vFlyteAir Piper PA-30 Twin Comanche (MSFS)

VFlyteair have been producing aircraft for X-Plane for many years. We have strived to ensure a high standard of flight model, always produced with rigorous testing by our team of real-world pilot/owners, plus a variety of features including avionics options to suit different users. Time and again we have been pleased to receive positive feedback from customers who appreciate the attention to detail and accuracy of our products.
 
In more recent times, as the company has evolved, and in response to customer wishes, we have started looking at bringing our fleet to the Microsoft Flight Simulator platform.
 
As a result, we are proud to announce the release of our first product for MSFS - The PA30 Twin Comanche. After more than a year of work, we have completely redeveloped the Twin Comanche, taking the existing 3D model and producing new textures and modelling to suit the high-fidelity lighting and graphic options possible with MSFS. The cabin and panel have likewise been reworked.
 
This is an analogue panel version of the Twin Comanche, which includes support for the TDSSim GTN750 (separate purchase required). We will be looking to bring the glass panel options present in our XP12 Twin Comanche as a future upgrade. The instrument panel reflects the original 1960s setup with the Century IIB autopilot. For those used to more modern systems, it’s a challenge, but a good one!
 
We are especially grateful to Frank Brunot, our new team member, a pilot with years of experience and owner of a Twin Comanche, who has provided a massive amount of time and input to help us refine the flight model - no small task with a completely new development platform! Thanks also to Igor Kirilove who continues to produce incredible work from his home in Kyiv, sometimes running off car batteries to continue working through power outages.
 
The Twin Comanche was first produced in 1961. It is a twin-engine four or six-seater successor to the Piper Apache. Featuring tip tanks, retractable gear and the safety of two engines, plus a cruise speed of 165kts at a very reasonable fuel burn, and a cruise ceiling of 18,000ft, the Twin Comanche has been a popular cross country option for many years.
 
As mentioned, our phase 2, now we have our first product to the release stage, will be to work on bringing the high-quality glass cockpit options in our X-Plane models to MSFS. We are also actively discussing which will be our next model to bring over to this exciting new platform.
 
The vFlyteAir Piper PA-30 Twin Comanche is equipped with a general aviation panel, featuring all common instruments, switches and avionics typical for a real PA-30
 
We also include a variant of the aircraft featuring out-of-the-box support for the the Garmin GTN simulation GTNxi Pro by TDS Software. In this variant, the default GNS530, the radio, and the transponder are replaced by a GTN750 (top) and a GTN650 (bottom). Make sure to select the TDS variant of the aircraft in Microsoft Flight Simulator if you want to use the GTNxi. The TDS GTNxi Pro is sold separately by TDS Software.
 
The majority of the modelling and programming was done by long-time vFlyteAir developer Igor Kyrylov. He has not only X-Plane experience, like the rest of us, but is also familiar with the Microsoft Flight Simulator platform for many years. Therefore, Igor was in charge of leading the vFlyteAir Twin Comanche project for MSFS 2020. Igor, his wife and his little son live in Kyiv, Ukraine. Igor’s country and home town are under massive attack by Russian forces since early 2022, when work on the vFlyteAir PA-30 for MSFS started. Under very hard conditions, with constant power outages and the imminent danger of falling victim to the attackers who constantly attack civilian buildings, Igor finished this model nearly all by himself. Team and beta testers provided valuable feedback on the real aircraft (special thanks to Frank Brunot in this regard), on bugs, or wrote this user manual, but in the end, the Twinkie is more than anything else Igor’s plane. While during daytime Igor supports his country’s defence efforts by various activities, in the evening and during nights, Igor never stopped to finish this project, often under very hard and, up to 2022, unimaginable conditions, for example relying on modified car batteries to power his development computer. It is not an overstatement when we say that this project helped Igor and his family to stay focused or, as Igor would say, to “keep going”, and to not forget that there was a life before the war, and that there will be a life after the war again. Flight simulation can bring us the joy of freedom to our homes. From the comfort of our chairs we can travel to other countries and, like a bird, enjoy the views from above. This works especially well using Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020’s very realistic graphics. When you fly the beautiful and reliable Twin Comanche in MSFS 2020, consider paying Ukraine a virtual visit, to remind yourself that Ukraine is not some distant war zone from the evening news, but a close European country with real, living people. Kyiv’s Boryspil International Airport (ICAO code UKBB) is just a few hours away from the other European capitals. The Twinkie can carry you there.
 

Models

• Accurately modelled PA-30 Twin, built using real-world aircraft plans and comprehensive photography of the real aircraft
• Numerous animations including passenger door, baggage door, cockpit storm window, sun visors
• 4096x4096 textures are used to produce the highest possible texture clarity
• PBR (Physically Based Rendering) materials with real-time environment reflections for superb quality and realism
• Detailed normal mapping for down-to-the-rivet precision of aircraft surfaces
• Ground services support (marshaller)
• Full support for MSFS visual icing effects

Cockpit

• A truly 3D virtual cockpit right down to accurately modelled seat belts and screw heads - every instrument is constructed fully in 3D with smooth animations
• Cockpit textures feature wear and tear based on reference photos taken in the real aircraft to produce an authentic environment
• Dimmable instrument, radio and dome lighting, with separate control circuits
• Simulated electrical systems: For example, the generator power in the Steam gauge model depends on RPM. You can try this by switching off the battery master while the engine is running and then observe the ammeter change when you switch on or off various devices. In addition, many fuses (on the breaker panels) are working. Helpful instrumentation: The airspeed indicator (IAS, in mph and knots) is adjustable for altitude and outside air temperature, resulting in additional display of true airspeed (TAS). The radar altimeter with adjustable minimum altitude provides assistance when flying near the ground. If you have installed the TDS GTNxi Pro (sold separately), we offer a panel variant using the Garmin GTN750 and GTN650 (instead of the default radio stack which consists of Garmin GNS530 GPS, Bendix/King KX 155 radios, and Garmin GTX330 transponder). Century IIB autopilot: The classic Century IIB autopilot includes helpful roll and heading modes to ease your piloting work. Detailed cockpit and panel lights: Pilot and co-pilot floods lights illuminate the cabin, while adjustable instrument and panel lights always provide perfect visibility in all weather conditions and times of day. Visual effects: We modelled smoke during engine start, as well as ice building up on the cabin windows in icing conditions. Emergency gear lever: Mounted in the bottom of the cabin, behind a removable panel.
• Yoke-mounted flight timer/clock
• Developed using the latest MSFS standards, including intuitive and easy-to-use controls for rotary knobs, multi-position switches and levers

Sounds
 
The Twin feature a MSFS-native (Wwise) sound package taking full advantage of the new capabilities. Every little detail has been faithfully recreated based on high fidelity recordings from real life PA-30.


Liveries

Lots of liveries for your choosing: We include 26 different liveries you can select in Flight Simulator, including the livery of Frank’s real N8848Y

• vFlyteAir (Default)
• N918Y (USA)
• N64YB (USA)
• D-GIRL (Germany)
• G-LARE (UK)
• E31-2 (Eritrea)
• N8326Y (USA)
• I-NASA (Italy)
• C-GGRS (Canada)
• N7581Y (USA)
• N494NJ (USA)
• SE-EOK (Sweden)
• VH-BBZ (Australia)
• C-FINY (Canada)
• D-GMWA (Germany)
• G-AZAB (UK)
• OH-PAR (Finland)
• N7EY (USA)
• ZS-KIR (South Africa)
• N230MJ (USA)
• C-FUSF (Canada)
• I-SOGA  (Italy)
• LY-PTC (Lithuania)
• N7690Y (USA)
• N8596Y (USA)
• N8848Y (USA)
• Blank (Using Dynamic Registration Number) best option for custom liveries)

A PSD Paint Kit is included so you can create your own paint schemes.


Flight dynamics
 
The Twin feature realistic and accurate flight dynamics based on real-world performance and handling data, and input from the Twin pilots.
 

Manual
 
The Manuals are provided as part of the product installation and can be found under your windows start menu > All Programs > vFlyteAir Simulations. Alternatively, you can download them before purchase here.