Just an update on where the Aeronca Champ project stands, per recent communications with LagaffeVFR5476. Most of his time over the last year has been consumed working with a 3rd party developer. But that commitment is coming to an end in June, so he will be able to spend more time on the Champ project. Although he has been developing the Champ since January of 2024 (16 months), he can now see the light at the end of the tunnel. It sounds like it will likely be available in the coming months. Note: He has been developing his Canso PBY for 13 years, so a given model may never be completely “done”! Anyway, I just wanted to let folks know that LagaffeVFR5476’s Aeronca Champ project is still in the works, and your patience should be rewarded in the not too distant future.
Thank you for the Aeronca Champ update. It’s definitely great to see the sim getting more Aeronca products “soon”! I was fortunate enough to see a rare “Aeronca K” drop in at a local small field about 20 years ago. Quite a sight!
Thank you for the update. I come here regularly to check on any news. The Aeronca is one of my favourite aircraft but the PBY is a very close contestant.
Me too! 
As a youngster in the 50s, the blisters on the ol’ Catalina were a fascinating feature for me. When discovering later that they also housed machine guns, I was instantly in love! Saw one in a Pearl Harbor fly-over a few years ago, during COVID. It sounded like a C-47, but much slower moving across the sky. A very unique bird.
The Catalina blisters are so cool, especially when Landseaire made them “Vista view” blisters with no bracing. Very few examples of that conversion left though. Sounded like a C-47 because it has the same engines, Pratt and Whitney R-1830-92. One of the best engines ever made, 14 cylinders and 1200hp and a fantastic radial engine sound. Wish there were more flying out there.
Looking forward to seeing this Aeronca in the sim for myself. Progress pictures have been looking good so far.
Me, too!
For some unknown reason (because I hated them as a youngster, favoring the P-51’s, P-38’s, etc.) Today, I am just drawn to all the old high-wing monoplanes of yesteryear. The Taylorcrafts (Austers), Stinsons, Cessna’s, Cub’s and Aeronca’s are now my favorites to sim around in. I had a friend who took me up in his Ovation once. I was not overly impressed and I am not really a fan of those low-winged hot-rods, anymore.
A Tri-Pacer would be nice, too!
But, I am REALLY looking forward to the arrival of this Aeronca!
looking forward to LHC and the return/update of the Tri-Pacer and Fairchild 24 packages…At least - I hope to see them in the new sims at some point.
Surprisingly, I’d never heard of the Fairchild 24, before now. My only previous experience with Fairchild was their C-123 (“Provider”) aircraft which I flew in a lot (too much) back in the 60s. I flew all over the U.S. and Canada in that leaky, thin-skinned, rattle-trap, and later in S. Vietnam.
Looks like the Fairchild 24 would fit right into my preferred style of FS aircraft.
I love all those old high wing planes. Those old Stinsons from the 30s and 40s look so good. I love flying the Cub in the real world, nothing beats door open summertime flying and a grass strip. Really hoping this Champ can replicate that feeling on the days that I can’t actually fly.
A Tri pacer would be very neat in the sim indeed. The more classic airplanes the better I say.
I’ve never been close to the C123 provider in my life, being in europe, but I fell in love with it in the movie Air America, where it features prominently (together with the Pilatus Porter). Usually many disagree but I find the C123 gorgeous, together with the PBY (I prefer the 6A version, featured in the Always movie) and the C119 Boxcar. These are simply sexy to me.
You might be interested in my blog of yesteryear. I haven’t done much with it lately, but it’s loaded with photos I took in S. Vietnam, including some of the birds you like - C123s, and even an Air America Pilatus Porter. Also another of my beloved high-wing GA style aircraft - the “Bird Dog” is included in that collection.
Da Nang Air Base
I love the history of airplanes too, but can we keep the posts in this thread on topic? Just trying to minimize confusion for those following this project. Perhaps somebody can start a new thread about Fairchild airplanes?
BTW: I just received Version 0.7 of the Aeronca 7AC from @ LagaffeVFR5476 to check out. Things are moving along.
Sorry. My bad. You are 100% correct!
It’s so easy to wind up on the wrong runway, these days…
I am interested in buying this Champ in development, but I do feel it should come with a couple of missions, like the ones that came with FSX, or well designed bush trips.
I know the (i believe FSX) mission of Loopy Larry landing on the bus was not with a Champ, but if that could be replicated in fs2020 with this airplane that would be awesome.
Hello,
As for Aeronca, I was able to get back on full-time and the flight model seems to be progressing well (version 0.7) thanks to the knowledge that I acquired in the last 6 months on other aircraft : hey, working on other projects, doesn’t mean that the one which is in pause does not advance, it just advances more slowly, that’s all but then he catches up the lost time.
Since MSFS2020 appeared, I have been working with Blender 2.83 and all my projects are based on this version and the Vitus plugin. Since then, the plugins to export to MSFS have made a lot of progress and the current reference is based on Blender 3.6 plus the latest plugin 1.3.3 from Asobo. Consequently, migrating to this new environment allows you to stay on supported tools and be able to benefit from the latest improvements. This would be interesting for the Aeronca but also for the Canso PBY and the others projects …
After a test done last month which ended in failure using the integrated tool of migration of materials, I found another method that is a little slower but gives a safe result.
In fact it consists of duplicating the Blender file to a working version and removing all materials. Then we open this file with the chosen version of Blender and recreate all the materials so that the shaders are recreated correctly in accordance with the export plugin.
The migration of the Aeronca (Blender model) based on this process took only … a simple afternoon. The advantage of this new platform is that it will allow me to add fogging and frost on the windshields in a very simple way.
I tested this last month (19th Mars) and it worked very well. As you can see on this pic, it’s possible to add a lot of details on the windshield, now:
Thank you for the progress update. Just one comment:
I hope that you are able to limit the amount of windshield fogging on the Aeronca. This has probably been covered in other threads, but I feel like they were a little overzealous with this feature in some of the default 2024 aircraft. That’s one bit of “realism” that I’m not a great fan of.