Microsoft and Asobo dropped quite the announcement for Microsoft Flight Simulator fans during the 2022 Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase: the unveiling of Microsoft Flight Simulator: 40th Anniversary Edition.
This completely free expansion for the sim will outfit it with various new iconic aircraft spanning all across aviation history. One of such new planes is the classic Airbus A310; one of the European manufacturer’s oldest airframes. To help ensure its intricacies are captured in rich detail, Asobo has partnered up with the talented dev team at iniBuilds to build this stunning retro jetliner for Microsoft Flight Simulator.
A certificate of airworthiness
According to the official iniBuilds forums, Ubaid Mussa, the CEO of iniBuilds, confirmed its partnership with Asobo on this project. He expresses that iniBuilds has a “shared commitment to create the best products for flight simulation” and the company is eager to deliver projects that flight sim fans will enjoy.
The company made a name for itself with such as products as the well-received Airbus A310 for competitor X-Plane 11. Now, the team is taking a shot at expanding the scope of the plane’s fidelity for Microsoft Flight Simulator. iniBuilds is entering what it’s calling a “long-term partnership” with Asobo in order to develop “this complex, immersive aircraft.”
The Airbus A310 is being developed with data collected from a “real-life flying aircraft.” Doing so will allow the team to capture details such as “authentic sound recordings from each area of the real aircraft.” In fact, Mussa promises that audio will play a big part. The Airbus will feature “dynamically balanced” sound package for use in a “3D environment.”
The actual simulation of the jet’s systems has been overhauled. Rewriting the code base has resulted in “greater levels of dynamic behavior,” giving the example of how individual components will impact the aircraft’s electrical systems.
iniBuilds’ A310 for Microsoft Flight Simulator will also feature a fully functioning FMC, capable of operations such as “RNAV approaches.” It will also feature an EFB so players can manage aspects of the jet, such as weight and balance and management of ground services.
In real life, the Airbus A310 is considered to be a “wide-body” aircraft; meant to perform medium to long-haul flights with large payloads. The -300 model, which is specifically what iniBuilds is building here, features wingtips for improved aerodynamic efficiency, and computerized fuel distribution system. It has a service ceiling of 41,000ft, range of 5,150 nautical miles and a cruise speed of Mach 0.80—about average even for a modern jetliner. Though the A310 hails all the way from the 1980s, there are still a small handful that remain in service to this day.
Getting ready for takeoff
More material on the A310 are set to release in the coming months. We’ll get new pictures, videos and training guides in the lead-up to its launch; the latter of which will explain the “quirks” of the retro airliner that make it function differently than its more modern brethren like the Airbus A320neo (which is already in the sim).
The intricate jetliner will be available for free alongside the other aircraft included in the 40th Anniversary Edition of Microsoft Flight Simulator, such as Aeroplane Heaven’s similarly complex Douglas DC-3. All are set to release for Microsoft Flight Simulator in November as part of the Anniversary Edition, which includes gliders and helicopters for the first time in the sim.
