Dodo


 * For the character in Grand Theft Auto 2, see Dodo (GTA 2).

The Dodo is a small airplane appearing in both Grand Theft Auto III and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, while also making appearances flying around all three cities of the GTA III era.

Description
In general, the GTA III rendition has short, stubby wings that appear to have been sawed off at the mid-point in order to make it virtually impossible to fly (hence the name, Dodo), while the GTA San Andreas rendition features a complete wing span. It strongly resembles an older Cessna 152, and is always painted red and white. The Dodo, with or without wings, behaves the same on ground - the faster its propeller spins, the more unstable it is.

In the GTA III rendition, the Dodo was programmed to become unflyable; the Rockstar devs elaborated more on a recent QA session: "Because we were making a driving and shooting game - even that, as a combination of core gameplay elements, was very, very radical at the time. The Dodo was never meant to be flown very much at all, and it certainly wasn’t grounded as a result of 9/11 – it was just a fun thing that people then went crazy with when they figured out various bugs that let them fly it!"

However, the player can still fly the Dodo on the PC version although it is incredibly difficult. Full-winged Dodos are seen flying around in both Liberty City and Vice City, often towing fliers in the latter case. They can be shot down with rockets (either with a weapon or the Hunter), earning the player an instant 3-star wanted level. The code on the back of a Dodo could also be spelled why me, which was probably made because of beta Darkel's mission, where you crash in Love media building and die.

GTA III and GTA Liberty City Stories
As the GTA III rendition of the controllable Dodo evidently features shorter wings, the plane is considerably difficult to control; often, a normal pitch or roll may send the plane plummeting out of control, and the thrust of the engine alone cannot be relied on to aid in lift. GTA III's Dodo is thus intended to only remain in the air for short periods of time, but it is possible for the plane to continuously stay airborne.

Takeoff alone requires an unorthodox method of "sling shooting" the aircraft upwards using the suspension of the plane's front landing gear by performing the following:


 * 1) While accelerating down a long, flat surfacing, gradually increase the downward pitch of the plane (usually by holding up on the left analog stick in PS2 version and the "Dodo down" button that is set in the PC version).
 * 2) When the pitch of the plane is low enough that sparks from the propeller scraping the ground are visible and can be heard, release the left analog stick in PS2 version or Dodo down button in PC version. The plane should should shoot upward, and the player must quickly stabilize the plane by keeping it level.
 * 3) The player is required to continuously hold on to the plane's acceleration and pressing down on the D-pad or Dodo down button (in PC) to keep the plane level to the horizon and also to ensure smooth flying.

The Dodo will continuously be in phugoid when in flight. After flying a certain distance, the Dodo is expected to pitch downwards, but will soon pitch upwards again after gaining momentum and lift from the fall, repeating the same drop-rise sequence over again. Because of this, the Dodo can be considered to be closely related to a glider. From takeoff onwards, the player must be wary of the pitch of the plane, doing their best to level the Dodo to ensure the plane does not ascend or descend too quickly, as it will result in more violent fluctuations in flight and increases the risk of crashing. Rolling (steering) of the Dodo must also be done with care by softly tapping the directional controls of the plane instead of holding them, which results in violent rolling and leading to the plane dropping from the sky.



If controlled properly, the Dodo can reach great heights, even flying over skyscrapers (see this video). The Dodo may also be used to reach inaccessible parts of the city, such as the Ghost Town, or the Easter egg text on the edge of the radar's map.

Camera Glitch

Once the player has mastered flying the Dodo, which takes time and practice, he/she can fly anywhere on the map. However, a precaution must be taken into consideration to prevent a ruined flight. The player must avoid flying over unique stunt jumps, as flying over them will trigger a cinematic view (a normality when driving off a particular ramp in a car) and the slow-motion camera will not subside until the player crashes into the ground or ocean, almost certainly resulting in death. Because of the scattered jumps in GTA III, it is imperative for the player to know of all locations to avoid flying over them. This glitch makes flying the Dodo much more of a challenge.

In Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories, the GTA III Dodo is obtainable through third party mods. However, it has no acceleration and therefore is useless, as it never moves, unless if the player uses a cheat device.

GTA San Andreas


The Dodo in GTA San Andreas, is the smallest plane in the game. The Dodo has a complete wing span and full functionality, greater stability and control, and has an engine far more reliable in keeping the plane airborne (using Flying School methods, rather than the GTA III method). However, with a range of superior aircraft available in the game, the Dodo remains an undesirable option, being one of the slowest and most underpowered planes in game, although it is still considerably maneuverable. The Dodo is not seen flown by NPCs in the skies in GTA San Andreas. However, this vehicle is redeemed somewhat due to it allowing the pilot to fire handheld weapons from it.

Prominent appearances in missions
In GTA III, two of Donald Love's missions involve the Dodo, A Drop In The Ocean requires you to follow a Dodo in a boat and pick up the package it drops in the bay, and the other, Grand Theft Aero, requires you to enter the same Dodo (parked in a hangar) to retrieve another package. Another mission, S.A.M. (for Asuka Kasen), requires you to shoot one down with a rocket and collect the cargo it was carrying from the wreckage. The Dodo was going to be featured in a deleted mission, Love Hurts, for the deleted character Darkel; the player would be required to crash a Dodo into the Love Media Building to destroy it and kill Donald Love.

In GTA San Andreas, during the mission "Freefall" you must fly a Dodo above and behind a Shamal jet in which some Forelli hitmen are being transported, to do a hit for Salvatore Leone.

Trivia

 * The Dodo was meant to appear in GTA IV, because of the handling line being still in the game's files.1250815242_dodo1.jpg
 * The Dodo in GTA III and GTA Vice City (as the banner-pulling plane), bears the letters "Y", "M" and "E" at the beginning of the plane's registration number on the tail end of the fuselage, which reads similar to "Why me?".
 * Dodo is a play on words, as a Dodo was a flightless, now extinct bird of Mauritius.
 * The Dodo in GTA 3 has abnormal crash mechanics. For example, hitting a sign or light post with one of its wings will cause the Dodo to spin around, often even bouncing it into the air a few feet.
 * In GTA III's game files, the Dodo is listed as a car instead of a plane. This is why it is relatively resilient to damage.
 * The Dodo in GTA III is the only plane in the entire Grand Theft Auto series to feature brakes; these can be applied by using the handbrake key.
 * In GTA III, the Dodo's wheels will still be spinning when it is airborne. In San Andreas, the wheels do not rotate even if the plane is moving on the ground.
 * The GTA III Dodo can be exported, although it is extremely hard to put the Dodo in any export garage. Even if the player manages to do this, it is extremely hard to even get into the Dodo. If the player manages to do that, the player must back it up, and turn it around, another extreme method.
 * The propeller always spins on the GTA 3 version even if the plane is destroyed.
 * According to Rockstar, the Dodo was never meant to be flown much. Nor was it ever grounded as a result of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Rockstar meant for it to be "just a fun thing that people then went crazy with when they figured out various bugs that let them fly it!"
 * In GTA III, if the player pitches the Dodo upward, and then presses on the brake so the engine deccelerates, the Dodo may swing back and start gliding backwards for a short distance.

Locations
GTA III
 * In the green hangar north of Francis International Airport (only after Grand Theft Aero).
 * In the southwest hangar in Francis International Airport.
 * In the east end of the runway in Francis International Airport.
 * In Portland Import/Export Garage (once it is completed).

GTA San Andreas
 * In the east side of Los Santos International Airport, near the entrance.
 * Southeast of the main circle with grass in Easter Bay International Airport in San Fierro.
 * All around the west side of Las Venturas Airport.