The folks at SimWorks Studios have been busy releasing products and updating their current slate. Among the updates are some improvements to their Kodiak 100, their recently released RV-14 and we have a tidbit of news on the PC-12. Plus some fun extras.

Kodiak gets a big upgrade

SWS’s Kodiak 100 is already in my list of one of the best GA airplanes in MSFS (a review is forthcoming eventually) and SWS have just made it better.

A raft of fixes have arrived over the last couple of weeks as the dev adds features and functionality to their simulation. The standout features include the implementation of fatigue persistence with the engine and starter. The starter can fail over time with abuse. The engine also has failures now implemented for overtorque, overstress or overheat. Nice!

There are also tweaks to sounds, systems, 0G engine starvation, TAWS system test logic, custom ITT logic and more. This all came in a larger update followed by a couple of hot fixes to solve some problems. All of it is detailed in the change log on the SWS website.

SWS are also hard at work on the floatplane version of the Kodiak. This is going to be a separate release but it does seem to be having some side benefits for the wheeled version. Passengers are cargo are now separate entities separate from the aircraft and that means that you can now mod in new passengers and new types of cargo into the aircraft. This makes use of some recent additions to the MSFS SDK and wasn’t available earlier.

The float version isn’t yet released but it looks like SWS are closing in on a release soon despite some delays earlier in the year.

RV-14 updates

In a post from several weeks ago, SWS reported on their Facebook page that the RV-14 release has been a big success. Since release there have been two additional updates with a variety of minor fixes put into place.

There have been several important changes to the aircraft as well with some flight and engine model tweaks to ensure that the RV-14 is performing closer to its real world equivalent. The rudder has also been tweaked.

SWS also report that they have been working with TDS Sim Software and their GTNXi 750 system. The RV-14 is able to use that avionics system including the Garmin “Smart Glide” system that helps find the nearest airport and lays out an ideal path as well as controlling the aircraft to make it to the runway in the event of engine failure.

The latest updates are all documented in their RV-14 version history list here.

PC-12, Airvan and more

Meanwhile we have news that SWS are well on their way to creating their next projects and the headliner is the Pilatus PC-12.

This single engine turboprop is in a similar class to aircraft like the TBM offering impressive performance in the air with minimal airport requirements. Meaning you can get in and out of just about anywhere and then fly to the next destination at near jet-like speeds! They report that the 3D model is about 90% complete and they have a 3D model now in the simulator for testing.

Another aircraft that SWS have announced is the Airvan (the GippsAero/Mahindra Airvan to be specific). This is another rough and tumble kind of airplane with rough field performance and intended to be operated from remote airstrips. The programming for the aircraft is reportedly complete while the artwork and 3D model work are only just getting started.

Additional Vans RV model aircraft are also planned including the RV-10. All three projects are scheduled to arrive before the end of the year.

Finally, SWS have released the Bigfoot! It’s a free extra released alongside their Okavango Delta scenery and it’s a 4WD vehicle that you can drive around in the sim. It’s listed under ‘free extras.’

Keep an eye on this developer! I think SWS are going to be doing some great things with the current and upcoming products.