GotFriends took to their Facebook page to announce the release of their rendition of the Revolution Mini-500 for Microsoft Flight Simulator.
The helicopter rendition features custom MGL avionics including seven monitoring pages, several visual features such as downwash, combustion, heat, rain and icing effects, a native flight model built for Microsoft Flight Simulator using the new helicopter SDK and in-sim avionics swap with exchangeable GTR-220 radio and GNS-530 navigation systems.
Although this rendition is heavily inspired by the design of the original kit helicopter, GotFriends have adopted the Stitt Industries’ proposed plans and modified their kit with the Solar T-62 turbine engine.
The Revolution Mini-500 is a single-seat, light helicopter designed and produced by American helicopter manufacturer Revolution Helicopter Corporation as a kit for homebuilding (amateur aircraft building). The Mini-500 was powered by a Rotax 582, 64 hp (48 kW), two-stroke engine later upgraded by Stitt Industries to the much more powerful Solar T-62 turbine engine. It has a tubular steel fuselage with a foam and glass-fibre structure cabin, a two-bladed semi-rigid rotor, and a conventional two-blade tail rotor. First flying in 1992, the manufacturer delivered the first factory-built Mini-500 in 1994 with kit production ceasing in 1999; more than 500 units were sold.
GotFriends also include two website-exclusive liveries namely the Stealth Livery with a U.S. Navy fuselage, rotor tip lights, head tracking HUD, and mounted mini-guns and the Hunter Livery with camouflaged fuselage equipped with compound bow.
The Marketplace release is estimated to be in 2–5 weeks. The Revolution Mini-500 by GotFriends can be, in the meantime, purchased from their website for $15 USD.
Key features of the Mini-500:
- Realistic Solar T-62 engine flight dynamics and native rotorcraft flight model
- Computational fluid dynamics (CFD)
- Custom WWISE sound-pack
- 4K high quality textures
- 20 included liveries
- System persistence (flight-to-flight)
- Animated main rotor and tail rotor components
- Animated skid animations and flexing
- Adjustable trim for hands-free flying
- Virtual cockpit vibrations based on engine values
- Removable doors with sound design in mind
- Custom lighting effects with accurate electrical system simulation
- Working headphone simulation with toggle-able audio jack
- Toggle-able tablet with area navigation installed
- Safety awareness lights and warning indicators including NR low/high warnings
- Removable magnetic compass for greater forward visibility
