Confession time: I don't like to review FSX/P3D helicopters. I know I have to be neutral when it comes to sims (and I usually am) but there's something in these sims that really make it hard for me to do my reviews.
I feel very uncomfortable doing them and I am always afraid that the discomfort may eventually skew my perspective of the product. Fortunately, I think I managed not to allow that to happen.
Good quality products, will always be good quality products, though, and they tend to make my task easier. Fortunately there are a lot of them out there and. Such as the Nemeth Designs Mi-24.
A little about the Mi-24
Development of the Mi-24 started in the late 1960's but it wasn't until 1976 that it was formally adopted by the former Soviet Army.
The Mi-24 broke away from several concepts accepted for helicopters at the time. The cockpit configuration, in which the pilot and gunner flew in tandem and the fact that the Mi-24 was not just a gunship but also a troop transportation vehicle, made it a sort of aerial APC (Armored Personnel Carrier). Some call it a flying tank, though, and that might also be true, considering the amazing firepower it carries.
Right from the very early stages, the military demanded that it would carry a 12.7-millimeter heavy machine gun in a chin turret, plus Shturm guided missiles, along with the rocket pods it already carried.
The design of the helicopter has changed drastically over time and most of those that know the Mi-24 recognize the most modern layout in which there's a bigger outside separation between the crew (pilot and gunner).
The Mi-24 has been used by dozens of countries and has seen a plethora of different conflicts: from 1977 to the present day.
Installation
Installation is easy and simple. Just start the installer and go from there. No big deal and very smooth.
First look and model
The Mi-24 is a big, badass looking helicopter. She is, definitely, one of the most recognizable helicopters in the world.
As usual, Nemeth Designs did a great job with the model, both outside and in. Unfortunately, I was a bit disappointed by the fact that both the main and tail rotors aren't animated. They rotate, obviously, but moving the collective, cyclic or pedals have no visual feedback. No pitch difference, nothing. At least not in FSX:SE. A shame, really.
Yes, it IS a small detail, but one that enhances immersion and something that we expect to be present when we are talking about a team such as ND. Hopefully this will be fixed in a future patch or update.
Another thing that I disliked was this switchboard behind the pilot. The texture is all messed up and very low quality, which is a clear getaway from the rest of the textures used in the cockpit -- all of them very crispy and of great quality.
Sound
I've never heard an Mi-24 in person but I've checked out a lot of videos in YouTube. The sound in the sim sounds close enough but I didn't get any major changes during the different flight regimes -- something that's normal in a lot of FSX helicopters.
Startup and shutdown sounds are very good (I really liked the spool-up sound on startup, being probably one of the nicest I've heard in a FSX helicopter). No complaints here.
Systems
Being a combat helicopter, one would expect weapons systems besides the regular helicopter systems. Being FSX, those are non-existant.
The rest of the systems seem to work well with all of the cockpit (except the before-mentioned switchboard) being clickable.
Some of the panels are a bit hard to reach but that has to do with the fact that the cockpit design doesn't allow you to have a clear look at them. You will need to move your head (using your keyboard shortcuts or in VR) to get a better view.
Flight Dynamics
Oh boy. This is always a twitchy subject, isn't it? And we tend to fall into the same old "it's FSX" trend.
But, the truth is, it's FSX. And we need to live with it. This is an helicopter for FSX and P3D so let's just forget about all the stuff such as VRS.
It's an FSX helicopter and it behaves like one. It feel heavy as it should -- she is a big lady after all -- but takeoffs and landings all feel the same to me in FSX and the Mi-24 is no exception.
Squirrel's Alouette III, and the MP Design Studio are probably the most different helicopters in this aspect, for me. The Mi-24, though, stays loyal to the FSX engine and dynamics.
I do have a complaint: I know she's supposed to be a heavy helicopter but I find her a bit too sluggins on the cyclic. There were times where I had to use full sidestick to do some maneuvers, which I found weird.
I wish FSX/P3D developers released their models with config files for Helicopter Total Realism. It would, definitely, improve their products and add value to them.
Conclusion
Yes, I have only mentioned minor things that most of the folks out there won't even look at or realize. But, when you are talking about teams with the track record and the experience of Nemeth, you start to enter that region where you no longer want a usable helicopter. You want (demand?) it to be, not only be very good but have all the bells and whistles.
Nemeth Designs did a great job with the Mi-24 but I wish they had gone a bit further. She's good looking, flies decently, the cockpit is REALLY nice and immersive (please fix that switchboard panel, folks)-
