The latest update to Microsoft Flight Simulator is now available and makes general world updates to parts of Western Europe. Asobo Studios’ focus in World Update IV are landmarks around France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and everything in between.
In addition to a boat load of landmark improvements – see the full list in the release notes – Asobo has handcrafted three airports, added visual and logical improvements to 100 additional airports, applied photogrammetry to Paris and Amsterdam, and added two new activities. Pilots can now test their skills at the landing challenge at La Salette and enjoy the beautiful scenery during their bush trip in the Pyrenees and the Alps.
Bug Fixes
While World Updates generally focus on content over fixes – that’s what Sim Updates are for – this latest version does address some long-standing issues, as well as some hilarious new ones. Owners of Honeycomb devices will be happy to know that the 10 degrees heading issue has been fixed, which hopefully also extends to the 1,000 feet altitude bug.
Several planes have received bug fixes to rare screen display issues, the world water mask has been updated with the latest locations, and a fix for tree display distance reduction is included. But perhaps the most important fix for new pilots is for a relatively new bug that saw the instructor pilot calmly fly their Cessna into the ground while explaining how the aircraft’s instruments function. If you’re in need of a laugh, check out this brief clip from Reddit user Kraven420.
Microsoft Flight Simulator World Update IV (version 1.15.7.0) is now available in the Microsoft Store and Steam. The update itself weighs in at around 1.23 GB while the in-sim content update flies in at more than 22 GB. Best get downloading, pilots!
Release Notes 1.15.7.0
World
- Fixed reduction of tree display distance that was caused by smaller tree sizes
- Water mask has been updated with latest locations
UI
- Localization has been added for Japanese and Dutch
- Incorrect fuel weight calculation when switching planes in the “Weight and Balance” screen has been fixed
Planes
- S7 Airbus A320neo livery has been added
- KLM Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner livery has been added
- Fixed screens not turning on under rare circumstances
- Fixed black screens for various Aviat Pitts Special S2S liveries
- Fixed altitude and standard altitude calculations to fix the altimeter behavior (Now correctly calculates altitude based on altimeter pressure setting and outside pressure)
- Updated Diamond DA40NG speed, ground roll and fuel consumption
Input
- Honeycomb device 10 degrees heading issue has been fixed
Activities
- Fix sim rate speed change according to the various activity types
- Autopilot has been fixed in the second tutorial
SDK/Devmode
General
- Added a new feature on the DevMode toolbar to let you know when a new release is available for download. It also includes the release notes for this update and the previous ones
- Improved the DevMode font, which could be blurry on some screens
- Added an Airport Creation Wizard to ease the creation of new airports
- New option to flag if a package is designed for Xbox and/or PC. This is mainly in preparation for some transparent changes in the back-end and shouldn’t affect your current work. Simply select this option if you consider releasing your content on Xbox via the in-game marketplace in the future.
Documentation
- Massive update to the Scenery Editor documentation
- Added External Installer Sample
- Added a page about VR for cockpits
- Added liveries sample
- Split « Documentation » tab in 2 links, « Open local » which is downloaded with the SDK update or « Open online » which redirects to docs.flightsimulator.com
Scenery Editor
- Fixed a bug on TaxiwaySign properties to prevent from typing invalid characters
- Removed inactive options: Cast shadow & No Snow
- Fixed a crash when using Importer from AP
- Fixed a bug that didn’t show object test radius when selected
- Fixed a bug on taxiway lines that were no longer displayed
- Fixed a buffer overflow on Display Name
- Fixed a crash when exiting « one-click placing » with Properties window visible
- Added a button to remove material from polygons
- Implemented the Delete Key as a way to delete individual points on polygons-based objects (painted lines, apron, polygons…)
Aircraft Editor
- The Initial Zoom value in the Camera tab is now capped to 20
Webassembly
- Fixed execute_calculator_code proxy and added more security to it
SimConnect
- Exposed ROTATION_ACCELERATION_BODY_X/Y/Z Simvars
Known Issues
- The cockpit screens can end up in an unresponsive state if the RTC finishes and proceed into flight. Please make sure to click the Fly Now button before the RTC ends. (RTC = Real-Time Cinematic)