Tips to Get the Most Out of Google Earth Flight Simulator Controls

You can’t just have street and aerial views with Google Earth, you can actually navigate the air too! How to do that? By knowing how to operate Google Earth flight simulator controls!

Here are some tips and tricks to get you started:

– Choose the proper plane for your level. After starting the flight simulator up, it is time to pick the type of plane that you want to practice on. Although it’s tempting to go straight to the F-16, it’s practical to go slow first with the SR-22 plane. It will guide you with the proper controls slowly but surely. The default airport is ‘Katmandu’ but if you have a favorite airport in mind, you can choose it directly. For beginners though, it is advised to pick the New York airport first. However, you need to be using a joystick so that you’ll have access to the options. If you only have a mouse, then the default airport will do.

– Click on Start flight. The dimension of your window should be forming a square so that you will be able to see the HUD or Head Up Display. It leads you do different HUD indicators and are colored green.

– Add power to your plane by briefly pressing the Page Up key. At the lower left side is where you can find the throttle indicator. If you want to go in to full throttle, get the triangle up.

– Controlling direction. The comma and period keys can be used to control your direction while on the ground. They act as brakes so just touch them briefly so that you can swerve to the right or left.

– When taking off, be mindful of over correcting. This means relaxing your mouse by making small motions around the center of the screen. But first, you have to go fast on the runway and when it’s at the right speed, move the mouse back slightly from the center of the screen. If you do it right, then you should take off by then. And when you are on the wings level, just place your mouse in the center.

– How to make a turn? It’s a simple maneuver but one that you have to get used to. Simply move the mouse to your left or right slowly and when you feel the plane is tilted, pull back a bit. After making the proper turn that you have in mind, put the mouse back at the center and then to the other direction to put the aircraft back to level.

Important Reminder for Mouse Control

If you don’t have a joystick, it is imperative that you use a mouse to control your aircraft. Using only the keyboard is not ideal because it will be difficult to navigate flight simulator controls with it. When you place the mouse at the center view and click it, a plus (+) sign will appear. Be careful not to move the cursor outside of your window because you will lose the control! It’s only when you are in the air that your mouse will be able to control the place and of course, when your cursor is inside the Google Earth app.