Yawman Arrow released

January 13, 2024

2–3 minutes

Lots of products are being released in the hardware space for flight simming right now (I’ll be doing a round-up soon) but none are more interesting than the Yawman Arrow which aims to combine the form factor of something like an Xbox or PlayStation controller with the functionality of a joystick and throttle quadrant. It’s certainly an ambitious idea and I love to see innovations like this happening in hardware. Let’s have a look at what has just come out.

Controller sized flight sim hardware

I’ve seen people playing and sharing hardware configurations for full fidelity DCS modules, airliners, and more making use of PlayStation and Xbox controllers. Of course, MSFS fans on Xbox have absolutely been flying on Xbox controllers so we’re well past the point where that is considered an impossibility. But what if the experience could be a little more full featured? That appears to be what the Yawman Arrow is intending to do.

Just released and already sold out, this $249 USD controller is clearly aimed at taking your flight simming on the go but it is also a potential alternative for folks who don’t want or don’t have the space for a full setup but want something they can pick up and fly with.

Yawman, in their marketing material, report that they combine “complex yoke, throttle quadrant and mechanically-linked rudder pedals together in a handheld package.” It certainly sports a different configuration than your typical controller although the ergonomics and sizing are certainly there.

Here’s their feature and compatibility lists:

Features:
• Integrated trim wheel
• Five-button D-pad
• Five-way hat switch
• Two shoulder bumper buttons
• Two Vernier-style engine control sliders
• Two faceplate sliders
• Mechanically linked triggers simulating pedals
• Made in the USA

Compability:
• Microsoft Flight Simulator on PC
• X-Plane 11 / 12 on PC and Mac
• Infinite Flight for Android
• Prepar3D
• DCS World

They also report that the controller is not compatible with Xbox or iOS (or presumably PS5).

I haven’t personally had a chance to check this controller out yet but its certainly an intriguing proposition.

Restocking soon

Yawman have already sold out of their initial batch of controllers and are now in the process of restocking. More are reportedly coming and will be available on January 15th.

Learn more about it on their website.

6 responses to “Yawman Arrow released”

arandompilot

January 13, 2024 at 2:05 pm

Seems like a cool idea with the linked triggers simulating pedals.

However, $249 is perhaps too much for a product with potentiometer axes when you can get full-size joysticks with contactless sensors for roughly half the price.

Also, I think the “Vernier-style” marketing for the throttle sliders is misleading as they don’t have a twisting mechanism for fine adjustment (the defining feature of Vernier controls).

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flyingbagpipe

January 13, 2024 at 3:06 pm

I remember seeing these being hyped a while ago. That price is insane though, no matter how niche it is lol
I would have snatched one up if it was more reasonable, maybe one day.

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beggyg

January 13, 2024 at 4:19 pm

Yeah, if they could make one for 40% less it looks like it might be great to add to something like my T-16000/TWCS with pedals combo for a module like the Apache, specifically for the LH and RH grips for the CP/G.

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Jer Stryker

January 13, 2024 at 4:37 pm

As a real-world airline pilot who loves flight sims and also unfortunately gets a lot more “me” time in hotels with a gaming laptop rather than at home where I have all my really fun flight sim peripherals, I’m very glad someone is brave enough to go through the effort to make a product that fits my fairly uncommon niche.

The main problem with gamepads (aside from small sticks) is that flight sims require a lot of slider axes, or at the very least one for the throttle, especially combat sims. I’ve been trying to solve this problem for many years. Once I Frankensteined a throttle slider onto a Logitech game pad, but it was too hard to reach. I’ve also tried the Steam Controller since it was so customizable, and my current solution is to map a traditional controller through a program called Joystick Gremlin, which lets me use the physical stick to move a virtual axis up and down – this actually works fairly well. I also have the LB/RB buttons set up as shift modifiers, which allow me to map a few different axes (prop/spoilers/etc) and also map many many sim commands (if only I could keep them all straight!)

This looks like a great idea on paper. In photos though it gives me serious doubt. The ergonomics look pretty bad – almost all of the sliders look hard to reach without some serious hand contortion, not to mention the trim wheel. The quality, just by looking at the pictures, screams “3D-printed prototype” and it looks bulky and uncomfortable to hold and operate. Even the buttons look like they would be uncomfortable to press. On top of that, it would not make a very good standard controller for other games – I don’t JUST play flight sims (but I mostly do!)

The price pretty much seals it though. For $100 or maybe even $150, I might buy this just to try it out and support the company for making an effort (and hopefully help fund V2!), but for $250, that’s in VKB/Virpil/Honeycomb territory. Despite the fact that those aren’t portable, there’s just no way you’d be getting the same amount of goodness for your money.

I’ll continue to applaud the effort and follow the reviews and progress, but I can tell right away that I would not enjoy using this. It’s good for them that they sold out, as I hope they succeed.

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Firdimigdi

January 14, 2024 at 3:29 am

Odd product, at that price I can’t figure out who the intended audience is. Perhaps if they swapped out “Made in the USA” for “wireless” in the feature list it might gain some appeal but, as everyone above wrote, for $250 it doesn’t have enough going for it.

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