Dev Blog #374: Flying Circus Development Update

[Bgyuk]

On 10/24/2025 at 7:15 PM, Trooper117 said:

 

I'm more interested in that sentence above... As good as the Zep looks, it would be way down the list of my priorities, as there are so many other much needed aeroplanes that are 'really' required to flesh out the plane set.

No, I'm not trying to rain on any ones parade as I know there are many fans of the Zeppelin and they are really looking forward to it... I just have different priorities.

Yep, totally agree. There are many small changes for example that could make the Career so much more immersive. These are easy wins and should be added before implementing massive updates.  

[Cardolan]

Excellent stuff... and for free!

 

Staying tunned for more news still in this year. Hopefully, it is something good for WW2 fans like myself.

[IckyATLAS]

I am speechless. Brilliant, excellent, extraordinary. After all you will finally convince me about the battles with "wood and cloth" airplanes.

But now it raises me a question. You mentioned all the difficulties to model realistically such a giant air"ship" with all the effects, damage model sounds etc. 

And I believe that this was a big undertaking and that you pushed the limits again. Bravo. The Zeppelin had many engines up to six or maybe more.

 

Now just to come to WWII don't you think that this kind of gigantic effort could also be done for another less giant air"plane", much smaller than the Zeppelin in fact but also with just four engines, you see where I am going. 🙂 

 

[MDzmitry]

16 минут назад, IckyATLAS сказал:

Now just to come to WWII don't you think that this kind of gigantic effort could also be done for another less giant air"plane", much smaller than the Zeppelin in fact but also with just four engines, you see where I am going. 🙂 

Time for a return question: how many zeppelins do you think were used at a time for bombing? The maximum amount was 3 if I'm not mistaken. Most commonly just 1.

 

Now, how many strategic bombers flew on average per mission? The very first, smallest raid included 12 B-17s, with the Big Week amassing around a thousand Fortresses. And that's in February 1944, the earliest we have in Il-2 is late spring of 1944. 

And what Il-2's engine can handle reliably is around a dozen twin-engined bombers. Hopefully the amount of engines isn't 1:1 proportional to the increase in demand, but even if taken at 1,5, that's only around 8 Fortresses. Not much of an air force if you ask me.

Add to that insufficient map size, lack of fitting airfields to base these monsters and you get a rather pitiful picture if strategic bombers get implemented.

Edited October 26 by MDzmitry

[Heart0ne]

1 hour ago, MDzmitry said:

Add to that insufficient map size, lack of fitting airfields to base these monsters and you get a rather pitiful picture if strategic bombers get implemented.

Or they could implement it like in Il-2: Korea, and have the bombers spawn/despawn off-map, and focus the map on the historical "Defence of the Reich" campaign 🙂 

[Trooper117]

2 minutes ago, Heart0ne said:

Or they could implement it like in Il-2: Korea, and have the bombers spawn/despawn off-map, and focus the map on the historical "Defence of the Reich" campaign 🙂 

 

It's not going to happen so all this talk is academic... this has been debated to death here for years and the devs have said it's not going to happen. Time to move on.

[Avimimus]

5 hours ago, MDzmitry said:

Time for a return question: how many zeppelins do you think were used at a time for bombing? The maximum amount was 3 if I'm not mistaken. Most commonly just 1.

 

Some nights saw as many as twelve Zeppelins launched against targets. I think the most sent against a single city in a single night might have been nine.

[Aapje]

3 hours ago, Heart0ne said:

Or they could implement it like in Il-2: Korea, and have the bombers spawn/despawn off-map, and focus the map on the historical "Defence of the Reich" campaign 🙂 

 

That's not what is going to allow large formations, but rather, a simplified AI, which is going to be implemented only in the new engine.

[ST_Catchov]

10 minutes ago, Aapje said:

That's not what is going to allow large formations, but rather, a simplified AI, which is going to be implemented only in the new engine.

 

That's a pity. It's not like the current GB AI is that great. 🙂 Simplified might work better. Not that that's gonna happen but if we're going OT it's food for thought.

[Jackfraser24]

11 hours ago, Cardolan said:

Excellent stuff... and for free!

 

Staying tunned for more news still in this year. Hopefully, it is something good for WW2 fans like myself.

I remember Luke said it will be worth the wait. I trust his word.

[AcesDarthBubu]

7 hours ago, Trooper117 said:

 

It's not going to happen so all this talk is academic... this has been debated to death here for years and the devs have said it's not going to happen. Time to move on.

My 2 cents....

But with all the hype that being built, and saying the community will be happy with the WW2 reveal, if its not 1 of the key ask like B17 then what else. Its going to be a major marketing let down, if the later reveal doesn't surpass the Zeppelin reveal.

 

[BlitzPig_EL]

We would sooner see a flyable B25 or B26 than a B17, but, I'm not holding my breath for any of them.  Flyable multicrew aircraft are simply too expensive to put into the game at this late time in it's development.

[plepew]

"A significant improvement will be the addition of 7 new major cities to the Western Front map: Mons, Namur, Aachen, Verviers, Maastricht, Bruxelles, and Charleroi. Several additional unique landmarks have been added to Paris, including the Arc de Triomphe. Small and big railway stations have been added to many settlements. Several smaller improvements have been made, which together significantly enhance the map's perception and realism."

 

Can't wait to see all these improvements to the W Front map!!  

 

 

[ST_Catchov]

 

 

[Jackfraser24]

On 10/27/2025 at 4:07 PM, AcesDarthBubu said:

My 2 cents....

But with all the hype that being built, and saying the community will be happy with the WW2 reveal, if its not 1 of the key ask like B17 then what else. Its going to be a major marketing let down, if the later reveal doesn't surpass the Zeppelin reveal.

 

Agreed. I believe it could impact IL-2’s marketing reputation if most don’t see the next reveal bigger than the Zeppelin announcement in the short term. But even if it isn’t a big announcement, I’m sure to most of us it will be a distant memory once Korea and many Korean War collector planes are released, and development on the first PTO module is underway.

Edited October 28 by Jackfraser24

[ST_Catchov]

2 hours ago, Jackfraser24 said:

Agreed. I believe it could impact IL-2’s marketing reputation if most don’t see the next reveal bigger than the Zeppelin

 

That's a big ask. Nothing is bigger than the Zeppelin Jack.

[Jackfraser24]

36 minutes ago, ST_Catchov said:

 

That's a big ask. Nothing is bigger than the Zeppelin Jack.

I figure you know what I mean though. The "winged engines" part I don't get. That could mean anything. I was darn sure that a Finnish-Soviet collector plane pack was in the works, and if we were lucky a map of Murmansk or White Karelia to go with it (or both if we're very lucky) as it would likely have to include the TB-3 Soviet bomber. But since they are reportedly not working on Finnish voice overs (from the last I have heard), my guess is as good as anyone else's. That's ok though as I can afford to wait for the 2026 news. 

 

P.S. I think we are getting way too off topic. Back to WWI now.

Edited October 28 by Jackfraser24

[Flashy]

I am really hoping for more WW1 news after the Zeppelin release. With Korea coming up, and then the Pacific (presumably various modules), it could be 5-10 years before we get another WW1 expansion in the new engine.. Hopefully Ugra media can keep making WW1 content for BOX while all that "modern" stuff is happening...

[ST_Catchov]

49 minutes ago, Flashy said:

Hopefully Ugra media can keep making WW1 content for BOX while all that "modern" stuff is happening...

 

Here's hoping. 🙂 Not all of us are going Korean. I'm not agin it, but GB/FC is still perfectly acceptable and still runs well on aging rigs (sans VR). 

[BladeMeister]

On 10/26/2025 at 11:07 PM, AcesDarthBubu said:

My 2 cents....

But with all the hype that being built, and saying the community will be happy with the WW2 reveal, if its not 1 of the key ask like B17 then what else. Its going to be a major marketing let down, if the later reveal doesn't surpass the Zeppelin reveal.

 

At this point, just about anything that 1C wants to create that furthers the GB series experience should be appreciated. It's new content of some sort or curtains and crickets. Which would you have? It's a no brainer for me.

 

S!Blade<><

[Jackfraser24]

17 hours ago, BladeMeister said:

At this point, just about anything that 1C wants to create that furthers the GB series experience should be appreciated.

 

S!Blade<><

Agreed. 

18 hours ago, ST_Catchov said:

 

Here's hoping. 🙂 Not all of us are going Korean. I'm not agin it, but GB/FC is still perfectly acceptable and still runs well on aging rigs (sans VR). 

I hope so too. I would like to see more WWI collector planes but that’s a topic for another thread.

[ST_Catchov]

23 minutes ago, Jackfraser24 said:

I would like to see more WWI collector planes but that’s a topic for another thread.

 

Don't we all. You'd have to bring in @Avimimus for that. He's very knowledgeable on the subject and has some good suggestions. He's actually done some good threads on the subject (with pictures 🙂). I'm too lazy to look for them but.

[Jackfraser24]

58 minutes ago, ST_Catchov said:

Don't we all.

The reason why I’d personally like to see more WWI planes for Flying Circus is because, other than having a better gaming experience, I think FC really needs to offer something that Rise of Flight cannot. And it has map wise, but I would like there to be a greater selection of planes for FC than what RoF does. Is that understandable?

1 hour ago, ST_Catchov said:

 

You'd have to bring in @Avimimus for that. He's very knowledgeable on the subject and has some good suggestions. He's actually done some good threads on the subject (with pictures 🙂).

Thanks for the reference, old sport.

Edited October 29 by Jackfraser24

[TempestV]

Channel Map bitte

[Jackfraser24]

3 minutes ago, TempestV said:

Channel Map bitte

Channel map would be nice. And feasible if the dev team wants to do it. All they’d have to do is remodel sections of the Normandy map and Bodenplatte map (Calais and Dunkirk, and Flanders region respectively) into a 1915-18 era battlefield. Easier said than done though as they would need the correct references and make sure everything is where it should be, and make fighters, bombers, boat-planes, and maybe more airship types. Great Battles would be perfect for WWI era combat flight simulation because it was based off of Rise of Flight (I may have put it easier said than done yet again).

Edited October 29 by Jackfraser24

[Flashy]

1 hour ago, Jackfraser24 said:

Channel map would be nice. And feasible if the dev team wants to do it. All they’d have to do is remodel sections of the Normandy map and Bodenplatte map (Calais and Dunkirk, and Flanders region respectively) into a 1915-18 era battlefield. Easier said than done though as they would need the correct references and make sure everything is where it should be, and make fighters, bombers, boat-planes, and maybe more airship types. Great Battles would be perfect for WWI era combat flight simulation because it was based off of Rise of Flight (I may have put it easier said than done yet again).

Either this or modernise the old Channel map from Rise of Flight to BoX (whichever is easier). It would be awesome if they could do this and combine the channel map and the current western front map into one big landmass, including London. I guess that would be too much for the engine to handle, but imagine being able to bomb London from the Belgian bases with a Zeppelin or Gotha, or being able to fly from London to Paris for lunch. Maybe one day we will see this, but It feels like the engine is getting better every year and could conceivably do a map this big quite soon. The addition of Paris shows that big cities are now possible at least..

[ST_Catchov]

 

2 hours ago, Jackfraser24 said:

Thanks for the reference, old sport.

 

You're welcome, old thing.

 

50 minutes ago, Flashy said:

The addition of Paris shows that big cities are now possible at least..

 

Just a tester for London. 🙂 The WWII boys intrigued by the Zep will buy into FC and finance it. This is 1C's cunning plan. I like the way they think.

 

 

[Flashy]

1 hour ago, ST_Catchov said:

Just a tester for London. 🙂 The WWII boys intrigued by the Zep will buy into FC and finance it. This is 1C's cunning plan. I like the way they think.

Coming soon: FC5 (channel map pack)
 Felixstowe, B.E.2.C, Hansa-Brandenburg W.29, Aviatik C.1, Morane parasol single and 2-seater versions (and Pfalz E-III single and 2-seater versions) + Channel Map 

 

🤣

Edited October 29 by Flashy

[giftgruen]

Great !!! And for sure also with Non-Butterfly-AI 😇

[Zooropa_Fly]

20 hours ago, giftgruen said:

Great !!! And for sure also with Non-Butterfly-AI

 

It's better than the BoX icons !!

[Freycinet]

On 10/28/2025 at 2:42 AM, ST_Catchov said:

 

 

 

That was unexpectedly thrilling! - I'll have to see that movie.

[ST_Catchov]

20 hours ago, Freycinet said:

That was unexpectedly thrilling! - I'll have to see that movie.

 

I'm a sucker for the old Hollywood movies about WW1 from the 20's and 30's so it's worth a watch. Sure they're quaint but with original planes and stuntmen who died (keep the camera rollin'!) and no stinkin' CGI. 🙂 I'd rather watch them than any stoopid super hero movie (for example). As for the Zeppelin, bring it 1C.

 

[BladeMeister]

We're getting closer!

S!Blade<><

 

[BlitzPig_EL]

I suspect bagging a Zep will be even more difficult that attacking a 2 seater, as their gunners will be firing from a very stable gun platform.

[Trooper117]

8 hours ago, BladeMeister said:

We're getting closer!

S!Blade<><

 

 

Not viewable in my region...

[YR-AndreiTomescu]

On 10/25/2025 at 12:00 PM, Kubert said:

Maybe it sound arrogant from my side, but Finland won't be just one foreign plane as MC.202 or IAR, but full scale faction. Finnish voice communication should be planned from the beginning.

yes, you are quite right, and i've said that numerous times: to go with a faction and hear radio chatter in different language is quite a no-go. That's why i've been so keen into the birth of some usable romanian radio chatter, and did this (to some acceptable level, far from perfect).

The Finland faction, however, won't be a separate faction, from the dev's said so far 😢, like Romania isn't, it will be included into the german one (i'd be happy if it will be, so correct me if i'm wrong, and make me a bit happier)

I would like to add also that, as far as i know,  the Finnish air force had no plane made (designed) locally. The romanian "non-faction"  did get only the IAR as a locally designed and build airplane, because, except for some other IAR models used for reconnaissance and light bombing (IAR-37, for ex) this was just it. But the some of rest of its aircraft (like Hurricane, He-111, Bf-109 E4, E7, G2, G4, G6, Hs-129, etc are represented ingame and have proper ro skins and combined with ro radio chatter -mod, not official- and even skins for the ground objects, so can be used properly. 

So it's not arrogant, but confusing. Finland's faction will be, ......all foreign planes. The MC.202 and IAR are home designed and build planes. Not foreign.

In conclusion, i really hope that, even that the Italian and Romanian will remain non-factions, included in the German one, at least the resilient and brave Finns, that fought so valiant in the Winter war and later in WW2, will eventually get a true faction, with all that implies. But if not,  i really hope some Finnish speaking lads will manage to assemble a Finnish radio chatter, and some proper skins. Because i would love to play on the Finnish side.

[Jaegermeister]

On 10/25/2025 at 5:00 AM, Kubert said:

If this will be the case, they could reconsider addition of Finnish voice communication. After I read there won't be, in that moment I decided to play Leningrad only as Soviet or German pilot. Flying, let's say B-239, with German radio communication is serious immersion breaker for me and therefore it has no point to own this plane for pure singleplayer. It's like buying Spitfire XIV and flying as RAF with Russian radio comms. Maybe it sound arrogant from my side, but Finland won't be just one foreign plane as MC.202 or IAR, but full scale faction. Finnish voice communication should be planned from the beginning.

 

On 10/25/2025 at 7:42 PM, Jackfraser24 said:

That’s a good point I didn’t think of. They would have to make Finnish voice overs for the Finnish faction, especially if they were going to make all these aircraft for the Great Battles platform like the B-239, D.XXI and the Hawk 81. And I remember on one of these forums that Finnish, Italian and Romanian voice communications will not be worked on. So, we will have to wait until they make that announcement in November or December of this year. 

You could be onto something actually.

 

The Romanian voices are already done as mentioned above by @YR-AndreiTomescu. They have been created for the Odessa map by a small group of players, and can be installed as a mod or direct file replacement for the German voice files. Finnish voices could be done the same way if some one (or ones) want to do it. What we apparently won't be getting is a separate faction, which really has very little impact on actual game play.

 

 

Edited Monday at 11:01 PM by Jaegermeister

[ST_Catchov]

20 hours ago, Trooper117 said:

Not viewable in my region...

 

Troops, it's an image of a Camel about to pounce on a Zep with rockets!  I wonder how Camel spin recovery would be affected by rockets presuming the firing mechanism failed? I mean, that's about as relevant in this topic as radio chatter.

 

 

[YR-AndreiTomescu]

2 hours ago, ST_Catchov said:

wonder how Camel spin recovery would be affected by rockets presuming the firing mechanism failed?

i've read sometime ago in a British book about such a case : the plane was a Spad, and were some La Prieur rockets (if i'm correct). the pilot ignited the "beasts" but they failed to launch, so the wing got partially ripped and the plane entered a spin. however the pilot managed to crash land and survived. i'll search the book, maybe i'll read it again. it was very good. something with "pilot life" or something

however i dunno much about WW1 aircraft pilotage. All i know from old Aces of Dawn and what i've tested in FC is that rudder is more important than in WW2. i'm planning to go back in time and go WW1 after the Siege ald Liberation module

Also i've got your truly polite and soft hint and i'm sorry, i will not pollute this topic with things unrelated with WW1. Sorry.

[Avimimus]

On 10/29/2025 at 5:19 AM, ST_Catchov said:

 

Don't we all. You'd have to bring in @Avimimus for that. He's very knowledgeable on the subject and has some good suggestions. He's actually done some good threads on the subject (with pictures 🙂). I'm too lazy to look for them but.

 

Thanks. The actual truth is that, a long time ago, in the Rise of Flight days - I saw the wishlist threads and decided to make a bunch of polls discussing different WWI aircraft. I discovered years later that the forum moderator had collected my threads and pinned the post to try to preserve them - so I realised that they'd been valued.

 

In response, I made a few more threads recently.

 

I find it interesting to document what aircraft aren't in the simulation, as it provides more understanding of history, what other aircraft might have been seen in real life... and the context in which the existing aircraft were developed. So, it is interesting outside of the idea of a wishlist.

 

There are a handful of quite interesting fighters left - although most have been modelled. There are a few gaps (particularly French two seaters, and aircraft that were a bit out of date by 1916 but still flying). It is really interesting. I might do a thread on fighters, the Austria-Hungarian/Italian Front, and on early war aircraft... but they'd probably be just to add 'colour' to our understanding of how the sim relates to history (rather than officially being wishlists).