The stream, which you can watch here, covered a lot of material that is coming for XBox and PC, and the stuff that obviously got our eye was the segment about Microsoft Flight Simulator, which is commemorating its 40th anniversary.
Thanks for the info. These two helicopters would be an excellent start! The Bell 407 is a favorite of mine in X Plane, and a small piston helicopter is always fun to fly (never tried the Cabri, though). While we are waiting for native helicopter support, beside the Bell 47 G, are there any good helicopters for MSFS right now?
There is an incredible H145 made by Hype Performance Group (HPG)… it is worth every penny and the devs are on hand daily through the HPG discord channel. They have also just release a HEMS and Firefighting pack too
I like the freeware R44 a lot as well. It flies really well, even if it’s not complete when it comes to systems, etc. It’s still lacking a bit but, along with the Bell 47, it’s the helicopter I’ve been enjoying the most in MSFS.
Ah, thanks! I’ll try that, since it’s freeware. Have you tried the H145? I remember the H135 was not quite satisfying when it came out. Since it’s quite pricey, I’d rather wait a detailed review before buying.
Do give it a try. You will like it for sure. It flies really well!
I have tried the H145, yes. I am still not fond of the flight model. It’s too stable and feels a lot like a drone or to be flying “on rails”.
Ah, unfortunately, I can’t get Airland FS to run on my computer. Even after solving (hopefully) some .NET framework issues, it just quits silently after a second or so.
I suspected as much about the H145. Plus, it’s almost as expensive as the upcoming X-Plane 12 license (more if you get the bonus pack). The choice is easy.
It’s a shame you can’t get AirlandFS to work. The 44 is rather nice. I’m sorry you can’t get to try it. I know there is a new version being worked that won’t need the .net framework so… Hopefully you’ll get to try it.
A lot of people seem to like the H145. It has a nice 3D model and good systems but the flight dynamics really doesn’t do it for me. I actually get annoyed while flying it since it does not behave the way I expect a body to move in the world.
Finally managed to run the thing, with some help from Discord. The R44 is nice, indeed. It crashed the sim a couple of time, though (the Bell 47G doesn’t seem to do that, usually). I found the R44 a bit easier to fly and to land (with “realism” setting to 100%), but challenging enough to be interesting. I’ll probably stick with the Bell most of the time, because it seems more reliable; at least as a piece of software (as an aircraft, it seems much more easy to crash).
I’m glad you at least managed to give it a try and see how it flies. We’re getting the new flight model in November and at least a couple of helicopters, so that should kickstart a new stage in MSFS.