Every flight simulation needs an aero model, why does this make X-Plane "nice".
It's not that simple. In theory there is nothing wrong with a lookup table
simulator. The problem is that only the aircraft manufacturer has
access to the HUGE amount of data needed to pull it off. Also, these data
will usually be within the envelope. Once outside, things get VERY
complicated. MSFS has a very primitive flightmodel compared to X-Plane.
Austin Meyer (the developer of X-Plane) recently posted the below in reponse
to a review comparing X-Plane to MSFS. It gives you an idea why
the difference is siginificant between the two.
WARNING: Austin is not known for his diplomatic skills
http://www.xplanefreeware.net/morten/DOCS/XPvsFS.rtf
Cheers,
M