July 20th, 2023 Development Update - Microsoft Flight Simulator

This week’s Screenshot Challenge winner is Forum user mrjmt2625. If you’re interested in participating in our weekly Screenshot Challenges, check out the details in the Community section below!

Earlier today, we released updates to two aircraft: Local Legend IX: Latécoère Model 631 and Famous Flyer VI: Ford AT-4 Trimotor. You can read the release notes for these plane updates here.

Additionally, due to an internal error, we mistakenly released a new version (1.0.24) of Expert Series I: ATR 42-600 / 72-600. This version is not yet ready for release. We have rolled back and fixed the error, but if you downloaded this version while it was available, please uninstall the plane from Content Manager and re-download the current 1.0.20 version. We apologize for the inconvenience.

As we mentioned last week, we will not be having a monthly Developer Livestream in July due to the unavailability of several team members. We have instead created a pre-recorded video featuring Jorg and several guests to share some new information about Microsoft Flight Simulator. You can watch this video during our regular Community Fly-In Friday livestream on our official Twitch channel. If you would like to participate in this group flight, all the details on how to join the event can be found on our forums here. We will play the developer video relatively early in the livestream after the group takes off and reaches cruise altitude. We hope to see many of you in Twitch chat on Friday!

– MSFS Team

Feedback Snapshot

Click here for the web-friendly version of the Feedback Snapshot.

Development Roadmap

Click here for the web-friendly version of the Development Roadmap.

Marketplace Update

Click here for the web-friendly version of the Marketplace Update.

Launching today in the Marketplace is the McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II by DC Designs! You can learn more about this adaptable jet here.

There are 51 new and 37 updated products in the Marketplace today, and 4 products that were updated earlier today. Thursday’s Marketplace update generally goes live between the release of this blog post and 5pm PT.

UPDATED earlier on Thursday, July 20th:
Updated on PC and Xbox	Updated on PC and Xbox

67 NEW PRODUCTS: 34 ON PC, 33 ON XBOX
New on PC	New on PC	New on PC and Xbox
New on PC and Xbox	New on PC and Xbox	New on PC and Xbox
New on PC and Xbox	New on PC and Xbox	New on PC and Xbox
New on PC and Xbox	New on PC and Xbox	New on PC and Xbox
New on PC and Xbox	New on Xbox	New on PC and Xbox
New on PC and Xbox	New on PC and Xbox	New on PC and Xbox
New on PC and Xbox	New on PC and Xbox	New on PC and Xbox
New on PC and Xbox	New on PC and Xbox	New on PC and Xbox
New on PC and Xbox	New on PC and Xbox	New on PC
New on PC and Xbox	New on Xbox	New on PC and Xbox
New on PC and Xbox	New on PC and Xbox	New on PC and Xbox
New on PC and Xbox	New on PC and Xbox	New on PC and Xbox

46 UPDATED PRODUCTS: 23 ON PC, 23 ON XBOX
Updated on PC and Xbox	Updated on PC and Xbox	Updated on PC and Xbox
Updated on PC and Xbox	Updated on PC and Xbox	Updated on PC and Xbox
Updated on PC and Xbox	Updated on PC and Xbox	Updated on PC and Xbox
Updated on PC and Xbox	Updated on PC and Xbox	Updated on PC and Xbox
Updated on PC and Xbox	Updated on PC and Xbox	Updated on PC and Xbox
Updated on PC and Xbox	Updated on Xbox	Updated on Xbox
Updated on PC and Xbox	Updated on PC	Updated on PC and Xbox
Updated on PC and Xbox	Updated on PC and Xbox	Updated on PC and Xbox
	Updated on PC

Marketplace Backlog

Current Backlog: 340 Total

Marketplace submissions are assigned a priority (P1-P4, with P1 being the top priority) based on defined internal processes and metrics. We review and update the priority system regularly to ensure it is best serving both our players and 3rd Party Developers.

BACKLOG: NEW PRODUCTS

CONTENT TYPE	P1	P2	P3	P4	Total
Aircraft	11	5	26	4	46
Mission	0	8	40	0	48
Scenery	0	0	6	4	10
Livery	0	10	16	14	40
Airport	2	12	30	20	64
Other	8	4	18	9	39
Total	21	39	136	51	247

BACKLOG: UPDATED PRODUCTS

CONTENT TYPE	P1	P2	P3	P4	Total
Aircraft	12	5	21	1	39
Mission	0	0	0	0	0
Scenery	0	2	0	3	5
Livery	0	2	8	12	22
Airport	0	4	16	4	24
Other	2	1	0	0	3
Total	14	14	45	20	93

SDK UPDATE

Asobo

No Update this week.

Working Title / MSFS Avionics Framework

No Update this week.

THIRD PARTY UPDATE

As of 07/17, we have now approved 215 (+5) third parties into the in-sim marketplace and – so far 196 (+0) have released 2,307 products on PC (+28) and 2,019 on Xbox (+27).
In total, 3,374 products (+7) have already been released in 3^rd party stores and the in-sim marketplace. Beyond that, another 731 products (+0) from 3^rd party developers are in production (360 announced, 371 unannounced). In total, over 4,105 3^rd party products (+7) have either been released or are in development.
Airports:
- 2,042 airports (+3) are either released or are in various stages of development.
  - 1 ,807 airports (+5) have been released on the platform so far in various stores.
  - 1,278 airports (+0) have been released in the in-sim marketplace.
  - 127 airports (-1) beyond the released airports have been announced.
  - 108 airports (-1) are not announced, but the dev let us know that an airport is in production.
Aircraft:
- 626 aircraft (+3) are either released or are in various stages of development.
  - 267 aircraft (+1) have been released on the platform so far in various stores.
  - 201 aircraft (+0) have been released in the in-sim PC marketplace.
  - 184 aircraft (+0) have been released in the in-sim Xbox marketplace.
  - 210 aircraft (+2) beyond the released aircraft have been announced.
  - 149 aircraft (+0) are not announced, but the dev let us know that an aircraft is in production.
Scenery:
- 942 scenery packs (+1) are either released or are in various stages of development.
  - 903 scenery packs (+1) have been released on the platform so far in various stores.
  - 460 scenery packs (+0) have been released in the in-sim marketplace.
  - 21 scenery packs (+0) beyond the released scenery have been announced.
  - 18 scenery packs (+0) are not announced but the dev let us know that scenery is in production
Mission Packs:
- 192 mission packs (+0) are either released or are in various stages of development.
  - 176 mission packs (+0) have been released on the platform so far in various stores.
  - 115 mission packs (+0) have been released in the in-sim marketplace.
  - 0 mission packs (+0) beyond the released missions have been announced.
  - 16 mission packs (+0) are not announced, but the dev let us know that they are in production.
Livery Packs:
- 268 livery packs (+0) are either released or are in various stages of development.
  - 196 livery packs (+0) have been released on the platform so far in various stores.
  - 191 livery packs (+0) have been released in the in-sim marketplace.
  - 1 livery pack (+0) beyond the released scenery has been announced.
  - 71 livery packs (+0) are not announced, but the dev let us know that scenery is in production.
Ships & Watercraft:
- 35 ships & watercraft (+0) are either released or are in various stages of development.
  - 25 ships & watercraft (+0) have been released on the platform so far in various stores.
  - 18 ships & watercraft (+0) have been released in the in-sim marketplace.
  - 1 ships & watercraft (+0) beyond the released scenery have been announced.
  - 9 ships & watercraft (+0) are not announced, but dev let us know that scenery is in production

Community Fly-In

July 21 is Belgian National Day! Regular Fly-In co-host and Belgium resident simtom2 has put together a guided tour to celebrate this national holiday and share information about the history, geography, people, culture, and – of course – cuisine of his home country.

We will depart from Jehonville and make our way to Ostend on the coast of the North Sea. En route, we will pass famous Belgian cities and landmarks including Bastogne, the Spa-Francorchamps F1 Circuit, the Citadel of Namur, the site of the Battle of Waterloo, Brussels, Antwerp, and Ghent.

For the best experience, we recommend installing World Update IV. This is available as a free download from the in-sim Marketplace.

Additionally, as we mentioned during last week’s Development Update Blog, our fly-in this week will also include a pre-recorded video from Jorg and other guests. Due to some of our regular Developer Stream panelists being unable to join this month, we’re sharing some new info with you via pre-recorded video in lieu of hosting a Developer Livestream. We hope you will find the video useful and informative!

Event details are available here. All are welcome to participate!

Community Video

In March 2016, Emirates Flight 229, a Boeing 777-300ER flying from Dubai (OMDB) to Seattle (KSEA), encountered unusually strong crosswinds at SeaTac when attempting to land. The captain judged that the safest course of action was to divert to the flight’s alternate airport, Vancouver (CYVR).

On approach to Vancouver, the aircraft began to run dangerously low on fuel. The captain declared an emergency, and air traffic control granted priority landing clearance to Flight 229. Thankfully, due to the skill and professionalism of the flight crew and ATC, Flight 229 was able to land safely at Vancouver with no damage to the aircraft and no injuries to anyone on board.

Recently on YouTube, TheFlightChannel used Microsoft Flight Simulator to re-create this incident, including using the real-world radio comms between the captain and ATC. Check it out!