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Microprose B-17 Flying Fortress Released

I was rather surprised at the "Alcoa" interior? Generally aircraft interiors were zinc chromates, that semi baby **** green color so often seen in cockpits of the. era. The Grand Coulee Dam on the Columbia was a major resource for war production during WWII, providing electricity for Aluminum production and providing nearby Boeing with raw material.

Grok had this to say:
Yes, the interior of the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress was commonly coated with zinc chromate primer (often in a green tint, known as "zinc chromate green") on structural components, wiring conduits, and other metal surfaces for corrosion protection and as a base for camouflage paints. This was standard practice during World War II production.

However, not the entire interior was uniformly painted this way—variations existed by production block, manufacturer (Boeing, Douglas, or Vega), and combat modifications:

  • Early models (B-17C/D) often featured natural metal or aluminum-painted interiors in crew areas like the nose and radio compartment, with zinc chromate used sparingly on unexposed parts.
  • Later models (B-17E/G) more consistently applied zinc chromate green to bulkheads, floors, and equipment, though some areas (e.g., bomb bay interiors) remained natural metal.
  • Crews in theater frequently overpainted or stripped sections for weight reduction or personal reasons, leading to mixed appearances.
 
I'm not sure about MP or their ability to produce an airplane that will meet today's rather high standards. I can't rap my head around a developer releasing an airplane where the wheels don't even rotate. OMG.

PMDG sets the bar pretty high and that is what we've come to expect from developers in todays flight simulator releases. Flyingiron produces a nice quality airplane and it's just too bad they put their B-17 on hold. The PMDG guys are really the ones to give us high quality B-17, too bad they have JOTB syndrome. That's, jets on the brain."

We are so lucky they took the time to give us the DC-6. But I want more from them and I have my credit card handy to prove it. I would easily pay $60 for a PMDG B-17, not problem, for one thing I know I would be very happy with the purchase. With the current condition of the MP B-17 it belongs in the picture below.
Boneyard.jpg
 
Lawman said:
I understand. I think we have both said all that there is to be said, so let's leave it at that, okay:icon29:?
Click to expand...
:ernaehrung004:
Lawman said:
Edit: I do hope you'll get a B-17 that meets your expectations.
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Appreciate it, Lawman.

The late great (atleast to me..) FSX/P3D installation (i.e. end of an era) IMHO featured one of the best ever aircraft models ever released for FS, i'd say even beyond the superb quality of PMDG : drrrrrrrrumroll...: the A2A Boeing B-17G ! There's no doubt in my mind that this glorious fact will never be forgotten and, one way or another, will happen again here in MSFS2024. Probabely not by A2A but there's more where they came from ! The Green Light has been given, i'm sure !

b17_green.jpg

Cheers,
Jan
:cool:
 
Jan I am sure it was a great seller and money maker for them. I have no idea why they are not tapping into the FS2020/24 market and converting many of their great releases and making them available? A2A WTFAY?

It can't be that hard if you know what the heck you're doing? MP has to burn a lot of midnight oil before I will considering purchasing their B-17. I have enough hangar queens and don't really need anymore.

Like AH releasing a P-51 that when you load it up the propeller is in the fully feathered position and of course we all know that is BS, and they never fixed it. Not to mention the flight dynamics were a mess.

If it's not close to PMDG or FlyingIron standards I am not really interested. The Milviz Corsair is great too.
 
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Hollister56 said:
Jan I am sure it was a great seller and money maker for them. I have no idea why they are not tapping into the FS2020/24 market and converting many of their great releases and making them available? A2A WTFAY?

It can't be that hard if you know what the heck you're doing? MP has to burn a lot of midnight oil before I will considering purchasing their B-17. I have enough hangar queens and don't really need anymore.

Like AH releasing a P-51 that when you load it up the propeller is in the fully feathered position and of course we all know that is BS, and they never fixed it. Not to mention the flight dynamics were a mess.

If it's not close to PMDG or FlyingIron standards I am not really interested. The Milviz Corsair is great too.
Click to expand...
A couple of things. Firstly, we have explained many times that the P51D was not built for 2024. It's flight model is for 2020. Secondly, have you contacted our help desk with your issues? Thirdly if you start in cold dark ALL levers including the props are at 0% which is in "feathered" position. However if you choose to fly the product in a simulator for which it is not designed, then there will be risks. Wells Sullivan did the realistic flight dynamics for the P51D (in 2020) ... he is here somewhere on this forum so why don't you have a discussion with him. I am sure he'd like to hear your comment.
 
Gentlemen, I had to move another post that was unnecessarily rude. Let's keep things civil, shall we?

Priller
 
fliger747 said:
I was rather surprised at the "Alcoa" interior? Generally aircraft interiors were zinc chromates, that semi baby **** green color so often seen in cockpits of the. era. The Grand Coulee Dam on the Columbia was a major resource for war production during WWII, providing electricity for Aluminum production and providing nearby Boeing with raw material.

Grok had this to say:
Yes, the interior of the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress was commonly coated with zinc chromate primer (often in a green tint, known as "zinc chromate green") on structural components, wiring conduits, and other metal surfaces for corrosion protection and as a base for camouflage paints. This was standard practice during World War II production.

However, not the entire interior was uniformly painted this way—variations existed by production block, manufacturer (Boeing, Douglas, or Vega), and combat modifications:

  • Early models (B-17C/D) often featured natural metal or aluminum-painted interiors in crew areas like the nose and radio compartment, with zinc chromate used sparingly on unexposed parts.
  • Later models (B-17E/G) more consistently applied zinc chromate green to bulkheads, floors, and equipment, though some areas (e.g., bomb bay interiors) remained natural metal.
  • Crews in theater frequently overpainted or stripped sections for weight reduction or personal reasons, leading to mixed appearances.
Click to expand...
Fliger747, You could find yourself down a very VERY deep rabbit hole once you start looking into the arguments on interiors, paint, and fabric. Of the B-17 folks in the world, I know probably the top 3 B-17 "know-it-alls" (not at all a derogatory comment at all btw!!! lol) and it's something that is usually all up for debate. With 3 diff manufacturers, and things changing all the time, it's hard to pinpoint where some things started, and when some ended.
 
Back when I was flying the 747-200 we had flight engineers. I still have a set of differences manuals 2' high. One of our flight engineers summed up the differences in a book "some do and some don't". We said it wasn't a type rating, it was a hunting license. When we finally got new 747-400's from the factory Boeing had decided you pretty much got one cockpit style.

With a plane manufactured under wartime logistical stress in numbers and thru design changes and varying suppliers, there will be very little uniformity. A favorite Winkle Brown quote "When needs must the devil drives". One cannot count on restored and warbird aircraft either.
 
I think I saw on their Discord that an update is still planned for next week some time. It's really hard for me to pick on anything just simply because there's, well, a lot that needs fixed as we all see. I've suggested a couple of things that may not have been on their radar after going back and watching a few videos I had taken over the years. Brakes Squeaking jumps out as a big one that really kind of puts you in the cockpit. It's a very distinctive sound.
 
Wittpilot said:
I think I saw on their Discord that an update is still planned for next week some time. It's really hard for me to pick on anything just simply because there's, well, a lot that needs fixed as we all see. I've suggested a couple of things that may not have been on their radar after going back and watching a few videos I had taken over the years. Brakes Squeaking jumps out as a big one that really kind of puts you in the cockpit. It's a very distinctive sound.
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Absofacto ! I remember working on a P2V model with a couple of guys. We had a real one 'next door' at marine base Valkenburg in the Netherlands and a nice video of start-up, taxi, take-off etc. The brake sound was very distinctive and loud each time the Neptune took a turn. It proved much appreciated by the Neptune flyers after the update was released. I'd love to hear it while taxiing the B-17 as well of course. Here's a good example :



The thing with the MP B-17 model is however that, IMHO, brakes sound is one of the least (last..) items to worry about getting fixed, don't you think ?.... ;-)

There's a truckload of other, waaay more important items that need serious attention before bothering about such things as 'icing on the cake' ( like vibrating engine cowlings and panels upon certain power settings, audible crew interaction, rattling noise at take-off and landing run, rain effects, and, sure, brake sounds.. (they'd better get those wheels turning first !!.. :playful:) Atm the cake itself is not worthy yet to display in the shop window... Lets hope they work day and night in the bakery to make that happen. :onthego:
 
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Oh of course. Things like the brake sounds should be far down the list of fixes. I was just trying to think of something that I had not seen mentioned yet. My brother just received some 3d printed B-17 throttles he purchased on eBay. If you have never sat and manipulated the throttle quadrant on a 17, it's really unique and pretty ingenious for it's time.
-Witt
 
I'm still trying to get the hang of my new system and MSFS2024 as well for that matter and i recently moved too so my Honeycomb Bravo throttle quadrant is still in its moving box...But when you talk flightsim throttles i think HB is the word. ;-)

Myself, next to the default GA iteration, i have a throttle set for the DC-3 and DC-6 and if it's not already there there's a great chance of a B-17 throttleset being added to the vast series of throttles sets available now for the Honeycomb Bravo. In my flightsim book it is the best thing since sliced bread regarding throttle combo's. Certainly once a good B-17 model for MS2024 has become available a HB B-17 throttle set will follow (if not already there yet..). And sure, yes, if only adding brake sound was our only worry when it comes to the B-17.... Let's see what happens this week or maybe next week... ( i would already be happy (for now..) if we could do approach and landing with prescribed speed and config, (waaay) better sounds and rotating wheels ! ;-)
 
First EA update seems to be out. This is the changelog from Discord:

ChangelogMesh Changes:
  • Aft compartment LOD fix,
  • Missing animations added,
  • External LOD fixes,
  • Missing 3D objects for tail gear and Ball turret added,
  • Missing textures added,
  • ALCLAD decals adjusted,
  • Transparent engine interior for high LOD fixed,
File Structure Changes:
  • Shortened file-path to mediate installation issues,
  • Corrected manifest version number,
Flight Model Changes:
  • Weights adjusted based on real world data,
  • MOIs updated to real physics values,
  • Default Bomb load of 8000lbs in the Cargo Screen of the EFB,
  • Ground handling improved,
  • Aircraft dimensions altered to realistic real world values,
  • The feeling of weight should now be more apparent whilst still meeting real world maneuverability metrics.,
Fuel System Changes:
  • Fuel tanks brought to realistic quantities (26), sizes, weights, positions, capacities, and names. (12 tanks per Wing + 2 Ferry Bomb Bay Tanks),
  • Fuel tanks now correspond to their specific engine as per real world design.,
  • Fuel tanks fill and drain in the correct order.,
Engine Changes:
  • Fuel Flow should now allow for realistic flight times up to 10 hours with correct engine management,
  • Engine cylinders corrected to real world numbers and values,
  • RPMs set to real world values,
  • Propellors adjusted with real world values,
FLT Changes:
  • Spawning on Runway,
Camera Changes
  • Default views corrected,
  • Co-Pilot Position Added,
System Changes:
  • Various electrical systems added to allow for future integration of physical systems in the Cockpit,
  • COM Radio added for communicating with ATC via ATC Panel using auto frequency change)
 
Brief notes on 1st B17 update:

Wheel rims now rotate
Can't tell if tires rotate because tire textures are so plain
External textures seem more detailed
Lift off at about 70 and stable
Flights still easy and stable
Landings a bit more difficult with a tendency to float and yaw
No more click spots in cockpit
Click spot banners still have no description
Aclad interior textures still present
 
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