Just Flight - Black Square - Velocity XL MSFS

The Velocity is a family of home-built, high-performance, composite construction, single-engine aircraft. Notably, the Velocity has canard-style airfoils rather than a conventional main wing for lift, and counteracting tail surfaces for control and stability. The most advantageous feature of the canard design is its resistance to deep stalls and spins. On a canard aircraft, the forward wing is designed to stall prior to the main wing, thereby pitching the aircraft down and restoring lift to the main wing.

Black Square's Velocity XL is modelled after a top-end Velocity build, with an upgraded 400HP Continental TSIO-550 fitted with dual turbochargers, giving the aircraft a critical altitude of 24,000 feet and ground speeds of over 400 MPH.

Model

• Accurately modelled Velocity TXL-RG, inside and out, created from hundreds of reference photos from Velocity aircraft builders
• 100% MSFS native animation code for the smoothest animations and cockpit interactions using either legacy or new cockpit interaction modes
• 4096x4096 (4K) textures are used to produce the highest possible texture clarity
• PBR (Physically Based Rendering) materials with real-time environment reflections for superb quality and realism
• Detailed normal mapping for leather, fabric, plastic, stitches, scratches, carpet, tooling marks, and even embroidered logos, resulting in a texture resolution of 10,000 pixels per square inch (90.0kB)
• Extensive use of new MSFS decal system for nearly vector-graphic quality of labels, arrows and exterior detail features
• Ground services support (marshaller and fuel truck)
• Full support for MSFS visual icing effects

Cockpit

• Fully featured IFR-capable panel with dual G3X Touch (Working Title G3X freeware mod recommended), GTN 750 (requires freeware PMS-50 GTN 750 mod), and GFC500 autopilot controller, all with cross-fill, and synchronised autopilot controls
• Every knob, switch and button is interactable and implemented, along with its respective electrical circuit
• Lighted standby instruments for worst case scenario failures
• Hideable side-sticks
• Placarded reference speeds for easy reference while learning the aircraft
• Developed using the latest MSFS standards, including intuitive and easy-to-use controls for rotary knobs, multi-position switches and levers

Systems
Experience the power of one of the world’s fastest, highest flying, piston-driven light aircraft. From the beginning, Black Square’s Velocity XL was designed to deliver the raw excitement of operating a home-built, four-seat aircraft in the flight levels, travelling at over half the speed of sound. Enjoy features such as:

• Twin, turbo-normalised engine with exhaust vibration and tailpipes that glow accurately with turbine inlet temperature
• Fully realised electrical system with every circuit breaker functioning
• Challenging push-prop engine temperature management monitored via custom G3X engine instrumentation
• Unique 'two green' retractable landing gear system, fully implemented gear warning and electric hydraulic system, with back-up gear release valve logic
• Hear the ambient noise difference the inflatable door seal system makes to the comfort of your cruise, with door ajar warning
• Dimmable interior lighting with backlit panels, standby instrument lighting, glareshield glow, and cozy cabin dome lighting
• Unusual fuel management system with combining header tank logic
• Working ELT and Hobbs meter to track your flying hours

Sounds
The Velocity XL features a MSFS-native (Wwise) 3D sound package taking full advantage of the new capabilities. Based on the default MSFS Extra 330, the Velocity XL’s sound set includes added sounds and custom code to create a fully featured soundscape inside and out to give the feel of the real aircraft’s power and construction.

• Rich audio for every switch, button, lever and electrical system
• Detailed physics-based effects on engine and wind noise
• Accurately positioned 3D sound sources (best enjoyed in VR!)
• Crash and scraping effects for composite airframe
• Authentic retractable gear sounds and whistle

Flight dynamics
The Velocity XL features realistic and accurate flight dynamics, designed to work with MSFS’s new aerodynamics simulation. The aerodynamics take advantage of new canard aerodynamics options that have only recently become available in MSFS. Users can expect the docile stall and spin-resistant characteristics of real canard aircraft with this add-on.

Liveries
The Velocity XL comes with six paint schemes based on real-world aircraft:

• N285VL (USA)
• N467AK (USA)
• N516K (USA)
• N750C (USA)
• N7075J (USA)
• G-IRTI (UK)

All textures are 4096x4096 (4K) resolution with MSFS native PBR (Physically Based Rendering) properties across nine channels of surface detail information, resulting in a whopping 1,600 pixels (14.4kB) per square inch on the interior model.

A blank (plain white paint scheme) is included for users to easily create their own paint schemes. 'Experimental' placards on the cabin doors, required by real-world laws, can be easily removed in a separate texture if the user prefers that for aesthetics.

Manual
A comprehensive PDF manual with panel guide and checklists is included as well as an Operating Data Manual with performance data. In-game checklists are also included with control highlighting and custom camera locations.

• Microsoft Flight Simulator (Version 2020)
• Operating System: Windows 10 / 11
• Processor: Intel i5-4460 / AMD Ryzen 3 1200 (Intel i5-8400 / AMD Ryzen 5 1500X recommended)
• Graphics card: nVidia GTX 770 / AMD Radeon RX 570 (nVidia GTX 970 / AMD Radeon RX 590 recommended)
• RAM: 8 GB (16 GB recommended)
• 1 GB hard drive space
• Peripherals: Joystick or compatible game controller (e.g. Xbox One Controller for Windows)

VERSION 0.1.3
New Features:

• Support for Working Title G3X Touch & Interoperability with TDS & PMS50 GTN’s. The single aircraft has been split into two within the MSFS menu for each GTN provider. All versions of the PMS50 GTN are compatible with the WT G3X, but the Pro version of the TDS GTNxi is required to use crossfill features between the two units.
• New handcrafted 4K window surface imperfections.  Scratches and smudges are slightly less pronounced than default, but the high resolution results in minimal tiling, and a much more pleasant experience during low sun angles.

Bug Fixes:

• Battery voltage curve corrected.
• Internal attitude indicator type flag set to “electric” instead of “vacuum”.
• Parking brake set by default when loading the aircraft on the ground.

VERSION 0.1.2
New Features:

• Complete environmental control system with sounds, up to current Black Square standards.  See the “Environmental Control System” section of this manual for more details.
• This aircraft now incorporates Black Square’s advanced turbocharger simulation technology.  Experience the challenges of turbocharger operation, and don’t worry about adjusting your mixture control until you reach critical altitude.  See the “Turbocharger Operation” section of this manual for more details.
• Working windshield defroster integrated into the environmental control system.  See the “Environmental Control System” section of this manual for more details.
• The door seal system now actually functions to reduce wind noise in flight when activated.  Wind noise is also further reduced at high true airspeed operation due to the effects of the new persistent indicated airspeed variable calculation.  For more information on this system, see the “Door Seal System” section of this manual.
• Audible engine cooling sounds.  The ticking sound an engine makes after shutdown while it cools and contracts can be used to roughly estimate when temperatures are high enough in the engine cowling to vaporize fuel and contribute to vapor lock.
• Engine and wind sounds have been added to the interior when the cockpit doors are open.  Due to the limitations of the default aircraft’s sound system, this solution is not perfect, but it should be more immersive than without it.  Several other Black Square aircraft use this same technique to satisfying effect.
• Have you ever noticed that the wind sound in all other MSFS aircraft is erroneously based on true airspeed rather than indicated airspeed?  This makes wind noise during high altitude cruise far too loud.  It’s likely the result of there being no persistent indicated airspeed simulation variable that is not affected by pitot-static failures.  All Black Square aircraft now have wind sounds based on indicated airspeed, which makes them much more enjoyable to fly at high true airspeed.
• Many features of this aircraft are now accompanied by sounds.  For instance, air blower fans, air conditioning compressor, environmental control unit, audio amplifier, radio startup static, turbochargers, gear warning, and autopilot disconnect.
• Some of the previously mentioned features were not well simulated with their corresponding circuit’s state and power setting upon initial release.  These have been updated to better represent the new systems.

Bug Fixes:

• Overspeed warning variable will no longer activate at low speeds.  This also caused 3rd party effects applications like  FSRealistic to think the aircraft was in an overspeed condition.
• Door opening sound will no longer loop sometimes when the door is opened and closed quickly.
• Gear light test button will no longer illuminate warning lights without power.
• Adjusted EGT and CHT constants to make wide-open-throttle climbs more manageable.
• Thanks to the aircraft’s new persistent airspeed code, overspeed warnings will now activate at the correct indicated airspeed.
• Autopilot engagement is now MUCH smoother, with the aircraft maintaining its present attitude unless commanded to do otherwise.  The PID reset mode is set to “current aircraft state” now, which resets the integrator upon engagement.
• Aircraft thumbnails re-rendered with current aircraft capture tool for consistency.
• SU10 ground handling parameters are now in the correct section of flight_model.cfg.
• SU11 localization compatibility.
• SU12 lighting potentiometer fix.
• Operations manual updated to current Black Square standards.