This is a bit tongue and cheek, as I’m sure that there are plenty of folks who like all 86 of the aircraft that have been released (according to the latest Development Update), but out of all of the aircraft in the sky, I’m having serious difficulty fathoming some of the choices being made by add-on developers because most of the aircraft being produced are so…weird. Long EZ? Ultralights? Bleriot? Cessna 120? What about planes that pilots actually want to fly? I suppose Milviz’s exquisite Corsair implementation does fit into that category, but as far as warbirds go, I’d rather experience combat with them, so DCS would be the obvious ticket for that.
Looking at AOPA’s Top Five High-End piston purchase list for 2020, it pretty much aligns with what I would buy IRL. I have to believe that these aircraft represent the pinnacle of what most GA pilots would buy in a heartbeat if money were no object. The only thing missing IMO is a v-tail Bonanza. Anyway, this is the list:
Cirrus SR-22
Piper Malibu Mirage
Beechcraft Bonanza A/G36
Cessna 206
Beechcraft G58 Baron
And yet, none of these aircraft are in the sim! Yes, I own the Premium Deluxe version and I reiterate my claim. Asobo’s default aircraft are so out of touch with reality that their existence should be ignored. They are entirely ersatz.
Which brings me back to the subject of my ire. The best GA aircraft in the sim is hands down the Just Flight Piper Arrow/Turbo Arrow. Fully implemented, flies like the real thing, totally awesome with one exception: it is an Arrow.
It is a bit like having the most realistic auto simulation software ever made, but instead of developing Porsches and Ferraris (or even a Lexus), third party developers spend their time modelling KIAs and Hyundais. Again, no offense intended to KIA or Hyundai drivers; I’m sure both companies make fine automobiles, but they are so ordinary! I’ve never heard of anyone having a life goal of owning a KIA Sephia.
Guess what add-on developers? It is the same thing with airplanes. Everyone who owns any airplane feels lucky to have it, and certainly their are pilots who, lacking the skill or confidence to fly a high performance aircraft would choose something as amiable as a Piper Warrior, but Beechcraft is the Porsche of the GA world. It is synonymous with speed and luxury and pretty much every pilot who doesn’t already wishes they owned one. The exceptions being the bush pilots out beating up the brush in their Cessna 206s and the Piper Malibu Mirage pilots who want to get above it all in pressurized comfort (though the Beechcraft Baron 58P can also cruise the flight levels). Cirrus pilots just like Ferraris better than Porsches. I don’t understand them personally, but to each their own.
Like I said, this is all a bit tongue and cheek, but I am truly mystified by the lack of what I consider to be the obvious airplanes that virtually everyone would buy if they became available in the sim. Perhaps it is just business strategy. I did have to hand it to Just Flight in releasing the Arrow III first. Being so starved for any good GA aircraft whatsoever, buying the normally aspirated Arrow was a no-brainer, but that required investing in the Turbo Arrow later. Grudgingly, I will admit that the Turbo Arrow is fast enough in cruise to be suitable for travel, but you have to climb high and suck the O2 for optimal speed and it is still a bit slower than I would prefer. Plus, IRL the T-tail sucks and the fixed wastegate turbocharger results in lots of necessary and expensive engine maintenance. And lets face it, unless we are talking about a Malibu, the name Piper just has zero cache.
In any case, add on developers, what I’m looking for in my GA aircraft is 180 KIAS and that is really a minimum. 200 KIAS or more would be better. So no, Cessna 120s or Piper Warriors are not going to cut it. Neither is a Piper Comanche (unless it is a 400, or a top-end twin Comanche). A Mooney Ovation would be OK and those of us who didn’t buy the Carenado version would likely snap up a full fidelity version. But really, what we want is what every pilot wants, and it can be summarized by the list above. After we have those aircraft, feel free to go back to building Stinsons, Tri Pacers, Cessna Cardinals or whatever else tickles your fancy. But please, before that, can we have some Porches in the Sim?!