If you paid attention reading our continuously updated list of aircraft in development for MSFS, you may have noticed that a P-38L Lightning was in the works for Microsoft Flight Simulator, by FlyingIron Simulations. It’s the same team of developers that brought us the brilliant Spitfire, one of the best warbirds currently available for MSFS, and they are now officially removing the wraps around their next project. And it’s just around the corner!
While enjoying some well-deserved success with the Spitfire, FlyingIron Simulations is now partnering with the now-famous independent developer GotGravel, a flight dynamics specialist that has actually worked on the Spitfire and, most recently, on the highly entertaining Gee Bee R3 Special. He is now part of the FlyingIron team, so expect future projects to feature his flight model programming talent.
As for the P-38L, it’s now in its final stages of development, already undergoing a closed-beta period during the last few weeks. It is, therefore, almost ready to hit the runway, which FlyingIron expects to happen sometime before the end of September. Like the Spitfire, it will first be available directly from FlyingIron’s website, coming to the MSFS Marketplace at a later stage (4-6 weeks, we know how these things go by now).
As a tease for what’s coming, FlyingIron revealed a bunch of stunning images of the aircraft, along with a teaser video showing it in action inside Flight Simulator. They are going for a high-fidelity recreation of the iconic WWII fighter, similarly to what they did with the Spitfire.
On the visual side of things, expect a very detailed model inside and out, with beautiful textures, lighting and additional effects that bring to life an old airplane such as this one. As for the sound package, it has been recorded in WWise format from a real model of the P-38.
FlyingIron promises this high fidelity to extend to the simulation of the P-38 and its systems. The counter-rotating Alison V-1710 engines have been realistically simulated and include failures for that extra immersive thrill. The aircraft’s systems have also been custom-coded, such as the fuel, electric, oxygen and starter systems.
This P-38L will also come with a few nice-to-haves, such as a modern radio, transponder, and the possibility to have an in-cockpit Garmin 430. More interesting are a few unique features that we hope to hear more about soon: Particle FX, canopy blowouts and blackouts.
And there you go, another warbird for Microsoft Flight Simulator. This one is also a well-loved machine among many WWII aviation buffs and, judging from what we got with the Spitfire, the P-38L is promising to be another very high-quality release. With just a couple of weeks before its release, we will soon find out!
