Since its release in 2020, Microsoft Flight Simulator has undergone an intensive update program from devs Asabo and Microsoft Game Studios. We have had Sim Updates and World Updates, and somewhere along the line, we have reached the 16th of the latter.
World Updates take a region of the world and greatly enhance and upgrade scenery, select airports, and generally spruce everything up.
The update contains 104 new points of interest, including Bahama’s Nassau Harbor Lighthouse, Jamaica’s Colbeck Castle, Puerto Rico’s Faro De Pampatar, and Trinidad & Tobago’s Red House.
The team has also worked closely with Gaya Simulations to handcraft the new enhanced airports in the update. These airports include:
- Dominican Republic’s Gregorio Luperón International Airport (Puerto Plata Airport) (MDPP)
- Haiti’s Antoine-Simon Airport (MTCA)
- Jamaica’s Sangster International Airport (MKJS)
- Trinidad & Tobago’s A.N.R. Robinson International Airport (formerly Crown Point International Airport) (TTCP)
- North Eleuthera Airport (MYEH) in the Bahamas
- Guadeloupe’s Les Saintes Airport (TFFS).
World Update 16: Caribbean also includes nine activities that you can play through:
- Three Discovery Flights: Saint Lucia, Saint Martin, and San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Three Landing Challenges: The Dominican Republic’s Gregorio Luperón International Airport (MDPP), a Famous Landing Challenge; North Eleuthera Airport (MYEH) of The Bahamas, an Epic Landing Challenge; and Haiti’s Antoine-Simon Airport (MTCA)
- Three Bush Trips showcasing the beauty of the region
A post on the Flight Simulator dev blog says. “Microsoft Flight Simulator partnered with Bing Maps, Maxar, and a host of Caribbean governmental organizations to bring this magnificent update to simmers. The team ingested a massive trove of geospatial data for World Update XVI: the Caribbean, including aerial photographs, satellite data, LIDAR (light detection and ranging) data, DEM (digital elevation model) data, and DTM (digital terrain model) data.”
Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 will be released later this year and will improve on everything that we currently have, but even if you are not planning on upgrading it is great to see its older brother still receiving this level of care and attention from the developers.
