Often Times Have The Manufacturing Companies Name Or First Letter Of Each Word Of Name As The First Word/Few Words. (Example: Boeing 737 Or A320) After That They Have Either A Name Or A Few Numbers And Please Don’t Name It Something Like “plane” Or “boat” Or Some Other Name Simaler To That. An Ideal Name Can Be Something Like This: “(Company Name) (Some Numbers) (Optional Plane Name) (Optional Short Description)”. 

• “Company Name” Is Optional And Not Always Used. It Is Very Commonly Used In Airliners 
• “Some Numbers” Is Also Not Always Used But Is Still Very Common. These Numbers Dont Have To Be Very High Ones. 
• “Optional Plane Name” Can Be A Nickname For The Aircraft. For Example The “A-10 Warthog” Has A Nickname. 
• “Optional Short Description” Could Be Something Like The Use Of Your Plane. This Could Be “Utility Aircraft” Or “Heavy Cargo Lifter.

Overall The Name Of Your Creation Is Very Important In Making Your Aircraft More Recognizable And More Realistic. People Don’t Often Search “Plane” Specifically When Looking For Creations To Use. Sure They Might Not Search The Exact Name Of Your Creation, However It Makes Sure Its Not Lost In The Hoard Of Vehicles That Have One Word That Says Something Like “Boat” As A Title. 
 
 

Conclusion

 
If Any Of The Information In This Guide Is Incorrect Or You Have A Recommendation Let Me Know. I Am No Master In Aviation So Sorry If Anything I Wrote Is Incorrect. All In-Game Plane Pictures Are From Planes I Have/Am Making. Anyway I Hope This Guide Does Help You Build Any Future Or Currant Aircraft You May Be Making. 
 

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