The latest version of Google Earth, the free downloadable software for Windows and Macs has a secret flight simulator built into it. Activated by hitting ctrl+alt+A you can fly in one of two aircraft over the surface of the earth.
There are instructions here on the key combinations. It’s not a combat sim, all you can do is fly but it makes nice use of the Google earth scenery and you can add all the layers- you have to view the sidebar then enable things.
Note, even with a fast net connection, if you want to see everything (I had roads and 3d buildings turned on) you have to hit the space bar now and then to pause it so it can play catch up and I have a 20 MB ADSL connection!
I spent a while flying over my part of London (East) and the screen shot above shows me approaching Canary Wharf from the south. Very nice. One or two minor bugs (this is beta) like closing the sidebar if you try to change location. But as a free toy this is superb and you get more accurate scenery than any other flight simulator out there!
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