Just wondering if you guys  are planning to add any other  aircraft  to the system at all  ngx 737?

Hi Peter, I know you will already have seen the response on Avsim, but for the benefit of everyone else:



We're planning to support the FS Labs A320 (when they release it, so here's hoping it's nothing less than superb). We haven't yet finalised what sort of routes it's going to be deployed on but one thing for sure is we can't operate it or the NGX from London City (LCY), so we either get another London base or operate them from Birmingham and Edinburgh exclusively (and possibly get E190s for LCY) - we'll be asking you guys for feedback on that.



For now I am all scheduled out tbh; took what seemed like forever to realistically schedule over 600 daily flights on 64 aircraft! To give you an idea of what's involved (not asking for sympathy or thanks it's just so you can understand why these things take time):



I use specialist software to help me build our schedules but it's still a very manual process. First thing is to run a demand simulation for routes we might want to fly (i.e. how many people per week want to fly between two particular cities), compare it to existing provision and then work out what size aircraft to use and how many flights per day.  The software will calculate the flight duration and the time differences for me, but I have to ensure the flights are well spread throughout the day and fit in other routes in between. I then have turnaround/layover times, airport operating hours and parking to consider (e.g. LCY is very restricted on parking, so about half of the aircraft we operate at LCY have to park overnight at other airports. Plus it's only open for the half the day during the weekend)!



We are also working on other new features such as an awards system, charter flights, upgraded forums and enhancements to our ACARS.

Must be a real headache Chris! Was well worth the effort though.



Regarding a base, STN or LGW would be good options provided we can get in amongst the RYR and EZY crowd!

QuoteMust be a real headache Chris! Was well worth the effort though.



Regarding a base, STN or LGW would be good options provided we can get in amongst the RYR and EZY crowd!

RYR...... :roll: lol

 Not sure I would want to park my nice Dash next to one of those RYR things! I'm sure the techies would be trying to pinch parts

At the moment we're considering all sorts of options for new types and bases, but we have many factors to consider before we start asking you chaps for your opinions. I'll let you guys the state of play at the moment, but please bear in mind this is definitely a long term thing.

 

Possible future aircraft types:

• Airbus A320-232 (FS Labs)


• Embraer E190/E195 (Wilco/feelThere)


• Bombardier CS100/CS130 (None in development)

 

Possible new operating bases:

• Barcelona (El Prat)


• Cologne (Köln Bonn) or Düsseldorf


• Milan (Milano Linate)


• London (Gatwick) base for types that can't use London City

Any reason you're avoiding the Aerosoft A320/321?  Very nicely modeled and flies like a dream (and it's already in production.)  Just curious. 

Any reason you're avoiding the Aerosoft A320/321?  Very nicely modeled and flies like a dream (and it's already in production.)  Just curious. 

To be honest, none of the management rate the Aerosoft A32S that highly; depending on how good and expensive the FS Labs A320 is in comparison we may still support the Aerosoft one but we want to keep our options open for now.

 

Chris Hulme has flown A320 full motion Level D simulators, so we want to run all the A32S on the market past him and also gauge the general feeling wthin the FS community before we commit to any particular vendor. Personally, I've been a beta tester on other A32S projects so I'm resonably knowledgable and quite picky! :lol: In an ideal world, we'd like something that behaves just like this video.

Looking forward to developments on this.

 

Flybe are all but pulling out from LGW in 2014 so we may be able to pinch a slot or two!

Looking forward to developments on this.

 

Flybe are all but pulling out from LGW in 2014 so we may be able to pinch a slot or two!

 

easyJet have already snapped them up!

Tough to argue against FS Labs after the job they did on the Concorde, but sometimes it seems like Lefteris is writing all the code single-handed and we'll all be little old pilots by the time it releases.

:lol: ahaha I know what you mean Justin! Did you see that now infamous video of Lefteris at the Munch FS Confrence where he said he expected the A320 to be out before Christmas 2012? At this rate I'd be surprised if it was before Christmas 2013!

 

There's not been much in the way of firm news from FSL since February; we were working off a late Q3 2013 release for our purposes (we even got a mention on the FSL forums because some folks thought we knew more than them!) but I think Q3 is highly unlikely now, which leaves us in a sort of limbo :wacko: We either support another vendor (such as Aerosoft or Wilco) or we put the A32S on hold and consider other types (such as feelThere's E-jets). At any rate hopefully no one is bored of the Majestic Q400 just yet!

Far from it.  The Q400 is endlessly interesting and a great deal of fun to fly.  Personally I'd advocate passing on the Wilco versions.  Their visuals are always good, but the avionics and other systems modeling can't hold a candle to vendors like PMDG, Majestic, or, in this case, Aerosoft. 

 

I also agree that, if we can all be patient, the FS Labs version promises to be stellar.   Maybe, given the time it will take to program routes and schedules, it won't be a bad thing for you and the staff if we have to wait a bit longer for a good jet addition to the fleet.

I have always been advised against the Wilco products.

 

There is always the QW Avro RJ series. Bit dated now but a fine aircraft none the less. Could bridge the gap between the dash and a 100 seat aircraft.

I seem to recall the feelThere/Wilco E-Jets and ERJ v2 weren't too bad.

 

I bought the QW Avro RJ but returned it within a week as it was just too compromised for my tastes; QW said you could follow all the normal flows and checklists with it but you can't. However, I wouldn't rule it out for Intercity on that basis, rather the fact that most Western airlines are now replacing them with E-Jets.

 

I was a big fan of the DIgital Aviation Fokker 100, but the ever mythical virtual cockpit means it just won't cut it these days.