TorqueSim Blog

We are hiring at TorqueSim!

We are looking to expand our team of programmers, and perhaps add someone to aid in our customer experience. If any of these positions below of interest, consider applying to join the team!

If you have any questions, email careers@torquesim.com and we will get back to you.

Apply Here

Systems Developer

Responsible for creation of systems for aircraft. These may include: fuel, electrical, engines, hydraulics, etc.
Previous programming experience required, and X-Plane programming experience recommended.
Knowledge and experience in aviation/flight simulators is required
Background in math/physics/engineering
Our aircraft are programmed using C/C++ and the X-Plane SDK. Experience with C/C++ is preferred, but not required.
Candidates are expected to be driven to learn and become productive with C/C++ within a reasonable time period.
Commission pay determined based on projects.

Avionics Developer

Responsible for creation of aircraft avionics. These may include: PFD, MFD, FMS, etc.
Previous programming experience required, and X-Plane programming experience recommended.
Knowledge and experience in aviation/flight simulators is required.
Vector drawing or data parsing management experience recommended.
Background in math/physics/engineering
Our aircraft are programmed using C/C++ and the X-Plane SDK. Experience with C/C++ is preferred, but not required.
Candidates are expected to be driven to learn and become productive with C/C++ within a reasonable time period.
Commission pay determined based on projects.

Customer Experience Specialist

Help determine industry potential and market opportunities
Assist in customer support via tickets, forums, discord, and social media
Logging and categorization of bug reports
Manage social media posts
Help grow the TorqueSim brand
Commission or fixed rate pay determined on a case-by-case basis

Apply Here

These positions are all contractor positions, you will be responsible for setting your own hours, providing your own equipment, and you will work from your own home. Please contact us if you have any more questions.

Coming soon: BN-2T Turbine Islander

Written by Ulrich Oetzel, Islander Lead Developer, TorqueSim 3D Artist

This is a project I’ve wanted to do for a long, long time.

I’m sure some of you remember the old freeware FS9 Islanders by Marcel Kuhnt. Later came Flight1’s offering for FSX. While I enjoyed both of these very much, I distinctly recall always waiting for a Turbine Islander to show up. I loved and still love that plane.

It certainly made an impression on me. You could hear its twin Allison 250’s from what seemed like miles away, and the noise would build into a deafening scream when it came rolling across the apron. It was louder than a King Air, and most certainly louder than the 206’s and 402’s I knew! Little me would always cover his ears to shut out the noise.

At any rate, the years rolled on. The old 2T got sold a short while before the aging fleet was replaced entirely by Kodiaks, and I never heard anything about it again. Much in the same way, there was never any further talk of FSX (this is pre-P3D still) Islanders getting made, much less the turbine variant.

Which brings us neatly to my first entry: The trusty old 2B Islander. I grew tired of waiting. Tired of waiting for Flight1 to move their old model to X-Plane; tired of waiting for somebody to make it. Eventually, I came to the conclusion that “if you want something done, you should do it yourself” – or something along those lines. The end result of that was the TorqueSim Islander, which will soon be on version 1.2, with some serious upgrades over 1.1.

Now, I had always intended to make a 2T conversion of that aircraft. Even when I first joined TS, I knew that the Turbine Islander was somewhere in the future.

If only I had known. What started as a relatively simple conversion spiraled into extensive and intense reworks of the 3d model, the flight model, paint kit, interior, and myriad other items that needed improvement or alteration.

Now, with the project time dragging out (by no means a bad thing: more time means better quality), the 2T is essentially a completely new aircraft. It shares some minor features with our original model, in some places uses bits and pieces of the old textures, but it’s a whole different plane. Even the flight characteristics are much improved over the previous iterations.

All this also has benefits for version 1.2 our piston BN-2 Islander.

The new interior of the 2T can be retrofitted almost 1:1 to the older model. New interior textures, better UV mapping and texel density, new 3d models in the interior, all that comes benefit of the work on the 2T.

The changes extend to the exterior of the plane. Old repaints will of course remain compatible, however new textures on the fuselage and wing offer improved visuals, with better rivet work and cleaner joins. The default paint schemes have already been updated to match the new standard, and the new paint kits will support the new version of the exterior textures.

All this is a rather long winded way of saying we have a BN-2T Turbine Islander coming very SOON™ alongside a huge update 1.2 for the BN-2B.

We’re very excited to bring you both of these aircraft, and hope you’ll enjoy flying them as much as we enjoy making them!

As per usual, questions, suggestions, comments, and the like are welcome. Come find us on our Discord server, and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter for regular updates and more screenshots!

In the meantime, we’ve prepared some pictures of the new Turbine Islander to tide you over while you wait. Enjoy!

Take Command! SR20 has arrived!

TorqueSim, X-Aviation, and RealSimGear are excited to announce the Take Command! SR20 has arrived and is ready to join your hangar! Don’t be fooled by imitations. THIS is the SR20 simulation flight schools will be using! The systems simulation along with 3D modeling is incredible. There’s no other SR20 on the sim market like it. This is the perfect addition to the Take Command! SR22 Series.

Buy now from X-Aviation!

While on the surface, the SR20 seems quite similar to the SR22, there is much more changed than what immediately meets the eye. We have worked to develop a fully custom engine model to implement the Continental IO-360-ES engine, with all its proper behaviors and quirks. With the systems, we had to go in and make the systems match a proper G3. The 3D model throughout is significantly revamped to match. This aircraft will be the perfect addition to any simmer’s hangar!

The Take Command! SR20 is designed to work perfectly with the RealSimGear G1000 and Cirrus Perspective Hardware. Learn more about the hardware options here!

The aircraft is sold separately from the SR22 Series. A discounted upgrade price was emailed to everyone who already purchased the SR22 Series before today.

Buy now from X-Aviation!

# # #

Take Command! SR20 for X-Plane 11 Releasing Friday!

TorqueSim, RealSimGear, and X-Aviation are excited to announce the SR20 for X-Plane will release this Friday (November 13th)! The SR20 is the culmination of thousands of hours of work, building on top of our recently released Take Command! SR22 Series to create the highest of quality aircraft.

The X-Aviation Take Command! brand of products represents the very best of flight simulation immersion, and assures you this TorqueSim product is one of the most sophisticated, study sim level aircraft available for X-Plane! Real world pilots test and assist in the development of these products, and real world procedures are followed. It tells you these products are unlike any other product you’ve seen outside of the ever growing X-Aviation catalog! Want to feel like a real captain? Take Command!

The Take Command! SR20 is designed to work perfectly with the RealSimGear G1000 and Cirrus Perspective Hardware. Learn more about the hardware options here!

The aircraft will be sold separately from the SR22 Series. A discounted upgrade price will be available to those who already own the SR22 Series before Friday. As with the SR22 Series, this is for personal use only, contact us for information on commercial pricing. For more updates and to be the first to hear about the release date, sign up for our email list!

You can learn more about the Take Command! SR20 here.

# # #

Take Command! SR22 Series Update 1.1.0

We have released the version 1.1 update for the SR22 Series. All customers who have purchased the SR22 Series up till now have been sent an e-mail by X-Aviation with complete instructions on how to obtain your update. We have made this a very simple process! For those that purchase the SR22 Series from today forward, your purchased download will already be updated to version 1.1 for you.

What if I didn’t get the update e-mail?

1. Login to your X-Aviation account here: https://www.x-aviation.com/catalog/account_history.php

2. Find your original SR22 Series download and re-download the file. It will download as the latest version!

The following is a list of additions/fixes included:

Improvements / New Features:

G1000 Terrain Profile Indicator
Visual Icing Effects
Engine behavior improvements
Visual enhancements throughout
Pitch/Autopilot with flap handling improved
Engine fluctuation and CHT behavior tuning

These were initially discussed in our Feature Preview post.

Bug Fixes:

Better G1000 screen-space state tracker
Decal adjustments
AviTab show/hide ability
FMOD sound-pack improvements
Visor behavior
LIT texture adjustments
Some sub-systems were non-functional on certain MacOS versions
Fixed failed random generator handling
Pilot’s cannula visibility
Improved TKS behavior

…. and many tweaks throughout!

As always, thanks for supporting TorqueSim and X-Aviation. We appreciate your feedback and support!

Introducing the Take Command! SR20 for X-Plane 11

Following the wonderful reception of the TorqueSim/RealSimGear Take Command! SR22 Series, we have been hard at work developing the Take Command! SR20 to complement it! This is not a simple modification: it is a product of thousands of hours of work, creating the highest quality rendition of the aircraft for X-Plane.

The Take Command! SR20 is designed to work perfectly with the RealSimGear G1000 and Cirrus Perspective Hardware. Learn more about the hardware options here!

The aircraft will be sold separately from the SR22 Series. A discounted upgrade price will be available to those who already own the SR22 Series by release day. As with the SR22 Series, this is for personal use only, contact us for information on commercial pricing. The SR20 will be available in just a few short weeks! For more updates and to be the first to hear about the release date, sign up for our email list!.

You can learn more about the Take Command! SR20 here.

As always, from the TorqueSim, RealSimGear, and X-Aviation teams, thank you!

Take Command! SR22 Series – 1.1 Update Feature Preview

Since the release of the Take Command! SR22 Series, we have been hard at work adding features, fixing bugs, and making general improvements throughout! We are preparing to enter a Public Beta in the coming days (if you are interested in being a part of the Public Beta, you can sign up for a spot here – Note: spots are limited), followed by a general release to everyone once it is ready!

Here are some of the key features we have implemented:

G1000 Terrain Profile Indicator

We have integrated a custom terrain profile indicator on the MFD. This will help for situational awareness, especially in mountainous terrain, and help prevent CFIT incidents. The custom system is entirely multi-threaded to prevent any performance penalty.

Visual Icing Effects

We have been hard at work adding custom visual icing effects to the aircraft! This will help with situational awareness surrounding the use of TKS during icing conditions, as the simulated ice can now be seen on the wing, inlets, windshield, spinner, and other relevant surfaces!

Engine and System Model Improvements

There have been many improvements made to the engine model and system model. Here are a few highlighted findings from our debugging and fixing:

SR22TN Power Fluctuations

There was an issue leading to potentially severe fluctuations of engine power during takeoff and climb at high ambient temperatures and altitudes, on the SR22TN only. The cause of this issue has been eliminated. However, there may still be minor residual fluctuations on takeoff and initial climb under such conditions, largely attributed to mixture being slightly too rich for such higher density altitude takeoffs. It can be further amplified by too quick movements of the power lever. To get rid of any remaining fluctuations altogether, embrace the following steps when setting takeoff power at high temperatures and/or density altitudes:

Advance power slowly until the point where RPM rises above 2500 RPM (around 80% lever travel) and wait for manifold pressure to stabilize. This will take a few moments at altitude and is particularly important up there.
Start your takeoff roll and simultaneously advance power slowly to maximum.
Procedures allow you to lean the mixture to 34GPH for takeoff on hot days. It is suggested to follow this step at OATs in excess of 30-35°C to eliminate any residual power fluctuations.
Advance the mixture to full rich after obstacles are cleared.
Also keep in mind that it is normal for the turbo-normalized engine to slightly fluctuate for a few moments after power changes before all parameters stabilize. Thus it is generally recommended to make power changes slowly on such engines, so even during go-arounds better take 2-3 seconds to advance to full power.

Random engine cutout during taxi

There was an issue leading to seemingly random engine quits during taxi. A fix is in place that has proven to work in internal tests.

Engine starting

The fuel-injected IO-550 engine can be challenging to start at times, so video tutorials to prepare you for all kinds of cold, hot and flooded starts you may face. We have also seen the most typical cause relates to mispositioning the power lever for engine starting (some even at maximum), keep in mind to set the lever to about 1/4” (i.e. at or slightly above the letter R in POWER). We have determined that there is no issue with the custom engine model.

Engine cutout after landing

When landing at higher density altitudes with the power lever at idle on rollout, it is to be expected that the engine may not be able to hold its idle RPM due to an excessively rich mixture. Lean the mixture to the appropriate X-T letters in MIXTURE immediately after landing and try to keep the power slightly higher than low idle to prevent the engine from quitting in such situations. We have determined that there is no issue with the custom engine model.

BN-2 Islander Update 1.1.2

X-Aviation and TorqueSim are pleased to announce the release of the BN-2 Islander v1.1.2 update. This update consists of a variety of bug fixes which we have integrated to improve the Islander, providing the most realistic X-Plane 11 Islander experience!

To Update: Download your installer here and re-install!

Here’s what’s changed in version 1.1.2:

Improvements / New Features:

[IS-363] – FMOD tweaks to improve sound
Installer now auto-installs latest G5 if purchased and installed on computer

Bug Fixes:

[IS-374] – Fixed HPA Altimeter baro texture
[IS-375] – Glideslope indicators were not visible at night
[IS-379] – Autopilot Disconnect Button Fix
[IS-380] – NAV/HDG HSI Flag Fix

As always, thank you for supporting TorqueSim and X-Aviation. We appreciate your feedback and support!

Thank you to Rob H. for these great screenshots!

Take Command! SR22 Series Update 1.0.1

This will serve as a formal announcement that we have released the version 1.0.1 update for the SR22 Series. All customers who have purchased the SR22 Series up till now have been sent an e-mail by X-Aviation with complete instructions on how to obtain your update. We have made this a very simple process! For those that purchase the SR22 Series from today forward, your purchased download will already be updated to version 1.0.1 for you.

With this update, we have made major enhancements to the aircraft all around and fixed a wide assortment of bugs. We have resolved the most significant of issues, including the CTD some users experienced when loading and/or activating the aircraft, and some incompatibilities with other plugins.

As always, we are working away on ensuring the best X-Plane experience! Make sure to report any issues you may encounter so we can get to fixing them ASAP.

What if I didn’t get the update e-mail?

If you did not receive your update e-mail don’t fret! X-Aviation has updated our system to allow all customers to update with ease, regardless of whether you received an e-mail for the update! Here’s what to do:

1. Login to your X-Aviation account here: https://www.x-aviation.com/catalog/account_history.php

2. Find your original SR22 Series download and re-download the file. It will download as the latest version!

The following is a list of additions/fixes included:

Improvements / New Features:

[SR22-376] – Resolve the CTD and inter-plugin incompatibility bugs
[SR22-337] – FS Economy support (ability to disable custom load manager to use default)
[SR22-348] – Show load readout in gallons on load manager
[SR22-353] – Allow weight configuration for pax and baggage in the load manager
[SR22-354] – Simulate door closing with airflow over aircraft (airspeed, rpm, spiraling slipstream, temperature, air density, and more all are part of this simulation!)
[SR22-20] – FMOD Improvements and Modifications
[SR22-150] – Improved VR Config file

Bug Fixes:

[SR22-338] – YD could be on at cold/dark
[SR22-340] – G1000 Checklist Cruise climb airspeed too high on SR22 Normally Aspirated
[SR22-350] – Glass reflectivity persistence
[SR22-351] – Add support for the main “-” character in the livery editor
[SR22-352] – Oil temp could be frozen by fast power lever movements
[SR22-357] – Airframe replace button now also fixes all X-Plane failures
[SR22-362] – PFD buttons didn’t work when MFD is off
[SR22-363] – Flap animation could cause issues in replay mode
[SR22-368] – CHT caution stayed on when back in green range
[SR22-377] – Oxygen system refill logic improved
[SR22-342] – Milkshake visibility persists between loads
[SR22-344] – Engine less prone for flooding, faster flooded start
[SR22-369] – Higher EGT increase on single magneto
[SR22-373] – Improve RSG Popup functionality with older RSG plugins
[SR22-29] – Improve interior lighting
[SR22-54] – New 3D pilots and pax
[SR22-367] – Animate GCU knobs
[SR22-78] – Flap animation axis fixed
[SR22-208] – Engine sound not depending of engine combustion
[SR22-285] – Paint Kit (Available on X-Pilot Forums for Download)
[SR22-320] – Alt static source selector doesn’t move
[SR22-336] – External lighting bugs
[SR22-339] – Side stick AP Disconnect Command was incorrect
[SR22-356] – Ice light turns no longer turns off with landing light
[SR22-358] – SR22 Electronic trim sound doesn’t shut off after using trim.
[SR22-359] – Key animation fixed
[SR22-360] – External sound depends on door
[SR22-364] – PFD mislabeled knob
[SR22-245] – FMOD Physics Connection
[SR22-349] – Rotating GCU knobs
[SR22-365] – G1000 Pixel Effect Visibility
[SR22-366] – Commands for Exterior Items

As always, thanks for being a customer with X-Aviation. We appreciate your feedback and support!

Discuss This Update at the X-Pilot Forums

Take Command! SR22 Series has arrived!

TorqueSim, X-Aviation, and RealSimGear are excited to announce the Take Command! SR22 Series has arrived and is ready to join your hangar! Don’t be fooled by imitations. THIS is the SR22 flight schools will be using! The Take Command!: SR22 Series includes both Normally Aspirated and Turbo SR22 G3 variants in one package. The systems simulation along with 3D modeling is incredible. There’s no other SR22 on the sim market like it.

Get it from X-Aviation!

Highlighted Features

Fully Custom IO-550 Engine Simulation. Cylinder detonation, spark plug fouling, improper magneto grounding, and more. SR22TN adds the Tornado Alley Turbonormalizing system. All components are modeled from real data with complex inter-component interaction.
Detailed electrical system. Simulation of all buses, circuit breakers, Master Control Unit, both Alternators, and both lead-acid batteries. Inter-system interaction is simulated so loads on the electrical system can affect engine performance.
High-Fidelity Flight Model designed for unparalleled accuracy. Custom airfoils, stall strips, cuffed wings, and accurate control surface deflections are all modeled.
Maintenance and Failure Model. Excessive wear will affect airframe performance and safety, addressed through a realistic concept of runtime-based and annual inspections. This also includes truly unique features like cylinder detonation driven by the physics engine. TKS fluid panels drain over time in warm conditions and need to be primed, tires flatten, brakes fade when hot, the propeller experiences FOD on unprepared surfaces and much more to discover. Probability distributions tuned with real-world data are used to reflect the increasing likelihood of failures with component runtime.
Custom TKS Ice Protection System (FIKI), with full system logic control in all normal and backup modes. Fluid metering pump model down to pump speeds and pressures, correct timing of pump operation cycles, pump speeds and flows depend on system voltage. Clogged filters provokes higher pump pressure and lower fluid flow.
Custom Fuel System with Vapor Lock simulation. Main and Collector Tank are modeled, fuel sloshes depending on sideslip angle, affecting float-sensed quantity and strainer coverage. Every component in the fuel delivery path is simulated and contributes to the overall system behavior. Hot fuel can cause vapor formation and power fluctuations at high altitude in flight, suppressed by use of the boost pump
Oxygen system where flow rate and oxygenation are controlled via a custom oxygen flowmeter. Oxygen tank temperature causes difference between sensed and actual pressure, oxygen flow rate depends on number of passengers on board.
Persistent State – when you shut down the aircraft, you will return to it in the state in which it was left, the engine components will take their real time to cool. This encourages the proper care and handling of the aircraft, and shows the consequences of reckless flying.
X-Plane 11 G1000 avionics with additional customizations including engine pages, synthetic vision, lean-assist functionality, CAS simulation, and checklists. All these customizations are designed to also work perfectly with the RealSimGear G1000 and Perspective Package.
Integrated Synthetic Vision into the PFD with obstacle display, navigation pathways, and airport labels.
Meticulously detailed 3D model, with full 4K PBR textures and the wide variety of materials accurately replicated.
The FMOD sound pack has been the result of hundreds of hours of source audio, carefully recorded from the real aircraft. Recordings of the engine on the ground, and in-flight have provided for a highly-accurate and immersive sound pack replicating the real aircraft. Every switch, knob, lever, and button have been modeled.
The tail number can be dynamically changed on the aircraft! There are many configuration options to make the plane yours – from changing the tail number color, placement, outlines, drop shadows, including adding it to the wings as well!
Heavily multi-threaded systems architecture to leverage performance of modern CPUs with many cores.
Full aircraft state persistence. Every switch, flight control position, fuel state and on-airport position is restored upon reload. Even between reloads, system resources change in real time. The engine and oil cools down slowly between flights, the battery drains, tires slowly deflate, etc.

Get it from X-Aviation!