A320-X/A319-X/A321-X - Update v5.0.1.151 now available!

Hello everyone,

I am happy to announce that our latest update (v5.0.1.151) for the A320-X, A319-X and A321-X for P3D v4 and v5 (64-bit) is now live and available through our download page.

This is a maintenance update which fixes several issues identified since our last public release and in preparation for our upcoming A320-X and A321-X Sharklets products which are soon to be released.

In this release, you will find that we have expanded our Input Controls management and handling logic greatly, to allow and include all Airbus input device controls, such as dual side stick input, dual tiller support, spoiler and flap axis input controls, rudder and brakes handling as well as more complete management for the Thrustmaster TCA Airbus series of hardware (A320 side stick, Thrust Quadrant as well as TQ add-on axes, like flaps and spoilers, together with the landing gear lever, auto-brake control and parking brake etc). In the input controls management dialog, support was also added for slope and null zone handling as well as axis reversal.

We also fixed several small issues on our external models, reported since our previous release. You should also notice a smoother wing-flex model which we feel looks and behaves better than the previous rendition - this took quite a bit of effort, as it is work that carries forward into the Sharklets models and their wing structure.

A notable fix for the external lighting is the one where beacons / strobes would sometimes freeze depending on dynamic light allocations around scenery. This is now taken care of as well.

Modeling improvements are also to be found in the Virtual Cockpit, where animations were added to the AP Disconnect buttons (it was long-time coming and the addition of dual input control handling with AP DISC button management only made it more obvious that they were missing) and we added logic to dynamically provide proper numbers on the speed placards for all variants, depending on aircraft Maximum Takeoff Weight configuration. For those of you who wish to connect two side sticks simultaneously (we are aware of several sim cockpit enthusiasts who are expanding their hardware collection) you will notice that input priority logic is now fully incorporated into the product line, with associated warnings and control allocation according to the real world counterpart.

Speaking of hardware - very soon after we make this update available to you, we will also be releasing the updated Hardware Interface which brings compatibility with the full complement of the Skalarki hardware suite. We have been promising this for awhile and we are quite excited to make it happen!

If you look at the detailed changes and improvements log that I am adding below, you will notice that we're continuously adding and improving FMGC logic as well. We made several improvements regarding VAPP logic recalculations, fuel prediction fixes, a fix for TROPO entry causing predictions to be lost, as well as several FG fixes, such as protection logic improvements. We are still working on some more major fixes, more notably among them are some shortcomings in HOLD logic as well as adding OFFSETs which are two of the often discussed items in the FMGC. We are hoping to have more on these in coming releases.

For those of you who fly online, we have updated our AOC logic to follow new VATSIM protocols and we fixed some connectivity issues when users were on non-English Windows setups. You will also find that D-ATIS now checks/pulls FAA source as well.

For the failure-minded among you, there were quite a few fixes in several failure conditions. For example, the aircraft will now correctly switch to DIRECT LAW with FLAPS 2 instead of Gear Down, when all 3 SEC computers are failed or off, as Gear Down digital signals are not carried over when all SEC computers are off, so the system has to rely on FLAPS 2 conditions to switch to direct law instead. A small fix, you might think, but one that indicates the level of detail found in the product line (this one was a favorite of mine as it involved spending quite a bit of time inside the Schematics manuals and configurations - thanks Sam!).

We also fixed a small issue where the AIRAC cycle was incorrectly reported on the MCDU - most years have 13 cycle releases, but last year was a fun exception with 14. This condition will not reoccur for "quite a long time" and it's now fixed.

For those of you using our PANEL STATE logic in the MCDU, you will find it has been extended: Customers will now find a new AUTO DETECT state listed under the DEFAULT STATE options page on the MCDU. This mode will allow the aircraft to detect if the simulator is loaded on the runway, in which case the aircraft will load ‘Engines running’ – or at a gate/on stand, where the aircraft is loaded ‘Cold and Dark’. It was a feature brought in primarily for testing purposes – but we considered it beneficial to our customers too. Please note that this system relies on your Runway.bin being up-to-date.

On a separate note, I'd like to mention that I am now the proud owner of a HP REVERB G2 VR set (which I fully recommend for those of you who feel the need to spend 800 Euro on a whim!). I find the product very solid - it introduced me to a world that is full of possibilities and opportunity in how flight simulation will evolve from here (but also showcased some glaring omissions from P3D itself, like the absence of proper VR controller handling, unless I am missing how they are connected / working in the sim - please feel free to tell me in a separate forum post). I mention this purchase, so as to inform everyone that we also fixed the issue where a large white rectangle would appear in front of the VR virtual cockpit - this was due to our cockpit light sensor which we now made transparent so as not to block your view while in VR. A small fix, but a good one at that!

The complete log of fixes and improvements follows below.

I would also like to mention that work on the Concorde-X continues - I mentioned in our previous announcement that it "will be released this coming year" - please replace the "will" with "may" as life in general sometimes might not agree fully with our planning strategy, just so that expectations are not set in a way that people become upset and disappointed. Rest assured that our priorities have not changed and we're still working very hard towards its release.

On a closing note I'd like to take the opportunity to mention that the Covid pandemic has taken a toll on everyone. While I am among the very fortunate ones (so far) to not have experienced any direct loss of life in immediate family or friends, there have been several people in my immediate circle who caught the bug and it was very distressing to go through this ordeal. Please continue to exercise caution and care in how you protect yourself and those around you and, if you have that ability, please vaccinate. If not, mask wearing and distancing helps a lot! I am not going to turn this note into a political one, but health and safety should always be above any political opinions and beliefs. Please - please! - take care of yourself and family!

We also like to wish everyone a Happy Easter (ours is coming in May, but there are quite a few of you celebrating next week)!

As a way of saying Thank you, as always, for your support, here are a few new images of our product family for your viewing pleasure!

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2D Panels
    Flap placard spds now correct on F/O side
    2D panel now draws BRAKE FAN only when installed

ACP
    Fix for 2D and VC knob lighting in test model
    
AOC
    Updates to follow new VATSIM protocols
    VATSIM Connectivity with Non-English Windows fixed
    Fix for Lat/Lon points on FPLN uplink
    D-ATIS now checks/pulls FAA source

ATSU
    Uplink optionally omits SID/STAR
    
CVR
    Updated test logic

DMC
    SD F/CTL page fix for THS fluctuations
    Alternate law detection logic fix

EFCS
    SPD BRK DISAGREE with SEC1 off now appears
    SEC 1+2+3 FAIL/OFF now causes DIRECT LAW with FLAPS 2
    
Effects
    Contrails tweaked for night time

EFIS
    FD engage on ADIRS align

ELAC
    Logic improvements for FG loop control
    Fix for stick input during flaps movement
    
Elevation model
    Fix for memory leak above certain altitudes

Engines / FADEC
    CFM Engine start logic updates (IGN and FF)
    IGN FAULT START message logic improved (IAE)
    IAE EEC ARINC output fix for BMC fault conditions
    
External model
    Inner wing fairings gaps fixed
    Wing metallic textures updated
    Logo light texture updated
    Various improvements / fixes
    
External lights
    Fix for beacon / strobe logic issue which caused lights to freeze sometimes

FAC
    Fix for VLS when BUSS is active

Flight Model
    Spoilers correctly dump lift on ground
    
FMGC
    FM:
    PAGE PERF DES now allows spds up to .82 Mach
    VAPP logic recalculation improvements
    Fix for Fuel predictions
    Fix for TROPO entry predictions lost issue
    Fix for PERF TO page CHECK TAKEOFF DATA message conditions
    CHECK TO DATA message conditions corrected
    SET MANAGED SPEED message logic improved
    XXX IS DESELECTED message logic added
    PERF APPR page data entry logic improved
    FG:
    AP 1+2 INOP / CAT2 conditions logic tweaked
    Protection logic improvements
    Automatic speed protection logic improved

FSL Config
    Check for DirectInput if any joystick axis detected
    Small fix in airframe parsing logic
    logic for Direct Input requirement when TCA hardware used

Glareshield
    Chrono button logic tweak for right-click/release functionality

Input Controls
    Added all input axes in FSL Input Controls dialog
        Brakes
        Rudders
        Spoilers
        Flaps
        Thrust levers
        Tillers
    Fix for crash when joystick was being set up the first time sometimes
    Fix for axis detection to now use relative movement (1.5% change now used)
    Gate Controller logic fixed for engines off scenarios
    AP DISC logic tweak
    Null zones / slopes consideration for single-sided axes (brakes)

ISIS
    Improvements in timer logic (NEW ISIS)
    ALT flag logic corrected

MCDU
    Fix for LAT/LON printing when minutes at 59.95+
    User options Single/double digit entry now considered Tonnes or Thousands of Lbs.
    User options Added EXT CTRL GSX page for control over GPU
    
Panel States
    SEAT BELTS / NO SMOKING off on Cold & Dark state
    New "AUTO DETECT" Panel State added
    Fix for loss of flaps / slats conditions
    Fix for cabin/cargo/eng oil temps on GPU/C&D states

Panels
    Added popup ISIS and DDRMI (disabled by default need to edit panel.cfg)
    
Radio Management Panel
    Fix for Seat Selection control of VHF1/VHF2 knobs

SFCC
    dual hyd loss prevents halfspeed flag from turning true
    G+B HYD FAULT further logic improvements
    ALPHA LOCK logic improved
    
Sounds
    AEVC and DUAL INPUT sound infra improvements
    Fix for sound disappearing briefly on VC view change

SSTU
    Dual flight stick support added
    
Virtual cockpit
    Added animation to AP DISC buttons
    Speed plackard now shows proper speeds for all variants depending on MTOW
    RESET BTN text clipping fixed
    Various gaps fixed

Virtual Reality
    Tweaked sensor transparency to make it invisible while using VR devices