A Diamond DA52 in flight over a city. A river with several bridges is visible below.

22

August

2024

Microsoft Flight Simulator Releases World Update XVIII: Germany, Austria, and Switzerland

World Update XVIII provides pilots the highest resolution yet for the stunning scenery of Germany, Austria, and Switzerland!

Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, collectively known as DACH (Deutschland, Austria, Confoederatio Helvetica), offer an incredibly diverse array of landscapes and architecture to explore. Highlights include the Swiss Alps, mountain lakes, expansive forests, historic castles and cathedrals, and modern architectural feats.

The Microsoft Flight Simulator team partnered with Bing Maps, Vexcel Imaging, Maxar Technologies, Gaya Simulations, and Orbx Simulation Systems to bring these countries to the Microsoft Flight Simulator world in all-new ways. The update serves as a fusion of recent aerial photographs, digital elevation models, TIN (triangulated irregular network) surface modeling, hand-crafted points of interest, and airports.

World Update XVIII includes 10 TIN cities: Linz, Salzburg, and Vienna in Austria; Berlin, Frankfurt am Main, Hanau (Frankfurt), Karow (Berlin), and Potsdam in Germany; and Bern and Zurich in Switzerland. Most of Austria, and parts of Germany and Switzerland feature new digital elevation modelling with resolution as great as one meter. The update also includes 116 points of interest (POIs): 42 in Germany, 38 in Austria, and 36 in Switzerland. Finally, there are three beautifully hand-crafted airports: Austria’s Salzburg Airport (LOWS), Germany’s Munich Airport (EDDM), and Bern Airport (LSZB) in Switzerland.

The update also includes nine activities: three discovery flights, three landing challenges, and three bush trips. Experience Vienna, Austria; Zürich, Switzerland; and Frankfurt Main in Germany with the update’s discovery flights. Test your flying abilities with three epic landing challenges: an F/A-18E Super Hornet at Germany’s Peenemünde Airfield (EDCP); a Daher TBM 930 at Switzerland’s Ambri Airport (LSPM); and a DG Aviation LS8-18 sailplane at Austria’s Trieben Airfield (LOGI). The three included bush trips stitch together the wonders of DACH: Germany’s Coasts, Switzerland, and Austria.

Microsoft Flight Simulator World Update XVIII: Germany, Austria, and Switzerland is available FREE today. Ensure that your simulator is updated to version 1.37.19.0 (or a more recent version), download World Update XVIII, and take to the skies above Germany, Austria, and Switzerland to experience these wonderful countries. The sky is calling!

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Microsoft Flight Simulator is available for Xbox Series X|S and PC with Xbox Game Pass, PC Game Pass, Windows, and Steam, and on Xbox One and supported mobile phones, tablets, and lower-spec PCs via Xbox Cloud Gaming. For the latest information on Microsoft Flight Simulator, stay tuned to @MSFSOfficial on X (formerly Twitter).