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As a franchise, Ace Combat has been critical to my development as an aviation enthusiast. It made me realize, after having liked AC04, that liking planes wasn't just a phase. It made me realize I was always going to yearn for the skies, to look to connect to the heavens at a deeper level. I first played Ace Combat 4, as mentioned previously, and it blew my mind with its engaging gameplay and surprisingly deep story. A story of a boy and an Ace, and the ways that war affects life within a small town. Despite me not grasping the subtle details as a child, AC04 still left a palpable impact in my perception of gaming as a genre as a kid. Now, when I got my hands on Ace Combat 5, things were a bit different. I loved the new 3D cutscenes and some of the lovable characters like Captain Bartlett, I will probably never forget how much I enjoyed the intro cutscene with the cockpit camera shots and the close-ups of the Phantom. Putting that aside, I did feel like the story was a bit off. Unlike with 04, all the events that the story told me, and all the cutscenes were about the Squadron I played as and with the protagonist at the center of it. That made the game feel different to me, at least in the way I engaged with it. I felt like everything happened around me, as if I was an anime protagonist. Thinking back on that made me realize something that I also felt as a kid back then: AC04 and AC5 are polar opposites. Both games can be qualified as power fantasies that let you play out your wildest fighter pilot fantasies, which was already the norm for the franchise. But just how they are very similar in gameplay, their stories are quite the opposite. Ace Combat 4's story is not about you as the player, the Storyteller is the protagonist and your rival, Yellow 13, has as much screen time as him. It is not a story about Mobius 1, or centered on him, but a reflection of life during wartime for combatants and civilians alike. On the contrary, we have Ace Combat 5's sole focus on Wardog/Razgriz and how these pilots single-handedly changed the outcome of the war with their skill. It felt as if I was watching an anime, which by itself is not bad. Everything turned around Razgriz, the President and, to a lesser degree, about Belka's involvement in all of this. It wouldn't be until I replayed 5 after having finished Zero that I actually started understanding these hints to a greater lore Credit: Warlock1281 @ Ace Combat Wiki It is a game that, upon release, could have left some wondering about the mysteries of the universe and the forces that moved it. Likewise, it also established the new setting for AC as a whole, Strangereal, and the factions that ruled over it. Even though the characters felt corny from time to time, and their actions and emotions felt very exaggerated, it is clear that 5 was made with the possibility of expanding the universe in the future. It planted the seeds of what Ace Combat would be, and the identity it would take on in the future. While I personally believe that AC04's story is the best that the franchise has ever put up, it is undeniable that AC5 played a crucial role in shaping the franchise. Was this good for the franchise? Could AC have gone a different route had they stuck to the older storytelling formula? I will leave those questions for you to ponder. For now, fly safe and stay safe out there! About the Author Santiago "Cubeboy" Cuberos Longtime aviation fanatic with particular preference towards military aviation and its history. Said interests date back to the early 2000s, leading into his livelong dive into civil and combat flight simulators. He has been involved in a few communities, but only started being active around the mid 2010s. Joined as a Spanish to English translator in 2017, he has been active as a writer and the co-founder of Skyward ever since. Twitter  | Discord : Cubeboy

Your favorite (only?) flight game with an AI cat assisting humanity's stellar aviation endeavors is back with one-hell of an update. As I mentioned in a previous article, Exosky   by Elevons LLC is a flight experience I had a bit of a hard time trying to describe to others. I am still fascinated by the concept of this game and its non-combat, aerobatic focused gameplay. As Exosky moves towards a March 2025 release date, I jumped back into the demo to see the deep changes made to the experience. Diagram of the human made Robosphere that enables humanity to travel the stars. Story Revamp It is best to speak about the considerable story update first as the opening cinematic of the game is unexpectedly complex and detailed. The story of Exosky comes after The Great Migration, a long planned and prepared for movement of humanity from the ruined Earth into the stars across the galaxy. With human settlements on different planets in The Solar System and atmospheres of each planet varying greatly, drone ships that fly through the skies and operate underwater are a significant tool to support humanity's interstellar operations. A representation of the Bedrock Program. The beloved AI cat I keep bringing up, named Norton, was created before humanity left to the stars. Eventually Norton founded The Bedrock Project, a cooperation of bot pilots and human pilots to create a next generation flight simulation program for pilots operating drones in complex environments found on other planets before they are forced to learn in real time with a higher degree of danger. That is the skinny explanation of the story. I highly recommend watching the entire opening video. Extra Content A surprisingly large part of this demo update is the extra content section. When you think about full game releases it is things like concept art, development info and videos you expect to see. Finding them in the demo is welcome, but unexpected. There are four categories, "The Goodies and Mod Tools", "Concept Art", "Meta Game" and "Video". There is a quite a bit of content in each of these. For example, the Concept Art category has 50 images with explanations about projects the developer started with back in 2010 all the way through a much larger concept for a massive multiplayer experience that was well into development just up until plans changed for the current version of Exosky we know now. Concept art. Even with information communicated in pictures, a few sentences and prototype video, there is enough for players to understand that the original scope of this game's concept was rather ambitious for a time. It is interesting context to understand the Exosky of today and its new backstory. I am a huge fan of things like this in any game, so I am especially pleased to see it included in the free demo. Level Revamp The three levels available in the demo have undergone significant updates. Despite me being rather familiar with this demo, its new updates made it feel like a mostly new experience. It goes deeper than changing how the already eclectic terrain looks. Previously players would need to fly through a series of waypoints while deviating from the set path a bit to perform aerobatic maneuvers and high risk nap of the earth (I am using "Earth" lightly here) flying to increase score in in various scoring categories during flight. Flight regimes like flying low over or between solid objects, flying through thick cloud layers, high-G maneuvering, inverted flight, etc. Reaching a set score of points in one flight before reaching the final waypoint then unlocked the next level. As of the recent demo update this has changed quite a bit. Now players are required to meet specific point requirements per category per level. For example, the second level has extensive high winds in certain sections. Players are required to spend an extensive amount of time in those conditions to gain enough points while flying under high wind conditions to meet that requirement. But with limited energy (fuel) to power the drone engines, players would be smart to multi-task while gaining points in other categories. Let me tell you, flying inverted at close proximity through the chip set of a Voodoo 2 graphics card while applying near maximum counter-rudder for crosswind is one of the craziest ways I've ever progressed in a flight game. A somewhat standard view in Exosky. Players gain extra score by exploring each level, by finding points of interest like CPU cooling lakes, sci-fi battlecruiser sized aquatic life and other genuinely wild objects. Trails of coins that grant extra points act as non-invasive guides to encourage players to fly throughout all areas of a level, unlike the more forefront and mandatory waypoints players must fly through to complete the level and progress through the game. Amphibious drone over a motherboard. Flight Model Improvements Exosky   already had a rather solid, well documented flight model for a game that visually looks nothing like a traditional flight simulator. The modest Steam post about "improved aircraft handling" does not do the improvements to the flight model justice. It took me some time to adjust to the new changes. I failed my initial attempts of the first level solely because I was not taking stall speeds, throttle response, low energy states and engine power consumption at high throttle settings seriously. While using a gamepad, even rapid inputs of full rudder seemed detrimental to the level of precision flying I needed to be successful. After having a brief mental reset (i.e. locking in) I was able to progress nicely using a gamepad, but fortunately Exosky is compatible with USB flight controllers. I had a night and day experience using even an entry level hands on throttle and stick from the Thrustmaster T-Flight series. The awe factor is real in this game. The fact that more finite controls offered by a dedicated flight controller made such a considerable impact on my experience speaks volumes about the current state of the flight model. In the past year I feel like I've played plenty of titles that work perfectly fine with a gamepad or keyboard and mouse, so even using a T.Flight felt unnecessary. In Exosky right now, the flight stick coupled with the flight model gave me enough control to start identifying ideal turn rate speeds, efficient throttle settings for gaining altitude or maintaining airspeed without wasting engine energy, coordinated turns and smooth, controlled movements to fly though the tightest spaces in the weirdest atmospheres all while remaining in complete control of the drone. It was rather gratifying to have precision tangibly rewarded in this way. I am looking forward to seeing Exosky   release into early access in March 2025, as it seems positioned to be one of the more unique indie flight game with a detailed flight model to come out in quite some time. You will be hearing more from me about this game soon! Connect with Exosky
Discord : https://discord.gg/nnM2cUPUW4 Steam : https://store.steampowered.com/app/2795160/Exosky/
Website : https://exosky.aero/ About the Writer Aaron "Ribbon-Blue" Mendoza Co-founder of Skyward Flight Media. After founding Electrosphere.info, the first English Ace Combat database, he has been involved in creating flight game-related websites, communities, and events since 2005. He explores past and present flight games and simulators with his extensive collection of game consoles and computers. Read Staff Profile .

For what feels an eternity now, I have trusted my flight sim experience to a Thrustmaster T1.6000 flight stick. It has served me well for over 5 years and, in my opinion, is still the budget king in the category. But after years of use, as anything, it started showing some very noticeable signs of wear. At the beginning, it was the potentiometers on the base slider and twist stick giving away, which wasn't mission-critical for me. Then, I started losing sensitivity in the front buttons and, finally, the trigger. I opened up my stick several times to do repairs, so it wasn't due to a lack of trying that my trusty T1.6K from Thrustmaster finally decided to become unplayable. This is when I decided to give Winwing a try with the generous help from Aaron, since I wasn't able to acquire it at the time. It took months to get to my country, but I finally got a knock on the door earlier this week. Let's take a quick look at this marvelous stick! DISCLAIMER: This article was NOT sponsored by WINWING in any way, shape or form. As well, we acquired this item with our own means, this was not a free sample provided by WINWING. We have full editorial control of this content URSA MINOR: PUNCHING ABOVE ITS WEIGHT Even though this stick is considered an "entry level" piece of hardware, along with other competitors like the VKB Gladiator, the Ursa Minor seems to be packed with features that, in practicality, position it on a higher tier.

Personally, when looking for a quality flight stick to replace my T1.6000, I looked for certain features that were a must: Hall-effect sensors for the main axis movement, more than one hat switch and a plenty of face buttons. Hat switches were my priority, as I struggled to map everything I needed in DCS for more complex aircraft. Thankfully, the Ursa minor offered all of that and more. I went from one to four hat switches, plus a mini-stick. It also has hall effect sensors on all of its axis, including the twist (Z) axis, with the only potentiometer being the base slider. It has over 40 inputs available, with more possible if you decide to turn the mini-stick into another hat switch. These are usually features you see on higher-tier sticks, putting the Ursa Minor firmly ahead of other sticks in its price range (~USD $110) such as the X.52, X.56, the venerable T1.6000. The only stick that would be in direct competition is VKB's Gladiator. In terms of comfort, it is alright. It does feel a bit thin and the small non-adjustable palm rest can leave you wanting for more. That being said, for an average sized hand (adult male), all buttons are easily accessible and tactile. The monochrome ambient lighting is quite pleasing and adjustable through software. It was made in such a way that it is impossible to distinguish between the individual LEDs, leaving you with a very eye-catching base lit up with white diffusers. Even during daytime, these lights are visible and add to the overall premium aesthetic this stick offers. SOFTWARE AND IN-GAME USE To configure the stick properly, you will need to download Winwing's proprietary software: SimApp Pro. This program is... quite primitive. While it does let you connect your stick directly to games such as DCS and allows you to configure certain aspects of the Ursa Minor, it does require an accountb to be created to even access some of those features. To create an account, it will require you to give them your phone number on sign-up. Some connectivity features include interactions between the game that will affect the lighting, or even the until now unmentioned vibration motor that comes included within the stick. Once in-game, whether you have activated the additional features through SimApp or not, you will be welcomed by a flight simmer's favorite activity: control mapping. This stick does not have default mappings for DCS World, not even axis controls, so you will have to do all of that by hand and with a lot of patience. Now that we are actually able to use the flight stick as God intended, you will most likely find the experience to be quite a breath of fresh air, especially if you came from a stick such as the T1.6000. The more interesting aspect to me, and the one that jumped at me immediately upon trying to take off on my Phantom, was the feel the solid gimbals had on the movement. You can clearly feel when you are on one axis or another, unlike with the gimbal on the T1.6000. When I am rolling, I feel as if I was gliding through a narrow channel and, as soon as I input some pitch, you feel the merge of both axis working in unison.

It is extremely responsive and sensitive, that goes for pitch, roll and yaw. I have found the experience to be extremely appealing and quite a step up from my trusty T1.6K. All the buttons are tactile, and the two stage trigger demands some force for you to activate its second stage. I have absolutely zero complaints in regard to the buttons and the built of this stick, Winwing really did an amazing job here. WOULD I RECOMMEND IT? Yes. I am one happy customer. If you have a T.Flight Hotas 4 or even a TWCS set-up from Thrustmaster, getting an Ursa Minor is quite the step in the right direction for your flight simming experience. Its only downside is the software package and its absurd limitations, but the stick does not need it to function in the slightest. I am glad this stick is now in my hands, let's see how long this one lasts me. I will take care of it like I did my 5-year-old T1.6K, so expect a long-term report in the future. Stay safe and happy flights! About the Author Santiago "Cubeboy" Cuberos Longtime aviation fanatic with particular preference towards military aviation and its history. Said interests date back to the early 2000s, leading into his livelong dive into civil and combat flight simulators. He has been involved in a few communities, but only started being active around the mid 2010s. Joined as a Spanish to English translator in 2017, he has been active as a writer and the co-founder of Skyward ever since. Twitter  | Discord : Cubeboy

It is clear that the current situation within DCS World, its community and developers is a bit weird. It is the first time in years that, even after seeing all of these announcements made during the annual "202X and Beyond" video, I have not felt excitement for anything showcased during its run. Quite the opposite, I feel worried about the future of DCS. I should feel excited, shouldn't I? We got confirmation on the full fidelity F-15C module, a lot of teaser content on the dynamic campaign mode and more awesome video of upcoming modules like the Eurofighter, Hellcat, Super Saber, etc. These are reasons to be excited, things to look forward to, but yet, here I am. Unenthusiastic and Stoic about it all. The elephant in the room, at least to me, was the announcement of the full-fidelity F-35A module by Eagle Dynamics. This is an aircraft I never expected to be introduced to DCS in any official manner, hell, it is the butt of the joke for the modding community because of how many teams have tried making it. To say the F-35 is a challenge to tackle would be an understatement. Why start development of two new, complex modules on top of the pile of already unfinished, early access ones that are available for purchase right now? I understand that these are not being worked on by the same teams, but it does feel like they are spreading their resources a bit too thin between all of these projects. Additionally, the classified nature of this bird means that there will most likely be no official exchange of information between the USAF/Lockheed Martin and ED, even less any sort of sharing of information regarding its specific systems and the inner workings of the aircraft. The developers clarified that it will be made with publicly available information on the aircraft from trade shows and SME feedback. My main gripe with the DCS F-35A is that they are calling it a "full-fidelity" module. In the past, the term "full-fidelity" meant that the aircraft was modeled as close as possible to the real one, including most if not all of its systems modeled (ITAR allowing) within a fully realized clickable cockpit. Something like that is more than understandable for old Cold War aircraft and legacy 4th generation fighters like the F-15C. But calling this F-35A "full-fidelity" is misleading for the users.

Full fidelity shouldn't just mean clickable and with systems made through OSINT. Were it to be marketed as "Clickable" or anything along those lines, I would not mind in the slightest. But it cannot be compared to aircraft like Heatblur's magnificent F-4E, or Polychop's unfortunate miracle, the OH-58D.
ADDITIONAL RECENT ISSUES SURROUNDING DCS
Speaking of Polychop, it is very unfortunate that most of its labor force seems to have resigned or been fired. Most details are unknown but from comments made by known developers such as Kinkku, with whom I worked with on the DCS UH-60L mod, we can infer that some of the most talented people over at the studio have left.
This situation is an internal one within Polychop themselves, and does not seem to be related to anything done by ED, nor does it have relation with the other elephant in the room: the RAZBAM situation. Both ED and RAZBAM have made contradictory statements regarding the status of the ongoing debacle both entities have, and about the future of RAZBAM's modules in DCS. ED's community managers have stated that they could take over and maintain the modules even after a hypothetical departure from the developer. RAZBAM denies that claim, as seen on the screencap below. Comment made by ED's Community Manager, NineLine, on the forums. Official comment by RAZBAM on their Discord server. It has now been almost a year since this situatiuon began, and most members of the community are tired of seeing both sides contradict each other in public statements. MY HOPES So, what now? Am I going to stop playing DCS just because the water's muddy and the future is not looking as bright as it could? No, I am not. I will still play it, but I won't be the faithful supporter that I used to be. Let's see where this year takes us, who knows? Things could improve. I will just be here for the ride, and I will make sure to share my opinions on future DCS happenings here at Skyward. Fly High, Fly Safe.
About the Author Santiago "Cubeboy" Cuberos Longtime aviation fanatic with particular preference towards military aviation and its history. Said interests date back to the early 2000s, leading into his livelong dive into civil and combat flight simulators. He has been involved in a few communities, but only started being active around the mid 2010s. Joined as a Spanish to English translator in 2017, he has been active as a writer and the co-founder of Skyward ever since. Twitter  | Discord : Cubeboy

“Everyone knows Star Wars was saved in the edit.”
– Every Youtuber ever. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that I am more than willing to consume anything regarding Ace Combat 04. To me, it’s still the pinnacle of the series and should qualify as one of the best games ever made. One of its greatest strengths is in its storytelling. I’ve read it described as the retelling of a novel. This is very prescient; it does in fact feel like a chaptered comic or visual novel in the way it's built. It’s unique in this regard, as later installments of the franchise build themselves like a movie, from the after-action opening credits to an adherence to a three act format. But what if you could really make that novel shine through as well? Can you make that elusive novel-to-movie transition work for the first reboot of the franchise? Well, Nassault found a way. Nassault is a supremely talented video editor and as die-hard a fan of Ace Combat and aviation as they come. Utilizing Digital Combat Simulator as the engine for cinematics, he manages to translate the fun of the game missions and turn them into bite-sized, action-packed trailers that exude world-class editing expertise. But it also exposes his action as a world-class director and a pretty decent pilot. His videos constrain themselves to making the action feel real and within the time limit constraint of the mission’s soundtrack. He flies the planes themselves to get the action just right. He can make the simple flipping of a switch dramatic, and it’s in service of the story. Imminent Threat compacts the 8-10 minute mission into a realistic runway strike by Mobius 1 and his comrades by using standoff munitions as a way to condense the main objective. He does well to cut out anything superfluous, and uses in-game voice lines to great effect, demonstrating the strength of the game’s script. He keeps within the limitations of the game engine and convincingly portrays the destruction of the ramp at Rigley Air Base.
“The hardest part about making this video was learning to fly the Phantom” (sic)
– Nassault’s top YouTube comment for Imminent Threat. … But what about the substation?! This is not to dismiss his enormous backlog which has built this highlight. From his excellent interpretations of Ace Combat Zero to his dabbling in VTOL VR , he puts his best foot forward each time and uses tried-and-true methods to portray the story being told. Sitting Duck exemplifies this marvelously. Starting with the overlaid merging of the title attract screen with the iconic blue F-4 flown by Mobius One. The use of DCS also performs a great interpretation of that iconic first mission, with believable beyond-visual range engagements against the Bear bombers. The in-game audio works almost ideally as well, being snappy while following the plot-relevant details to the letter. The ace-focused dogfight is exciting and engaging and doesn’t overexert itself; the entire thing wraps up nicely. With the release of Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 I’ve been on a bit of an eager kick for its bugs to be ironed out, and wouldn’t you know it, he’s got something to pay honor to that legacy as well. His Evolution of Microsoft Flight Simulator video could put Asobo and Microsoft’s marketing groups to task. With expert cuts between the primitive colored lines of the original and the still outstanding graphics of the 2020 release. It even implements a little humor in between the grandeur on display, with the CAS yelling about an imminent collision. Nassault can claim over 100 and a dozen videos dating back over 16 years. His steady buildup to the excellence you see today is exposed from day one, even if he may have been constrained with the technology of the time. Though he has dipped out of creating content from time to time, he always bounces back stronger than ever. You can catch his work on his website or check his YouTube channel . Writer T.J. "Millie" Archer T.J. "Millie" Archer is a life-long realist and aviation enthusiast. Once the co-founding Administrator of the Electrosphere.info English Ace Combat Database. In the present day, he is freelance, roving the internet in search of the latest aviation news and entertainment. [ Read Profile ]

"The squirrels are now fully targetable, as intended."
-Paper Planes Version 0.1.1 Patch Note This is one of the most out there patch notes you will see out of a flight game, but that is the type of energy Paper Planes by Creekside Interactive is bringing. This game launched into early access on Steam on January 5th, 2025. Though some of the earliest mentions of the game can be traced back to May 2024 in their Discord server , it has actually been in development in some form years before that. Starting sometime in 2021. Since then, the two-person indie development team has steadily made progress and took a few creative risks until Paper Planes finally reached early access at the start of 2025. My congratulations to the development team for sticking with a long term project and seeing it through. It really is not as easy as it looks. We wrote about the demo for this game during Planes, Trains and Automobiles Fest 2024. Shortly before early access release Creekside Interactive reached out to Skyward Flight Media to inform us of their upcoming release and offered Steam keys for review. We had a pretty decent time with the demo for this rather unconventional flight game, so we took the offer to review the game. This review was written with no communication between Skyward Flight Media and Creekside Interactive about our thoughts on the game. All opinions stated here are unaffected by external sources. The Vibe A moderator on our Discord team named 'Prov', who has also been providing feedback on Paper Planes, summed up the feeling of the game pretty well. He expressed that it felt like an early 2000s game. After a brief discussion, a few older games came to mind. The common thread being that they were willing to present an approachable game, not steeped in a complicated story that would just let outlandish scenarios playout with a few questionable jokes or swagger heavy narration. A type of game really anyone could pick up and learn in just a few minutes. Becoming familiar with the controls and game mechanics in just a session or two. Paper Planes is a pure arcade experience built for quick combat, fast flying and few other things to slow the experience down. The Levels Each level in Paper Planes is as whacky as you might imagine them to be. With no story having to connect each level together, they are an eclectic mix. The level designs are so unconventional, part of the experience is just taking in the sights. There is a constant level of curiosity about what is around every corner or what is behind each object. At launch, the levels include Backyard, Bedroom, Mushroom Forest, Plane Park and Volcanic Ruin. Their names are straightforward and describe exactly what to expect. Though Plane Park and Volcanic Ruin have two derivatives specifically made for air racing in the Time Trial game mode. Each level has built in environmental hazards. Things like backyard grills, model battleships, baseball pitching machines, bubbling lava and medieval trebuchets flinging what seem to be mushrooms that explode in colorful flashes; just to name a few. In my opinion, the most dangerous "hostile force" in each level is easily the world boundary. It appears with enough warning. However, colliding with it is instant death. Even grazing it. There are times I wish the barrier would cause gradual damage over time for being outside of it, but the barrier itself is not an issue. Aircraft, Flight The toy aircraft are made of paper, wood, rubber bands, foam, plastic and maybe a touch of electronics. They can carry rubber band blasters, guided rockets and pick up many other types of weapons and gadgets by picking up power ups. The designs vary from nostalgia familiar to original designs to being slightly IP adjacent. Of course each design has improved flight characteristics that are unique to each aircraft, but I feel as though I did not unlock enough of them to give a decent description of a majority of them. There is a reason for this explained in the "Building, Shopping" section of this review. Examples of all player controlled aircraft. (Creekside Interactive X.com) What I can discuss is the flight model and controls. If the balsa wood and Styrofoam fighters did not tip you off, this is a pure flight arcade game. Turn rates of aircraft do change depending on air speed and these toy aircraft slowly float down to the earth when the throttle setting is set to zero and the airspeed drops to zero. But do not expect anything more complicated beyond that. Each aircraft has a health bar that decreases as damage is taken with ammunition types able to be replenished by picking up power ups from the map. The one-time use power ups vary. They include items that regain health, improve blasters, force fields, afterburner boosts, etc. My personal favorite is a power up that adds a pair of classic paper planes that rotate around the player's aircraft and multiply its firepower. They are reminiscent of the Gradius series Options or Mobile Suit Gundam series Funnels. Styrofoam Airliner with paper plane "support fighters". A considerable problem with gameplay is related button mapping and remapping. When discussing gamepad controllers specifically, the configuration of pitch, roll, yaw and throttle functions are a point of contention. Speaking with 'Prov' again he articulated the problem succinctly, though I will expand upon it. Since the 1980s arcade flight games that use gamepads have a universally known control scheme. Pitch and roll controls are always on the left side of the controller, opposite of the face buttons. And for good reason. If the right hand is constantly manipulating flight controls that same hand could not easily interact with the face buttons of the controller without giving up control of the aircraft. Paper Planes places pitch and yaw controls on the left analog stick X and Y-axis with throttle and roll controls on the right analog stick X and Y-axis. With the throttle inputs requiring to be assigned to an axis with no option to assign them onto a pair of buttons, the result is an odd split thumbstick control scheme where flight controls are split between two thumbsticks. It is a system that can be learned, but for players that may be used to a specific style of control scheme, adapting to this unusual control scheme could be something that bounces them off the game before getting deeper into it. Fortunately the Creekside Interactive developers are very receptive to feedback on Steam and in their Discord . They know that Paper Planes will need more work over time. Feel free to give them more direct feedback on this and any other improvements. Building, Shopping The way this game handles building and buying aircraft is something I enjoy seeing. I am very much used to the clinical item selection style screen most flight arcade games use. Paper Planes uses a real world style model shop which players walk through using keyboard and mouse controls. In the early access version of the shop, players can use Coins to purchase raw materials to build a plane on the crafting table (foam, glue, wood, cans, etc.) or buy one preassembled. Alternatively, players can purchase materials from the shop one item at a time or get those items through gameplay. I like this system, but fully admit that it really can only fit in a few specific types of games. At first the cost of a few of the aircraft or items seems daunting, but as players engage in gameplay the rate at which materials are gathered isn't that terrible. Building or buying one of the high level aircraft made of cans or electronics will certainly take a concerted effort that cannot be interrupted by randomly buying aircraft along the way. Progressively buying aircraft is not something that is a part of game progress in the way that, say, the Ace Combat series does it. During the review I made it a point to do as much as possible with the starter aircraft and there were not hard limits to prevent a player from being successful. More advanced planes make gameplay more engaging with noticeable performance boosts, but the starter plane is still serviceable throughout the game. Domination The primary combat focused game mode available in single player and multiplayer. Each level has a set difficulty with options to adjust the number of enemies fought at a time. The enemies are unique to each level, each with their own means to attack the player. Some are ferocious looking magma creatures that throw balls of magma that can be shot out of their hands. Others are squirrels in miniature hot air balloons throwing nuts. The smaller enemies take an equal amount of damage no matter where they are struck. Besides the default blasters, they can also be hit by missiles. Of note, the blasters have a longer attack range than the missiles. It is possible to get many hits in from a longer distance before gradually entering counterattack range. The missiles are harder hitting than the blasters of course and can be fired slightly off boresight. Meaning they can be utilized while flying evasively. Barrel rolling past a stunned Magma Fiend. While the smaller enemies vary in design and type of attack they are not as extravagant as the boss characters players fight if they are successful in fighting surviving the first half of the mission. Very useful when multiple enemies attack a player at once. The boss battles are legitimate boss battles. They are similar to the types you would expect from a role playing game. Expect them to take a decent amount of time to clear. Of course harder hitting weapons can make it go a bit faster. There are a few phases of the battle that unfold as a boss takes an increasing amount of damage. Most bosses have specific parts that can be targeted. Some of these spots gradually weaken them or remove specific abilities for them to attack or defend themselves. The bosses are also tailor made per level. For example, the children's room is overseen by a one eyed Teddy Bear named Mr. Snuffles who throws toys while being escorted by laser packing robots. It occasionally tries to belly flop onto the player. On the more traditional end of the spectrum, there is an oversized flying fortress called the B-19 Hercules. This aircraft is covered in turrets, backed by a rotary-style missile launcher and some type of... object projection system? It is as visually intense as it is complicated to explain. Time Trial The air racing portion of the game still includes weapons to complicate things for other players. Players are timed against themselves or other players with speed boosts and power ups spread across the map. Even at the "Normal" airspeed, players have mere seconds to make snap decisions. Squeaking their aircraft between obstacles in the pursuit of staying as fast as possible at all times. The general airspeed of the aircraft can also be increased before each race, making them more challenging. I did not get too deep into the Time Attack portion of Paper Planes. Not because it is low quality, but because of my own lukewarm interest in game modes like this. I'd say try it yourself and form your own opinion. Free Roam The easiest game mode, purpose built for exploring said imaginative levels. Players can take their time to explore every detail of the maps. In my opinion, a flight game's Free Flight mode is one of the least used game modes. Once you've seen the terrain a few times, why go back, right? The developers of Paper Planes made one of the most forward thinking decisions I have seen in some time. Players are further encouraged to explore every nook and cranny by being able to find Coins and build materials to use in the in-game Shop. These items are just freely floating in the levels. Some of these maps yield decently large amounts of a specific materials or coins, making it worthwhile to revisit these maps outside of the other combat inclusive game modes. To me it is similar to material farming in a different genre of games. Sometimes you do not want to lock in for a long play session where a few boss fights will be inevitable. Slipping in a free flight or two to make progress towards building your next desired aircraft is a nice experience. Free Roam in the bedroom after shooting the light switch is the best. Closing Paper Planes by Creekside Interactive has very few things working against it in terms of gameplay, beyond the current button mapping restrictions. But again, I doubt that will be a permanent issue. Overall my experience was positive with the game. After taking time to learn the control scheme and fly full force into the concept and settings, I do feel like the game somewhat stands on its own among its peers in terms of creativity and willingness to simply try things that would be considered far outside of the box for other flight games. For the cost of $9.99 USD, it is quite a bit of content at launch for a game this size. The development team is already working on the next wave of content post release, which I do look forward to trying myself. Paper Planes Links Discord - Steam - X.com Defeating a boss is often spectacular! About the Writer Aaron "Ribbon-Blue" Mendoza Co-founder of Skyward Flight Media. After founding Electrosphere.info, the first English Ace Combat database, he has been involved in creating flight game-related websites, communities, and events since 2005. He explores past and present flight games and simulators with his extensive collection of game consoles and computers. Read Staff Profile .

It is a new year! The turn of the year often brings new players to Digital Combat Simulator World for the first time ever. Whether that is because of last holiday's sales or trying something new, some of these players might feel a bit intimidated by the amount of money that some of the official modules cost. Some of them cost as much as an AAA game. There is nothing to fear, though, as we have prepared a small guide to show that you do not need money to get the full DCS experience! ORIGINAL POST : 01/07/2023 - UPDATED : 01/08/2025 DCS SHINES WITH FREE COMMUNITY MODS For those that are not willing to commit 40 to 60 USD on a single module without knowing if they even have the mindset needed for a simulation game such as DCS World, there always is the option that got me started in DCS: the modding community.

Modern mods are no longer just re-skins of official modules, but fully-fledged modules that are available for free for everyone to enjoy. These go all the way from prop aircraft, training jets, light attack aircraft, full-on attack aircraft and even utility helicopters! That means that no matter what you want to learn or do in DCS before buying a module, it will be possible to get started without spending a single dime on the game. They are extremely easy to install and all of these come with newcomer-friendly installation instructions! To enjoy these to the fullest you might need a flight stick, but I know that a lot of people fly in DCS with standard gamepads and do just as well as some who have complex HOTAS setups.
OV-10A Bronco by Split Air
To get started, the first aircraft I would recommend anyone to try would be Split Air's OV-10A Bronco. This aircraft is the easiest one to fly and would allow you to gain all the fundamentals of flight without any of the drawbacks. It is also great fun to do missions with it due to its small but versatile arsenal. Sk60B by BAAS Dynamics The next one you should try after you feel confortable with the Bronco is the Sk60B by BAAS Dynamics. It is the best jet trainer at the moment, period. It allows you to get a proper jet experience with a fully-clickable cockpit that is both entertaining and educational. Furthermore, it is an awesome aircraft with a very interesting story behind it. Its 3D model and textures have nothing to envy from official modules. Additionally, It has some very lethal weapons available, so you are sure to have a blast with it. A-4E-C Skyhawk by Community A-4 Developer Team Once you have tried the Sk60B, you will have the need to fly something a bit faster and a bit more exciting. That is where the A-4E by the Community A-4 Developer Team comes into the picture. This is a full-on module with no strings attached. It has been built and improved upon for the best part of four years now, which shows how dedicated the team are. This mod gives you a fully-clickable, fully-featured 1970s attack aircraft. It has a wonderful air to ground radar and the capability to carry some extremely unique weapons exclusive to it.
F-4B/C Phantom II by VSN Once you are accustomed to the rigors of jet combat, it is time to go supersonic. In 2023, a mod released that we have not only invested a lot of time on, but also one that we have included in many of our missions. This extremely capable fighter is no other than VSN's F-4B/C Phantom II mod, an appetizer for the upcoming Heatblur F-4E module. This mod is also standalone, which means you do not need any other module, official or not, to use it. We highly recommend this mod to everyone! It might not be full fidelity like the A-4E, but it is sufficiently good for almost everything you would want it to do. It has a fully-functioning radar and unique weapon systems! T-45C Goshawk by VNAO If what you want to train for more modern aircraft to see if you like the more modern playstyle with screens and buttons, then VNAO's T-45C Goshawk is for you. This recreation of the venerable Goshawk is quite the mod, boasting a very detailed, fully-clickable cockpit with most of its systems modeled. This aircraft is the best one to try if what you want to buy is the Hornet or even other modern aircraft like the Tomcat or the F-16C!

The only detail is that it only carries training weapons, so do not expect to do any serious combat in this aircraft. UH-60L Blackhawk by H-60 Project Team If fixed-wing aircraft are not to your liking, then do I have a treat for you! The UH-60L by the H-60 Project team. This helicopter is the best way to get into rotary wing aircraft in DCS. It is a modern helicopter with all the amenities, including a full-on stability augmentation system, HMD, etc. It is fast and agile for what it is. I might be a bit biased as I am the texture artist for the Black Hawk, but I sincerely recommend this to everyone that might have even a passing interest in helicopters! YOU DON'T NEED MONEY TO ENJOY DCS I hope that this small list of wonderful mods serves as a window into DCS World and its amazing modding community. If you try them out and like them, then you can be sure that DCS is something that you will truly enjoy for years to come. So why not try them out? They are all free and accessible to everyone, no questions asked.

2025 is the year to get into DCS. I hope I see you in the virtual skies somewhere. UPCOMING DCS WORLD MODS IN 2025! AH-1G Cobra by Violent Nomad This mod has been in the works for quite a while now, and to say that it looks promising would be an understatement. Its developer, Nomad, is a hardworking individual that has been extremely open with his community about the progress he has made towards the completion of this mod. It would be the first standalone attack helicopter mod in DCS World, and one that fits perfectly with the Vietnam-era assets that we have in-game, and also the F-4E! In the last half of 2024 the AH-1G mod showed off its continued progress with a series of videos from the project's YouTube channel . Development is to the point that there are now videos of entire training missions that would be included with the module on release. Things are looking great so far. The most recent video about the mod shows off some of the cold start procedure and some neat features that this mod will have on release:
Dassault / Donnier Alpha Jet by Split Air Brought to you by the Split Air team, the developers of the OV-10A Bronco and other excellent mods, the Alpha Jet is setting itself to be one of the best mods available for the game upon its release. The external model is extremely detailed. As at least January 8th, 2025, the exterior model is 98% complete, with the interior model also quite advanced. The external flight model has been getting positive responses from source material experts that include former pilots of the aircraft. Several instruments are already interactive, base textures are nearly complete, and there is much more in active development. Seeing how detailed the flight model was for the OV-10A Bronco, we expect it to fly just as good as any of their other mods. Look forward to this trainer/light attack aircraft!
About the Author Santiago "Cubeboy" Cuberos Longtime aviation fanatic with particular preference towards military aviation and its history. Said interests date back to the early 2000s, leading into his livelong dive into civil and combat flight simulators. He has been involved in a few communities, but only started being active around the mid 2010s. Joined as a Spanish to English translator in 2017, he has been active as a writer and the co-founder of Skyward ever since. Twitter | Discord : Cubeboy

Tactical Airlifter You Did Not Know You Needed In a landscape that is frequently riddled with the overwhelming power of nuclear weapons, you would think the addition of an aircraft that is capable of delivering those weapons would be a given. If it cannot deploy a weapon of mass destruction, what place does it have in such a battlefield? I believe few people were expecting the arrival of a logistics capable aircraft with an unusually powerful conventional weapon selection. In my opinion, the VL-49 Tarantula occupies a rather unusual place in the setting of Nuclear Option by Shockfront Studios . The amazing trailer introducing the aircraft. AIRCRAFT DESCRIPTION The Tarantula is a quad proprotor, tiltwing, vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) heavy lift platform capable of launching from any of the game's pre-built or user made airbases, highway air strips and helipads. Though it cannot quite fit on the back of a Dynamo-class Destroyer or a Shard-class Corvette like its SAH-46 Chicane attack helicopter counterpart. While quite large, its ability to land vertically anywhere it can fit itself into maintains its versatility. Internal view (Nuclear Option official Discord server). As with all aircraft in Nuclear Option, the VL-49 Tarantula is exquisitely modeled externally and internally. The in-game encyclopedia description of this aircraft mentions its survivability in combat thanks to its four proprotors with internally linked driveshafts. I can certainly say this is the case, as I have intentionally taken this tiltwing mammoth into situations it should never be in and have landed with engines shot out and large sections of the aircraft missing. Its size and weight does make it hard to evade consistent anti-aircraft threats, so playing flying defensively is a must. TACTICAL AIRLIFTER The VL-49 Tarantula should be viewed not as a transport helicopter, but more of a tactical airlifter like the C-130. In its cargo bay the Tarantula can carry Munitions Containers to resupply land forces and aircraft at forward arming and refueling points and Naval Supply Containers that float in the sea to resupply naval units. Each container can explode if deployed incorrectly, so stable landings and low speed control is paramount, but in a pinch these crates can intentionally be ejected from the aircraft as medium yield makeshift bombs. Vehicle wise it can deploy a variety of vehicles. From two LCV25 technical style pickup trucks with anti-aircraft and anti-armor weapon packages, a single mobile radar vehicle capable of detecting and directing surface to air missile fire at targets at up to 40km or a single AFV6 multipurpose armored vehicle available in configurations like anti-air, anti-tank, armored personnel carrier and infantry fighting vehicle. Tarantula deploying a light armored vehicle at a remote location. After these vehicles are dropped off by the VL-49, they can be controlled by players on the same coalition with Nuclear Options built in real time strategy-esque control system. This makes the Tarantula capable of solo capturing neutral or hostile facilities by providing its own ground forces. DIRECT ACTION PENETRATOR Similar to the real world Sikorsky MH-60L DAP, the VL-49 Tarantula can mount a surprising variety of offensive and defensive weapons you would only expect on purpose built attack helicopters. Depending on configuration, it is able to fight its way in and out of contested areas. While carrying cargo, the Tarantula can carry a chin mounted 12.7 mm rotary cannon and on its sponson mounts either 25mm cannon pods or short-ranged infrared air-to-air missiles. When equipped with the 12.7mm and 25mm weapons, as long as players are not in direct control of them, the AI crew members of the Tarantula will automatically slew the weapons onto targets within their firing arcs and engage without the player's input. Aircraft loadout screen. Forgoing transport duties completely, the VL-49 can deploy up to twenty AGM-48 missiles deployed in a F-86D Saber Dog inspired rectractable ventral rocket tray. When fired in large volleys, a single Tarantula can saturate an area with while it remains near top speed to quickly leave the area while hostile forces deal with the wall of missiles it left behind. Ventral rocket tray. Due to its size, attempting to operate for a prolonged period in contested airspace like an attack helicopter is impractical. Evading anti-aircraft fire is difficult because the Tarantula is unable to quickly terrain mask like an attack helicopter or fixed-wing combat aircraft can, then unmask seconds later to continue the engagement. GUNSHIP Aside from transport abilities, the Tarantula's signature combat capability is as a gunship with a side mounted 76mm cannon with a relatively high rate of fire. This heavy hitting cannon has a surprisingly long reach with reliable accuracy thanks to it firing guided cannon shells. The side mounted cannon is hard hitting, capable of destroying a main battle tank in two to four hits while it is driving. Couple its base range with additional altitude provided by an aircraft and the cannon is capable of out ranging short range air defenses (SHORAD). Side mounted 76mm cannon. In Nuclear Option, SHORAD is highly effective against air-to-ground weapons like missiles, bombs and rockets. Most units are able to track these weapons in flight and attempt to intercept them with high rate of fire autocannons or interceptor missiles. Because of this saturation attacks against groups of defended targets are a must. While the guided cannon shells from the Tarantula can be intercepted by some SHORAD units, sustaining fire directly on an air defense unit will gradually overwhelm it. For example, a self propelled anti-aircraft gun may be able to intercept a handful of missiles in just a few seconds, but even it will eventually run out of ammunition when faced with a steady stream of 76mm cannon shells focused on it and only it. Much like the anti-tank missiles mentioned in the previous section of this article, with the cannon mounted, the Tarantula can dispatch a convoy of enemy vehicles in just a few minutes if the conditions in the airspace are permissive. Heavily damaged VL-49 heading back to base. OPERATIONAL REALITIES The strengths and weaknesses of the Tarantula show themselves rapidly depending on the mission type. Nuclear Option is best known for its large scale, force on force missions that are a part of the base game. In these missions about 100 units on each side with dozens more produced in real time fight one another over hundreds of kilometers. Within the mix of the chaos are multiple high performance fifth generation fighters like the KR-67 Ifrit or FS-12 Revoker, which frequently penetrate the perceived frontlines and easily target aircraft like the Tarantula. Being unable to press towards the frontlines easily, the Tarantula can struggle at times. VL-49 Tarantula cockpit. In permissive environments the VL-49 can loiter in an area of the map, locking down roads from enemy troop movements and offering assistance with saturation attacks. In small and medium size scenarios, the Tarantula has more flexibility and the vehicles it deploys have more of an impact in a ground war that does not involve a near endless firehouse of land units. The Tarantula has potential to be the catalyst for an entire set of logistics focused and dispersed forces missions. I find myself flying the VL-49 Tarantula more than half of the aircraft roster in the game, but this is mainly because of the possibilities it presents for multiple mission types. Expect to see more of the VL-49 Tarantula's capabilities on full display as Skyward Flight Media moves forward in making missions for Nuclear Option in the near future. View from a VL-49 cockpit moments before starting an air assault. About the Writer Aaron "Ribbon-Blue" Mendoza Co-founder of Skyward Flight Media. After founding Electrosphere.info, the first English Ace Combat database, he has been involved in creating flight game-related websites, communities, and events since 2005. He explores past and present flight games and simulators with his extensive collection of game consoles and computers. Read Staff Profile .

The first day of the New Year is here. Skyward flight Media is forming considerable plans for 2025. With ideas being written up and multipart meetings on the horizon, a part of looking forward to the future is taking a look at the past. For Skyward, 2024 was a time of continuing our established way of operations while gradually increasing our reach. Here are a few releases that exemplify some of the content we put out this year. YAWMAN ARROW REVIEW February 3rd, 2024 Our big hardware review of the year was for the Arrow handheld flight controller by Yawman LLC. After meeting the team and trying a prototype at Flight Sim Expo 2023, ongoing communication led to an early mass production unit being sent to Skyward Flight Media before the Arrow was released for public sale. Though designed for mid to high fidelity flight simulators, the USB interface of this controller made it possible to remap its buttons and axes for any new or old game that would recognize it. This review stands as one of our most in-depth hardware reviews thus far. FSE 2024: AI Enhanced Flight June 22nd, 2024 The widespread use of artificial intelligence in our everyday lives is here. How it would be incorporated into flight Simulation was something I was unsure of. I half-expected its implementation to just fly aircraft on behalf of the Humans playing the simulator. Which would be, for the lack of a better term, "Cringe". However, companies presenting at FSE 2024 offered their AI products as an enhancement to flight, rather than a replacement for the minutiae of aviation operations. With AI providing multi-language air traffic control, ground control, radio chatter and even flight instruction, it seems like the era of enhanced solo flight simulation is here. DCS Syria COIN February 11th, 2024 The first Skyward Flight Media original mission created for Digital Combat Simulator. This scenario is an example of how our in house mission editors now have high level skills, but it also represents a turning point in Skyward's content creation. With this mission's release, even more complex content has been planned, with development well underway. No Punch: DCS World's Disappointing Explosives August 7th, 2024 An important article this year, as we finally got a bit tired of the way explosives work in vanilla DCS and wanted to bring some attention to this issue. After all, how fun can bombing a target really be when a Humvee two feet from the 500lb bomb explosion comes out unharmed? Review: DCS OH-6A Cayuse by Tobsen & Eightball May 1st, 2024 Out of all the reviews written last year, the most important one was the Cayuse. This little bird that could is the most impressive mod released for DCS World this year, and one that not only left me speechless, but also revived my faith in proper mods being done for the only combat sim on the market. The Current State of DCS World and its Community April 27th, 2024 Speaking of the only modern combat sim in the market, we also shared our genuine opinions about the state of DCS World and its community and some of the drama that surrounded it in early 2024. The fact that a lot of what was said still rings true starting 2025 should be an indication that this article has aged like fine wine.

For months, my copy of VTOL VR sat there on my SSD, unattended and unloved. I struggled to find any motivation to boot it up since I was not really in the mood to play it alone, at least until my friend and fellow Skyward creator, Hueman, got his first VR headset. As it is kind of typical in our friend group, he was immediately bombarded with VR games to give him the best shot at enjoying his time in VR, one of which was VTOL VR.
This finally gave me an excuse to revisit this game with a clear mind, and now with a larger group of friends to fly alongside me. We all assembled the past two days to have fun in the game, but I never expected to have such a good time with it, especially considering my previous stagnation with the game. DAY 1: MULTI-CREW TIME The first session was sort of an impromptu one, and I wanted to do something different that I just couldn't do by myself. That is why I proposed to Hueman to do some multi-crew flights with two aircraft, the AH-94 and the T-45. The sessions started very rough, as it was the first time in months that I had touched VTOL VR. I had to readjust myself to the controls, while trying to teach some of the basics of the AH-94 gunner seat to Hue. He ended up figuring out most of it himself for the sole reason that I already kind of had enough trying to teach myself the pilot seat of the helicopter to myself. After a couple of suboptimal flights, half of which we flew with one engine because I rushed the startup, we learned the hard way that we needed more people for the mission we were engaging. We only managed to get some of the objectives done, and the last couple of objectives were impossible with our current level of proficiency. View from Hueman's perspective. That is why we switched to the T-45, a simpler and more familiar aircraft. In my initial review, I found this plane to be a lovely experience in VR and an excellent way to teach your friends to do anything you need to do in VTOL VR. Much of this experience did transfer through even after months of disuse, but we still struggled a bit because of my poor weapon choices for the missions we were tackling.

At the end of the day, we had spent hours flying and getting things done. I had a blast with Hue and he did too. This would wrap up the first day of flying. DAY 2 AND 3: BIG MISSION, MADE BETTER WITH FRIENDS For the second and third days, we had some of our friends show up to the session. This made it possible to tackle some bigger multiplayer CO-OP missions that were just unreasonable to do alone. We did two sessions of the same mission, but with different parameters and people. Important bonding time between members of SkywardFM. This mission was one of the biggest ones included with the base game, and has a lot of potential to do many types of tasks and objectives. From air-to-air, air-to-ground, SEAD and anti-ship, this mission has a bit of everything. RibbonBlue, as expected, decided to get on the EF-24 and fly for us as a dedicated SEAD and Electronic Warfare aircraft. He suppressed as many as possible, allowing us to get insanely close to some of the more difficult objectives, such as the enemy fleet. He also, surprisingly, focused himself on jamming the enemies' radar warning receivers, but what does this mean? In simple terms, he made it so that if he had focused on that enemy aircraft, that pilot couldn't even know that they were being shot at until the last seconds before impact. This came in handy more times than I'd like to admit.

The others, including me, dedicated ourselves to all other miscellaneous objectives. I personally made it my mission to annihilate all known enemy air defenses and the enemy fleet with the F-45, this game's equivalent to the F-35 Lightning II. I did this with both Sournetic, another member of Skyward's team, Hueman and Wyvern613. We did a lot over both sessions, and had a blast. So much happened that it would be here typing all day if I were to recount every sortie, but a couple of the highlights from my sides were: sinking three quarters of the enemy fleet with anti-radiation missiles, downing three out of four enemy stealth aircraft while engaging solo with one wing after Sour was shot down, doing SEAD the old way by engaging the emplacements with the gun while defeating missiles kinetically, etc. IF YOU OWN VR, PLEASE GO PLAY VTOL VR I am not joking when I say that I fell in love with this game all over again over the span of a week. Our friend group is now planning future sessions and Hueman, as expected, is now engaging with the game's mission editor to create custom terrain and missions for the group to fly to. This is to say, expect more VTOL VR content in the future! About the creator: Santiago "Cubeboy" Cuberos Longtime aviation fanatic with particular preference towards military aviation and its history. Said interests date back to the early 2000s, leading into his livelong dive into civil and combat flight simulators. He has been involved in a few communities, but only started being active around the mid 2010s. Joined as a Spanish to English translator in 2017, he has been active as the co-founder and writer ever since. Twitter  | Discord : Cubeboy

The event has also arranged hotel, airfare, and car rental discounts to make it easy for everyone to participate! Media Partnership Confirmed 2025! Skyward Flight Media has been confirmed as a media partner for FlightSimExpo 2025. This is our fifth year of media partnership for the expo. Our organization covered the event as online only attendees in 2021 and 2024, but attended the event in person in 2023. See all of our past content from FSExpo here . In 2025 we have one representative confirmed attending the event in person with others possibly in attendance. Press Release: Registration Open! Attendee registration is now open for FlightSimExpo 2025, held June 27-29 at the Rhode Island Convention Center in Providence. Use flightsimexpo.com/register to secure the best rates. After welcoming more than 2,400 attendees to Las Vegas earlier this year, one of the world’s largest dedicated flight simulation events is headed to New England! The convention will feature developers, non-profits, virtual airlines, air traffic control demos, seminars, product announcements, off-site activities and tours, and much more. The 2025 event kicks off with #FSExpoFriday , an afternoon of product updates and announcements from flight simulation’s biggest developers. Later that evening, all attendees are invited to a welcome reception, while FSA Captains have the option to attend the FlightSimExpo Banquet, featuring dinner and prizes. On Saturday and Sunday, attendees get access to an 85,000+ square foot exhibit hall with hands-on demos of flight simulation hardware and software. Speaker stages will feature how-to seminars and educational discussions sourced from the community. An ‘Entire Event’ registration includes all seminars, exhibit hall access on Saturday and Sunday, a free drink at Friday’s Welcome Reception, coffee and tea on Saturday and Sunday mornings, and exclusive access to post-event seminar recordings. All this starts at just $50, for the first 250 FSA Captains to register. Entire Event pricing for non-members is $80 USD, with Weekend or Online-Only options available too.   Airline, Hotel, and Car Rental Discounts Discounted hotel rooms and airfare deals from Delta, United, Southwest, and codeshare partners are available now. Make your travel plans early to take advantage of great rates. Find the details at flightsimexpo.com/travel . Sponsor and Exhibit at FlightSimExpo 2025 FlightSimExpo welcomes software developers, hardware vendors, communities, and other flight simulation organizations to participate as sponsors, exhibitors, and speakers. Details on getting involved are available at flightsimexpo.com/partner . An initial list of sponsors and exhibitors will be shared in March 2025. “We’ve made it super easy for flight sim devs of all sizes to participate in FlightSimExpo,” says co-founder Evan Reiter. “Turnkey solutions, part-time exhibit booths, and larger opportunities are all available. The community wants to meet you! Look through our 2025 Partner Overview, speak to other devs who’ve attended, or reach out to me for more information.” About FlightSimExpo. FlightSimExpo is one of the world’s largest flight simulation conventions. The event has welcomed more than 7,500 attendees to events in Las Vegas, Orlando, San Diego, and Houston since 2018. FlightSimExpo is produced by Flight Simulation Association, a community-driven organization of developers, simmers, and real-world pilots working to make it easier to get started in home flight simulation. Join the community today—free—at flightsimassociation.com for resources, learning content, webinars, and discounts on top add-ons and simulation hardware.

Development update for the next Skyward Original Mission for Digital Combat Simulator Development of the second publicly available Skyward original mission for Digital Combat Simulator World is well under way. A preview is in order! Unlike the expansive, counterinsurgency focused Skyward Syria COIN mission , our upcoming mission is a smaller, high intensity, Cold War era experience generically set in a 1971 - 1979 technology limit. Near complete build of Mount Sabana Military Base. Mission Setting 'Sabana Strike' is set on the free to download Marianas map for Digital Combat Simulator World. Not tied to any historic event or inspired by current events, it has a minimal setting to provide context for the mission. Mount Sabana Military Base is the heart of enemy operations on Rota Island. This large base houses most of the logistics and support facilities for the forces that occupy the island. Barracks, warehouses, vehicle storage, administrative offices, heliports and more. There are also satellite facilities for the base, including road checkpoints, observation points and early warning radar station. Early Warning Radar station outside of the main base. Recently, new construction of a facility to support mobile Scud tactical ballistic missile launchers has been confirmed. Deployment of this missile system puts the allied forces in Andersen Air Force Base in danger of being struck by ballistic missiles, as their current land based air defenses are unable to intercept this new threat. Pre-emptive air strikes against this under construction facility and Sabana Base itself must be made to stop this new threat and diminish the enemy's hold on the island. Classic Layered Air Defense Inspirations for how air defense is portrayed in this mission was taken from documented deployments of anti-aircraft weapons and tactics from World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. The island features a small, but intense layered air defense network. Rota International Airport hosts a MiG-19P fighter squadron of 10 combat capable aircraft. They patrol the airspace around the island, taking advantage of the air defenses on the island to augment their limited air-to-air capabilities. As flights are potentially lost in combat, the next flight or flights of aircraft are launched to protect the island. The entire squadron is available to be scrambled and attempt long-range interception under certain circumstances. The airport also supports transport flights that supply the enemy positions on Rota island and can support any combat aircraft that enter the area of operations from long distance. MiG-19P fighter squadron at Rota Intl Airport. A surface to air missile (SAM) site in the north-western tip of the island houses an SA-3 Goa and SA-8 Gecko making medium and high altitude attacks very difficult. The SA-3 in particular is dangerous as it has shorter range than the SA-2 Guideline, but has more reliable tracking and can rapid fire up to 12 missiles in just a few minutes. It can make short work of formations of aircraft attempting high altitude level bombing. Beneath the SAM coverage, there are large air defense positions of 57mm and 100mm anti-aircraft artillery batteries able to fling explosive shells between 3.5 and 9.5 nautical miles away up to tens of thousands of feet in the air. Each position has point defenses such as manually guided or radar guided 23mm autocannons. Infrared guided missile threats do exist on the island, but are dispersed and usually near high priority targets. F-5E-3 Tiger II pressing through anti-aircraft fire. "One Pass" Sabana Strike is a mission created with high-speed, low altitude fixed-wing combat sorties in mind. The goal is to give players the experience of flying at wave top or tree top level, evading multiple calibers of anti-aircraft fire with the presence of surface-to-air missiles lingering above their heads. By technology locking the era, it also limits the ability to deploy stand-off weapons like air launched cruise missiles and further push players to operate in the range of air defenses. Making multiple consecutive strikes is not encouraged as it gives air defenses across the island a chance to bring all guns to bare on players circling above the island. As such, the concept of "low, fast, one pass" or "one pass, haul ass" is at the core of this mission. I wrote an article about it on August 28th, 2024. Extras in the Details Recently, as a mission editor, I have found my "style" to be the addition of variables and minor details that change the player's experience over time or rewards players for thinking a bit more tactically. With Sabana Strike primarily happening on a single island, there are many details in a small area. Some examples in this mission are: The MiG-19P squadron uses Uncontrolled AI to have all ten aircraft existing in the mission right from the start. A daring low altitude raid against the airfield could destroy a majority of the fighter squadron while they are on the ground.
A long-range communication tower is located somewhere on Rota island. Destroying it can disrupt the ability of forces on Rota island to call for reinforcements from outside the area of operations.
Mount Sabana Military Base is 'alive' in the sense. As certain parts of the base take damage, infantry can spawn from certain structures, then run to occupy vehicles or deploy air defenses like MANPADS to stop ongoing attacks by players. Different combinations of destroyed vehicles or buildings cause defenders to react in certain ways.
While the air defense positions are daunting because of the volume of fire they can output, attacking them directly is beneficial in reducing their ability to attack at distance. However, as these positions take damage, forces from other areas may drive or fly to reinforce them. B-52 Stratofortress bombing Mount Sabana Military Base. Release Date Sabana Strike entered consistent private testing in December 2024. It is currently in late phase testing with only minor adjustments to mission elements being implemented. The tentative release date for this mission is January 2025. Similar to the Syria COIN mission, it will be available for free download on our website and the DCS User Files. About the Writer Aaron "Ribbon-Blue" Mendoza   Co-founder of Skyward Flight Media. After founding Electrosphere.info , the first English Ace Combat database, he has been involved in creating flight game-related websites, communities, and events since 2005. He explores past and present flight games and simulators with his extensive collection of game consoles and computers. [ Read Profile ]