X-Plane 12.1.0 (Beta 6) Release Notes | X-Plane (2024)

Systems and avionics

G1000 Enhancements

Startup splash screen

• Shows navigation database expiration date and version of X-Plane (thus version of X-Plane global airports)

NAV Page

• Default nav map: Added ADS-B traffic symbols and the option to display METARs
• Traffic map: Shows ADS-B traffic targets with precise velocity vectors (unlike old TCAS, we know precisely where people are headed) and flight IDs/tail numbers. The traffic can be filtered to normal altitude range (default), above (for climb), below (for descent) and unrestricted (to see all traffic at all altitudes)
• Stormscope: Shows lightning activity around the airplane by passive detection of electric discharge
• Datalink Weather: Shows in-flight weather received over ADS-B or XM satellite. Shows NEXRAD, Lightning, Cloud coverage, Winds Aloft and METARS
• Terrain: Shows track-up terrain warnings

WPT Page

• Airport: Display information about any airport. Pull decoded METAR reports for any airport (received over ADS-B or XM in real life)
• Intersection: Display information about any intersection, including its nearest VOR
• NDB, VOR: Display information about any navaid, including its nearest airport

AUX Page

• GPS status: Shows current GPS accuracy and GPS status (whether DIFF NAV is available). Allows de-selection of SBAS if desired for training.
• LRU system status: Shows status of all LRUs of the G1000 and helps with detection of failures. Allows verification of navigation database cycle.

Reversionary mode

• When started cold, the PFD stays in reversionary mode until pilot has acknowledged the database on the MFD

New datarefs

Added new datarefs to query active page and overlay

• sim/co*ckpit/g1000/g1000_n1_page byte[64] n string G1000 unit 1, active group and page, such as “FPL – ACTIVE FLIGHT PLAN” or “NRST – NEAREST AIRPORTS”
• sim/co*ckpit/g1000/g1000_n2_page byte[64] n string G1000 unit 2, active group and page, such as “FPL – ACTIVE FLIGHT PLAN” or “NRST – NEAREST AIRPORTS”
• sim/co*ckpit/g1000/g1000_n1_overlay int n enum G1000 unit 1, overlay. PFD: {None = 0, Alert = 1, timerref = 2, nrst = 3, dto = 4, fpl = 5, awy = 6, proc = 7, app = 8, sid = 9, star = 10, menu = 11, dme = 12}, MFD: {None = 0, Proc = 1, dirto = 2}
• sim/co*ckpit/g1000/g1000_n2_overlay int n enum G1000 unit 2, overlay. PFD: {None = 0, Alert = 1, timerref = 2, nrst = 3, dto = 4, fpl = 5, awy = 6, proc = 7, app = 8, sid = 9, star = 10, menu = 11, dme = 12}, MFD: {None = 0, Proc = 1, dirto = 2}

Added dataref to allow overriding of ESP functions of the GFC-700 autopilot

• sim/operation/override/override_esp int y boolean Override the autopilot’s ESP/USP function.

Added datarefs to query active page and overlay

New Custom Avionics Devices

• Plugins can create devices that can be mapped to the co*ckpit in the same way
  the default Garmins are (ATTR_co*ckpit_device)
• Plugins get callbacks for screen and bezel drawing, screen and bezel left- and
  right-clicks, scroll wheel motion, cursor
• Full pop-up support, including window position saving
• Plugins get full access and control over the pop-up and pop-out geometry
• Optional on-demand refresh of the device’s screen contents
• Extend new avionics APIs and callbacks to overrides for stock devices

Flap systems additions

Johnson bar flaps

The Piper PA-28 has one of the world’s simplest flap system. It is completely manual, doesn’t require an electric motor, and simply puts flap control directly into the pilot’s hands. The Johnson bar between the front seats is directly connected to the flaps. This allows to actuate the flaps quickly or slowly at pilot’s discretion, and even allows to extend the flaps a little more than the last notch, if you keep holding on to the bar. “Milking” the flaps just right is a tried-and-true technique of commercial pilot students everywhere to nail their power-off-180 landings.

Therefore, X-Plane now has a new, manual flap system. You activate it in Plane Maker by checking the box “Johnson-bar direct link” in the Control Geometry section of Plane Maker where you set the flap detents.

If this is active, the flap handle and flap extension are linked directly, with a few new behaviors, but all using existing commands:

• If the commands for flaps up/down are tapped, you get an immediate flap movement (ripping the handle up)
• If the commands instead are held, you get a nice gradual handle movement (observing the travel time entered in Plane Maker)

This way you can time your flaps precisely. Tap “2” three times quickly and you can rip the handle up click,click,click. Hold the “2” and you are nicely raising the handle to the next click. Release and hold down again for the next click.

• If you are in full flaps, hold down the “2” and you can extend the flaps to 110%. They snap back as soon as you let go.
• If you have a joystick axis assigned to the flaps, it follows the joystick axis directly, with no delay
• The full extension of the joystick axis corresponds to 110% extension
• All datarefs for the flap handle now accept 0-1.1 range input and the handle is immediately linked to the flaps with no delay.

Dial-a-flap

Dial-a-flap is a system found on McDonnell-Douglas aircraft that allows you to select any flap extension between up and landing for takeoff. Simply dial the selected flap extension, then set the flap handle to the “dial-a-flap” position, and the flaps will move to the pre-selected extension.

When dial-a-flap is selected in Plane Maker, one flap notch can be designated the “dial-a-flap” notch. By default, it will have a flap extension halfway between the notch above and the notch below, but the pilot can dial in the desired extension for takeoff. The desired setting is pre-selected with the dataref “sim/co*ckpit2/controls/flap_dial_a_flap” – then the flap lever is placed in the notch for “dial-a-flap”, and the flaps will extend to the selected setting.

S-Tec ST-360

The S-Tec autopilot system has been extended to include the ST-360 altitude pre-selector and alerter, that works together with the System Fifty-Five autopilot. The little altitude alerter has its own baro adjustment that is independent from the pilot’s altimeter, so the pilot needs to remember to enter the altimeter setting in two places, otherwise the autopilot will level off at the wrong altitude. The baro adjustment on the ST-360 only works in terms of 1/10^th of an inch (as opposed to 1/100^th of an inch on the altimeter) so the level-off will only be approximately accurate. It is expected that the pilot will need to fine-adjust the altitude hold at the autopilot itself (the knob on the S-Tec55 adjusts the altitude hold in increments of 20ft).

The new commands for the ST-360 are:

The new datarefs for the ST-360 display are:

Approach preview

Approach preview is a function of some electronic HSIs that allows you to see horizontal and vertical deflections at the same time, and prime the autopilot to intercept one while holding the other. Most commonly, this is used for GPS navigation on the way to intercept an ILS approach. In this case, the HSI will be selected to the GPS source, so that the transition route can be flown. The autopilot in NAV mode will follow the GPS. Then, the ILS is tuned, and the corresponding NAV receiver selected for preview, using the dataref “sim/co*ckpit2/radios/actuators/HSI_preview_source_select_pilot”

An EFIS capable of displaying a preview (such as the one on the Citation X) will then show the ILS in addition to the GPS.

Arming the approach mode on the autopilot will then make the autopilot wait for the intercept of the lateral signal of the source selected for preview. Once that lateral deflection (the ILS in our example) will start moving in, the autopilot will abandon GPS navigation and switch over to the previewed source automatically, without pilot interaction. The autopilot seamlessly transitions from GPS to VLOC navigation and the HSI will stop showing the preview and instead switch the new source active.

Electric clutch for helicopters

The clutch that is used on helicopters with reciprocating engines to connect the engine to the rotor system is now an electrical component. That means, its motor can be assigned a bus and an amperage, and depends on electric power to be working.

The tachometer instrument can now also be electrically powered so it displays the correct failure modes.

Single-lever turboprop control

Turboprops can combine the prop governor control and the idle/fuel control into one lever known as the condition lever. At the top range, it acts as the prop control, setting the desired RPM on the prop governor. Towards the bottom, they first feather the prop, and then ultimately shut off the fuel to the engine.

To make such a single-lever control, in Plane Maker both the options for “feather when prop control at min” and “shut off fuel when prop control at min” need to be checked.

In X-Plane, the condition lever can then be assigned the “Prop Lever with Feather and Shutoff” in the joystick curves screen. This way, the crossover points for feather and shutoff can be set to precisely match specific hardware.

GPS & ESP update

GPS override, setting the nav flag means the GPS provides a deflection and can be coupled

Setting the vertical flag means the vertical signal is valid and can be coupled. Added GPS2 obs dataref. Made nav id dataref writable (provided you have override_gps on ). Made a bunch of NAV-radio and GPS datarefs in co*ckpit2/ writeable. They were already writeable (with override_navneedles or override_gps) in sim/co*ckpit, so there’s no reason they were not writeable in sim/co*ckpit2/

This allows the autopilot to couple directly to any GPS that sets the TO/FROM flag to TO or FROM.

Refined ESP feel based on flite test of real plane

Refined ESP feel based on flite test of real plane. In the SR-22, the wing auto-level should be less of a ‘jolt’, and more just smooth, that you can over-power, like the real plane.

Garmin ESP features can be enabled or disabled per ACF in Plane-Maker

Authors can specify which ESP protections the Garmin provides with check-boxes in Plane-Maker. See this in the plane-maker autopilot screen and turn on or off as desired

Datarefs

• New Dataref for autobrake deceleration rate
  Auto-brake deceleration is now available as an array dataref, to pre-set the desired deceleration in g for each setting.

• Added dataref for MOR (manual override) throttle

Dataref description updates

Datarefs.txt updated with description of fuel pump dataref.

Fadec no longer writes to the N1 arc: This is a no-op in observable behavior – the value was never readable as it was immediately overwritten. The value one might be interested in (what is the limit N1 we can reach at full throttle) is already available as the dataref sim/co*ckpit2/engine/actuators/N1_target_bug

Bug fixes

• G1000 “Big red button doesn’t work right anymore”:The red button wouldn’t work on the PFD, plus red button status was forgotten whenever the MFD restarted. In reality, the red button is a hardware button that’s stateful, it’s a switch, not a trigger button. That state needs to be applied with a logical OR. If the system thinks it needs to be single-display OR the button is physically pushed and latched, then we go single-display.
• DME speed correct with ground speed compression
• King Air Nav display fix: When using GPS override, you could only set the to-from flag, but not UN-set it.
• Added idle underspeed protection to the FCUs. Off for old aircraft, but can be opted-in by specifying an idle Ng or N2 percent
• Altitude intervention wasn’t working in climb with some autopilots
• Terrain layer works for all aircrafts now and not just the Airbus A330
• Terrain layer on the Airbus and the Citation ND is not longer cluttered by wind barbs

Other

• Added user-defined holds
• Added correct labelling for RNAV approaches where not all levels of service are authorised.
• Added banana (selected altitude target range ring)
• sim/co*ckpit2/radios/indicators/fms_distance_to_tod_(co)pilot now works with G1000 enroute VNAV as well
• ADF needle interference by electric discharge: ADF needle will momentarily point to nearest lightning strike