The group behind the H145, H160 and the H225 helicopters have released a statement on what has been happening behind the scenes: https://www.hypeperformancegroup.com/blogs/news/an-update-from-hpg

This now makes a lot of sense with the lack of updates on their H145/H160 but also with the on-doing issues with the H225. 

Hopefully Dave is ok.  Being a dev for msfs seems difficult.  I know I've wanted to quit painting a few times already.  People are really demanding.

21 minutes ago, Zangoose said:

This now makes a lot of sense with the lack of updates on their H145/H160 but also with the on-doing issues with the H225

Yes. Thanks for the heads-up. Regarding the situation at HPG: Ouch!

I feel like the days of the one-man-band/tiny shop are behind us. I think there will be a wave of consolidation and companies will group together and get bigger and more professional. 

It's not possible to run a company if you are literally dependent entirely on one person, no matter how nice or skilled. People get sick, family stuff happens.. even with the best intentions in the world, things can happen. 

Clearly HPG has realized their bus factor and are taking steps to fix it. Many more devs will likely do the same if they want to make money. The free hobby type devs can continue or drop out as may be, there are no expectation there. But if I'm paying money, I want a product that is supported and improved for at least a reasonable period of time ($30 - 18 months, $50 - 3 years, $100+, 5 years.. just examples of course).

That's a tough situation to be in and I wish them luck recovering.  There's a lot to be said for a private GitHub instance for source code developed by the team!

31 minutes ago, JonathanC said:

I feel like the days of the one-man-band/tiny shop are behind us.

I agree that this sounds like the problems are the result of an amateur setup with one person owning code that the whole project depends on. However, if you look at what Mike Johnson has produced in the Albatross and how he has supported it the opposite result is true there. A larger commercial operation couldn't afford to give the ongoing updates that he has released for the Albatross as there is no ongoing income from doing so. Of course, as you say ongoing support is completely dependent on one person.

I recently looked at an aircraft form another long term developer and it was far below current standards in many ways. I got the impression that the developer simply lacked the skills to reach modern standards in some areas and being a small team I suspect they might be unwilling or unable to expand.

Just now, bailout said:

Of course, as you say ongoing support is completely dependent on one person.

Yeah, this is the difference between a company and a hobby developer who does stuff for the love of it. The hobby guys will either have to transition to free (many already are), or else they will need to level up a bit. It's hard to be in the middle where you're charging money (which comes with support, customer expectations, quality expectations..)

I sincerely hope that Dave is doing well.

I would like to know more about the future of this helicopter from Microsoft, as I said before in another post I only bought the premium deluxe for this helicopter and after a complete year waiting for an update now the helicopter is worse than ever. If the new team who did this only uptade is the one who's going to take care of it seems we will never have a good H225 in MSFS...so sad and what a waste of money.

Edited December 19, 2025Dec 19 by Soul Rebel

Good to know what’s been going on. 

and that the 225 is in good hands now  

Bad to know it may not ever be resolved for both the 145 and 160. 

While I certainly understand that being a one man show at times can be very draining and demanding over the years, there is one thing I don't understand.
How can a software team maneuver itself into a position were a lead developer holds the rights to code that is used on their product?

 

When that developer goes awol we see now what happens. This must not allowed to happen in a software company. 

The rights have to be held by the company not individual developers.

40 minutes ago, Farlis said:

How can a software team maneuver itself into a position were a lead developer holds the rights to code that is used on their product?

They talk about "ownership". It's not clear to me whether this means rights or simply physical access to the code.

Either way -- yes, not a situation you'd want to get yourself into...

I've often been surprised at the speed with which some freeware creators have wound up in the professional Asobo fold.

Plenty of them will have pretty ragged habits and setups.

If I got the summons to the big table while rotting in my basement, I'd make very certain that any potential pain point was dealt with long before going anywhere near them.

And I'd presume Asobo would want a thorough rundown of rights before integrating anything.

Still, sounds like it's sorted which is good for everyone.

 

Edited December 20, 2025Dec 20 by superspud

I would like to know which one is in a better condition, the 145 or 160, regardless the dev's difficult situation. Both have been in sale for quite a while. Thank you