Yesterday, Tuesday July 2nd, Microsoft Flight Simulator received City Update 9: Northeastern United States and Local Legend 17: Curtiss C-46 Commando. We also received some information about the delay of Famous Flyer 10, the Boeing 707-320C, which was also supposed to release yesterday.
City Update 9: Northeastern United States
City Update 9 focuses on the Northeastern United States, specifically on Washington, D.C.; Buffalo, NY; Allentown, PA; and the eastern part of Long Island, NY. This update includes all the expected features of City Updates, such as updated aerial imagery, new digital elevation models, and TIN (Triangulated Irregular Network) surface texturing.
All the iconic landmarks of Washington D.C. have been included in this update, as well as some of the cities surrounding D.C., like Gainesville, Bristow, Stafford, and Fairfax in VA; and Frederick and Annapolis in MD.
Apart from improved buildings overall, some of the Buffalo landmarks included in this update are the Peace Bridge, the Rand Building, and the Seneca tower
Some of the landmarks from Allentown include the city center, the Coca-Cola Park, and the Malcolm Rose Garden.
City Update 17: Northeast United States is available for free from the MSFS Marketplace.
Local Legend 17: Curtiss C-46 Commando
The C-46 Commando is an aircraft that was manufactured by Curtiss-Wright from 1940 to 1945. It was primarily used for cargo transport during WWII, with some limited use as a paratrooper aircraft. It filled many of the same roles as the Douglas C-47, however, the C-46 was a larger, heavier, and more powerful aircraft that was better suited to certain missions. Missions such as flying over “the Hump” (the Himalayas), a situation where the C-47s less powerful engines and superchargers would have been unable to provide sufficient power at altitude to haul all the necessary cargo.
The C-46 was produced in much less numbers than the C-47 due to its increased complexity and cost over the latter, with some 3,200 C-46s produced versus 10,200 C-47s. Because of this, and because the C-46 didn’t have a civilian variant like the C-47 did with the DC-3, the C-46 is much, much less common nowadays. Only three active C-46s exist, one flying for Everts Air in Alaska, and the two others flying with Buffalo Air in the North West Territories of Canada.
The MSFS version of this iconic aircraft has been developed by Aeroplane Heaven, developers of the sim’s default DC-3 and the last Famous Flyer, the C-47. It includes the following four liveries: Japanese Air Self Defense Force, Olive Drab, Blue (U.S. Navy), USMIL. This aircraft is available from the MSFS Marketplace for $14.99 USD.
Boeing 707 Delay
During the last MSFS developer stream, the Boeing 707-320C developed by Aeroplane Heaven was announced as the next Local Legend aircraft, and a release date of July 2nd was given. However, July 2nd came, and the aircraft didn’t release. Users in the community were puzzled, as no delay notice had been given prior to the day, and after much discussion in the MSFS forums, an announcement was posted that confirmed the delay of this much anticipated aircraft.
The announcement stated that, upon reviewing the release candidate of the aircraft, it was clear that the aircraft needed more work in certain areas, and Asobo decided to give Aeroplane Heaven some more time to work on it. A specific release date for the 707 was not given, but they plan to release it alongside Sim Update 16, which is expected to come out after the release of MSFS2024.
Closing Notes
Overall, it has been a busy week for Asobo, with a new City Update for the Northeastern USA, the release of a new Local Legend, the C-46 Commando, and the announcement that the highly anticipated Boeing 707 would be delayed, likely until after MSFS2024’s release. Take a look at our article on the MSFS June Development update, where the 707 was initially announced.
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