Following a brief period of hibernation, we've recently decided to get things back in action and resume work on the A380. Being that we don't work with deadlines, no release date has been (or will be) set.
We would like to thank every one of our supporters and those who have not lost faith in our group. We are aware there were a lot of foul talk doing the round and a lot of people who wrote us off as well as trash-talked as to the reason we decided to take our time-off. Dare we say that this project and where it stands today - is testimony to the fact that we did exactly what we said - take time off and do it on our own terms. As simple as that.
We appreciate everyone's interest in this project and in our group, however we will not be able to cater to any specific requests for additions to the features. We will do all that we can to make this to the best of our abilities but we have reached a freeze on systems and features for the model. So we'd appreciate if there are no posts made on this aspect or messages sent asking for changes.
Even though the original plans were to be more elaborate, we are extremely happy to have a wonderful team together and talent in doing what we have managed to do with this so far.
The A380 will be released for FS9, but similarly to the A320 series, it should be perfectly compatible with FSX.
The exterior model is made entirely in GMAX. As always, the focus was put on accuracy and performance, Fuselage cross-sections, wing profiles/airfoils, hundreds of videos/pictures, and whatever other references we could find were all used to this end, while a texture layout similar to the A320 series' keeps it running smoothly on lower-end systems.
The model features more custom (XML) animations than previous releases, some examples being:
- Improved wing-flex effect. The wings react better to G-loads, ground spoilers flex them downwards on landing, wings droop more or less depending on fuel load
- Typical control surface droop when the engines are off (including rudders)
- Parallel bogies when on the ground, taking into account that when the aircraft is pitched upwards, the outer-main gears hang freely
- Animated pack vents
- Idle-reverser animation
- Ground spoilers on the ground (including ailerons)
- Accurate nosewheel movement. The nosewheel steering deflects progressively less at higher roll speeds, and should the aircraft come to a stop in mid-turn, the nosewheel retains its heading (as it should) and doesn't automagically come back to centre
- Accurate LAF (Load Alleviation Function) simulation for the aileron movement. All 3 aileron sections move separately as they should (video examples: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKuwJG4a6Bw - real world, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbRsn25PJ7k - FS)
- Windmilling engine fans. The fans react to oncoming airflow, be it due to wind or airspeed. Fan inertia is also modeled
- New method of hiding unwanted antennas. They will no longer be hidden via the alpha channel, thereby avoiding the “fuselage holes” issue in FSX SP2
- Animated window wipers in rain and snow
- Animated nose and AoA sensors
The model will also feature accurate Airbus "double strobes" on the wings, many opening doors, opening cargo bays (including the bulk cargo), accurate gear extension/retraction sequences, transparent fan blades at high RPM, detailed flap and reverser mechanisms, etc.
The virtual cockpit model will be released after the wingview model, once the panel is complete.
On to the previews...
. And it was done by the best team with plenty of great support on the forums. Now that you're back online with this announcement my tears are of great joy. This is great news. I'm speachless.....
