The CH53 has been originally conceived as a heavy assault aircraft to be used by the U.S. Marine Corps. Its unique design resulted from the ‘Vertical Envelopment’ doctrine, devised during the Vietnam War. The idea behind it was an arrival, high above the ‘Hot L.Z.’, followed by a steep spiral dive to the ground and deployment of the troops and/or cargo. In order to withstand such a gruesome dive, the CH53 had to be very robust by design. In fact, as large and heavy as it is, the CH53 had been looped and rolled already during its test program, which testifies for it’s exceptionally strong construction.
This flight simulator version of the Sea Stallion is a marvel to not only look at but to fly as well. With quite irresponsive controls this helicopter can be quite forgiving unless you decide to throw it around. The bird can be quite difficult to land in wind due to the sluggish controls but in truth it all adds to the fun of flying the CH-53. If you are used to flying sharp and nippy helicopters like the Bell 206B then this chopper is certainly going to take some getting used to. But as the old saying goes, “practice makes perfect”.
This US Navy depiction of the chopper shows wonderful detail on both fuselage and rotors. As you can see from our screen shots the texturing is superb and the Shlomo Hakim has again shown that he is one of the leaders in helicopter design. As a fan of choppers myself I can honestly say this is a classic helicopter so it is not surprising to find out that it has been downloaded over 6000 times from FS Planet alone.
The Sea Stallion panel that comes with the helicopter is also very realistic. With a custom bitmap and gauges it really pushes chopper flying to the limit. The moving control stick all adds to the flavour of flying and with moving parts and a lowering aft door this chopper is defiantly a classic.
FS Planet rating: 5/5
