1-4-2025

Good Moring Pilots and Happy New Year,

I'm sorry that it's been so long since my last message to everyone. Besides real world activities, I've been having fun testing out the new MSFS2024. As usual with new simulator releases, it comes with a handful of problems. You really didn't think it would work flawlessly right out of the box did you?

We're still flying Larry's Wednesday Night Group Flights, and using MSFS2020 or other simulators other than MSFS2024 because it's not compatible with JoinFS, the program we use to see each other's aircraft for multiplayer flying. It doesn't look like that will be an easy fix because the aircraft models in MSFS2024 area apparently encrypted from what I understand. Additionally, there are still lots of problems to work out with MSFS2024, but it's still fun to fly for many of us. It does have a learning curve because the old key combinations from FSX are no longer the same, although they can be changed in the settings area. Why they didn't keep those the same and make it easier for the users I don't understand.

Losing another active member and hub manager, Paul K. to retirement from our airline adds additional work for the other volunteers here at SPA, and it would be great if one or more of you active pilots might step up and volunteer to help fill our open positions. Still, I'm optimistic that MSFS2024, and perhaps 2020 will continue to improve and offer us years of future enjoyment and enhanced realism in our flight simulation.

MSFS2024 has a new "Career Mode" that pilots can choose. I'm not sure how we might incorporate this into our flight offerings here yet, as I've just begun to test it out. Also, Return to Misty Moorings (RTMM) has been doing great scenery addons for MSFS2020, and I'm sure they'll move much of that to MSFS2024 in a short time. These are the kinds of things that will offer new flight options and challenges for future flight offerings we can provide here at St. Paul Airlines. Now all we need is the time to make all these things happen so that SPA can grow along with the improvements of these simulators and other 3rd party offerings.

Happy flying,

John