March 30th, 2023 Development Update - Microsoft Flight Simulator

This week’s Screenshot Challenge winner is Twitter user 2525ARW, featuring a Boeing 747 touching down on a rain-slick runway. If you’re interested in participating in our weekly Screenshot Challenges, check out the contest details in the Community section below!

As March comes to a close, we are happy to recognize Women’s History Month with a feature interview with Patty Wagstaff. Among her many accomplishments in aviation, Patty is a three-time US National Aerobatic Champion (and the first woman to win the title) and a member of the National Aviation Hall of Fame. She also previously consulted on earlier version of Microsoft Flight Simulator, and her distinctive Extra 300S even appeared as a flyable plane! You can read the interview on our website here.

In case you missed it, last week’s Developer livestream with Jorg, Seb, Martial, and special guests is now available on our official YouTube channel. For those of you who prefer text to video, a written transcript is also available on our forums.

Among the surprise announcements in the livestream was the Microsoft Flight Simulator team confirming they will be present and have a booth at this year’s FlightSimExpo in Houston, Texas from June 23-25. Tickets are available now! We can’t wait to meet and interact with many of you in-person at this event in June.

– 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.

New in the Marketplace this week, the Airbus A320ceo by LatinVFR! Check out the latest addition to the Airbus Family:

There are 27 new and 22 updated products in the Marketplace this week. Thursday’s Marketplace update generally goes live between the release of this blog post and 5pm PT.

27 NEW PRODUCTS: 13 ON PC, 14 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 and Xbox		New on Xbox

22 UPDATED PRODUCTS: 13 ON PC, 9 ON XBOX
Updated on PC	Updated on PC	Updated on PC
Updated on PC and 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 and Xbox	Updated on PC and Xbox
	Updated on PC and Xbox

Marketplace Backlog

Current Backlog: 1,008 Total

This week we’re trying a different format for the Marketplace Backlog, with breaking down content into P1/P2/P3/P4 buckets rather than PC vs. Xbox.

New 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	1	9	22	20	52
Mission	0	2	67	0	69
Scenery	0	0	41	228	269
Livery	0	18	92	40	150
Airport	0	4	178	121	303
Other	0	4	15	4	23
Total	1	37	415	413	866

BACKLOG: UPDATED PRODUCTS

CONTENT TYPE	P1	P2	P3	P4	Total
Aircraft	4	7	6	0	17
Mission	0	0	13	5	18
Scenery	4	2	9	26	41
Livery	0	0	6	0	6
Airport	0	3	23	33	59
Other	0	0	1	0	1
Total	8	12	58	64	142

SDK UPDATE

Asobo

No Update this week.

Working Title / MSFS Avionics Framework

The Avionics Framework mirror was updated last week with the launch of SU_12 to contain the latest source code for the framework and packages included in AAU_01 and SU_12. Along with that update, the documentation was also updated including details on plug-ins and development notes for integrating the AAU01 avionics packages into aircraft.
Check out MSFS Avionics Source Code Mirror to see the code updates and also refer to the documentation site at MSFS Avionics Frameworks and Instruments.
Upcoming framework updates:
- Addition of Vertical Angle to Flight Plan Legs to utilize the vertical angle procedure nav data. (AAU_02)
- Expansion of Smoothing Path Calculator to accommodate geometric descent simulations for flight plan/path predictions. (AAU_02)
- Improvement to Clock Publisher. (AAU_02)

THIRD PARTY UPDATE

As of 03/26, we have now approved 209 (+0) third parties into the in-sim marketplace and so far 184 (+0) have released 1,777 products on PC (+7) and 1,493 on Xbox (+13).
In total, 2,735 products (+11) have already been released in 3^rdparty stores and the in-sim marketplace. Beyond that, another 776 products (+0) from 3^rd party developers are in production (350 announced, 426 unannounced). In total, over 3,512 3^rd party products (+22) have either been released or are in development.
Airports:
- 1,873 airports (+9) are either released or are in various stages of development.
  - 1,609 airports (+9) have been released on the platform so far in various stores.
  - 1,008 airports (+4) have been released in the in-sim marketplace.
  - 123 airports (+3) beyond the released airports have been announced.
  - 141 airports (-3) are not announced, but the dev let us know that an airport is in production.
Aircraft:
- 588 aircraft (+1) are either released or are in various stages of development.
  - 219 aircraft (+2) have been released on the platform so far in various stores.
  - 156 aircraft (+1) have been released in the in-sim PC marketplace.
  - 132 aircraft (+7) have been released in the in-sim Xbox marketplace.
  - 207 aircraft (+0) beyond the released aircraft have been announced.
  - 162 aircraft (-1) are not announced, but the dev let us know that an aircraft is in production.
Scenery:
- 883 scenery packs (-1) are either released or are in various stages of development.
  - 770 sceneries (+0) have been released on the platform so far in various stores.
  - 291 sceneries (+0) have been released in the in-sim marketplace.
  - 20 sceneries (+0) beyond the released scenery have been announced.
  - 92 sceneries (-1) are not announced, but the dev let us know that scenery is in production.
Mission Packs:
- 168 mission packs (+2) are either released or are in various stages of development.
  - 137 mission packs (+0) have been released on the platform so far in various stores.
  - 70 mission packs (+3) have been released in the in-sim marketplace.
  - 0 mission packs (+0) beyond the released missions have been announced.
  - 31 mission packs (+2) are not announced, but the dev let us know that they are in production.

Community Fly-In

On March 31, 1949, the former British colony of Newfoundland was admitted as Canada’s tenth province. To mark this anniversary, this week’s fly-in will be an aerial tour of the island affectionately known as “The Rock” (no, not that The Rock). Newfoundland has also featured heavily in aviation history. Due to its location in the North Atlantic, Newfoundland’s airports were used for many early transatlantic flights in the days before planes had the practical range to fly from the continental USA to Europe and vice versa.

Perhaps most famously, the town of Gander (whose airport will feature as a touch & go stop during our flight) played a very important role during the events immediately following the 9/11 attacks. Thirty-eight airliners en route from Europe were diverted to Gander after the FAA closed all US airspace. This story – and the lasting friendships between Gander residents and the stranded passengers and air crews that were formed out of this tragedy – were depicted in the Tony-winning Broadway musical Come From Away.

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

Community Video

Releasing this week from the Marketplace for both PC and Xbox is the Messerchmitt BF-108 from developer iniBuilds. Over on YouTube, Jonathan Beckett has created a first look video giving an overview of this plane and what features it includes for sim pilots. Check it out!