Microsoft has hosted a livestream dedicated to Microsoft Flight Simulator, providing a ton of information on its future plans for the beloved sim.
As usual, the new details were provided by head of Microsoft Flight Simulator Jorg Neumann, Asobo chief executive officer Sebastian Wlock, and executive producer Martial Bossard.
We start with the fact that the Dune collaboration announced in June has been predictably moved to 2024 to match the next movie's new release window.
That being said, Microsoft is actively working to replace it in November with something that will delight users for the holiday season, albeit it isn't locked in just yet. It could be a world update, a new plane, or something else.
We move on to the news about Sim Update 13 (which is releasing later today) including a ton of upgrades for the Boeing 747i and 787-10. They include the following.
Below you can see the new EFB for the 787-10, the Simbrief settings, the open loop checklists, the wind forecasts uploaded from Simbriedf, and the other map modes.
A lot of engine parameters will be added to piston engine. These are opt-in and developers will be able to use them in their aircraft if they want.
Moving on to the Famous Flyer 07. It's the Japanese aircraft that Neumann teased in our interview recorded at Gamescom, but unfortunately, it had to be delayed from its initial release date on September 21 to celebrate Tokyo Game Show.
The problem is licensing. The aircraft is done and Microsoft has great communication with the manufacturer, but the formalities for the license aren't done yet.
Unfortunately, while Microsoft is confident that it'll come soon, there is no release date yet.
It's developed by iniBuilds and it's the Mitsubishi MU-2. You can see a video on the official livestream.
We also get the announcement of World Update 15, which is Northern Europe and Greenland.
It'll include a new Digital Elevation Map (DEM), new aerial imagery, between 8 and 10 photogrammetry cities, 90 points of interest, 5 bespoke airports, 3 landing challenges, 3 bush trips, and 3 discovery flights.
Below you can find the list of the countries included alongside the resolution of the DEM for each.
The photogrammetry cities that are already decided are Aarhus, Copenhagen, Frederikssund, Odense, and Roskilde in Denmark, Oslo in Norway, and Linköping, Malmö, and Visby in Sweden. Gothenburg also in Sweden is possible but not promised.
You can see them all below.
Next is a series of screenshots of the points of interest.
The airports are Ivalo Airport (EFIV) in Finland, Akureyri Airport (BIAR) in Iceland, Leknes Airport (ENLK) in Norway, Mo I Rana Airport (ENRA) in Norway, and Kiruna Airport (ENSQ) in Sweden.
Local Legend 13 is also coming at the same time, and it's the Saab 17 in development at iniBuilds. At the moment, it's slated at the same time as the World Update on October 31.
More big news comes about the fact that the Aircraft & Avionics Update 3 has been changed into a full Sim Update, the 14tt, and below you can take a look at a few action items that are planned around it.
We also hear that Microsoft is finally working on a World Update for Brazil. Unfortunately, this will take a long time simply because of weather and physical timings.
There isn't a country in the world that Microsoft isn't working on, including the Middle East, Africa, South America, and Asia. It'll take time for the data to be ready to publish.
Sim Update 14 will also include a rework of the Cirrus SR22T GS by Working Title, including the following features.
Below you can also take a look at screenshots of the new avionics. This was actually pushed directly by the CEO of Cirrus.
Rather big news was shared at the end of the livestream. iniBuilds is working on a completely new Airbus A320neo. It'll live side-by-side with the original one not to break challenges and activities, but it'll have similar quality to the A310.
It's in development and should be ready for Sim Update 14 around before Christmas. No screenshot of this was shared, but it's definitely exciting.
We then hear that more detailed information on Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 will probably come in the spring of next year. The specific release date isn't internally locked yet.
Incidentally, do keep in mind that here on TechRaptor we host daily Microsoft Flight Simulator news to keep you up to date about this dynamic simulator and its add-ons.
