[nickthegreek1961]

Originally Posted by Pursuivant

I believe that the plan is for the He-177 to be flyable with the 4.14 patch.

For the other planes, keep in mind that while it would be wonderful if they were added to the game, multi-crew planes take a lot of work - both as AI and flyable.

AI models take longer because those planes are more complex - more engines, more guns, more crew, more animated parts, more payloads, more complex damage model.

Flyable multi-crew aircraft take huge amounts of time because each crew station has to be modeled. Typically, that means lots of animation - things like moving needles on gauges, guns that swing and eject brass, and working bomb and gun sights.

In some cases, lack of necessary information - like manuals and detailed illustrations of equipment or the plane's interior - it's impossible to make accurate models.

That's a whole lot of specialized man hours using expensive software (3ds Max), with lots of rare and sometimes pricy references. Almost all of the planes added since DT took over development of the series have been created as "labors of love" by volunteers.

Glad to hear about the He177; as for the rest, well...that's the way it goes, I guess. I am content to wait.