AirbusMan

Debatable... for real life atmosphere xEnviro is simply sensational, kills XP10. But it is buggy, heavy on framerate, extremely unreliable, poor METAR updates, and poor developer service, and the annoying no save of current conditions... 
For the high price no, but X-Plane12 should soon give you the same without all the heavy drawbacks, I would wait for XP12 and put your money there...

Plugin Updated : xEnviro v1.16 (v1.15) by Dark Space
 
It is back! Yeah...   Well it never really went away, but it did for me. This Environmental Engine is in context the only weather application to have if you want totally realistic weather (sort of) in the X-Plane Simulator, but after nine boring months of X-Plane11's dull bland weather system, I will take anything that xEnviro will deliver.
 
I was already bouncing between the buggy v1.13 and the very old v1.07 versions of xEnviro before, but with Vulkan unsupported by the xEnviro plugin application, and as I entered the beta phase of the X-Plane11.50 (Vulkan/Metal) update, then I lost the tool completely.
 
11 months in development and finally out came the next update in v1.14...  but only for OpenGL, yes I went a bit bonkers in the fact that X-Plane 11.50 had already gone final (Sept) and now this was the 23rd November 2020, and I was still locked out of this application...   use OpenGL...  not on your nellie.
 
Christmas Eve and I was away on a Christmas break, then when out of nowhere came v1.15, so xEnviro was finally now also Vulkan compatible,
 
Yeah! Merry Christmas, the best Christmas present ever...  and thank god for all that, only that when I installed it, it was that v1.15 still didn't work in the current (beta) Vulkan, but only on the final version of X-Plane v11.50, so I had to dial everything back to the last final update and kill the beta version...  but, but I had both xEnviro AND Vulkan together and finally working.
 
Laminar were also close to the end of the v11.51 development and then it also went final in the last throws of 2020, and because it was a final, we then got another quick (fix) update to xEnviro v1.16. The motto of this story really means on how much we have to persevere to use this application, but for once Dark Space did update (twice) and quickly to Vulkan.
 
Let us be totally frank and up front... xEnviro is still very buggy, and a massive framerate killer...  but also totally invaluable to your simulation needs.
 


 
Suddenly everything is alive again as these first images show when running in v1.15. The light flows around you and you can actually see everything again in the cockpit... so the view difference to the standard X-Plane feel below are quite significant. You also had to work twice as hard (or sometimes four times as hard) to get the same feel and light into the images in the X-Plane default lighting...
 

 
...  and in creating the reviews it just creates a lot of extra work, and they STILL feel ordinary. xEnviro however when installed then explodes onto your screen and its images break into beautiful lighting.
 


 
Terminator times are obviously the best lighting periods, as seen here...
 

 
...  and the effect is or can be totally mesmerising.
 

 
v1.16
There has been a huge amount of development work done on this application, and that aspect can be seen from the changes between the v1.13 and v1.16 settings panels....  again!
 

 
I have totally lost the plot on what the settings panel actually was laid out with since the start of using xEnviro, every update brings in a new and completely different settings panel layout? and again in v1.15 has changed quite significantly.
 
Most of these slider changes came in with the v1.14 update...  including : Clouds static quality slider, Clouds dynamic quality slider, Clouds detail range slider and the Clouds blur level slider of which all were added, two checkboxes were also added including the aerial perspective checkbox and night perspective checkbox. The surface snow drift effect was also a part of the v1.14, but the seasonal effects (meaning that brilliant snow coverage) won't now work in Vulkan (damn). Removed also in v1.14 was the Full Clouds coverage checkbox.
 
Results are complicated, but it does give you a huge amount of control. The Brightness, Contrast, Vibrance and Gamma sliders under the "Effects Settings" allow you a lot of control over your visual lighting and colour feel. Before you had to do this aspect mostly via your Graphic Card settings panel (NVIDA in my case), but these settings override them and you can now adjust on the fly, and visually to get the right look and feel you want, and it is a powerful tool in this aspect. Yes these setting sliders were in the earlier xEnviro versions, but I had forgotten on how really good and how powerful these tools actually were. I love the METAR data download feature as well, god I missed that one as well.
 
In v1.15 more setting changes focused on the "Tone" areas...   as a Post processing tone mapping system with a Tone mapping selector slider and a Tone mapping mixing level slider were all added in. The Maximum ozone level slider was removed and replaced with a single "Realistic ozone level" checkbox instead.
 

 
Tonemapping is usually understood as the process of mapping color values from HDR (high dynamic range) to LDR (low dynamic range), so if a room is too dark you can lighten the room to see more detail...   so mostly it would used in say inside the cockpit.
 
The settings in Tonemapping are in six selections: Off, Luma, Photo, Flimic, Lottes and Aces... these examples are all at 100% slider.
 


 
Can't see the differences, well they are there, but showing the same six settings in an exterior shot does show you the extremes...
 


 
...  of the range of the tone available, however this is the full setting (Aces) and 50% tone level which gives you this...
 

 
Tonemapping off (below), and I still think it is the best look visually.
 

 
Main focus is on the cloud quality. The dramas of the long and wound out development of v1.14 was to try to get some efficiency out of those clunky 3d volumetric clouds. The results are half and half, but the point is you can at least adjust the sliders to get more performance now (or at least be able to find that best setting for your use), than be trapped by what settings Dark Space only gave you before.
 
I lose about on average 10fr at the settings set below in the cloud settings with mostly all set on the "Medium" setting, but this at least in Vulkan is thankfully a workable environment...
 

 
...  there are four settings: Low, Medium, High and Ultra and Cloud blur from 1% to 100%, Ultra is the most extreme...
 

 
...  but in reality using Ultra is a total waste of computer power, and the differences are marginal visually.
 
Clouds
Overall the clouds are really good, here are some overcast cumulus on the base and on the top....
 

 
...  the effect is very good, but pan or tilt your view and you get a load of minute crosses as the clouds are replaced by artifacts...
 

 
...   ditto in the cockpit, as if you pan or tilt your view in the cockpit you get this stutter. And it is slightly annoying if you are adjusting the knobs and controls a lot. The cloud static quality and dynamic quality adjustment does affect this stutter, and adjusting the sliders does help, but does not totally eliminate the stutter either. Another issue of a rolling wave of clouds as it builds, this effect can also be adjusted lower by having the cloud settings set in the low or medium positions.
 

 
That bad squaring or blocking of the clouds has also been hidden, the flat sides can hstill owever be seen now and then, but overall the cloud edges are far better. The volumetric clouds are also softer (without using the slider) and feel and look more puffy, the larger artifact feel of the earlier versions have been reduced, so in reality you are getting more volume for better detail.
 

 
X-Plane is still regulated to three layers of cloud, something that Dark Space rallies against, but it still works well at altitude...
 

 
Dark Space have worked hard on getting the right ozone feel correct, to the point as mentioned to even removing the ozone slider from the settings panel, but you can still add in the "Camera blue filter" (to be used sparingly) if you want a more deeper ozone blue, but personally, a touch more is all you really need.
 
Cloud shading is also very good, and highly realistic and the machines come really alive in many instances with the right conditions.
 

 
Fog or minimum visibility is still highly and realistically impressive. The snow effect is good as well (rain and snow have been improved for v1.15), but you miss the ground coverage snow blanket effects in Vulkan, another quirk is the the wipers don't clear the snow away from the windshield either. Added in v1.15 are also new and better Windshield fogging and freezing effects.
 



 
Another big favorite is cloud transparency, the visual feel through the cloud is very, very good, but you don't have the cloud shade slider anymore to adjust the cloud effect (shadow) onto the landscape, it is the one setting I would like back.
 

 
And so overall this is what xEnviro finally comes down to...   the lighting and the lighting effects of X-Plane the simulator. From the musty dawn...
 

 
...  to the bright mid-afternoon sun, then dusk.
 

 
The application transforms the visual impact of the simulator, the aircraft are pin sharp and very realistic in these great atmospheric lighting effects, if the best in X-Plane, xEnviro wraps you in the weather and better lighting conditions, and in that aspect alone it is a worthy tool.
 

______________________
 
Summary
Still the outstanding Environmental application for the X-Plane Simulator. Still not perfect by any imagination, with a high framerate use and visual artifact and stuttering, but now being Vulkan v11.51 compatible it does go a long way in helping out the efficiency of this extraordinary tool.
 
11 months of development has refined a lot of the old quirks and dialed out a lot of the volumetric clouds issues, it is certainly better, but not at all perfect. More changes to the settings panel means a lot of sliders and options have been removed and replaced with better lighting sliders and tonemapping sliders, ozone sliders have been removed and replaced with a single option choice. With the use of Vulkan the excellent season (snow) feature has also been removed (hopefully temporary). Important features like a version for MAC OS and History (saved weather conditions), which are highly important are still very much buried at the bottom of Dark Space's to do list, in that aspect it is a very direful show from the developers.
 
Most of the update changes in v1.16 (v1.15) are hidden well under the skin here, but you certainly feel the massive difference with this exceptional plugin working visually than being relegated to the average X-Plane default weather system of which I was for nine (long) months, the application creates a totally far better and vibrant environment all around you, and makes the X-Plane Simulator a far, far more realistic simulator.
 
XEnviro is expensive, but also invaluable if you want an realistic simulator experience, you will need a lot of computer power as well, but overall the positives easily and overwhelmingly outweigh the negatives....  Highly Recommended!
___________________________________________


 
Yes! the xEnviro Environment Engine v1.16 by Dark Space FZE is Available from the X-Plane.Org Store here :

xEnviro
Price is US$69.90
Sorry this plugin is Windows only at this point, But Mac will come eventually!
 
xEnviro Features:  The only addon featuring volume rendered clouds and volume rendered atmosphere. Real time meteorological data with a smooth refresh interval from 5 up to 60 minutes. Atmosphere condition based on dynamic air parcel prediction model used for real aviation research and training. Atmosphere quality includes humidity, pollution and fine particle amount. Unlimited variability of cloud formations generated dynamically by the atmosphere engine. Advanced hurricane model based on actual data tracking and live feeds. Precise thunderstorm cell locations based on real time radar and satellite data. New physics based realistic sky coloring rendered using real time ray tracing and light scattering. Actual wind direction and speed for all levels as well as for the temperature, turbulence and windshear. Volumetric effects for different types of precipitation like drizzle, rain and snow. Reflective raindrops on windshield for any aircraft with virtual cockpit. Realistic cloud passing visual effects. Visual effects of aircraft lighting in clouds (strobe lights, beacon lights, navigation lights, landing lights). Landing lights effect during in-cloud and foggy flight. Volumetric external aircraft lights for selected set of aircraft. Light reflections by cloud surface from urban lights at variable intensities. Physics based light scattering for clouds. High quality real time cloud shading. Flexible settings for atmosphere, visual and sound effects. Surface crosswind component can be reduced during ground roll for users with no rudder pedals. Realistic braking action and braking degradation based on actual reports. Atmosphere and cloud light scattering and color depend on atmosphere quality, weather conditions and time of day. Environmental sound engine with ambient sounds and capability to add custom sounds to X-Plane scenery.   xEnviro is the most technologically advanced tool that uses the most progressive technologies. xEnviro has a user-friendly interface with flexible settings for each component. xEnviro uses its own art assets along with its own sound library. xEnviro does not alter X-Plane shaders, textures or any other files. xEnviro does not require installations of any additional products or libraries and is fully ready to use out of the box. xEnviro software is constantly being updated. xEnviro has been designed by simmers for simmers!  
Requirements
Minimum Requirements X-Plane 11+ Windows 7/Vista/ 8/8.1/ 10 - Not Mac compatible at this time 8 GB+ VRAM  A quality and powerful Graphic Card and System is recommended Current and Review version : 1.16 (January 4th 2021) _____________________________________________________________________________________   Plugin Update by Stephen Dutton  11th January 2021 Copyright©2021: X-PlaneReviews   (Disclaimer. All images and text in this review are the work and property of X-PlaneReviews, no sharing or copy of the content is allowed without consent from the author as per copyright conditions)    

Ten bucks more than XPlane itself - believe I'll just struggle along.

Aircraft Review : Airbus A340-600 by ToLiSS
 
Any new aircraft release from ToLiSS is always a reason to celebrate, in a short period of years the developer has entrenched themselves into delivering extremely high quality Airbus aircraft and their systems. First release was the Airbus A319-122, then the larger A321-123. Then both aircraft came with NEO (New Engine Option) upgrades. In the background however was a far more ambitious project and certainly the largest Airbus yet from ToLiSS, the... Airbus A340-600.
 
The Airbus A340, along with it's Twin-Engined sister design A330 was built to compete with the Boeing 777 in the 1990s, in reality the A330 is only used as a long-medium range aircraft (13,450 km / 7,250 nmi), along with the Boeing 777 (13,649 km/ 7,370 nmi ), were as the four-engined A340 can do a extremely long-range (16,670 km / 9,000 nmi) in -500 guise, the -600 version produced here by ToLiSS swaps range for payload, but can still do a significant 14,450 km / 7,800 nmi range, so you would expect the aircraft to be extremely popular on long distance hub to hub routes.
 
But fate and the growing environmental concerns have reduced the demand for aircraft in this A380, B747, A340 capacity...  overall it was the Boeing 777, with it's capacity, better efficiency and the lesser ETOPS restrictions that has ultimately slowed the A340 orders and finally removed the aircraft from services...  it survives servicing currently only on the ultra long routes around the world, as the airlines are slowly reducing it's serviceable numbers, the Covid19 interaction didn't help the cause either. Thankfully there are still 60 A340-600s in service with six airlines worldwide, but the numbers are dwindling away fast. The A340 was the right aircraft at the right time, but the world itself changed around it, to defeat it.
 
The A340-600 was stretched by 20–22 frames over the -300 to 75 m (246 ft) in length, making -600 at the time the longest Airbus built until the A380 a decade later, Internal layouts are in a 3-4 class arrangement of 320–370 seats, and the aircraft is powered by Three-shaft High Bypass Turbofan Rolls-Royce Trent 556s engines at 55,780–61,902 lbf thrust output, it is a derated engine, because there are four of them, and for efficiency and the reduced fuel consumption. The -600 also has a larger wing area 439.4m², to accommodate larger fuel tanks.
 
The release from ToLiSS of the A340-600, also breaks new ground for the developer. For the first time the complete aircraft has been 100% created in-house, were as in the past the modeling and other various elements were exported out to 3rd party commissions (most notable was Roman Berezin of FlightFactor fame), some commissions still however are in use as Ekran Design, SamWise and SpeedM have all still been assigned. But the now internal aspect of almost everything in the process was to create a far more tighter control over the quality and a faster output, plus the addition of more features and detail.
 
External Details
As noted this Airbus is now a complete in house design, and to be honest the earlier ToLiSS aircraft were good and well modeled, but not in that so called upper quality area. So there are two important things to keep in mind here when reviewing this aircraft...  This is their first internal modeling project, so there will be the odd issue and quality quirk, and two with the quality now being in house, quirky areas will and can be updated very quickly and resolved... that said, the first impressions of this A346 are extremely good.
 

 
At 75.36 m / 247.24 ft the -600 is a loooong barrel style aircraft, I found the -500 version quite Boeing 707 in proportion, but the -600 just doesn't have that profile, but to more the Douglas DC-8-63/73 style.
 

 
Shape and barrel are actually very good, but you do feel and even in areas you can see the drawn on lines, but closer in the detail and the NML normal mapping, or Dot3 bump mapping is really very good if even discrete, and the excellent (all) door(s) and external cabin window detail can highlight this excellent mapping in the right lighting conditions.
 

 
Close inspection shows Lo-Res cockpit metal window surrounds, they look okay, but are a bit washed out/buzzy close up... but the glass is excellent, right colour and the right depth of thickness, the side cabin windows are very good as well.
 

 
We were not very impressed by the NEO upgrade engine modeling on the ToLiSS A321, but these Rolls-Royce Trent 556s are excellent, lovely shape and great internal inlet and external pod detail...  a marked step forward.
 

 
A bit more wear and burn realism on the outlet cowlings would be nice though.
 
Wings are very nice, with still only a few noticeable lines, but overall very nicely done with perfect tank under wing access plates. Airflow markings on the flaps is nice, and note the realistic drooping of all the aerodynamic surfaces when not hydraulically powered up...
 

 
... the wing tip detail is excellent, with the winglet that are well proportioned.
 
Tail and rear elevators are really good as well, nicely detailed and formed...  the point rear APU outlet looks a little too modeled and added on, and may require later a texture with some exhaust gas markings for more realism...  but otherwise the rear is very good.
 

 
The main gear and the famous A340 three bogie arrangement is perfectly realised here, and really well done...
 

 
...   the gear strut assembly and components are very realistic and detailed, they look and feel real, but don't feel over worn or used heavily year on year... but still it is all is very nicely done. Strut labels are good (but reversed?), and the wheel well detail looks still a bit of WIP, with no attachments or internal box textures (photos?) if you go looking. The central middle strut is mostly hidden on the upper parts, but the lower bogie assembly is excellent, and certainly around the hydraulic piston and support arms. The massive hollow gear pins are all correctly modeled, with the wheel hub and realistic rubber tyres are also very well done.
 

 
The complex nose-gear also delivers brilliantly, again all struts the and linkages are perfect, and the in-built TAXI and RUNWAY TURNOFF lighting are all very realistic. So overall (discounting the inner wheel-wells) all the gear is all excellent and delivers the gear realism you need  on an aircraft of this calibre.
 

 
Cabin
Stepping aboard the ToLiSS A340 and you are overwhelmed by the greyness, with a lot of beige thrown in...
 

 
There are as noted four classes... First, Business, Premium Economy and a huge Economy class...   In the forward cabin there are eight First Class seats (in a Dark Grey) in a cubicle arrangement... 
 

 
...  next cabin is a thirty seat Business or Executive Class layout that blends into another thirty seat Premium Economy layout, and all are covered in Grey and Teal (ToLiSS livery) materials...
 

 
...  then on it goes, cabin after cabin, and the of rows and rows of grey and teal seating in economy.
 


 
Seat quality and design is actually very good, with some really lovely seating materials and high quality stitching...  but it will be interesting of what the painters can do to recreate some authentic A340 cabins.
 

 
Galleys are nicely detailed as well, but also feel slightly bland with the samey colouring used here. Using metal surfaces (and Trolley Carts?) or creating the more realistic workplace surfaces would probably make these areas come more alive...   it is early days.
 

 
Unique on the A340 is the lower (economy) floor toilets...  the access is via some stairs rear to the lower floor, and it is really well done (note the nice shiny metal rails!), and great for an in flight explore. The A340 is supposed to have two subterranean areas, with a forward lower floor crew rest area and toilets as well...  but I could find a forward area.
 

 
Two more cabin notes...  One is that all the seats have a built in (forward view) screen (Larger in First and Biz) to mimic the unique tail camera on the A340, which is great for watching landings! But at night all the screens turn into a nasty green? Thankfully you can turn the screens off on the OHP, via the "Landscape Camera" switch.
 

 
A great touch is that both the overhead "No Smoking" and "Seatbelt" signs actually work...  and can be set individually...  nice. The main front and rear cargo holds are also textured in, but not in a highly detailed design, but still another nice to have.
 

 
Cockpit
It is what is through the cockpit door that really counts...   first thought is the overwhelming 90s feel, as the cockpit material is the dark blue and white stitched stripe in design, first impressions are very good to the very impressed and I will call the look overall very professional. Over a period of time you really come to like being in here, important for 12+ hour flights.
 


 
The rear has one rear seat, and one unfolded jumpseat, it feels nice in the rear...  left rear is a wardrobe (with hangers) boxes for manuals, extinguisher and other various items, the modeling is good, but not in that higher Hi-Def realism in that there is a mixture of both Hi and Lo modeling elements.
 

 
Front Captain and First Officer seats are really well done, nice materials and come with a nice hard shiny shell back, but the armrests are not animated, but at least they are positioned in the stored position as to not block-out the pedestal panels.
 

 
All the Instrument Panel, Pedestal and Overhead Panel (OHP) have this lovely (Airbus) bluey-grey sheen, and that shows off the very nice PBR (Physical Based Rendering) effects to their maximum, it looks and feels oh so very realistic. But far more to the FlightFactor A320 feel than the JARDesign feel.
 


 
So it is really not noticeable at first, but the quality of the instrument panel texture and knobbly feel is absolutely first rate when the lighting is at it's best...  you feeeel this aircraft in it's top draw quality.
 

 
Overall highlight is certainly the throttle quadrant, with it's four knobby throttles (rear reverser levers) and companion fuel switches... look closely and there is some very nice scratch work for wear and tear aging on all the panels.
 

 
But I am not crazy about the external wipers, they look quite clunky from the internal viewpoint, and even distracting from the pilot's seat, the real A340 wipers do have the large attachment clasp, but not the large thick body it is attached to.
 
Power and Alignment
Power up with both Battery (BAT 1/BAT 2) and I am also using EXT (External) ground power and you have two "EXT A and EXT B" inputs available on the Overhead Panel.
 

 
On power up I was surprised that only the left PFD (Primary Flight Display, and top ECAM (EWD) screen tested up first (40 Secs). And not the usual all instruments "Self Test" mode, so I checked that out with ToLiSS and here is the reply...
 
"The Captain PFD and EWD get powered as soon as the batteries are on, whereas all other displays need to wait until AC power is applied. So the Captain PFD and EWD finish their self test much earlier."
 
Fair enough...  and it is the same with the ADIRS navigation alignment. When the left MAP/NAV display is already set (MAP alignment is also nearly complete).
The right MAP/NAV display however still has to wait until the alignment process has been completed. Now the reason is that the ADIRU on alignment is now also susceptible to the small pressure sensor differences between the units, and in to also the more random switching of the sources for the PFDs, in so creating the non-same time visual display differences...
 

 
...   so I again enquired about that aspect of the odd screen start up alignment as well...  another ToLiSS reply.

"Each ADIRU aligns on its own. ND1 uses data from ADIRU1 and ND2 from ADIRU2. Each of these will transition to HDG displayed as soon as it's own ADIRU is ready. As you do not switch them all on at the same time, the situation can happen that one display is already valid and the other one is not."  end of debate.
 
Once powered and aligned, the instrument panel is all Airbus... in a six panel T panel display arrangement, in all cases Airbus panels are extremely similar, the only concessions are the engine layouts on the two central ECAM (Electronic Centralized Aircraft Monitor) displays, in this case the four engine arrangement. Notable is the blank lower DCDU - Data Communication Display Units, ToLiSS says they will come soon in an update.
 

 
Both left and right PFD (Primary Flight Displays) are the standardised layout. Speed and altitude ribbons, V/S indicator, rate of turn high and rotating bearing lower and the centralised Artifical Horizon, the display is bright and clear and adjustable for brightness. There is a really nice rich tone to the PFD display of which I like...   MAP/Navigation Display is standard fair as well, Compass Heading top, GS (Ground Speed), Adjustable range and VOR 1 and VOR 2 left and right lower.
 

 
ECAM is two displays with the E/WD (ECAM Warning Display) top and the various SD (System Display) modes lower...
 

 
Every ECAM profile is available...ENG, BLEED, PRESS, EL/AC, EL/DC, HYD, C/B (Circuit-Breakers), APU, COND, DOOR, WHEEL, F/CTL, FUEL, and STS. All modes are accessible via the ECAM Control Panel below the SD display.
 

 




 
Everything feels exaggerated on the SD screens and that is because everything in the A340 is duplicated by four, and then there is the extensive fuel tank layouts and the four (nose, two main and one central) and undercarriage arrangements, comparing this SD display to the A330 or A320 ECAM arrangements, the SD feels far more crammed and more complex than on the other Airbuses except for the other Four-Engined A380.
 
It is a marvel on how much has been now inserted with these system modes and their high complex detail in Simulation... ToLiSS was one of the first custom developers with the QPAC A320 that delivered these early Airbus system modes, and this is now a serious deep dive of system functionality, it is also all very authentic to a study grade Airbus with here there is an active 30 warnings and with over 200 caution messages built in to the system.... we have come a very long way in only half a decade.
 
All the display panels can be popped out (touching glass).. and easily scaled (with your mouse-scroll) for screen space or home cockpit builders.
 

 
Over the years there has been also the many various manipulators to try to recreate the Airbus push-pull knob system, some were more successful than others. Here ToLiSS has done another take on how to manipulate the Autopilot control knobs.
 

 
The half-moon manipulators turns the knob (scroll), but to Push-Pull you press the mouse and create a fist, then drag the fist either upwards or downwards to PUSH (drag up), or PULL (drag down)... It take a little getting used to, as all the Push-Pull movements are quite if very small, and you are not sure if you have done the required action. After a while however it does easily become second nature.
 
Multi-Function Control and Display Units
The two Multi-Function Control and Display Units (MCDU) are excellent, and better still are both separate individual units for both the Captain and First Officer.
The left MCDU is set for the left (Captain) MAP/NAV display and the right MCDU is for the right side (F-Officer). The left MAP/NAV shown here is set in ARC mode..  and right MAP/NAV shown here is set in PLAN mode.
 

 
The pop-out plate facias however are a far more brighter bluish tone than the installed pedestal Blue-Gray units, and to a point they don't really match up together very well.
You can type directly into either MCDU, by pressing the panel facia, but if you however press the glass area it simply and quickly disappear? and so it is very easy to point yourself into the wrong area and lose the unit...  touching the MCDU glass on the pedestal units is the way to pop-out the units, all like the same with the PFD, NAV/MAP and ECAM Displays.
 
Ease of use of inserting flightplans and the editing of the flightplan on the MCDU is simply excellent, it is obviously an all Airbus dialogue and layout, but it isn't hard at all to master.
But be aware that you should understand the data you are inserting into the system get the correct flight profile out of the aircraft. Even small mistakes can do weird things to these very complicated machines, as we are at a study level here and the aircraft reacts only to the correctly inputted data in that aspect. Thankfully ToLiSS provides you with the most critical data required on the Menu.
 
INIT pages 1 & 2 (INIT FUEL PREDICTION) can be inserted (arrowed below left) and the required data (ZFW/ZFWCG) and (BLOCK) data is important...
 

 
...  this can relate to the separate "FUEL PRED" page, which is very good in it's in-flight fuel prediction detail. Notable is "SEC F-PLN" or secondary flightplan (above left) than can be copied (COPY ACTIVE) from the main flightplan and can then be changed and used to create a different departure or arrival route.
SID/STAR and airways support also a fully custom and supporting a FMGS backbone of all A424 leg types (Arc, course or heading to intercept, Radius to Fix and Holdings).
 
Also a note... on the TAKE OFF (Performance) (upper right arrowed) phase the FLEX TO TEMP input has to inserted as an "F" in front of the Flex Temperature to get accepted (i.e. F41). So very Flexible, detailed, the A340's MCDU, Flight Management Guidance Computer (FMGC) is excellent in the A340 and very authentic to look at and access.
 
Pedestal
The pedestal is perfect... Radios top (each side) of the fully formed four Fuel Switches (they feel gorgeous), with Radar left and ATC (Transponder) right... Notable is that you will notice that there is a basic skeleton installed for the ATC Comm page, another feature of the upgraded ATC, coming in X-Plane12.
 

 
....  lower are is the Speed Brake left and Flap lever right (again both beautifully modeled). Set centre is the standard Airbus engine start (Ignition) switch and the backup (Multipurpose) MCDU. Noted here are ACMS, CMS, SAT and ATSU options, and ToLiSS notes these will later become active on all three MCDU units with the Controller–pilot data link communications (CPDLC) link as a high priority, and I like the idea of a printout option, that creates a TXT file that you can print out externally. Bottom left of the pedestal is the cockpit door lock, main PARK BRAKE and RUDDER TRIM knob.
 
Overhead Panel (OHP)
The OHP is noted as a “single slope”. with the "Forward zone" for the most frequently used functions, i.e.
- System controls, that are arranged in three main rows : - center row for engine-related systems, arranged in a logical way. - lateral rows for other systems. The Aft zone (top area), is not really used in flight, and is mainly for being a small maintenance panel corresponding to some maintenance controls.
 

 
Notable is the complex fuel tank arrangement of six main tanks (Two tanks each Wing, Centre Tanks and the tail Trim tank), plus each has a "Vent" tank open to the elements. Engines also have four separate electrical generators adding into the complexity. Yes study is required if you want to go deeper into these elements.
 
TISCS Menu
The menu system or "ToLiSS Interactive Simulation Control System" is a bit long winded but it is shortened as TISCS, but it is an important if essential part of the system, so we will need to go through the TISCS first.
I do recommend in setting up a key command input to bring the TISCS menu up, as you will access the TISCS a lot (I use "S" and the same TISCS menu key works for all the ToLiSS aircraft, A340, A319 and A321).
 
There are seven TISCS tabs available covering: SITUATIONS A/C CONFIG, LOADING PERFO, GROUND SERVICES, FAULTS SCENERIOS, SOUND/ADDONS, JOYSTICK ACTIONS and GENERAL SETTINGS. The default is the "Ground Services" panel
 
Situations A/C Config
The "Config page" is used to set up the aircraft with two sections, "LOAD/SAVE SITUATIONS" and "AIRCRAFT CONFIGURATION"
 
Load/Save Situations is an absolute gem of a tool, basically it is "Save" tool, but it saves EVERYTHING including the important MCDU settings and your full route (yes even the SIDs and STARs), and better still it gives you a backup "Auto-Saving" feature in case X-Plane does a nasty CTD (Crash to Desktop) or a freeze on you, all the saved files are held in the X-Plane Plugin's Folder and not in the A340 Aircraft folder...  
 
It is years better than any other save tool in X-Plane, as it is simply golden to set up or to have your aircraft ready at a certain state of "ready to Flight" or in certain flight position or situation. So if you just want to come back and just fly from a certain (takeoff) point, then you can simply save the aircraft ready to start that way...  it is just simply brilliant.
 
The Auto-Saving function can be set at save intervals from 1min to 30min, but 5min is the best or turned off. The saved situations can be "Filtered" to find certain saved situations (image below right)
 

 
Aircraft Configuration section is different to the A319/A321 TISCS layouts. Gone (for now) are the engine configurations, and replaced by; HAS BRAKE FAN (Yes/Auto/No), USE WEIGHT VARIANT (Auto/Regular/HGW - High Gross Weight) and the use of IMPERIAL UNITS (or KGS)
 
Lower is a new TISCS option to adjust the aircraft's performance relative to it's age (NEW to OLD), on the AIRCRAFT AGE and ENGINE AGE sliders. Note: all the A/C Configurations page settings have to be saved before use.
 
Loading Perfo
This tab covers the AIRCRAFT LOADING, BLOCK FUEL, CG-GW and TO-PERFORMANCE
 

 
AIRCRAFT LOADING: This setting zone sets up the aircraft's payload for; Passengers, Passenger Distribution, FWD Cargo (Lbs/Kgs), Aft Cargo (Lbs/Kgs) and then you can apply the load settings to the A340.
 
BLOCK FUEL: allows you to set the BLOCK (to BLOCK) Fuel amount (Lbs/Kgs) with a "QUICK REFUEL/DEFUEL".
 
CG-GW: the diagram shows you via a graph the CG Limits (Centre of Gravity) and current CG position in three colours: Black TO (Takeoff) CG Limits, Blue FT (Flight) CG Limits and Red LDG (Landing) CG Limits.
 
TO-PERFORMANCE: This is a calculator tool to find the TOGA (TakeOff/Go-Around) performance numbers...  you set the (S/F) Flap Configuration (1+F) and the calculator will give you the V1, VR and V2 ref speeds (For input in the MCDU (PERF) TAKE OFF page). Plus the CG/THS and Flex Temp (F)...  
...  to use the TO-PERFORMANCE calculator though you have to set the Departure Airport and Runway in the MCDU before the TO-PER calculator will work?
 
Other MCDU input data notes are in the left side "AIRCRAFT LOADING" Section, this includes the ZFW (Zero Fuel Weight), and ZFWCG (Zero Fuel Weight Centre of Gravity), they are both inputted on the INIT B PAGE (The BLOCK FUEL is also inputted on the same INIT B page).
 
Ground Services
This tab covers the external factors on the aircraft in; QUICK SERVICES, PUSH-BACK, ANIMATED SERVICES and AIRCRAFT DOORS
 
QUICK SERVICES: provides options for "Ground Power" (Two units in POWER A and POWER B as noted on the OHP) and "HIGH and LOW PRESSURE AIR" which is there to start the engines and provide ventilation/air-conditioning while on the ground. There are no external physical units, But there is a built in PUSHBACK feature...
 
PUSHBACK: is quite basic in look and to use in AUTO (Set distance and Rotation) or MANUAL modes. However I always use the excellent BetterPushBack Truck as an alternative. The ToliSS A340 has also been configured correctly for the BetterPushBack use, so it works extremely well here. Note in watching the pushback operation details on the ECAM SD "WHEEL" page!
 
ANIMATED SERVICES: panel is not currently operational at this time, so there are no chock's, flags or engine covers...  as ToLiSS notes that flying performance and systems are more of a priority than any addon features.
 

 
AIRCRAFT DOORS: have three selections with Auto (default) Close and Open. The Auto setting will open the doors when the park brake is set and the engines are off.
But they do have a tendency to be a bit uncontrollable in opening the aircraft, and you then have to (constantly and annoyingly) reset all the doors back to the "AUTO" preference state, and as this is default auto setting it will always switch back again and have the front left and the two cargo doors open every time you load up the aircraft?
The Door Auto setting is my only really pet peeve with ToLiSS aircraft and now with eleven doors and hatches...  but it has gotten better in the save department if you do a "Save" on the Config page.
 
Faults Scenerios
The A340 like the A319/A321 has a great failure system, or FAULT SCENERIOS. These failures can be set up on the TISCS Panel. You can ENABLE the RANDOM FAULTS feature and set the FLIGHT TIME FACTOR of LESS or MORE Flights.
 
You have a total random setting that covers a wide range of 140 system faults, or you can set your own failure with the options including: NOW, AT TIME(set time in Seconds from now), AT IAS (Speed), AT ALT (set altitude) or RANDOM, and you can set as many failures as you like.
 
My selection here is ELEC (Electrical)/BATT 2/AT ALTITUDE (You can also set the altitude for the failure), and the fault worked as set, second failure was FLT (Flight) CTRL (Control)/R OUTBD AIL JAM/RANDOM/FLIGHT or Flight Control-Right Outboard Aileron Jam-set at Random in Flight. All Faults can be deleted or changed at will.
 

 
Sound/Addons
SOUND SETTING: panel covers the aural areas of; Engine Volume, System Volume, Cockpit sounds, Environmental sounds, Ground Contact, Aural Alerts and External Volume. Doppler sound effects and 3D Sound Fading which is an option to switch off the sounds from the PTU (Power Transfer Unit) and Flaps in the cockpit. 
 

 
ADDONS: Currently there are no "Addon" options at this point in time.
 
Notable is that the JOYSTICK ACTIONS that was situated on this "Sound" tab on the A319/A321 has been moved to it's own tab (Below).
 
JOYSTICK CONFIGURATION: selections options cover the "Primary Joystick" FOUND, and the PRIMARY STICK DEADBAND margin selection.
The control of NWS (NoseWheel Steering) has been changed to select the "JOYSTICK ROLL in No/Auto/Yes options, Enable Second Joystick (For custom setups like home built panels or for training) as it supports the use of two sidesticks (pilot and co-pilot side) again the FOUND option and another DEADBAND slider is available for the SECOND JOYSTICK.
 
Tiller Assignment. Pedal Brakes Assignment with brake strength, Smart Park Brake, Allow Brake on One Pedal are all for optional Rudder Pedal addons with built in braking actions.
 

 
THROTTLE CONFIGURATION: This is a brand new option on ToLiSS aircraft, but some actions have been reassigned.
One moved here is the F1/F2 Toggle reversers (I use a joystick trigger!) option, and SMART THR LVER IDLE LOCK  and REV ON SAME AXIS are both new options...  with CL DETENT LOCATION (Interesting?) and MCT DETENT LOCATION are both here in having adjustment Sliders for throttle addon systems.
 
ACTIONS: include "ADIRU Quick Alignment", and "Jump to next WPT (Waypoint)".
 
"Auto-Pause " has four settings: OFF, ON WARNINGS, ON WARN  + CAUT (Caution) and ON WARN/CAUT/TOD (Top of Descent). At these points the Auto-Pause will automatically pause the (X-Plane) simulation, say as if a master caution or master warning goes off. Again you have to save the Settings on the menu for any of them to be effective.
 
General Settings
The General Settings tab has five sections in: PRODUCT INFO, VISUAL SETTINGS, STARTUP BEHAVIOUR, USER INTERFACE and MISCELLANEOUS.
 
PRODUCT INFO: (Information) covers the current (ToLiSS) Version and build number and LICENSE ID, or Authorisation.
 
VISUAL SETTINGS: include new options in; WING FLEX STRENGTH, WING FLEX FROM GEAR BUMPS (Landing) and (PFD, MAP/NAV & ECAM) SCREEN BACKGROUND GLOW sliders.
 
Display (Instrument) reflections has been changed to just a REMOVE SCREEN REFLECTIONS (On/Off) selection. SKI/RAIN Windshield (Librain) effects can only be used currently in Open GL, but expect this item to change significantly with the release of X-Plane12 in that Librain/Rain/Snow features will then be the built in default effects in the new X-Plane12 version.
 
"REFRESH PDF EVERY X CYCLES" This is an option for the weak graphic card users, in that instead of the heavy use every cycle to refresh the system displays, you can set the cycles to be redrawn either every 2nd or 4th cycle.
 

 
STARTUP BEHAVIOUR : sets the aircraft to a certain startup situation (known as Cold or Hot), options include: OVHD XP START SETTING. COLD START TYPE in COLD+DARK, EXT POWER (connected) and the really all on with APU+ADIRU ON.
DEFAULT TO COPILOT SEAT (On/Off). DEFAULT BARO in either HPA or InHG. Finally you can set your own default "Transition Altitude" via a slider.
 
USER INTERFACE: are options on how you interact with the aircraft. Options include: USE MOUSE WHEEL GESTURES, SYNC BARO SETTINGS (separate or aligned Baro settings), POPOUT WINDOWS FOR POPUPS and you can save your set, or save your POPUP CONFIGURATION (Cockpit builders) on Quit.
 
MISCELLANEOUS: ILS AUTO ALIGN is a feature in that if the custom scenery that rotates the runway; for in these cases when the ILS and the runway are not aligned anymore. The ToLiSS A340 plugin thereby contains a feature that detects if there is such custom scenery installed and then automatically realigns the ILS in the internal database to the new runway heading. XPDR COMPATIBILITY MODE, is the use of different transponder modes.
CACHE ROUTES ONLY ON STARTUP;  a setting that prevents interruption when you enter your FROM/TO in the MCDU. If you enable this option, the plugin will only check your fms files once on startup. and the advantage is that you do not have interruptions when entering your FROM/TO, the disadvantage is: if you created the fms file for your flight plan AFTER loading the aircraft it won't find it.
 
ENABLE AVITAB TABLET,  The AviTab tablet is installed on the lower left of the Pilot and usable if you have the AviTab plugin set in your plugin folder. For those that have an Navigraph account the use of Navigraph maps and tools are also available in the A340. You can hide or show the Tablet via this switch.
 

 
Again remember you have to save the Preferences and Default values for them on the MISCELLANEOUS Page for them to be effective and in some instances a restart is required to activate a setting.
____________________
 
Flying the ToLiSS Airbus A340-600
First thing to get into your head is just how long the -600 aircraft is...   don't think like A330/A350 or even a Boeing B787 pilot, but be in like a A380 or B748 sized mind. Code F gates are the safest (A380/B748), The A346 is actually Code E, but you will need the extra space...
 

 
...   repositioned the A346 at Gatwick (EGKK) and finding a stand large enough to cater for my size was far harder than it looked, and I still felt my tail was hanging out.
 
There are no ground vehicles or service elements (yet), and being in a beta version there is no GHD (Ground Handling Deluxe) vehicle .set yet either, but no doubt these aspects will come very quickly (there already is a .set for the JARDesign A340).
 

 
Wind changed on me... so I used the "Second Flightplan" option to copy my installed route, make it active and change it for use with the reassigned Rwy 26L and SID WIZA4M to DVR (Dover). So easy to do. Yes Second Flightplans are not new to X-Plane, but here it is very easy to copy and quickly adjust the route, and that the MCDU does the job so very neatly as well is really impressive.
 

 
Second (Better)Pushback of the day, and I can now start the engines, APU is running, so BLEED ON and ENGINE START to IGN  (Ignition)
 
Engines are started in sequence, preferably with engine No. 1 first, that is in order to pressurise the blue hydraulic system, that pressure also supplies the parking brake accumulator.
APU bleed does however also allow you to start two engines simultaneously. The preferred order of engine start is 1, 2, 3 then 4...  easy... but get the engine start sequence wrong, as I did intentionally (Starting No.4 first) and you get a load of electronic warnings (Hydraulics) and it is not at all easy to rectify.
The engine bleed model is very good in considering the bleed mass flow for the engine start, in other words each engine start is not an exact replica of each other, but adjusted to each engine for realism.
 

 
Engine sequence startup sounds are very nice, and now a far cry from the early ToLiSS days, all sound packages now are of high quality and come with specialised custom effects. All powered up, flaps set (1+F) and lighting on, it is time to go and the clock is now running.
 

 
Notable is the set (check) the TO-Config button to display the right configuration for takeoff, very easy to forget, so I make it a takeoff mantra...  Gatwick is busy, always busy...  so you really feel the size of the -600 here, and of where you can or can not go.
 

 
I take Taxiways AN and A, that gives me more open space to turn the A346 onto the runway RESA as the overrun at the start of RWY 26L is very large.
 

 
Chrono (Clock) running and you push all the four petit throttle levers forward to the takeoff point. There is nothing like the push of a "Heavy" to get your adrenaline running, BIG and HEAVY are two words I love in aviation and the A340 fills that aspect perfectly...
 

 
....  my TOW (Total all up Weight) is 269585 kg, of that my fuel load is 44121 kg, and that means I am heavy with passengers, but with a flying time of just over 4 hours (4h:08m) I am heavy on payload, but lighter (on fuel) than when flying usually a very long haul route that this A346 is quite capable of. So the speed gathers rather quickly down RWY 26L...
 

 
...  Rotate is 173 +10 knts, and the lift and "Positive Climb" is clean...  and your away!
 

 
Tilting gear now hangs in space, outboard bogies cant backwards, and the centre bogie cants forwards...  retracting the gear comes with some great sounds of mechanical and wind noise, not so much in the cockpit forward, but great in the cabin (Cabin sounds do nicely change frequencies as you move around the or go to the more front or rear of the aircraft).
 

 
90º south follows the departure track of WIZA4M, then another 90º to MAY (Mayfield 117.90) then to DVR...
 

 
...  ToLiSS aircraft are amazing physically to fly (yes you can actually fly an Airbus manually). As the words "Smooth" and "Fluid" that comes easily to mind, and the aircraft will respond perfectly to your actions. So flying tight 90º turns are perfect and clean. ToLiSS has certainly set the benchmark on how these "heavy" aircraft respond and feel to your input actions.
 

 
Heading towards the Channel, it is time to settle down after takeoff and fly the route, first is a change of speed to 305 kts, then a climb up to 35,000 ft, at 2200 fpm, with a reduction around 28,000ft to 1200 fpm... various weights (heavier or lighter) can obviously alter this procedure and the climb to altitude, but the A346 takes it all in it's stride.
 

 
Tanking already begins... the complicated fuel system will transfer fuel as required, as the fuel system includes inflight CG control by pumping fuel to and from the tail tank. There is also here fuel jettison, manual and automatic transfers between the different tanks, and across the from the outer wing tanks to the inner tanks, all these procedures are fully automatic and every tanking action is displayed on the E/DW display.
 

 
Long haulers love their toys...  Flip out work tables (yeah!) and pull down front window blinds are a super nice to have now in a ToLiSS aircraft, the side window shades however don't work (yet).
 

 

 
Greta Thunberg would stamp her little feet and wave her little finger in the air...  the A340 is a serious climate killer, with four engines all pumping out that nasty oxide, "who cares", this is a great if brilliant aircraft to transport you (virtually) around the world. The Airbus A340-600 looks simply brilliant powering through the sky at altitude.
 
Quickly we are already approaching Frankfurt, with EDDF now sliding below at 47m on the clock...
 

 
....  this point in my mind brings up the debate? Over the last few years, regularly now, we have had the same repeat inquiry on the .Org Forums. "What is the best aircraft for long haul"?
To be honest X-Plane didn't deliver really good Long Haul aircraft...  that is not totally absolutely true, but the best ones in the FlightFactor's Boeing 777 and Peter's A380 are now very old, very dated. The FF A350 is not bad (after the last update), but the Magknight B787 Dreamliner also still falls far short of it's potential. The JARDesign twins A330/A340 are actually not bad and I like them a lot, if you like their old styling design, and finally the two 747s by SSG and Felis (B742) are quite complicated machines to fly. So there are really no clear winners here. The problem is highlighted even more in that most of the users in asking this "Long Haul Airliner" question are also very new to long haul flying...
 
ToLiSS aircraft are interesting in this regard. They are certainly study depth, as the avionics, systems and Airbus laws are very and highly refined and ToLiSS is the X-Plane master Guru of Airbus behaviours and systems. That also makes it interesting? Because the systems in here are so highly refined and detailed, then this ToLiSS and the A346 is actually very easy to fly, even to a point being an automatic machine to Boeing's more physically manual aspect.
I'm not saying you don't still need to understand the A340's systems and the flying behaviours, because you do...  but the A340 is quite an easy aircraft to learn on and to fly (very) long distances, and certainly if you are new to Airbus philosophy.
Basically ToLiSS is doing the heavy lifting for you here, so the A346 aircraft is currently the No.1 choice if you want to do "Long Haul" flying and are new to the genre...  but don't just pop in and fly it around all the time just on automatic, learn the systems, learn the Airbus philosophy, as the ToLiSS A346 is light on the top, but very deep down below.
 
You can jump from waypoint-to-waypoint through the cruise phase, and by-pass the boring bits...  to me this is an anathema in Long haul flying, as it is about the distance covered in real time and the numbers in feedback the aircraft gives you...  but the impatient out there will jump ahead to do long haul in a short haul time period, the ToLiSS A340 allows you to do this and very well in this aspect, but it goes very much against my long haul personal coda.
 
The longer lighting as the day moved onwards (going faster as I am flying East) showed off the excellent detail and lovely textures on the instrument panel...  the more time you spend in here, the more you really love this A340 aircraft.
 

 
You cruise around Mach 0.82 (470 kn; 871 km/h) at 35,000ft-39.000ft, but I found Mach 0.83 to be easily achieved with no loss of extra fuel consumption. 
 
Lighting
Another ToLiSS weakness on the A319/A321 was the internal lighting, before it was okayish. ToLiSS is now more in control on what features and areas than they were before...   but still to a point I approached the A346 lighting with some trepidation... 
...   but I wasn't at all disappointed, if in the very opposite and being very excited of all the lighting possibilities in the A340.
 


 
All the lighting knobs work as per Airbus layouts...  including (now) all the under panel four lighting knobs. The two inner knobs cover the Autopilot panel top displays and lower text instruments...
 

 
The two outer knobs we will talk about in a moment...  Above on are the three spots for the (Centre) Pedestal, and the two outer Reading lights...  Plus there is a MAP Switch (and even Console switches) left and right of each PFD that lights up both of your side panels.
 

 
Roll out your work tables and the two outer under panel knobs adjust the lighting for each left and right tray for your convenience!
 

 
Using the standard seven; FLOOD LT (MAIN and PED), INTEG LT, PFD, ND and the two ECAM (upper/lower) knobs you can successfully adjust to any sort of lighting conditions you want...  including (above right) my perfect cockpit dark and warm lit instrument panel for takeoff or landing, we will see this again in action on landing.
 
Over head cockpit lighting is the standard Airbus three way CTL (main cockpit lighting switch) and the three way set STORM, BRT (Bright) and DIM selection.
 

 
So the cockpit lighting in the overhead and the instrument panel selections is pretty well perfect...   The cabin is a surprise as well!
 
In the day the cabin felt a bit grey and bland, but at night it is excellent.
 

 
In the external dark the cabin comes well and truly alive, and a very nice place to be it is as well. With better lighting the cabin detail also comes out far better, including the window side panels and overhead bins. Most in here is lovely window and centre strip lighting, it is very well done.
 
As it got darker we can now also look at some of the external lighting...
 

 
...  overall the exterior lighting is very, very good. There is nice star effects on the brighter lighting, and the cabin windows at night are very nice and not with the usual over bright cruise liner look.
 
There are four (two each side) wing lights and they light up the wing and engines very nicely externally and from the cabin (for those who love their wing lighting effects), and the strobe lighting can be a bit blobby but work well in context..  Navigation lights are all basically similar in detail but again very good.
 

 
Not keeping an eye on your instruments? The flightplan will alert you to important points if you forget to do them...  here it was a "Decelerate" alert in missing my TOD (Top of Descent) marker for Tel Aviv?
 

 
I was bit a apprehensive of (yet again) having to learn yet another manipulator system, but the ToLiSS idea is actually very good, the trick is just to remember your PUSH (drag up), or PULL (drag down) positions, but was very quickly using it like a pro...   "just a bit of practise".
 
I like the option, that when you have taken off...  the TISCS "Loading INFO" page will then show you your destinations METAR information, a great tip in getting your airports air pressure and wind direction/strength inserted ready for landing.
 

 
Below 6000ft, Airbus allows you now to switch on the tail light which is an automatic system anyway, so you don't have to physically switch it on/off manually, and very good it is...
 

 
...  now I set up the cockpit lighting for landing, with most of the overhead lighting off, and the instruments modes set, the visual feel is subtle in your face with that perfect view out, I find it perfect!
 

 
External lighting for landing is also very good...  Main landing lights and the twin taxi-lights give you a great lighting spread (and I do like the cloud reflections from the lighting, as they are excellent here).
 
163 knts at full flap on finals and she feels good, ToLiSS aircraft are exceptional handing aircraft for manual landings, but be aware of the length of your long -600 tail as so you don't hit the runway rear first!
 

 
The Autoland system is perfect, personally you could land almost hands off (the rudder inputs are important though) and the system will automatically guide you in...  over the threshold of LLBG Ben Gurion's 08L and your almost there...  a nice touch is that the cabin(s) darken for Takeoff/Landing, and I really like that aspect, and the view out is excellent.
 

 

 
After three or four landings now, I am finding I'm coming in slightly too nose (pitch) high, not that bad... but something I need to work on?
 

 
On the ground and I activate the reverse thrust of those fantastic Rolls-Royce Trent 556s, the reverser sounds are really excellent, they roar and blast into slowing you down...  another point is I feel the braking (Auto BRK) feels a bit weak, I set it for "2" but I still have to use the brakes a lot to reach my turnoff point (tricky here at the end of 08L into taxiway E, as it is so easy to miss and go down RWY 03/21).
 

 
There are still two more nose lights available in "RWY TURN OFF & CAMERA"...  with all forward lighting on, and it is excellent to find your way around the field on the ground, as the beams in spread is very good and the light goes in were you are wanting to look.
Assigned Gate D7 beckons, you have to be aware of the steering, as since the QPAC days then the  ToLiSS aircraft nose steering is very authentic, but can also take it's time to turn, so you have to anticipate your turns perfectly, certainly here with the A346 as it is so long an aircraft.
 

 
APU Available (started on the taxiway), and you power down the engines, again in reverse 4,3,2 and 1...  look around and sigh!
 

 
Good news is you get to do it all again tomorrow in this magnificent A340-600, just in going the other way.
 
Liveries
Provided are three official liveries (more may come yet if completed on time)...
 

 
(Disclaimer): ToIISS notes that it is their policy in not to endorse brands or logos in being that Toliss is not licensed to use them, so the engine logos here are a GK (Gliding Kiwi) branded (Airbus however is officially licensed). I did personally however add in the RR logos to a livery to make the review more authentic to the real aircraft. And you will find most if not all 3rd party liveries will be also correctly branded.
 
Painters have already produced a fair few A346 liveries...  I will note I found a lot incorrectly titled and don't work correctly (I think the PaintKit is incorrectly labeled), but they are easy to fix if you have the time...  in time everything will be corrected, but watch out for those missing winglet logos?
 
Those already presented on the X-Plane.Org are excellent....  with Emirates, Lufthansa (Star Alliance), Virgin Atlantic and Swiss all great liveries.
 

__________________
Summary
This is the third aircraft release form ToLiSS after their extremely well received and very popular Airbus A319-122, and then the larger A321-123. Both aircraft then came with NEO (New Engine Option) upgrades. In the background however was a far more ambitious project and certainly the largest Airbus yet from ToLiSS, the...   Airbus A340-600.
 
The -600 is not the longest range of the Airbus A340 family, that accolade goes to the -500, but the A346 is the most versatile in both payload and range, sadly for four-engined aircraft have been on the decline around the world with their effenciency and environmental issues, but that should not take away anything from this extremely popular and really one of the great long-range aircraft.
 
In the past the modeling and other various elements were of ToLiSS aircraft was exported to 3rd party commissions. But this A346 project was created totally 100% in house and this was to create a far more tighter control over the quality and a faster output, plus the addition of more features and detail.
And the quality now ooozes out of this aircraft like none of the other ToLiSS aircraft before... it is not totally complete yet, as there are still a (very) few quirkes, but overall it is far higher and far better quality standard than any of the previous releases...  much improved over the other aircraft is the internal lighting (exceptional now) and external lighting and the external modeling (mostly with the far better engines) is all of a far higher quality, working animated work tables and windows blinds are new features to ToLiSS aircraft.
 
System and Airbus Philosophy (flight control laws) are coming from the best X-Plane developer there is, so the Fly-by-wire system here is not only extremely good in normal law and alternate law 1, alternate law 2 and direct law, but even close to perfection...   plus they are some of the most natural flying Airbuses in simulation.
Fuel system includes inflight CG control (excellent), ADIRU alignment (perfection), deep ECAM system with 30 warning and over 200 caution messages and a built in 140 system faults system that will either at a specific point in flight or randomly during a flight phases cause you issues. System wise this A340 is now the best X-Plane Airbus out there.
 
Multi-Function Control and Display Units (MCDU) are excellent, and better still are both individual units for both the Captain and First Officer. These MCDUs are again top-notch with SID/STAR and airways support, VNAV guidance with TOC, TOD, Deceleration point, speed limits and full fuel prediction, Altitude and speed constraints and support for Go-Arounds and diversions, only thing I am not fussy about is the pop-up plates don't match or even feel like the same units installed, they are far too blue to the background grey in my eyes.
 
The TISCS menu system or "ToLiSS Interactive Simulation Control System" is again also exceptional...  it comes with lots of features including the best aircraft SAVE system in X-Plane no doubt (It just works beyond and beyond), aircraft setup and performance tools are also excellent as are the new packaged sounds, the auto door system however has even more doors to correct now than ever before?
 
One other important aspect in the ToLiSS Airbus A340-600 that is worth understanding, is that it is a very flexible aircraft to learn on and fly...  for the professional Airbus devotees out there, then they will revel in the complex systems and deep Airbus Philosophy...  but that is not to say that newcomers to Long-Haul flying are not provided for here either, as this excellent A346 is so well developed.
As that a new pilot to these (Heavy-Extremely long haul) aircraft can also fly the aircraft (and actually) quite easily get a lot of learning and enjoyment out of the machine, and that factor is remarkable in that everyone all along the whole scale here is catered for, and X-Plane has wanted of such an accessable aircraft in this category and capacity for a long time.
 
We always expect brilliance from ToLiSS and any aircraft they develop... This Airbus A340-600 is a mastercraft of a machine, in detail and systems, there are a (very few) areas that are yet still to be covered or touched up, but with projects this size, that is to be expected, and ToLiSS deliver updates very quickly...
But currently this is simply an exceptional release for the X-Plane Simulator, and on this very date the very first A340-300 took its maiden flight on 25th October 1991. We should be so lucky to receive the same in it's -600 guise all these years later...
 
This Airbus A340-600 from ToLiSS is a brilliant Simulation, and simply packed absolutely to the top with features and is certainly a... 
 
"Highly Recommended Purchase".
_________________________________
 

 
Yes! the Airbus A340-600 by ToLiSS is NOW available from the X-Plane.Org Store here :

Airbus A340-600 by ToLiSS
 
Price is US$89.99
 
Most accurate system functionality for any A340 aircraft in the flight simulation world   Fully Featured Detailed FMGS: 3 independent MCDUs providing real life FMGS programming capability 2 independent autopilots SID/STAR and airways support in a fully custom FMGS backbone supporting all A424 leg types (Arc, course or heading to intercept, Radius to Fix, Holdings, etc.) Support for all approach types present in real life A340-600s, including GLS, ILS, LOC backcourse, etc. Full VNAV guidance with TOC, TOD, Deceleration point, speed limits, fuel prediction, etc. Altitude and speed constraints as the real aircraft deals with them Support for Go-Arounds and diversions Nav Aid autotuning Pilot item database, such as pilot fixes, pilot navaids etc. Flight plan saving via the Pilot routes page Equitime point computation and nearest airports page Accurate systems: Fly-by-wire system with reversion between normal law and alternate law 1, alternate law 2 and direct law as per real life logics. Hydraulic model for flight control actuators computing hydraulic flow through the actuators, the control surface hinge moment, maximum feasible deflection etc. This gives realistic surface floating angles if a control surface is lost due to combinations of hydraulic and computer faults. Quantitative hydraulic model considering the maximum hydraulic flows of the different pumps as a function of engine speed. This is most noticeable when flying on RAT or with wind milling engines Quantitative bleed model considering the bleed mass flow for engine start, wing anti-ice air conditioning packs etc. High fidelity fuel system including inflight CG control by pumping fuel to and from the tail tank, fuel jettison, manual and automatic transfers between the different tanks Detailled model of each ADIRU including alignment, small pressure sensor differences between the units, switching of sources for PFDs Fault injection system allowing to trigger over 140 system faults either at a specific point in flight or randomly during a flight phase Cockpit display system simulating the dependency of the displays on the Display management computers resulting in real life display limitations ECAM system with over 30 warning and over 200 caution messages including associated ECAM actions. 3d modelling Detailed 3d cockpit with animated switches Mouse gesture system for interaction with push-pull knobs emulating the motion on the knob with the mouse Detailed cockpit lighting with reading lights, console light, tray table lights etc. 4 class passenger cabin with underfloor lavatories and crew rest Custom particle effects for engine heat trail, Fuel jettison etc. Custom landing gear model for bogey touch down. Usability features Situation loading and saving. It is possible to save the flight at any point in time and resume it another day. This can also be used, e.g., to save the position just before approach and practice just the approach many times Autosaving allows recovering where you left off, should the X-Plane session end unexpectedly Jumping waypoint-to-waypoint through the cruise phase: Shorten your flight to focus on the more interesting parts as you like 4 different startup configuration from Cold and Dark to engines running and ready to go In-screen popup displays or use of x-plane windows for popups Adjustable Wingflex via a slider in the ISCS Possibility to turn the screen reflections on and off Auto-updater by Skunkcraft Included  
Requirements Support for X-Plane 11 and X-Plane 12 when available Windows, Mac or Linux 4 GB VRAM Minimum - 8 GB+ VRAM Recommended Download Size: 1.5GB Release and Review Version 1..0 (October 25th 2020)   The AviTab Plugin IS required for this aircraft   Installation Download of the Airbus A346 is 986mb and it is installed in your Airliner Folder as a 1.85Gb folder. On start up you will have an activation screen presented to enter your Serial Number (Key), and then press the "Activate" bar to authorise the aircraft. I recommend to totally restart the aircraft from your desktop to realign all your plugins and load the aircraft cleanly.     There is extensive full instructions on how to set up the aircraft to your X-Plane settings (commands) and addons (Joysticks/Throttles) and other 3rd Party items in the "ToLiss_AirbusA340-600_SimulationManual".  
Auto-updater by Skunkcraft is Included for any updates and changes
 
Documents There are Three Manuals Included with the package. All are extensive and well laid out with great details   Aircraft manual, which is primarily intended as a reference after the tutorial has been completed. It provides a reference for standard operating procedures, as well as a more in- depth look into the different systems of the aircraft. Simulation manual : Describes installation, and setup of the model as well as usage of the “Interactive Simulation Control System”. Tutorial flight, which provides a step-by-step description of a complete flight from cold & dark to aircraft shut-down after landing. This is the best manual to learn flying the aircraft.  
ToLiss_AirbusA340-600_AircraftManual.pdf ToLiss_AirbusA340-600_SimulationManual.pdf ToLiss_AirbusA340-600_Tutorial _____________________
  Aircraft Review by Stephen Dutton
25th October 2021
Copyright©2021: X-Plane Reviews
 
Review System Specifications: 
Computer System: Windows  - Intel Core i7 6700K CPU 4.00GHz / 64bit -32 Gb single 1067 Mhz DDR4 2133 - ASUS GeForce GTX 1080 8Gb - Samsung Evo 1TB SSD - Sound : Yamaha Speakers YST-M200SP
Software:   - Windows 10 - X-Plane 11.55
Plugins: Global SFD plugin US$30.00 : Environment Engine by xEnviro US$69.90 : RK Apps XPRealistic v2 - US$34.99
Scenery or Aircraft
- EGKK - London Gatwick Airport v2 by Pilot+Plus (X-Plane.OrgStore) - US$21.00
- LLBG - Airport Ben Gurion XP by Aerosoft (X-Plane.OrgStore) - US$24.99 - Full review availble here: Scenery Review : LLBG - Airport Ben Gurion XP by Aerosoft
 
(Disclaimer. All images and text in this review are the work and property of X-PlaneReviews, no sharing or copy of the content is allowed without consent from the author as per copyright conditions) All Rights Reserved
 

 

I have to say, this developer is the worst I have experienced since using x-plane 11, and will not recommend buying any of their stuff. They all have bugs and issues, which I understand comes with new products, but these people are so arrogant about addressing and fixing it, and its so distasteful dealing with them especially when you are paying money for their products. I have purchased two products from them (The A320-200, and the Ground Handling). The A320-200 gives a multitude of problems which they take forever to address (Bare in mind its been 2 years since purchasing this plane and I haven't been able to use it in x-plane 11). The ground handling plugin does not come with any instructions on how to use it (You have to actually go in and configure where to position objects without any information as to how to do it). I would not even give this developer a 1 star on their products. I have had nothing but nightmare with them and their products. :(

News! - Announcement : Boeing 787-9 coming from FlightFactor
 
FlightFactor announced last month that a completely new aircraft to add into the line up of a B777, B767/B757 twins, A350 and the Airbus A320 Ultimate is coming from the development house.
 
This aircraft is the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner and details are noted that the B787 will reach new heights in complexity, usability and have a variety of features. We are also taking our 3D and texturing to the next level with ever more detail in and out of the cockpit.
 
The first cockpit renders have been produced...
 

 
It is the first all new aircraft from FlightFactor since the A320 Ultimate, but FlightFactor note the B787 will be closer to the B757/B767 in design than use the Chromium Embedded Framework (CEF) than on the same A320U aircraft...  either way there will be a lot of expectations and a quality delivery expected on this aircraft as the CEF development was a long and testing one, but also the coming B787 at a study grade level will be a big shot in the arm for X-Plane with the MSFS onslaught.
 
FlightFactor also noted "v2 plans for other models are simultaneously on the way, we just don't want to reveal it all at once! " that will be the v2 Boeing 777 and the v2 A350. I would expect the v2 B777 even before the end of 2020, but not the v2 A350 as the v1 just went with a serious upgrade with version Advanced v1.6 just being released, so that aircraft will certainly be a mid or late next year release, but an upgraded Boeing 777 (the current version is now seriously old) will keep the punters more than happy until the Dreamliner arrives.
 
Overall FlightFactor has noted that with this aircraft it wants to take simulation to the next level....  exciting times.
 
Images courtesy of FlightFactor
______________________________________________________________________
  News by Stephen Dutton
15th September 2020
Copyright©2020: X-Plane Reviews
 
(Disclaimer. All images and text in this review are the work and property of X-PlaneReviews, no sharing or copy of the content is allowed without consent from the author as per copyright conditions)


 

Aircraft Comparison : Boeing 777 vs Airbus A350
 
As you can see by the title, today we are going to compare the Boeing 777 and the Airbus A350 for X-plane 11, both Boeing and Airbus biggest twin-engine aircraft. The Boeing 777-200LR Worldliner is the long range variant from the 777 family, with a maximum range of 8,555 nm (15,843 km). This variant has increased MTOW, three optional auxiliary fuel tanks and wingtips. Equipped with GE90 engines it produces up to 230,000 pounds of thrust combined.  Exactly 60 have already been delivered and its main operators are Delta Air Lines and Emirates, with each one operating 10 aircraft.
 
The A350 XWB is Airbus newest aircraft. The A350-900 has a maximum range of 8,100 (15,000 km) and a MTOW of 280 tons. The -900 was designed to compete with the B777-200ER/LR and 787-10, and eventually giving airlines the option to replace their older A340-300/500 with a newer and more fuel-efficient aircraft. It is equipped with two Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engines each producing up to 84,200 pounds of thrust. The A350 family is considered to a success, with 930 orders and more than 360 already delivered, being its main operators Singapore Airlines (48) and Etihad Airways (54).
 
FlightFactor Aero is well known for their study level aircraft, with system depth being their main focus, and the A320 Ultimate and 767 Professional being a good proof of that. With that in mind you would expect a high-quality add-on from FlightFactor with great systems, so in today's comparison we are going to discover if that is true when we talk about the B777 and A350. Now we are going to decide which long-haul aircraft is the best for you
 
Exterior modeling
Both aircraft will be using custom Delta liveries that can be found in Xplane.Org
 
Boeing 777 Worldliner Professional
At a first look the exterior model is quite nice even though it needs some improvements. The fuselage may look strange with that lines, however you won't notice them most of the time. The windows are transparent, showing the 3d cabin inside.
 

 
Probably the best part of the exterior modeling are the GE90 engines, they look awesome. The fan blades have a very nice glossy touch. The engine running animation is very good too.
 

 
The landing gear and wings are nicely modeled. In general, the exterior is good, even though some improvements are welcome, especially in the fuselage and empennage. However, you won't find many problems if you don't search for them.
 


 
Airbus A350 XWB Advanced
You will notice that in many cases the A350 is the opposite from the B777, and exterior modeling is one of them. Usually the first thing you notice when looking at the outside of a plane is the fuselage, and the A350 fuselage is well done, it has a glossy and reflective surface (due to the livery I am using, the fuselage doesn't appear to be glossy), transparent windows and very nice wingtips.
 


 
Instead of having very good modeled engines like the 777, the A350 engine modeling isn't that great, in fact it is not good or bad, it is the minimum you would expect from a 50 dollars plane. The animations are very nice and realistic, but the engine modeling, especially when it isn't running, is far away from perfection. 
 

 
The wings are nicely modeled and they look very good from the outside, however, they look a bit strange from the inside. The landing gear is great and doesn't appear to have any modeling problem. As you can see, the exterior modeling is good, even though it has its pros and cons, and you won't be disappointed. Like the 777, the A350 also needs some improvements.
 


 
Extra features
In this section we are going to talk about other extra features like doors, ground services and many other things.
 
Starting with ground service. Both aircraft have this functionality, with one being better than the other. You can use the 777 ground service by clicking the menu icon in the top right corner. There you will find the ground services vehicles and objects as the doors open/close buttons and many more.  Note that the ground service is very simple and only the doors indicated by an arrow can be opened.
 

 
The ground service feature is more extensive in the A350, even though it is a bit simple, and can be accessed through the Cpt Outer OIS. It is important to note that all doors can be opened, a great advantage over the 777 which increases the realism. The plane at gate option sets a stair at the 4L door.
 

 
There is one thing that looks strange in both planes, the wing flex. In the 777 is a little bit weird in some situations, like deploying the speed brakes after landing, resulting in some strange wing moves. The A350 wing flex problem is different and you will notice it while taxing and applying brakes. Another problem from the a350 is the wheels animations, which appear to be too slow. The 777 has a kind of engine shake, which is very nice to see from the cabin.
 
Cabin
Both aircraft have a 3d modeled cabin, divided in economy, business and first-class. Usually a 777 economy class is configured in a 3-4-3 configuration, which isn't the case FlightFactor 777, equipped with a 3-3-3 configuration. The business class seems very old, and the first-class has a nice bar.
 

 
The A350 cabin is more modern than the 777 one. The economy is also equipped with a 3-3-3 configuration, with every seat been equipped with IFE screens. Configured in a 2-2-2 configuration the business class has wider and more comfortable seats. The first-class in the A350 is also equipped with a bar, providing great luxury to the passengers.
 


 
There is a very nice detail in both aircraft, which is the crew resting compartment. This is a place that pilots and flight attendants rest when it's the other crew members shift. The first photo is from the 777 and the second from the A350, respectively located in the front and back of the aircraft. 
 
 

 
As you can see, the cabins are pretty well modeled and look nice, but in the end, the A350 cabin looks a bit better.
 
Cockpit
Probably the most important section in this comparison, it's in the cockpit that everything happens. While reading this part of the comparison, you will notice that most of the similarities and opposites are here, starting with the cockpit door, only the 777 has a close/open animation.
 
Boeing 777 Worldliner Professional
Possibly your first thought about the 777 cockpit will be: It seems very outdated. Yes the textures and some of the 3d modeling aren't great,  you can't deny that, but when you start flying the plane they don't seem that bad. The overhead panel is very nice, as well as the aisle stand panel, where the 3d modeling is good and textures aren't bad. 
 


 
The night lighting is very beautiful and distinctive in 777, making it a very nice aircraft to fly at night. Its green color isn't common between other planes. It has many light knobs, this way you can try many lighting configurations before finding the best one for you.
 

 
Airbus A350 XWB Advanced
At first glance, the A350 cockpit may look better than the B777, especially using textures replacement mods, which will be linked at the end of the comparison, however, there are many better-modeled cockpits out there. Everybody knows that the A350 is a very modern plane and all its 6 big screens will attract your attention while flying it. It has the Airbus style overhead panel, but its pedestal is different from any type of aircraft, having some similarities with the A380. The autopilot panel is almost identical to the A380.
 


 
The night is very well done, and gives the plane a modern touch, more than it already is.
 

 
Systems
FlightFactor says that what sets their models apart is the system depth, so we can expect good systems, we can't compare the A350 ou 777 with the A320 due to the price difference, so good systems is the least we should expect.
 
Boeing 777 Worldliner Professional
 
Starting with the FMC. It is fully functional, you can plan your route, insert SIDS and STARS and make performance calculations. The FMC is well done and you shouldn't have problems with it. The only thing that could be improved is individual screens, so you could leave one FMC in the LEGS page and the other at the VNAV page. 
 
As you can imagine, all knobs and switches at the overhead panel work. All the essential switches are working in the aisle stand panel. Last but not least, autopilot, it has some small issues like not turning off the disconnect alarm, but it still manages to take your plane from A to B. Another improvement that needs to be done is adding individual NAV screens, with this feature you would be able to set one screen with map and the other with app, using different ranges.
 

 
With that in mind we can conclude that the 777 systems aren't perfect, but still in a high standard just like expected. Yes, they need some improvements, but still manage to have the hard work done.
 
Airbus A350 XWB Advanced
Probably the most known issue in the A350 systems is the FMC, where you can't insert SIDS and STARs. This is the main problem involving the A350 but there is a tool that solves this problem. It is named SimpleFMC and when used in conjunction with Simbrief flight planning tool, will give you the ability to completely program your route.

As you can see, the A350 has some issues involving route programming, even though it can be simply solved and FlightFactor announced an update to fix that (will talk more about this update later). However, performance calculations and weight configuration is very complete in the A350. The best way to do that is by using the Cpt Outer OIS screen.

Almost all switches and knobs work, both in overhead panel and pedestal. The autopilot works perfectly and you shouldn't expect any problem related to it. It is important to note that the taxi camera isn't working.
We can conclude that none of the aircraft systems is perfect. At the moment, the 777 systems are slightly ahead, which gives you the feeling of a more complete aircraft. However, the A350 is a newer plane, leaving many opportunities to improve and add many new features, and if this happens, the A350 systems may get better and more advanced than the 777 systems.
Sounds
Each aircraft has its particularities. Generally we can assume that the 777 are better than the A350 sounds, especially when you talk about the engines.
 
Starting with cockpits sounds. Both aircraft have nice sounds here, probably the A350 ones are a bit better, even though none of them is bad. However, when we start talking about the cabin sounds, you may get disappointed. They are the same all the time, it doesn't matter if you are in the front or back of the plane, they won't change. The flaps and landing gear operation sounds are nice, just what you would expect.
 
The engine sounds are the ones you will most notice while flying a plane, and they are the reason for the 777 have better sounds than the A350. While you are in the cockpit or cabin, both planes have good sounds, even though they could be way better. But when you change for the outside view you will instantly notice the difference. While both engines are idle you already can tell a difference, you may think that this is obvious because they are different engines, but the difference is already there. However, things start to get better when you accelerate them, both sound nice, maybe a little better in the 777, but when the engines are at full power you will notice that the A350 isn't very nice, emitting a low and kinda soft noise. The 777 is the complete opposite, at full power the engines are screaming and give you the feeling that you flying the real aircraft.
 
Blue Sky Star, most known as BSS, provides a sound pack for the 777 at the price of 20 dollars, increasing your immersion with the aircraft. Will be linked at the end.
 
Other features
Here I will list things I didn't mention yet.
 
Checklist: Both aircraft have a checklist that tells you exactly what you should do.
 

 
Cabin Announcements: You will find this feature in both aircraft. There are more than 20 default announcements.
 

 
Pushback: This feature is implemented in both planes, however, I recommend using the Better Pushback plugin.
 
Conclusion
As I said earlier, we would find the best long-haul aircraft for you. After reading my comparison you may have already decided the best one for you, but if you still can't choose one I will help by listing the main features.
 
Boeing 777 Worldliner Professional
-Very well modeled engines
-Fuselage is good, but needs improvements
-Has 3d cabin
-Cockpit a little bit dated
-Good systems
-Better sounds (BSS package available)
-Price: $59,95
 
Airbus A350 XWB Advanced
-Better modeled fuselage
-Beautiful 3d cabin
-Better cockpit textures (using texture replaceament mod)
-Ok systems
-Good cockpit sounds, engines could be better
-Price: $49,95
 
Note that FlightFactor said that would release an update for A350 this month and it would include the implementation of SIDS and STARS as well as a huge graphical improvement. This update would make the A350 way better. It would be nice to see BSS making a sound package for the A350, it would take the aircraft to a pretty high standard.
 
If after all this you can't decide yet, you should take my advice. Both aircraft are equaly good, each one has pros and cons, and the best thing you could do is: buy the one you like more in real life, it is simple. Notice that you won't be disappointed with these two great aircraft by Flight Factor.
 
I won't tell my personal choice because that may induct you.
 

 
Greetings
Thank you for reading this comparison! Feel free to leave your comment.
 
This is my first review for this incredible site that has been making the best reviews for X-plane for a long time.
 
I want to thank Stephen for giving me this incredible opportunity and providing everything I needed to make the comparison.
______________________________________________________________________
 

 
Both aircraft are available in X-Plane.Org Store here:
 
Boeing 777 Worldliner Professional
 
Price is US$59,95
 
Features:
Officially licensed By the Boeing © Corporation Accurate dimensions based on 2D and 3D drawings supplied by Boeing © Professional systems - Fly the 777 like a pro
Systems designed to work like the thing - Accurate flight model tuned by pilots - Comprehensive Manuals Fully Functional FMS - Plan your routes like a real pilot
Custom designed Flight Management Computer, integrated with other plane systems Custom programmed LNAV logic for terminal procedures Custom designed Navigation Display Tterminal procedure database with RNAV approaches and transitions VNAV managed climbs and descends Takeoff and approach speed calculation Custom autopilot modes for autoland Optimum cruise performance and step climb calculation True-to-life radio navigation with procedural-, route-, and navigation support auto-tuning Custom programmed FMC navigation using GPS-, radio- or inertial navigation with individual position errors and management of actual and required navigation performance Magnetic, true and polar grid course reference Alternate airports, diversion and arrival management Ground proximity warning system using real sounds FMC can be used on external touchscreen or tablet, optimized for the new iPad Incredible 3D modeling - the best eye-candy
Amazing virtual cockpit with crisp details - Dynamic reflections Custom 3D sounds and Announcements Add-ons: Push-back truck, Fuel Truck, Passenger bus and Emergency slides ... On-Screen Menus: Configuration and loading menu, Quick Zoom  Superb night lighting in cockpit. Requirements
 
X-Plane 11 or X-Plane 10.50+ -  64 bit required Windows, Vista, 7 / 8/ 10 (64 bits) or MAC OS 10.10 (or higher - OSX 10.9 will not work), Linux Ubuntu 14.04LTS or compatible (older versions are not supported)
2GB VRAM - (4GB VRAM Recommended)- 1Gb available hard disk space
Current version : 1.9.12 (last updated Jan 30th 2018) ___________________________   Airbus A350 XWB Advanced   Price is US$49,95   Features: Superb 3D Modeling Complete Virtual cockpit in high-resolution Fully animated in and out -High-Resolution Textures Ground equipment support including stairs, loaders, passenger buses, GPUs etc. 3D people inside and outside the plane  - Nicely modeled cabin Scroll wheel support for switch manipulation Advanced Systems Fully customized aircraft systems: electric, hydraulic, air conditioning, ADIRU Fully customized ECAM monitoring system with all screens and functions included Fully functional airbus style alert system with multiple status and procedural lists Fully functional interactive airbus electronic checklist system Airbus A350/A380 unique interfaces with dozens of screens and hundreds of function Fully customized and unique MFD (multifunctional display) system with most of flight planning pages implemented in a new graphical interface, as well as FCU and radio backups just like on the real plane Full OIS screen system with options, ground equipment control, passenger and cargo loading, and even a full user's  manual inside the plane. Old style MCDU and fully functional aux instruments as backup Custom failures Advanced  Fly-by-Wire and Flight systems Full FBW with Highly realistic implementation of the Airbus normal laws by QPAC -the most realistic fly-by-wire implementation for desktop flight simulation. Basic SID/STAR implementation using X-plane fms-files that you can create yourself and share with the community. "What you see is what you fly" flight path indication on the ND (i.e. curved trajectories with the turn radius properly computed based on speed and angular turn distance.) Implementation of all Airbus AP modes, except some non-precision approach modes (Selected and managed modes, speed constraints respected, "at or below" constraints in phase climb, "at or above" constraints in phase descent.) Full PFD and ND displays with fully independent display and different data sources for the captain and copilot displays. Independent autopilots Custom 3D Sounds Custom 3D stereo engine sound system Hundreds of system and in-cockpit sounds Interactive flight attendant helper Seven Liveries included in the package Airbus Carbon, Air France, Airbus House colors, Qatar, Lufthansa, United Airlines Requirements
X-Plane 11 (latest version) Windows - Mac - Linux - 64bit Operating System Required 1Gb+ VRAM Minimum, 2Gb+ VRAM Minimum. 8Gb RAM Version : 1.5.2 (last updated Apr 24th, 2019) ________________________________________   Aircraft Comparison by Bernardo Casa
21st April 2020
Copyright©2020: X-PlaneReviews   Review System Specifications: Computer System: Intel Core I5-9600K 4,30GHz / 2x8 Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro 3200MHz - Gigabyte RTX 2070 - Z390 Aorus Master - Kingston A1000M.2 SSD 240GB Software:   - Windows 10 - X-Plane  11.41
Addons: Logitech Pro Flight Yoke/Pedals/Throttle Quadrant - Logitech Extreme 3d Pro Joystick - Sound: Samsung Home Theater System J5500WK
Plugins:  Environment Engine v1.13 by xEnviro US$69,90
-Scenery Review : Seattle City XP by Drzewiecki Design - Scenery Review : Seattle Airports XP by Drzewiecki Design
-KLAX - Los Angeles International 1.01 by MisterX6 (X-Plane.Org) Freeware
-SBGL - by AxScenery (AxScenery) Freeware
-A350 cockpit textures replacement (X-Plane.Org) Freeware
-Better Pushback (GitHub) Freeware
 
(Disclaimer. All images and text in this review are the work and property of X-PlaneReviews, no sharing or copy of the content is allowed without consent from the author as per copyright conditions)
 

 
 

Aircraft Review : Airbus A310-304 by CremonaSoft
 
Aviation in the 80s experienced many changes like the addition of new aircraft and rule modifications, such as ETOPS or Extended-range Twin-engine Operational Performance Standards. For those who don't know what ETOPS is, the shortest way to describe it is the maximum time in distance a twin-engine aircraft can be from an airport. Due to these regulations, most long-haul routes were dominated by quad and Trijet airlines, however, this started to change with the introduction of some fundamental aircraft. 
 
In the late 70s, Airbus presented their A300, the first wide-body twin-engine airliner. Equipped with the JT9D or the iconic CF-6, it became a huge success especially due to its low fuel consumption when compared to the tri and quad jet airliners. A few years later (1982) the Airbus A310 made its first flight, being introduced one year later with SwissAir. Airbus produced the A310 due to a high demand for an aircraft smaller than the A300, which resulted in a greater range when compared to its predecessor. One of the A310 main characteristics was the introduction of a two-crew glass cockpit, which was later adopted by the A300 newer versions and the Fly-by-wire technology. The A310 had two versions, 200 and 300, however, we will only talk about the 300, the version which was designed for X-Plane. Equipped with two JT9D or PW4000 or even the CF6, the engines could produce from 45,800 pounds of thrust up to 57,900lbf. With a wingspan of 43.9m and a fuselage length of 46.66m, the A310-300 can fly up to 5,150nm. Its capacity can reach 280 passengers in a 3-3-3 configuration, as well as 15 LD3 containers. The A310-300 has an MTOW of 164,000kg and a ceiling of 41,000ft.
 
Older aircraft are starting to get more and more relevant in the X-Plane community, especially airliners. In the last years, we could see the improvement and releases of quite a few high-quality aircraft, like the FlyJSim 727 and 737v3, the new A300 by iniBuilds as well as the MD-80pro and the upcoming MD-11. CremonaSoft released their version of the A310 in October 2018, but sadly the product was way under the expectations. No review related to this add-on has been posted here and after some updates, we taught it was the right moment to post a review.
 
Airbus A310-304 by CremonaSoft
First of all, this aircraft, like many others, is still in development. You have to keep this in your mind, otherwise you may think this is a piece of crap. As always, let's start with the exterior modeling and textures, usually the first two things you notice when looking at an aircraft. As you can already tell, exterior modeling isn't the best part of this add-on, actually, it is quite under the average for an aircraft of its price. The modeling is good in some areas but pretty bad in others. You will spend, or at least should, more time inside the cockpit than outside cameras, so the exterior shouldn't bother you that much.
 

 
The vertical and horizontal stabilizers are well modeled, just like wings, which aren't the best in X-Plane but doesn't look that bad. The landing gear is ok, even though it could be way better texturized and more detailed, the 3D modeling doesn't seem to have any problem. It does have some metallic details, but as said before, the textures could be better. The tires modeling is quite boring, quite unrealistic too, as well as the textures, which are extremely basic.
 

 
The fuselage is quite complex, because in the same way I like it, I don't like it. I don't see any big problem with, excluding the very poor textures, it does have the shape of the A310 but there something that simply removes the realism. Maybe the connection between wings and fuselage, the weird shapes next to the stabilizers, or the weird lines all around the fuselage, which can be also found in the FF777. Sometimes, especially when looking from the front, the fuselage appears to be too large and rounded when compared to the real plane. I don't know why, but the fuselage seems to be missing something, there isn't any beauty in it, and that may be the problem.
 

 
The real plane, like I said before, could be equipped with three engine variants, two Pratt & Whitney options, and one General Electric. CremonaSoft decided to only model the GE engine, but this isn't a big problem because according to Planespotters.net, from all 37 A310 that are still flying, only 4 are equipped with PW engines. 
 
The engines are fine. The modeling isn't perfect but manages to be a good replica from the real one. However, as you could imagine, the textures are far away from being good, especially in the pylon area. Generally, the engine is ok, but needs some improvements
 

 
Cabin
The A310 by CremonaSoft does have a 3D modeled cabin, and its quality is quite controversial. The A310 cabin length is one meter shorter than the A321, 33.25m, and the same cabin width when compared to the A330-200, 5.28m. The A310 maximum capacity is 280 seats, but the average seating is from 190 to 230 seats. The cabin in the CremonaSoft A310 is modeled in a 3-3-3 configuration, with the last rows being 2-3-2 due to fuselage limitations.
 

 
The cabin has three major problems. First, the seats texturing is very basic, which makes the good 3D modeling irrelevant. Second and probably worst, there are no galleys, and this is a shame because cheaper planes like SSG E-170/195 and X-Crafts E145 have some pretty interesting galleys, while this aircraft has just empty spaces. The third is more sound-related when you get close to the walls the outside sounds replace the interior sound, making your life quite harder to set good cameras without hearing the outside sounds (at least for someone like me who likes to have passenger views cameras), but nothing you should stress about.
 

 
As I said in the first paragraph of the cabin section, the cabin quality is quite controversial, but until now I mostly talked about bad things. However, I must say that this aircraft has one of the most, if not the most, beautiful ceiling and baggage bins in all X-Plane. The modeling is extremely sharp and the texturing is very good in some areas like the seatbelts signs, which turns on and off, as well as in the bins. I was extremely surprised by the quality of those baggage bins. Another good thing in the cabin is the 3D modeling, which is simple but well executed.
 

 
As you could see, the cabin has some weak and strong points, however, due to the number and importance of the weak points, the good aspects are a little bit diminished . Probably the best and easier way to fix those problems is by adding high-quality textures in the seats, that combined with the relatively good modeling would result in a way more interesting cabin. Afterward, an addition of galleys would be pretty interesting.
 
Cockpit
Generally, the cockpit is quite good, especially when looking at the 3D modeling. It's a pretty faithful representation of the A310 cockpit, most switches, buttons and systems are in the correct locations. Just like the A300, the Airbus A310 is also equipped with a yoke, differently from the newer planes which are produced with sidesticks.
 
 

 
Most of the airliners today are equipped with the so-called full glass cockpit, but the Airbus A310 still uses the well-known steam gauges to monitor the engine parameters. As I said earlier, the A310 introduced the EFIS technology for Airbus which would be later adopted in the A300-600 and evolved in the A320. It's pretty nice to see the LCD screens working together with the gauges, the transition between two eras in aviation.
 

 
Like I said before, the cockpit 3D modeling is pretty nice, with sharp and accurate corners, however, the textures, like in all this add-on, are under the expectations. Even though we have a beautiful modeling and great reflections, the poor textures bring the whole cockpit to an inferior quality level. That's really sad because you can't find this sharp modeling in many add-ons, especially in this price range.
 

 
CremonaSfot has added two nice details their plane, the ability to open the cockpit windows as well as the interactive jump seat. In one of the recent updates, the Avitab compatibility was also added to the aircraft. In order to use the tablet, you will need to click in the small button which is shown in the photo.
 

 
One of the most important things in an aircraft is the systems, and sometimes designers who don't have an extremely beautiful aircraft, compensate that downside with high-end systems. Toliss is a good example, the modeling is far away from being perfect, but the top-notch systems give them the post of one of the best designers. The systems in this add-on are actually quite good, and despite the fact they can't be considered study level,  there's quite a system depth. In its release the systems were awful, but after some updates, the systems got way better. Even though they need improvements, the AP is completely functional, at least I didn't see anything missing, the navigation apparells are working as well as all the ECAM showing systems.
 

 
The way things happen here in the A310 is quite different from what we are used to seeing in an Airbus, especially in the overhead panel. However, I will cover a step-by-step tutorial later in this review. As you could see, there is a custom FMS, another great system feature of this aircraft. Generally, we can conclude that the modeling and systems are pretty strong points with this aircraft, but the terrible textures seem to take over the cockpit and make it look worse than what it really is.
 

 
Setting up the Airbus A310-304
In this section of the review, I will show you how to basically start the plane. In order to learn all or at most of its functionalities you will need to read the several manuals that are included with the aircraft. There you will be able to learn most of the plane resources and features, as well as a startup process similar to what is done in real life.
 
The flight that we are going to recreate is the Air Transat 125, departing from Calgary heading to Montreal. This route is now being operated by the new A321NEO, but today we are going to use the A310. 
 
Beautiful sunrise here in Calgary, it's currently 7:25 a.m, and approximately 12°C. Today we are going to transport 176 passengers and 2.7 tons of cargo, resulting in a total payload weight of 20.1 tons, quite light for the A310. The estimated flight time is a little less than 4 hours, a considerable time to cross most of Canada. Let's start the procedures by entering the cockpit.
 

 
We won't follow the Standard Operating Procedures, SOP, manual step by step in this short tutorial, but you can easily access it by looking at the manuals folder. First of all, we need to power up the aircraft, so in order to do that, we need to turn all the three batteries on and use the external power. After that, you should turn your screens bright on and after set the three IRS switches to NAV position.
 

 
Now that your aircraft has stable electric power, you can turn on the required lights as well as the seatbelts signs and test the anti-fire system. Before heading to the FMS I suggest you to load the aircraft. This action needs to be performed by the X-Plane load tab because there is no aircraft menu. This would be a nice addition to the add-on, CremonaSoft could do something similar to the Toliss aircraft menu, there you can set the loading details as well as performance calculations.
 

 
Now that your plane is loaded, let's head to the FMS. If you are used to the Airbus FMS system in aircraft like the A320 and A330 families, you will notice that this FMS works exactly the same way. First, INIT page, there you should set your departing and arriving airports, as well as click in align IRS and set your cruise flight level. I didn't find any cost index information on SimBrief, so I will leave it as default 50. Click on Next Page and set your fuel/load information.  Sorry for the low-res photos but there is no way to make them look better.
 

 
Flight Plan page and now we must set our route. As this can take some time, I won't show you all the steps, but you can easily find many tutorials on YouTube, but don't worry, it's very easy and intuitive. Just be aware that, differently from an A320, you need set your STAR info by the last waypoint menu, not airport. With our route set, we need to go to the Takeoff/Approach page.
 

 
The Takeoff/Approach page is equivalent to the PERF page in the A320, however, you don't need to set any information here, they will automatically appear when you set your flaps to T/O position. Another feature that you can use in the FMS is located in the REF page, there you can open both passanger and cargo doors.
 

 
Well, route and performance ready, let's continue the startup process. Turn on your Yaw Damper, ATS and Pitch Trim switches, click in the electric pump green and start the APU. Make sure to have the fuel pumps on before starting the auxiliary power unit. After changing the APU switch to on position, the ECAM will automatically change to the APU page. Now you can click in the start switch, and after the APU is running, an Available light will appear. You can monitor all this information through the ECAM screen and turn on the APU bleed as well.
 

 
Before calling our pushback truck we must make sure that we have all doors closed, beacon light on, MAX auto brake, hydraulic pumps, anti-ice system and AP panel set. You can also set a desired flex temp. Now that we are ready, let's call it and then start up the engines.
 

 
Now that the pushback truck is connected, let's start the engines. Set your ENG Start knob to Start A or B, click in the START 2 button, wait for 25% N2 RPM and set the HP VALVE ENG 2 to on. Repeat the process with the other engine. In my opinion, the engines seem to start too fast, in less than 15 you already have them in idle, CremonaSoft should take a look at it and rework its performance.  Flaps 15, now you can see the v-speeds in the FMS, so you should the V2 + 15 in the AP. Taxi lights and transponder on, let's start taxiing.
 

 
We will be departing in the runway 17L today, going direct to LOMLO. Quite a long way to our runway, this means more time to get the best, or at least try, angles for the photos. Just some few more minutes and we will be departing.
 

 
Clear to takeoff, N1 to 40% and TOGA. The engine fastly builds up power and in a few seconds, we are accelerating. The v-speeds in the A310 are quite higher than in other planes but the engines have a lot of power available. Actually, they have so much power that they seem to be a bit overpowered. I expect that CremonaSoft fix this little issue, which causes the plane accelerates too fast, even when it is loaded with the maximum weight. 
 
Climb thrust and bye-bye Calgary, next destination, Montreal. The plane can easily keep a climb rate of 2500ft/min, so we shouldn't take much longer to reach the cruising altitude.
 

 
I've noticed two things in the wings during my test flights. First, there is no wing flex, even in stronger turbulences, I didn't notice any movement in the wings. Second, the wings doesn't go up. What I want to say is that usually, due to the applied forces, the wings flex up during flight, but in the CremonaSoft A310 they stay like in the ground. This gives the plane a strange look, especially during climb. Well, at least the sight from up here is pretty beautiful. A little bit more than 3 hours and we will be approaching Montreal.
 

 
Now that we've started our descent, we must make sure that some things are ready. Right now we only have to check our ILS frequency/course, as well as our vertical deviation. The FMS should now show our approach speeds, and you should select your approach flaps in the indicated switch. As we get closer to the airport we need our altimeter and auto brake to be set, and spoilers armed.
 

 
Runway at sight, we should already have our flaps and landing gear down. As we have good visibility I will also turn the autopilot off, just remember to hit the red button in the yoke in order to turn off the AP disc alarm. Final seconds before landing and the plane feels like a big aircraft, with slow and heavy movements, I like it.
 

 
And touchdown, welcome to Montreal. The plane is very easy to control, with smooth and slow reactions, perfect for a top-notch landing. Spoilers up and reverse open, it's now time to stop. Montreal is the second-most populous city in Canada and Air Transat operations base, situated in the province of Quebec, this city is in my "To be visited" list of cities around the world.
 

 
Clearly, the aircraft has its downsides, but I really enjoy flying it. Yes, it still needs some refinements, however, the path CremonaSoft is following has a good future. In my opinion, the engine performance could be reworked, they seem a bit overpowered, but the general physics are pretty good. If the next session I am going to talk about wasn't so bad, this plane wouldn't be as bad as people say it is.
 
------------------------------------------------
 
Sounds
Well, I'll be honest, the sounds are way under the expectations. Starting with the engines, sincerely, I am very disappointed. In case you found the ignition and spool up sounds bad, they won't get much better at full thrust. The APU sounds are the exact same from the default Cirrus SF50 engine, but at least you have them. Maybe the best sounds are the switches, knobs and buttons sounds, as well as the flaps. Despite that, the sounds could be completely redone. 
 

 
Lighting
The lighting in the CremonaSoft is very simple but effective, you won't be impressed in the same way that you won't have any with it. Despite the fact that you have very few options, the only downside I can see here is the cabin light, which isn't adjustable and makes the cabin textures look a bit weird. 
 

 
The Storm switch intensifies the current lighting and also add the panel flood lights. I really enjoy using it.
 


Last but not least, we have the well-known dome light, which differs from the newer Airbus aircraft, the A310 has only one dome light position; and reading light, which can illuminate any desired location in the cockpit.
 

 
Moving on to the exterior lights, as you would expect from a payware aircraft, they are all there, landing, logo, taxi, strobes... Nice to see the individual runway turnoff lights, as I can remember they operate together at the A320. The external lights are actually pretty strong, so it will be quite hard to not see the runway during your approach.
 


 
Honestly, this aircraft looks pretty nice at golden hours, especially because you can still clearly see the 3D modeling but the textures aren't appearing that much. Here are some nice photos of these moments. 
 

 
Liveries
CremonaSoft A310 has four more liveries, the classic Airbus house, AirJamaica, S7 Airlines and the Luftwaffe MRTT livery, which fits the A310 very well. The aircraft still doesn't have a paint kit, this means you can't create your own liveries, however, the designer said that this feature will be incorporated soon. I can't wait to see some nice custom liveries for the A310.
 

 
Summary
Well, everything must end somewhere, and here finishes our review. CremonaSoft A310 is a quite complicated product with bad reviews on its back, and sincerely, it's really hard to recommend this add-on for you. Yes, it has some good qualities like the engine and cockpit modeling, as well as the system, which in my opinion, are pretty solid for an aircraft at this price range. We could all see that the designer spent a lot of effort into fixing and improving the systems, but all that isn't enough to make me say this is a good aircraft.
 
Yes, this aircraft is under development by the author, and yes, they have made quite big improvements on it, but there are still many downsides. The Magknight 787 another plane under development, and even though it has its problems, I could easily recommend it for you. Differently from the A310, the 787, and even with a worse cockpit modeling, is funnier and more pleasant to fly. In my opinion that is caused due to the sounds, because many times good sounds make a bad aircraft enjoyable, so they might be the salvation for the A310.
 
I know, it isn't easy to develop an aircraft for a simulator, especially a plane that is almost no longer in use, this usually means a lower demand resulting in a smaller budget for the designer. However, producing a product with so many downsides won't help you too much with sales. My suggestion to CremonaSoft is very specific: First, add some enthusiastic sounds for things like batteries, ext power, A/C, flaps and especially engines. Just this will make the aircraft way better. After that you can use current the good 3D cockpit modeling and apply better textures, they don't need to be perfect, just acceptable, your plane isn't that expensive. Leave the systems how they are, the way they are working is completely fine, even better than planes like JarA330 and FF777. After all that is done, your aircraft will be way better, and will start selling more, at least that's what I wish. Last, you should completely redesign the exterior, except the engines which are fine. It will take some time, yes, but if manage to do all that I've said before, your aircraft will be pretty damn nice. 
 
Since its release, the A310 received many big updates, especially in the last 4 months. This is nice to see because sometimes designers release their products and simply abandon them by not releasing updates or significant changes. I can see a good future for this aircraft, however, it won't be easy, a lot of time is required to take this aircraft to a good quality level.
 
Quite good interior modeling and pretty nice systems are the main highlights, however, the bad textures and sounds, combined with the poor general exterior modeling/textures attract more attention. The other main problem is the fact that it's very hard to spot an A310 flying today, this means that many people are no longer interested in acquiring the add-on. However, this isn't an excuse because FlyJSim 727 and 737 are even older in real life and very popular in X-Plane. My final answer is, just buy the CremonaSoft A310 right now in case you're a great fan of the Airbus in real life, otherwise, wait for a few more updates. I can see a good plane in the future, and it might not take too long.
 
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The Airbus A310-304 v1.6.1 by CremonaSoft is available Changelog at the X-Plane.Org Store
 
Airbus A310-304 by CramonaSoft
 
Price is US$49.95
 
Features:
 
Flight Characteristics: Accurate weight distribution. Nice flight model.  
3D Model: Accurate, high quality external models for fuselage, wings, stabilizers and engines- derived from measurements for the real aircraft. All control surfaces (slats, flaps, ailerons, spoilers, rudder, elevators, THS) accurately animated. Engine reverser animations. Detailed landing gear with claw angle and full animation. Open/close animations for both cockpit windows and all exterior doors. Highly detailed 3D cockpit with super-sharp 4K+ textures and 3D lighting. Detailed 3D gauges, counters, switches and knobs with animations. Metallic surface and glass reflection effects in X-Plane 11 render engine. Detailed flight control and throttle animations. Crisp 3D cabin. Super-sharp external textures. Accurate 3D reproduction of all external aircraft lighting.  
Systems: Custom APU start-up and running parameters. Custom electrical system with AC/DC BUS simulation logic. Custom pneumatic system with bleed-air logic. Cabin temperature simulation. Hydraulic system logic simulation. Fuel system logic simulation. Engine start and crank (windmill). Complete exterior lighting control. Slats/flaps operation with accurate timings. Takeoff configuration test system. Landing gear operation with accurate timings and gear status test. Brake ‘Accu Press’ logic simulation. Pitch (with trim wheel animation), aileron and rudder trim. Weather RADAR.  
Engines: General Electric CF6-80C2, with realistic performance and custom engine sound.  
Custom Electronics: Airbus flight phase logic implementation. Flight warning computer implementation, with aural warnings and decision height + altitude callouts (integrated into the flight phase logic).  
Changelog
ChangeLog.txt
 
Requirements
X-Plane 11
Windows only 4Gb VRAM Minimum - 8Gb+ VRAM Recommended Current version: 1.6.1 (July 30th 2020)   --------------------------------------------   Aircraft Review by Bernardo Pierdoná Casa
25th August 2020
Copyright©2020: X-PlaneReviews   Review System Specifications: Computer System: Intel Core I5-9600K 4,30GHz / 4x8 Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro 3200MHz - Gigabyte RTX 2070 - Z390 Aorus Master - Kingston A1000M.2 SSD 240GB Software:   - Windows 10 - X-Plane  11.41
Addons: Logitech Pro Flight Yoke/Pedals/Throttle Quadrant - Logitech Extreme 3d Pro Joystick - Sound: Samsung Home Theater System J5500WK
Plugins:  Environment Engine v1.13 by xEnviro US$69,90 Traffic: Traffic Global by JustFlight US$52.99
Scenery and Aircraft
-CYYC - Calgary International Airport by Canada4Xplane (X-Plane.Org) - Free
 
(Disclaimer. All images and text in this review are the work and property of X-PlaneReviews, no sharing or copy of the content is allowed without consent from the author as per copyright conditions)
 

Install info is great but how the heck do you uninstall it?

I am disappointed that so many users don't get the issue that although the A321 looks the same as the A319 and yes they use a lot of the same components, the actual work and time required to put each together is about the same (it is not what you see modeling wise that counts here), NO there is not going to be a discount and NO why should the developer after all his hard work do so anyway, this is just X-Plane being very mean again and not supporting the simulator or their developers. The aircraft is worth it's full value!

Aircraft Update : Airbus A350-900 XWB Advanced v1.6 by FlightFactor/SteptoSky
 
Since the earliest days you mostly saw FlightFactor Aero as a Boeing developer, there was the Boeing 777, then the Boeing 757 and then the Boeing 767... then out of the blue came an Airbus in the Airbus A350-900 XWB. But right from the first version of this aircraft it never felt... well very Airbus? Where as all the Boeings felt and flew like Boeings. Since the A350 FlightFactor went on to do another Airbus in the A320 Ultimate, which DOES feel like an Airbus and is still the best Airbus in X-Plane.
 
But the FlightFactor A350XWB was a really odd aircraft from the start? Excellent on the external, the A350 always looked very nice in X-Plane. The clever six display layout with X input system is also really clever and is well done (early versions were however extremely buggy) and the airbus system depth is very good. So overall it should have been perfect for me as I like to fly Airbuses more than Boeings...  but I never ever really fell in love with FlightFactor's A350XWB?
 
Which is really odd because Long-Haul is still my favorite form of flying and also the A350 XWB is the latest of the New-Gen aircraft and X-Plane is very short of Long-Haul airlines and certainly of the New-Gen class. The FlightFactor A350 should of very easily ticked off every box for me, but in all honestly it left me cold and I rarely flew the aircraft, even the last time departing Barcelona I even stopped mid-flight (I very rarely abandon flights) because I was really not liking it at all?
 
Why? well that is a good question...  the first one in the most obvious. The FF A350 didn't have SID/STARs and the FMS was in reality the default FMS undercover. And this missing aspect really was the biggest complaint, but to be fair the A350XWB FMS (Flight Management Systems) is quite complicated and very different in input from either a Boeing and even another Airbus as only the bigger A380 has the same input and navigation system. Poor Sounds didn't help either and they were really awful, and the cockpit textures were weird in a non-Airbus way, and the aircraft always felt buggy, it never seemed to come together as a whole or as a linear simulation, it was an aircraft you simply couldn't love.
 
The news of a v2.0 of the FlightFactor A350 was very welcome, but it became confusing in the light that the next update in v1.6.0 would be next and also include the infamous missing SID/STAR intergration, my guessing (wrongly) would that the SID/STAR intergration would only happen with the full new version of v2.0 (In selling the new version of the aircraft)...  The surprise is that the SID/STAR is in this update v1.6.0 version, so that will be a free update, the better news is that the FMS  is now really, really good...  far better than I expected and to the point even brilliant.
 

 
Nothing wrong with the way the A350 XWB looks, but this is still the v1.0 aircraft and in a few areas the v1.0 has a few niggles, the wings do have flex, but in a weird stiff flexy way, so the wing flex still looks old and outdated, and the cabin is still also old and very dated as well.
 

 
A worthwhile download is the new Lufthansa A350 livery by fscabral as the cabin textures have been redone and the results seriously lift the cabin from the really drab to the really nice...  and yes this cabin layout should be the default.
 


 
Note in that the cabin lighting is controlled from the EFB (OIS/AIRPLANE/CABIN settings), lighting and sound settings settings are currently off at default.
 
Ground support still has those cold war Russian vehicles, and you shake your head why as all the FlightFactor Boeings now have the updated western styled vehicles. But thankfully where it counts in the air the A350 XWB still looks very nice.
 
Airbus 350 XWB v1.6
We will come to the big event in a moment, but first unlike other areas of the A350 the cockpit has had a very nice spruce up of the textures.  The original cockpit textures were a darker Airbus blue with some wear around the edges, but somehow it didn't feel right in context as the A350 is the most modern of the Airbus fleet? These textures are now in a far lighter blue/grey Airbussy feel and are far better to the current state of a A350 XWB.
 

 
The panels are still very left side pilot focused, with the right position more fixed with no display cycle active, the far right display is also fixed to a users guide page. The range and baro adjustments however do work, so it is not impossible to fly from the right seat as you can flip the FMS screen to the right middle display setting, but with no access to the menu sections unless again you move the menu selection to the middle screen.
 

 
Glareshield textures are lovely, modern and very nice. Gone are the wheat coloured seats to be replaced by a very not corporate look of "stars"? A very unusual choice, but they do look better than the wheat seats with far more cloth and ripple detail..
 

 
FMS - Flight Management System
The most important and the most welcome aspect of this v1.6 update is the intergration of SID/STARS into the FMS navigation, not only is SID/STAR routing now available, but it is also in how well the system has actually been done here is the biggest factor.
 
Pilot left station is very good with most items and displays active and interactive. FlightFactor recreated the X pointer system for use on A350 displays and although very buggy in the early days (the X pointer would stray badly out of the display limits) it is now a very robust system that works well.
 

 
There are two drop down menus tight together top left of the MFD (Multi-Functional Display). Top one selects your FMS route (Sorry there is still only one FMS1 route available) and below to start a new route then select INIT from the lower menu.
 

 
If you are used to the usual FMS via a left or right button input key, then you will have to adjust to this different pointer system. There are a few rules to know... one is that everything is via an input and menu selection, so you select the box with the X pointer (arrowed below left)...
 

 
...  put the X pointer over the box you want to input into and you get a green dash line and a flashing cursor, the display then also becomes "KEYBOARD FOCUSED" for direct key input...  Type in your data, in this case Nairobi Airport "HKJK", but most IMPORTANT is to re-click to lock the data in!  This is usually placed over the very first letter in the box with the pointer, if the "Keyboard Focus" line goes out and the input text sets a little to the right...   then it is correctly inputted (locked in).
 

 
Add in your INIT details...  Flight Number, From (HKJK) to (EGLL) Alternative (EGCC) and Cruise FL (Flight Level) and Cruise (CRZ) Temp ºC.
 

 
DEP and ARR locations set it is now time to do the flightplan, you access the flightplan via the "ACTIVE" menu and select F-PLN.
 
Now comes the new SID (Standard Instrument Departures) selection...  Press the departure airport (HKJK) and up comes a menu, select on the menu "DEPARTURE".
 

 
Drop down menus give selection for RWY (Runway), SID and TRANS....
 

 
...  in my case it is RWY 24, SID "IBRA3D" and TRANS "KAMAS", all selections are then shown in the above Selected Departure box.
 
Go back to the F-PLN and the SID departure route (waypoints) are now completed.
 

 
Next waypoint (WPT) or AIRWAY is inserted in a similar way. 
 
Just select the last waypoint and select via thew menu either "INSERT NEXT WPT" or "AIRWAYS".
 


 
For to "Insert Next Wpt" you select the selection box and insert the waypoint name (TUFTE) and make sure you click to insert, and you don't use the AIRWAY selection to add in the next WPT. For Airways then select AIRWAYS and add in the AIRWAY and the TO selections and like all FMS systems you can add in as many airways as you require.
 

 
In every flightplan you get "DISCONTINUITY" breaks...  to remove you just select the Discontinuity selection and then select "DELETE" from the menu.
 

 
STAR (Standard Terminal ARrival) is the same procedure as the SID selection, select the arrival airport, then ARRIVAL from the menu and then use the menus to fill in the arrival data...
 


 
... the drop down menus select RWY, APPR (Approach), VIA, STAR (shown) and TRANS. All selections are shown in the upper box like with the SID selections.
 
All changes and selections are only TEMPY or Temporary in yellow and insert via INSERT TEMPY, or backstep by ERASE TEMPY... 
 

 
....   and at any time while constructing the route you can make it active (Green) to see your progress on the PFD... The final full Flightplan is shown with diversions of which you can scroll up or down.... brilliant!
 
It takes a little while to adjust to this pointer system, but it is quite easy to do once you are used to it. Overall the FMS is very versatile in creating route flightplans and I found it very refined and not buggy at all, which is very good thing with long route insertion flightplans like from Nairobi to London.
 
Other FMS details are important as well...   OIS (Onboard Information System ) Aircraft AIRPLANE/PASSENGERS gives you the A350 weights, and the AIRPLANE/PERF CALCULATOR gives you TO Performance and vSpeeds.
 

 
...  and the calculated data is then transferred to the PERF (performance) page and the very important FUEL & LOAD page in the FMS...
 

 
You can save your flightplan via the INIT page under "RTE SAVE", but the interesting aspect is that you have three choices of save, 1. the FULL complete flightplan, 2. SID or 3. STAR, so this makes it a very versatile system...
 

 
....  the route is confusingly saved in your standard X-Plane FMS folder but not in the alphabetical order, but under a (*) moniker at the very bottom, which means a lot of scrolling. Quicker access is to use the "Filter" box lower right which reduces the flightplans to the chosen ICAO label. 
 
Wind pages have been added and it noted is that Alterative Flightplans are also now available, but I couldn't find a second flightplan?
 

 
All in all it is a very extensive and detailed upgrade to the FMS in the A350XWB, I absolutely love it, yes there is more you want like a second FMS for the First Officer, but overall it is a fantastic working system... not perfect but far better than we had before.
_______________________
 
There are no notes that the sounds have had attention in v1.6, but they certainly sound far better to me? Cockpit hum and wind noise is very good for a long haul flight and the exterior sounds far better as well, more distant in the background now is that really annoying "tring, ring" from the engines, it is still there but now highly subdued...  thank god, the annoying Purser to Captain "Dings" are still as bad as ever, finding the issue is made hard by the language spoken in a gobble... usually it is the cabin that is TOO hot or TOO cold "but mister if the damn engines are switched off I can't heat or cool the cabin can I?... so go away", or the cabin lights are down, but it is really, really annoying...   If any aircraft requires a specialist addon sound pack it is the A350 XWB.
 
Contrails and and particles have now been added as well, the APU hums and breathes out exhaust air, and in the air the aircraft looks great.
 

 
Another new menu page on the OIS is the "JOYSTICK ACTIONS" menu and noted to make the aircraft compatible with the new Thrustmaster TCA Airbus Throttle Quadrant. The new hardware offering from Thrustmaster, part of its new TCA Range is due to release in late September this year.
This covers your joystick "Deadband" area (centre), throttle detent location and "MCT Detent" (Maximum Continuous Thrust) location.
 
All the settings of course are for fine tuning your hardware joystick and throttle systems, but one selection is quite important... "REV ON SAME AXIS" will set your throttles with a "Beta' reverse detent. fine in some cases but horrible with my Saitek X56 Rhino setup as it set the idle position to reverse thrust, you can turn the action OFF here (arrowed below left).
 

 
Radios are now 8.33 (as X-Plane11 went to this earlier). The 8.33 kHz channel spacing adds two additional channels for every 25 kHz channel. This is to overcome the frequency congestion in the medium to long term by providing more channels.
 

 
Navigation ILS, VOR and ADF frequencies are under the "NAV" button, but you still have the default FMS at the rear of the pedestal and it's radio channels if you want a easier way to access any of the frequency settings or route information.
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Summary
Although noted as a "Advanced" version of the Airbus A350XWB, the Flightfactor version never really hit the mark in delivering a totally realistic simulation, and so in that aspect I was never yearned for the aircraft and rarely flew it, which is a shame because we need really good long haul and next generation aircraft in the X-Plane simulator.
 
But now with this new v1.6 version of the A350XWB we have a game changer. The missing SID/STAR intergration that was missing is now part of this extensive Flight Management System. A difficult system to replicate because of it's unusual pointer and menu based input applications. But this intergration has been a huge success here in creating a master simulation of this unique Airbus FMS. Most FMS areas are now covered, but you will never ever cover everything as it is simply too complex, but the aircraft in reality should lose it's "Advanced" moniker and be now named a "Professional" aircraft because of the depth of the systems here...  the only area missing is the right hand seat interaction to the OIS (Onboard Information System).
 
A few areas have also been cleaned up including the cockpit textures which are more Airbus grey and lighter in tone and new seat (star) coverings. Over the updates the A350XWB has had a lot of behind the scenes work done and not actually noted officially, but you certainly feel in this version a far more co-ordinated and less buggy aircraft to fly, the FMS especially is really well coded and quite bug free in being versatile for corrections and data changes, a far cry from the original interface and flying conditions.
 
So now it works, in almost every area and if not absolutely perfect the A350XWB starts to live up to it's quality standing as a very good if now excellent simulation. Over many hard flights (most Long Haul) it is an excellent aircraft to enjoy, the v1.6 update maybe on reflection small, but the aircraft has become something else than just a pretty aircraft to look at, it now a very realistic flying simulation as well.
 
Once the outcast, the Airbus A350-900XWB can now be seen in the same context as the other aircraft from FlightFactor. A brilliant update that in the long wait users deserved...  Not perfect but a free update with these enhancements will bring a lot of smiles to a lot of users faces, if you don't have the A350XWB from FlightFactor, but love long distance flying, maybe it is now time to take the plunge and enjoy this amazing aircraft.
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The Airbus A350-900 XWB Advanced v1.6 from FlightFactor is Available from the  X-Plane.Org Store:
 
Airbus A350 XWB Advanced
Price is currently US$ 64.95
 
Livery packs at US$10 for ten liveries are available here: A350 Liveries Include: North America, Oceania, Africa & Middle East, Asia, Atlantic, Europe 1, Europe 2 and Pacific.
 
If you already have purchased the A350 XWB from FlightFactor then go to your account at the X-PlaneStore and update to v1.6
 
Requirements:
X-Plane 11 Windows - Mac - Linux - 64bit Operating System Required 4Gb+ VRAM Minimum, 8Gb+ VRAM Minimum.     Release Review : Aircraft Review : Airbus A350 XWB Advanced by FlightFactor Support forum : FlightFactor A350 XWB _____________________________________________________________________________________
 
Update and Tutorial by Stephen Dutton 18th July 2020 Copyright©2020: X-PlaneReviews
 

4K graphic cards are really minimum now, but a 8K GTX 1070 is fine (I use an 8K, but would love a 12K), 8gb of RAM is again too low, you would need at least 16gb (I use 32gb) but 16gb is fine, it is cheap now anyway. If you are porting an external GPU, then make sure your busses can handle the speeds, no good on adding on all that power if the boards can't process it? With these numbers you can pretty well run anything with a large margin but the SSG B748 🙂

Behind the Screen : Laminar Research... X-Plane 4Ever!
The Coronavirus killed a lot of normal events that post out your X-Plane year. In this case was the Expo Simulation FlightSim event that was set to be in Las Vegas in June 12-14 2020. With the event cancelled you also lost the exposure of the main yearly Laminar Research demonstration but worse was their forward announcements on the future or the roadmap of the X-Plane Simulator. The timing couldn’t be worse as the simulation community is now also getting closer to the FS2020 simulator release from Microsoft, due around the third quarter of 2020.
Would the Expo have brought on a FS2020 vs Laminar Research first shot of conflict in on how each of these currently dominant simulators will be ongoing in the future of the best simulator experience, a lot of users have already made their minds up in that camp, but have they? But certainly at the Expo, would have then Laminar Research had to face up to the inevitable questions on how their roadmap going forward was compared to the coming FS2020 onslaught…  we will probably now not know because the event was cancelled.
But a podcast just recorded recently had X-Plane’s founder Austin Meyers finally put in the hot seat on those very future of the simulator questions and the answers were not as you would have expected, which is typical Austin Meyers.
Overall, his comments on which direction and the expected confrontation with FS2020 are actually not very dissimilar to my own feelings which come as a relief and my thoughts were closer than even than I actually expected. But the results are extremely interesting and finally some sense from Laminar since their silly drunkgate debacle back in December late last year.
Overall Meyers was quite upbeat about the future of X-Plane and didn’t feel the threat of the coming Microsoft product, that to a point is to be expected. But there was some extremely interesting comments on the where and in what direction X-Plane is now going to go, obviously nothing noted here is to be seen as gospel as Austin Meyers noted that everything is still “on the table” and not locked down yet, which is understandable considering the ultra-long Vulkan/metal beta program that is still in motion.
But the main points put forward were still solid…  There will be no photorealistic scenery mesh? An interesting one in that the new FS2020 system is built upon that very basis, Austin Meyers doesn’t like photo scenery and personally I can second that after reviewing a thousand or so airport and city sceneries and their horrible burnt in buildings, offset buildings and vehicles.
So, the current detailed mesh system will be retained but totally updated from it’s initial X-Plane10 format with better autogen. It is a very big risk to do this direction, but also an interesting one, and a bunch of new Eastern-European scenery artists have been brought on board to achieve this high goal, which is something I have campaigned for simply years in that Laminar needed a much more larger art department as one or two artists even if they are talented artists are simply not going to cover that much detail in a year or even a decade.
To be honest the whole mesh system was highly constrained by the processing power, but more so via OpenGL, the API was great thirty years ago, but that is a point as the it was based on a application of THIRTY years ago and the newer Vulkan/Metal API changes that game completely, and so will the systems and the detail of the mesh can be significantly more detailed with far more modern and powerful force of better processing behind it.
So once the current Vulkan/Metal conversion is installed then Laminar can then move in the directions it was restrained by before. The prospect of the new direction of staying with the current mesh is certainly an interesting one to deliver than a more photo-realistic rendition of the world, and a hard one to pull off than just using Landsat photographs, but Laminar has surprised us a lot of times in the past in this aspect as well.
I have even with our current mesh in place with good foliage coverage, great weather interaction and great lighting effects that this photo-realistic look and feel can already be achieved, some images coming out of X-Plane currently are already breathtakingly good, so it is not overall an impossible goal. The tough angle is the reproduction of the actual man/woman-made context in 3d cities and infrastructure, this is an advantage that Microsoft has via their Bing mapping, but I am still going to say it will be more restricted than mapping the whole actual globe and restricted to certain high-visible zones. How Laminar covers that 3d mapping equation will make or break the idea between the simulators and just creating far more Global Icons is just not going to cut that immersion realism factor.
Multi-player online flight is coming soon to X-Plane-mobile (now in beta testing), but also it is a big target feature for the desktop version as well, yes we do sort of have a multi-player experience, but not in a fully connected and detailed one with a high mass appeal online presence in that everyone is totally connected together, seeing each other and interacting with each other. It is an interesting dynamic area to be explored, but personally I don't want a thousand other X-Plane users flashing around my nice approach path, but I also know that a lot of users love the interaction of others in their world and yes I would be likely to even give it a try...  for a while.
Austin Meyers also noted large changes to the weather, as he wants a more dynamic moving weather and a more realistic representation in what Meyer notes as “location and time”, in changing or challenging dynamics between your departure point and your arrival destination, my point would be the same aim as exciting dynamic weather changes are also important to that factor in feel and for the visual look of the simulator...  we always want and need better weather.
Although not actually set in stone yet is the subscription factor for the X-Plane simulator, personally this is going to be a change we will have to “subscribe” to..  as in the pun. X-Plane will go to subscription for several reasons, one the cost of $US80 to buy X-Plane and yes there are more free demo users out there than more than they will actually admit, as the cost factor against say a US$5 a monthly subscription to FS2020. But mostly it is the bigger factor for Laminar in the fact that the ongoing income is restricted to the same one off payment (although a large one initially) which is then spread out over four or five years of ongoing development, as a monthly subscription then changes that aspect in that it delivers income consistantly for Laminar and with that it was noted we may see the disappearance of the current X-Plane versions to say a subscription version of “X-Plane-Global” or as Meyers noted “X-Plane-Forever” in a subscription model.
The reveals here do not cover all aspects of the future of X-Plane as a simulator as for like for still where still is our ATC system? But it does sort of give you a sort of a few glimpses of the direction X-Plane will take in the shadow of the coming release of FS2020.
As Austin Meyers noted is that X-Plane as a simulator goes to the core of what the real dedicated users actually want in a simulator, in true flying dynamics and the availability to test your own theories of any aircraft you personally want to create, even established aircraft manufacturers also use the simulator to test out aerodynamic theories and that is still basically the core of what X-Plane is and still does well. Meyers does not even with it’s newer dynamics in seeing FS2020 in becoming an experimental application like X-Plane is, as ultimately FS2020 is and always will be a game based simulator more than a pure one.
Yes FS2020 will move a lot of users to it’s platform, but how many will come back to X-Plane and the more deeper and fundamental basis for realism in flight, more so is the factor of doing actual personal changes to the simulator as a whole, the tinkerer will soon bore of the constricted game world of FS2020, and that is what Austin Meyer bases his beliefs on and to a point his business...   but it is also what I feel also deep down. However X-Plane as a simulator still has to develop and match any competition in features and more importantly in the realism experience…  in that area it still up to Laminar Research to deliver and expand their product to and match the expectations of users demands.... but now soon it will be on a monthly basis more than a multi-yearly basis.
Stephen Dutton
24th June 2020
Copyright©2020 X-Plane Reviews
 

 

Hi Bob, 
Thanks, I am really happy to know that you are liking my articles.
Both aircraft are extremely good. Personally, I like the A319 more, especially with the IAE sounds, don't forget that you need the CFM too. Independent of your decision, you will be extremely happy.

Totally. Even though they look similar, each aircraft has its characteristics.