Periodically, Blackbird Simulations will do a podcast style episode featuring the various products that the developer team are working on. This time around we got a very in-depth look at the Dirty Thirty (the company’s C-130J), plus some updates on the A6M5 Zero, the two main variations of the Otter, and a bit more!

Overview of the update

The first aircraft that was showcased was the company’s upcoming A6M5 Zero. They reiterated that they’ve done their best to represent the aircraft in wartime condition complete with a little bit of dirt and wear and tear visually. Mentioning that most A6Ms did not come with a radio as the radio tended to not work and was heavy so that is out (and references are very few). Most of the work on the project is complete and its about 85-95% coding done. Release will include a Marketplace release and Xbox Support. There is no firm date yet but they are targeting the end of May.

Next, they talked about the Otter (that’s a de Havilland Canada DHC-3 Otter). They are doing both a radial engine and a turboprop powered Otter. The modeling is done and it will include floats, skies, tundra tires and regular tires. The turboprop PT-6 code is drawn and improved from the company’s PC-6 The project’s code is starting to be developed now and they expect to release by the end of the summer.

Then they went on to the SR-71 which as been in development for quite some time. The project continues to be developed and they’ve most recently been able to take it up to Mach 2.4. The real aircraft is faster than that and they need to do more to get it closer to its top speed.

On to the 732 (737-200) which is still being developed! The code is about 35% done and they say they are negotiating with another company to develop the project further – they were playing it coy as to who it is. Two versions are planned with a partial glass cockpit and an all steam gauge version. A UNS-1 FMS is planned.

F-16 is another project that they are currently modeling but not yet showing off. They talked quite a bit about how many different types of weapons they want to hang off the pylons and how they will be doing that.

Finally, the biggest part of the presentation was the recently released Dirty Thirty (C-130J) which I’ve detailed a fair bit in this release post. The video goes into an introduction of the aircraft, a cockpit showcase, taxi, an overview of what’s left to do, night lighting and more. The video was recorded and released before the project came out so some of those details were announcements while the rest was more of a showcase of the project.

The project, once its arrived in a release state, may see some add-on “DLC” products as they talked about firefighting gear and aerial tanker versions which require some significant redesigns of the interior to accommodate. Watch the video for more of the discussion around the Dirty Thirty and all of the other projects that Blackbird Simulations is working on.