I’ve always enjoyed flying after dark. The main reason, in real life, is that the air is generally smooth as glass. (The exception is flying at night in weather, which I have only rarely done.)
In the world of MSFS the “turbulence” generated when flying over uneven terrain remains the same from day to night. I’ve never had as “bouncy” a flight after dark as I do in the sim. In real life, the thermal activity at night, especially several hours after sunset, is minimal. (Just ask a glider pilot.)
I hope that the anomaly is corrected at some point in the future. Many things are done very well in MSFS: thermal activity at night is not done correctly.
Neither the day nor the night turbulence model is realistic, whether it is thermal or wind induced turbulence. It is waaayyy too smooth. IRL, GA planes bounce around much more and do not fly as if on rails with the instruments jittering either from thermal or wind turbulence.
I also have flown gliders in Foehn or Mistral conditions and despite the absence of thermals, the rotor (wind induced) turbulence get your attention.
When you fly in the Sim along the northern ridge in LOWI and compare that to RL the few shakes you get when the wind is blowing up the Inn valley do not come close to reality. Same for LOWZ especially with the wind blowing from the south across the main alpine ridge.
I have read that Asobo turned down the turbulence model deliberately so people would not complain that their plane does not fly as if on rails. I find that unfortunate.
They did and even admit it. The good news is they are doing a full rework of the weather which probably means that advanced mode and sliders for intensity will be included
On a hot day at, say, 4500 feet MSL over variable terrain you are absolutely correct. However, at night over the same terrain, in calm wind conditions, every GA aircraft I’ve ever flown yields a nice smooth ride.
The difference between day and night “ride quality” does not exist: there is no difference. That’s the issue I notice.
Hopefully with the overhaul of the weather model we’ll see this improved.
Yes. My intention was not to contest your statement but rather point out that not only the day/night difference in thermal activity is not modeled, but also much more is inaccurate eg thermal turbulence during the day (too weak) and yes too strong at night (without wind). … All in all the entire thermal- and wind turbulence model is unrealistic and needs work.
