New hidden Flight Simulator in Google Earth

Did you know that Google Earth contains an "easter egg? which is a hidden message or feature in an object such as a movie, book, CD, computer program, or video game etc.

The Easter egg is in the form of a hidden complete flight simulator with two jets, "F16" and "SR22", and airports, although limited.

To find this Just open Google Earth (you will need the newest version, 4.1 To access the hidden feature, open Google Earth and hit control+Option+A (note it must be capital A) or Ctrl+Alt+A if you're using a Windows Machine. You may need to do this more than once like I always have to do. Then, A dialog will appear, asking you to pick your airplane, airport, and a few other things. (Once you've used this keyboard combo once, you can invoke the flight sim in the future from the Tools, Enter Flight Simulator menu item. This entry will be missing, however, until you invoke the simulator once from the keyboard.

It's not the most accurate "flight" simulation around. Joystick support on the Mac works; it saw my Saitek flightstick,and even recognizing and using the trottle slider for engine control. In-flight dynamics need some tuning. It is quite fun to fly across the landscape in this different manner although flying rather tricky until you get the hang of things, as the Google team seems to have invested lots of efforts into the game.

A good start, I can see why they want it hidden for now, though. By the way, fly higher seems to appear more realistic especially in urban areas. It's well worth checking out and may take time to get used to and a great Easter egg.

Flight simulator Keyboard controls.