Aeroplane Heaven delays their Spitfire indefinitely, will now focus on the DC-3
Aeroplane Heaven surprised everyone this week with the news that their long-awaited Spitfire Mk1A, which was announced many months ago and was in the meantime beaten to the punch by FlyingIron Simulations Spitfire, is now on standby for a launch… eventually. We don’t know when.
The announcement came seemingly out of nowhere, published on the developer’s social media, detailing several reasons that led to this decision. It came just a few days after saying that it was “on final”, with an accompanying set of gorgeous images that definitely showed the aircraft in a finished state.
Arguably the most relevant reason of them all is the feedback that the developers were getting about releasing a Spitfire just a short time after FlyingIron released theirs. FlyingIron ended up doing an excellent job, and most Spitfire fans are currently very happy with their aircraft, which seems to be pointing to a certain lack of interest for AH’s depiction at this time.
Because of this feedback and also somewhat out of spite following some trolling comments, Aeroplane Heaven decided to put a hold on the release of their aircraft, with no indication about when that might happen. “Sometime in the future” is as good as we get now. This delay will also give more time to the developers to improve their product, possibly adding more features while trying to recreate the definitive Spitfire simulation for MSFS.
In our opinion, AH is making a tough but sound business decision here. We were eager to see their work as much as anyone around the flight sim community, but the fact is that people are still having fun with FlyingIron’s depiction of the legendary British warbird, and a second Spitfire on such short notice would probably not be received with the full attention it deserves. Delaying it will give simmers some time to enjoy the “first” Spitfire, eventually getting acquainted with it before losing interest and looking for the next cool thing. Hardcore simmers will keep their favorite airplane in the hangar for life, but we have to admit that MSFS has attracted a huge audience that is looking for a lighter experience, those who enjoy testing new airplanes but quickly jump to the next great release.
While the developers have promised that their will continue to work on the Spitfire, hopefully bringing it up to be the “very best Spitfire you could possibly buy for MSFS“, they also revealed that the focus for MSFS has now shifted to the also previously announced DC-3. It’s as much an icon as the Spitfire, but will arguably face less competition once it releases… that is, if someone else doesn’t come up front and releases a DC-3 before Aeroplane Heaven. And there are some rumors saying that PMDG is up to something…
Anyway, it looks like we will have to settle with two Spitfires in MSFS for now. Yes, that right… FlyingIron Simulation has the most realistic one, but we have, in fact, got a second one, and it’s from Aeroplane Heaven! It’s the cardboard Spitfire, the April Fools joke that, at least for now, will be the closest thing to a Spitfire that we’re getting from Aeroplane Heaven in Flight Simulator.
UrgentSiesta
AH did affirm that the Spitfire AND DC-3 will be out “this year”.
PMDG is bringing their DC-6 to the sim, and from their recent activities, it’s getting VERY close to release. I don’t think they’re bringing a DC-3, just that the CEO regularly flies a DC-3 and that’s his muse for piston airliners. I could certainly be wrong, but…
Given the context of the original post, the timing, and the follow up post, I think this is a silly move to make. They’re leaving money on the table and walking away. It stands to reason that people who are questioning the validity of bringing “another Spitfire” to the sim aren’t the target customers in the first place, right? I.e., the folks who would’ve bought AH’s version would’ve done so despite the FIS version. It genuinely seems like AH’s rendition is going to have higher overall fidelity, anyway.
AND/OR rather than switching to a pre-war relic airliner, why not push their also announced P-51 Mustang instead?
For example, neither Carenado nor Just Flight let the other’s nearly simultaneous launch of the Piper Arrow affect their release dates – and from what I’ve seen, it hasn’t affected sales for either one. The value prop of each addon is what it’s traditionally been.
Anyhow, it seems the die is cast, so now we’ve gotta wait. I do seriously hope the time is indeed spent deepening the fidelity of the addon rather than it just sitting on the shelf waiting for the “FIS hype” to die down.