SwissMilSim to bring the Vampire DH-100 and Venom DH-112 to MSFS

SwisMilSim, who recently released the Morane D-3801 for Microsoft Flight Simulator, revealed to us that the team is already planning for the next releases in MSFS. Staying faithful to the recreation of airplanes that played a key role in Switzerland’s military aviation history, SwillMilSim will bring to MSFS two new models: the de Havilland Vampire DH-100 and Venom DH-112.

Jérôme Bertholet, from the SwissMilSim team, told us that they are currently working on the Venom for P3D, an ongoing project since many months ago that is estimated to be finished this spring. Then, SwissMilSim will turn their attention again to MSFS, first with the development of the Vampire DH-100, with the Swiss and original British cockpits, and then the Venom DH-112.

The de Havilland Vampire DH-100 is a British jet fighter, one of the very first to enter production, a pioneering aircraft that nearly missed WWII, since it entered operation service for the RAF just a few months after the war ended. Interestingly, it was the first jet aircraft to cross the Atlantic, and also the first to take-off and land from a carrier. It ended up being exported to numerous countries, where it operated under a variety of different circumstances and was actually licensed to be built abroad.

After the war, the Swiss Air Force was interested in exploring the acquisition of the new jet-powered fighters, so they purchased a series of aircraft from the British. Since the aircraft proved to be a successful proposition, Switzerland ended up licensing the production of the Vampire in the country. With a total of 221 airplanes in service, the Vampire played an important role with the Swiss Air Force until the late 1980s.

As for the Venom, it’s an iteration on the Vampire model with improved performance figures: faster, nimbler, and overall more capable. Altough similar in appearance to the Vampire, with its distinctive twin-boom tail, the Venom was actually a new design, and enjoyed the considerably improved power provided by the de Havilland Ghost engine, when compared to the Goblin turbojet used in the Vampire.

Like the Vampire, the Venom ended up playing an important role for the Swiss Air Force, the main operator of the aircraft outside of the Royal Air Force. 136 units were built in Switzerland, along with the Ghost engines that powered them, and they even made a unique aerial reconnaissance variant of the aircraft. By the 1980s, the Venom was still flying for the Swiss Air Force, which was the last military operator of this plane.

There’s a bit of history for you, ahead of the planned development and release of these two airplanes for MSFS. While now dismissed from military duties, some Vampires and Venoms still fly in Switzerland and abroad, so SwissMilSim is hoping to recreate the experience that many current private owners have with the plane, but also replicating the thrills enjoyed by actual Swiss military pilots who flew it back in the day. Just like they did with the Morane.

Let’s just hope the developers will take the Morane’s less-good aspects into consideration (mostly some modelling oddities), and bring both the Vampire and the Venom to MSFS in a completely modern fashion. The Morane feels and sounds very good in the air, and there’s a rather deep simulation in some areas, such as the engine startup procedures, where you need to carefully let the engine stabilize before taking to the skies. Check our review of the aircraft, linked above for your convenience.

As usual, we will keep you updated about new developments on this front!