We can say that MSFS is running pretty well after SU9 and lots of amazing airports have now been released from third party developers all around the world. All this makes me desperately in need of a long haul option that actually is not available (I do know about the 787hx and Salty 747 but…).
As far as I know the only long haul aircraft probably releasing this year will be the FBW A380.
Anybody has some news about other devs? What happened to Quality Wings? If I remember they made some statements about 2 years ago but they went completely silent since then.
I do understand that PMDG will be developing their whole line-up for MSFS but it will probably be another 6 month (if not one year) until we see their 777/747 released. This makes me wonder if we are really going to be without long haul options for the next 6 months or so.
Moved to #third-party-addon-discussion:aircraft as thread is currently focused on third party mods and aircraft.
one of your choices might be the a330 neo by headwind. it’s got a32nx integration and works really well. being far from perfect it might be your best for longhaul flights right now.
Sigh… we all want the PMDG 777 freighter and the Fenix Airbus A321 P2F freighter finally being released… 
That´s one highly optimistic assumption… The only thing that is released in 6 months only a 737 update for the EFB in the window.
What you probably wanted to say is in two years and six months the 777 will be available to buy 
Has anyone experienced Aerosoft’s Airbus widebodies?
I heard that they are finalising their A330.
Well, the FBW A320N is capable of plenty of transatlantic etc, so that’s an option too.
Oh really? That´s interesting because I would love to try a second Airbus! Fenix is taking it´s time with the IAE V2500 Turbine variant but the A330 has them (and also the P&W Trent…)
The Aerosoft CRJ had a very beautyful cockpit so the A330 will look great too.
We have a second preview back in June 22 here:
Technically you will be able to fly “long haul” (>6 hours) in the PMDG 737-800. I know its not the 747-8 freighter or the 787, A380 etc but you can still squeeze out 3,000 nautical, or should be able to.
I will be using it for that anyway until we get something bigger.
Is there an advantage to flying very long flights say 6 or more hours with MSFS. I enjoy more the takeoff and landings so most of my flights are under 2 hours. When I use P2AtC I tend to go more distance to experience the different Air spaces to talk to.
People are trying to realistically replicate real-world flights and routes, that’s all. FWIW, the existing in-sim PMDG 737 models have ranges of around 3,000nm already. The BBJ version of the -700 model can be fitted with aux tanks and cruise halfway around the world, lol. But people want planes like a realistic 787, 747, 777, A330, A350 to real real-world routes in a better, more realistic way than what is currently available.
I get a little nervous taking longer flights also because never know when CTD can happen. That is a little upsetting after say 6 hours and then poof
The longest flight I’ve made in the sim recently (late June or early July - can’t recall) was about 5-1/2 hours, KOAK to PHNL in the PMDG 737-700. This is a real-world SWA route though usually flown by -800’s or MAXs. Total sim time was about 6 hours-ish, including preflight, startup, taxi out, post-landing taxi and shutdown/offload stuff. The sim did fine, but of course that was before this past week’s spate of semi-random CTDs affecting a ton of people using online weather and traffic.
That depands on the pilot. Some people really enjoy being in the air. I mostly enjoy setting up the cockpit and programming the airliner, this takes sometimes a full hour going through all procedures in the EFB and pre-programming the MCDU and the whole airplane step by step
The flight itself should not take longer than 30-60 minutes, in this case I have 2 hours of fine entertainment.
That´s why I personally don´t do long haul flights - but I want cargo planes (that´s just a personal preference, I mostly fly B.O.W. and experimental stuff for the Umbrella Corp.).
The Fenix can of course be used for that task with ~9000kg of cargo and most of the time 2 or 4 passengers, but seeing a REAL P2F Airbus having her big cargo door open is even more immersive…
I wonder if pilots who simulate long haul flights really sit on the desk for 5 or 6 hours, or let the autopilot fly for some hours and return to the desk when the descent begins.
In other flight simulator, the default scenery is pretty much a treadmill of the same generic ground texture. It is almost pointless if you don’t have custom third party addons like Orthophotography textures.
MSFS bing maps feature makes flying long haul much more worthwhile, as it gives you a much better “sense of travel” - that you are actually moving from one place to another and experience the changes and progression as you travel.
Whether it is 15 minutes or 15 hours, you’ll see through 15 minutes or 15 hours worth of the planet representation itself instead of just “US SW, US SC, US SE, Caribbean” generic texture changes. For example, from Tokyo to Nagasaki, you’ll pass the scenic Mount Fuji, and then flyover the Japanese alps, Lake Biwa in northeast of Kyoto including the very scenic Arashiyama hills, before you’ll go over Chugoku region and the serene Seto inland sea. And whether you see Mount Aso or Oshima, it is not just another lump of 3D protrusion wrapped by a flattened tree top pictures (green earth texture). Each mountain, each city is distinct and has their own atmosphere and nuance.
I am in the same boat as I spend a lot of time with the flight plan and setting up the aircraft. With a new aircraft setting up my hardware takes time for each aircraft. That said I will setup a longer flight when working on my laptop. I do prefer to sit in the cockpit when flying and running at normal sim rate, so another reason I keep flights shorter. My favorite planes are not ready for MSFS, the PMDG 777-300 and 747-8. They are coming one day and maybe by then I can pop out the panels like I do in the sim I use without a outside program and borderless windows. But every SU seems to get better so just a matter of time.
I agree that the new technology of the scenery is great and flights over a long distance makes it more realistic. I am more interested in the landscape of the valleys than manmade structures, but that is me. I would like to see global mesh for MSFS when flying over boring places like the southwest desert. You are right, the sim world is pretty neat going places around the world. The scenery and mesh is pretty nice. I look forward to improved scenery as MSFS grows and the data gets better
Best option for now seems to be PMDG 737-700 as a BBJ with the extra fuel tanks. It can go quite a long way.
I’m also waiting for the FBW A380. A PMDG 747 would also be lovely.
Long haul business jets appears limited to the BBJ for now. XPlane has a Dassault Falcon on the way but everything I can see so far suggests it won’t make it to MSFS. 
And here is finally the appropriate cockpit seating for long haul flights
That´s the way to sail while the autopilot does the dirty work
Sleeping in cockpits is perfect but not because it´s so BORING but because it´s so CALMING.
Just don’t don’t nap like that on a 2 hour flight
Ethiopian Airlines suspends pilots after report they fell asleep mid-flight and missed landing - ABC News.