Just Flight News – Page 11 – My Flight New Read Site

Summer updates for the Black Square MSFS fleet

18 June 2024

Numerous updates for the Black Square MSFS fleet are currently in the works for the months ahead – read on to get all the latest information from their developer, Nick Cyganski…

It can be difficult to maintain eight virtual aircraft as…

18 June 2024

Numerous updates for the Black Square MSFS fleet are currently in the works for the months ahead - read on to get all the latest information from their developer, Nick Cyganski...

It can be difficult to maintain eight virtual aircraft as a one-man team while still leaving time to develop new aircraft. This was recently compounded by an extended wait for SU15, which contained several changes that significantly affected my aircraft. I also like to add new features with each update to improve the systems in my aircraft, or the quality of my users’ experience. Luckily the wait is now over, and the entire Black Square fleet will receive updates this summer.

Piston and Turbine Dukes

The Piston and Turbine Dukes just received their first update since release, which included a two-page changelog of minor bug fixes and quality-of-life improvements. There are new tablet options for VR users and an option for hardware control of the autopilot pitch control knob. Also, Control Wheel Steering (CWS) has been added, and beyond the critical altitude turbocharged mixture control improved.

Black Square - Piston & Turbine Duke Bundle

TBM 850

The Black Square TBM 850 will receive a major free update after FlightSimExpo 2024 (June 21-23), which will include all of the new features developed for the Turbine Duke. Improvements include wing flex, new exterior elements, new turbine engine failures, SU15 ground handling physics, CWS and autopilot coupling capability for the KNS-80 RNAV Navigator.

Black Square’s tablet interface will also be included, which features a user-friendly way to access the persistent options for the aircraft, payload configurator, turbine engine visualizer, cabin climate visualizer, live electrical schematic and 100+ possible failures.

The tablet’s visualizers necessitate a higher level of simulational accuracy in many aspects of the aircraft, so the Black Square TBM 850 will also receive improved environmental control simulation, equipment temperature calculations and external power logic.

Starship

Black Square’s Starship will also feature this tablet interface and all the features developed for the Turbine Duke. Check out the recent News item to see the first screenshots and read about some of the new features being developed for the Starship.

Analog Baron & Bonanza

Next, the Analog Baron and Analog Bonanza will receive sizeable updates to include many of the features created for more recent Black Square aircraft. Some of the new features include Black Square’s gyroscope physics simulation, voltage-based light dimming, new strobe light effects in clouds, solar brightness calculation for screen photocell dimmers, KNS-81 autopilot coupling, CWS, SU15 ground handling physics and functional weather radar gain. The turbocharged variants of both aircraft will also receive the same mixture control improvement as the Piston Duke.

Steam Gauge Overhaul - Analog Baron & Bonanza Bundle

Velocity XL

Black Square’s first aircraft, the Velocity XL, will receive an update to support the new Working Title G3X Touch avionics suite and the new ground handling physics, both added in SU15. Both PMS50 GTN and TDS GTNxi can be expected to pair with the GTX, though this functionality is only in beta at the time of writing. Black Square’s Velocity XL was previously updated to include the same turbocharger simulation as newer Black Square aircraft, a functioning environmental control system, inflatable door seals for noise reduction and many new and improved sounds throughout.

Analog King Air & Caravan

The Analog King Air and Analog Caravan will also receive maintenance updates with bug fixes and a few new features such as KNS-80 autopilot coupling, CWS, weather radar gain, solar screen brightness calculation and SU15 ground handling physics. It is also my plan to create stand-alone versions of all four Steam Gauge Overhaul aircraft for MSFS 2024, freeing them of the limitations imposed by the default exterior models. These aircraft will include all the features of recent Black Square aircraft and any applicable new technology made available in MSFS 2024.

Lastly, Just Flight will be submitting the Dukes, TBM and Velocity to Asobo for Marketplace approval in concert with these updates. Hopefully you can expect to see them available via the Marketplace in the coming months.

If you're attending the FlightSimExpo 2024 event in Las Vegas (21-23 June) be sure to head over to the Just Flight stand for a chat with Nick and the Just Flight team about these updates and all our other upcoming projects!

New MSFS airport from FeelThere

Black Square Starship for Microsoft Flight Simulator

17 June 2024

Here's the latest information from Black Square's Nick Cyganski about his forthcoming Starship add-on for Mirosoft Flight Simulator, which is currently in development.

If you're attending the FlightSimExpo 2024 event in Las V…

17 June 2024

Here's the latest information from Black Square's Nick Cyganski about his forthcoming Starship add-on for Mirosoft Flight Simulator, which is currently in development.

If you're attending the FlightSimExpo 2024 event in Las Vegas later this month (21-23 June) be sure to head over to the Just Flight stand for a chat with Nick and the Just Flight team about the Starship and all our other add-ons in development!

The Starship has always been my favourite aircraft of all time, so doing it justice for the first time in a flight simulator has always been my top priority. Almost exactly two years ago, I announced that I was working on the Starship for MSFS, but chose to release seven more aircraft before returning to work on it. Each one was a necessary stepping stone that provided me with the skills required to create the virtual aircraft you see below.

For those unfamiliar with Starship, its design incorporated more technological firsts in a general aviation aircraft than arguably any aircraft before or since. To name a few, it was the first certified canard wing aircraft, the first business aircraft with an all-composite structure, the first certified twin pusher turboprop, the first general aviation aircraft with an all-glass cockpit, and it remains one of only three civilian turboprops with a service ceiling of 41,000 feet. When combined with the sharp appearance of a Burt Rutan design, the Starship is an unforgettable sight, inside and out.

When I returned to the Starship in March of 2024, my first order of business was bringing the Starship up to my current graphical standards, particularly in the cabin. Next, an almost complete code rewrite was required to simulate even more systems under the hood than are present in the Black Square Dukes. Lastly, I began working on the Starship's one-of-a-kind AMS-850 avionics suite.

The Starship's avionics suite pioneered many of today's commonplace features, with some in more recognisable form than others. While it seems difficult to believe in hindsight, the Starship left the factory with no GPS receiver, as the prototype flew in the same year GPS was first made publicly available to civilian users. Instead, the Starship's avionics automatically tuned to nearby navigation aids to generate a positional estimate, the accuracy of which could be enhanced by user input. The Starship also carried receivers for Very Low Frequency (VLF) radio stations, such as Omega, which consisted of nine transmitters located around the globe. As a personal passion project, this pre-GPS navigation system will be available in the Black Square Starship for MSFS. Since its first sale in 1986, the Starship has also received many software and hardware updates to provide modern navigation capabilities, which will also be represented in MSFS.

Black Square's Starship will also incorporate all of the technology developed for the Black Square Dukes, which will also be added to Black Square's TBM 850 in a major free update this Summer. Chiefly, this includes the tablet interface, which allows users to configure all options, manage payload, control failures and monitor engines, a live electrical schematic and environmental control systems, all from within the simulator.

I've always taken a particular interest in any subtle features that can help ground an aircraft in a particular decade of technology. For the Starship, this will include cathode ray tubes (CRTs) that take time to warm up, and navigation databases that can be updated using a floppy disk reader. Users will also be able to monitor the heat generated by the immense quantity of electronics in this aircraft through the tablet interface and manage cooling fans and air flow to keep the systems comfortably cool. The aircraft will also feature 230+ possible failures and 172 circuit breakers, the most in any Black Square aircraft so far.

With only five Starships still airworthy, I feel honoured to preserve the fleet digitally for the next generation of Starship admirers. With flight simulators, we have the opportunity to preserve more than just the facade of an aircraft, but also the systems and the skills required to manage them. With any luck, my efforts will also introduce those who otherwise wouldn't have heard of this magnificent airplane to one of the most revolutionary flying machines ever built.