Here’s my top ten for JULY. Although the order doesn’t matter, I wanted to put the Vulcan at the top of my list in recognition of the fact I’ve really enjoyed flying it this month, especially in combination with aerial refueling using Airshow Assistant.
The FlySimWare Learjet 35A has been shunted out by an airliner. Since my usual go-to of the PMDG 737-800 isn’t yet updated for MSFS 2024 I thought I’d try one of the stock aircraft, and I’ve been pretty impressed with the inibuilds A330. For a free aircraft, it seems functionally solid and has nice texturing and sound, and to this non-expert airline pilot it did everything I could ask of it!
And in other shock news… I didn’t see this coming at all, but the Blackbird A65M Zero has kicked the FlyingIron FW-190 out of my top 10 
. They’ve done a stellar job on that aircraft, all the little details just bring a great level of immersion; this raises the bar for warbirds in MSFS 2024. Hopefully it’s a sign of what we can expect when a few more native MSFS 2024 warbirds start trickling through.
My July Top Ten
| # | Aircraft | Type* | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. |  Just Flight Avro Vulcan |
2024 hybrid | Have a gold medal for being extra-awesome. I love this aircraft for covering long distances! |
| 2. | FlyingIron BF109 | 2020 native | Holds up very well despite no compatibility update. |
| 3. | Black Square Starship | 2024 hybrid | As good as it gets for a rewardingly complex GA experience. Minor issue with tail reg not working (Asobo bug) |
| 4. |  inibuilds A330 |
2024 native | Very good for a free aircraft, but at risk due to a few bugs (especially this). Replaced FSW Learjet 35A in my top 10. |
| 5. | Blackbird A65M Zero |
2024 native | I was (pleasantly) blindsided by this one - and it replaces FlyingIron FW190 in my top 10! |
| 6. | FlyingIron Spitfire | 2020 native | 99% excellent in 2024 since last patch. Looking forward to the upcoming 2024 native version. |
| 7. | Black Square Piston Duke | 2020 native | Deserves its space here but not getting much flight time since the Starship arrived. Tail reg not working (Asobo bug) |
| 8. | Just Flight T1 Hawk | 2024 hybrid | A close call between this and the IFE Tornado. The “purity” of the Hawk just tipped the scales in its favour. |
| 9. | CAS Piper J3C-65 Cub | 2024 hybrid | For when you have no need for speed! |
| 10. | Miltech CH47D | 2024 hybrid | Slightly let down by some rough edges in the cockpit texturing but still the only heli I want to fly. |
* Footnote on 'Type' column
- 2020 native = an aircraft built for MSFS 2020
- 2024 hybrid = an aircraft built for MSFS 2024, but uses the “legacy” simobject structure as used in MSFS 2020. Could be a conversion or all-new aircraft.
- 2024 native = an aircraft built for MSFS 2024, using the new modular simobject structure