I'd be surprised if Microsoft wasn't already working on all kinds of different projects using MSFS's base technology, including a new version of Microsoft Combat Flight Simulator.  At the very least they should be exploring opportunities and looking for more partners.

If MS wants to enter the commercial market they wil surely enhance and optimize the SDK/Simconnect and make sure that as much bugs as possible are being fixed.

And we all will benefit from that ….

Edited February 4, 20224 yr by GSalden

Seems like it's becoming a trend nowadays to repeat the same message in each and every thread. Interesting.

This course was inevitable.

I would not read too much into what 'commercial application' means with MSFS. Since they sell it and add-ons for it too, it is already a 'commercial application' whilst also being a game. But clearly, when going to the trouble of making a simulation of the world with streamed scenery, there will be the potential for other products to leverage those efforts, so it'd actually be more surprising to learn MS wasn't looking at doing this kind of thing.

Right off the bat where the toy aeroplanes in MSFS are concerned, since many of them are super-accurate laser-scanned models, I could for example speculate that an airline might be interested in using an interior model to perhaps train cabin crews on stuff, or use it in a classroom to familiarise pilots with the layout of the cockpit control locations. I do know that quite a few commercial pilots do actually already do this on occasion with some of the high-fidelity PC-based flight sim add-on aeroplanes with their own copies of MSFS and P3D etc. When they do this, there is of course no need for these add-ons to fly accurately for such application, or even have the switches actually do anything other than be in the right place to assist with knowing where to look for things. I did this myself with a well known A320 add-on in P3D in order to familiarise myself with where some of the switches are for powering the thing up.

But to make this something an airline could officially use for training would need some guarantees of accuracy and some additional licensing. This sort of thing has been done before, notably with Flight 1's ATR-72, which was a tie-in with the real ATR company when it was produced, with the actual airline manufacturer using it as a promotional item.

One thing MSFS certainly could be used for, is training pushback drivers since in the real world, this can be a bit problematic; because of this, there are several fancy commercial pushback tug simulators out there for use with service agents, some with cab mock ups. With some collision detection tweaks, accurate taxiway signage etc, this is something which MSFS could be easily be a superior graphics engine for, since it already has pretty much every airport stand in it and the basics of lifter tugs are already in there anyway.

PMDG has been "in contact" with Boeing and MSFS/Asobo for years. they have not delivered a single 737 for MSFS yet.

I doubt they have been "in contact" with McDonnell Douglas re. their DC6, but they have released one. what does it mean we are "in contact" with xyz?

22 hours ago, rka said:

Reading some of the comments here, it is beyond me how people can see Microsoft and a big pile of $$$ within MS' range, and call the idea that MS be at least thoroughly eyeing said pile of $$$ "speculations and wishful thinking".

Of course they are targeting commercial as well. They'd be word not allowed stupid if they didn't.

Exactly, what rka said.  It's so obvious, any one with any shred of common sense can put this together 😄

On 2/3/2022 at 7:49 AM, jcomm said:

because as far as flight dynamics goes.... Mehhhhh

I agree!  I really don't understand why folks aren't more vocal about the fact there is so much bounce/ricochet when you bank smaller aircraft.  You bank to the left for example and the plane will 'bounce' off the left towards the right, as if you're almost bobbing in water.  Just doesn't feel right and yet I hear little to nothing about this from others here.  It may be a good dynamic but way overdone it would seem.