Always love to hear what SimWorks Studios are up to with their growing array of aircraft for Microsoft Flight Simulator. The developers have detailed updates to their Kodiak 100 (and teased the 900 a bit more), plus there’s news on the RV-8 release date and pre-release testing and some news on the PC-12 too. Let’s check it all out!

RV-8 heads to release, PC-12 and Kodiak updates

Folks waiting for the next in a series of Van’s RV aircraft releases should take heart that SimWorks Studios are aiming to release the RV-8 very soon. The latest report indicates that its feature complete, the glass cockpit version with the new WorkingTitle G3X is ready, and the only pending items are AI/multiplayer sounds. Word is that the aircraft will release in April!

SWS are detailing their maintenance plan for the Kodiak 100 (a personal favourite of mine) with news that they are going to be dong a series of big updates. The cockpit is being rebuilt with better modelling and textures while the ESI500 display, previously written in performance heavy XML code, will be replaced with a JavaScripted version.

The aircraft looks set to take advantage of new sim features that will let the team put in an updated Engine Display screen with correct symbology specific to the Kodiak. Cool!

One area they don’t intend to change is the engine simulation. Although the Kodiak has a complex simulation already (with failures), its not quite as sophisticated as the one written for the PC-12. At the moment they don’t intend to bring the PC-12 model over as it would involve quite a bit of reworking.

The Kodiak 900 is also on the way towards a full reveal. The Kodiak 100 and 900 share many similarities so SWS are planning to keep them concurrently updated though the 900 will bring in the new engine code features of the PC-12.

Finally, there’s updates on the PC-12 on the way including a revised manual, improvements to avionics logic, visual model fixes, and some flight model tunes too. Apparently there will be a correction of excessive yawing tendencies.

For more updates from SimWorks Studios, be sure to give them a like over on Facebook.