PROPS SETUP GUIDE

INTRODUCTION

The goal of this document is to provide you with all the necessary information to get up and running with PROPS online air racing. If the answers you need aren’t here, contact one of the PROPS officers for assistance.

AIR RACING CLASSES

The sport of air racing is divided up into several different classes such as Unlimited, T-6, Formula 1, Biplane and many others. The different classes usually refer to aircraft with different sized engines, wing area or other factors which affect the performance of the aircraft.

Currently, PROPS holds races for several different classes of aircraft. Check the PROPS Calendar page to see what classes are being raced in the current season.

New race classes are added all the time and suggestions are welcome. Contact a PROPS Officer if you have a race class you'd like to see included.

PROPS GETTING STARTED CHECKLIST

Here’s a quick checklist of things to do before showing up for a race.

Each of these items is detailed in the rest of this document.

1. Download and run ALL PROPS Installers. There are several initial installers which will set you up with the necessary race classes.
2. Download and run all update installers. These contain additional updates which will bring your racing files up to date. Update installers may also install new race classes.
3. Follow COMPLETELY the instructions in the README file which is opened automatically at the end of the installation.
4. Download and install the TeamSpeak voice communications software.
5. Test all aircraft, skins and scenery installation BEFORE joining a race session.
6. Ensure that any firewall or router settings are properly configured for multiplayer.
7. Contact PROPS Race Director with your Callsign and Aircraft assignment.

PROPS AUTOMATIC INSTALLER

Before joining an online air race, you MUST have the proper files installed on your system. If not, you will not be able to see the other racers or courses properly and you will not be able to compete.

PROPS Racing has gone to great lengths to simplify the installation of the necessary files by combining them all into self-installing executables. All of the aircraft, liveries, scenery and race software files are loaded automatically by the Installer.

A README file will open at the end of the installation and guide you through the remaining setup steps that the Installer can’t do. Be sure to follow the README instructions in the Installer COMPLETELY in order to properly configure the new scenery and your flight simulator for PROPS Racing.

AIRCRAFT OVERVIEW

So that you can easily identify the proper aircraft for PROPS Racing, here is a list of each racing class and the aircraft types that are loaded as part of the PROPS Installer for each class.

All aircraft remain the sole property of their original creators and PROPS gives full credit to them for their creations. They are used here with permission from the creators.

UNLIMITED CLASS

At PROPS, we currently race the North American P-51D Mustang as the Unlimited class aircraft. This version of the racing aircraft was built by Roger Dial. It’s an excellent aircraft that we have modified to run at around 350-400kts.

We have also included the Lockheed P-38 Lightning created by David C. Copley. It has been fine-tuned to run equally with the P-51.

BIPLANE CLASS

The Biplane of choice for PROPS is the Pitts S-2S Bulldog Biplane built by Mikko Maliniem. The aircraft is based on the Pitts Biplane flown by Jim LeRoy. It has been modified to run upwards of 200+kts

SPORT CLASS

The Lancair Legacy is the current aircraft used for PROPS Sport Class racing. The original aircraft was created by Robert Christopher. It has been modified for a top speed of around 350+kts.

T-6 CLASS

The North American T-6 Texan is the obvious choice for this racing class. The original aircraft was created by Warwick Carter who was also kind enough to modify it slightly for PROPS Racing. It has been modified for a top speed of around 205+kts.

COMMUNICATIONS

PROPS uses TeamSpeak voice communication software to allow all racers to communicate by speaking rather than by typing into a chat window. It’s impossible to type and fly at 400 knots 50 feet off the ground so voice communication software is a requirement for racing with PROPS.

The TeamSpeak software used by PROPS can be found on the West Coast ATC page along with installation, setup and usage instructions.

TESTING

Before joining a PROPS session, you should check all the files to be sure they’ve installed correctly and are working properly.

To test, start FS9 and go to one of the PROPS race courses. They are located at:

4SD

KNFL

KSBP

YWOL

CYAM

KBRO

PHLU

EGPO

You should check all airports and test each of the racing classes that you have installed to be sure that the scenery is showing up properly and the aircraft and skins are all working. Keep in mind that the way PROPS race course scenery is installed, you must activate each course in the FS9 SCENERY LIBRARY as described in the README file.

If you have any problems with the installation of aircraft or scenery, contact a PROPS Officer through email and explain exactly what problem you are having. They will be happy to work with you to get the files installed properly.

CONNECTING TO A SERVER

PROPS racing uses a dedicated server to host the race sessions. The IP address for the server can be found on the PROPS/West Coast ATC website. This server can be accessed just like any other multiplayer server.

Due to the competitive nature of PROPS events, there is some special etiquette to joining the race server. Be sure to read the section on connecting to the server in the PROPS PILOT MANIFESTO.

FIREWALLS

A lot of times people join multiplayer games and discover they either cannot connect to the server or they cannot see all of the players in a session.

99 times out of 100 this means you are behind a firewall and your computer can't establish the proper connections to the other players in the session.

There is excellent information on how to solve this problem on the FSHOST website under the Networking section. Rather than try to explain all of the solutions, it’s best to check out the information there.

www.chocolatesoftware.com/fshost

CALLSIGN AND AIRCRAFT ASSIGNMENT

The final step to becoming a part of the PROPS community is to give yourself a callsign and decide which aircraft you will be registered to fly.

Your callsign can be anything you like [no profane or vulgar callsigns, please]. This callsign will be your identification on the communications channel and also in the simulator. You should always set both names to match so that you can be properly identified in the session. Having a different callsign on the comm channel and in the simulation can create confusion for the Air Boss as well as other racers.

To choose your aircraft, go to the PROPS website and click on the ROSTER page. There you will see all of the available paint schemes for each aircraft. Choose one that isn’t being used. You can look at the paint schemes closer by loading the aircraft in FS.

Once you’ve chosen a callsign and aircraft paint scheme, send this information to the PROPS Race Director at the following address: gary.o@westcoastatc.com

CONCLUSION

Once you have all the files installed and confirm that they are working properly, you are ready to race. Check the WCATC Calendar for a PROPS session and get ready to battle it out at 50 feet off the deck.

If you are having difficulties with any of the PROPS files, contact one of the PROPS Officers. The contact information is available on the PROPS website.

It’s required that all technical issues be addressed BEFORE entering a race session. Race sessions are a time to race so please be prepared ahead of time.

See you at the races.

The PROPS Team