Aerosoft CRJ 550/700 for Microsoft Flight Simulator - Is it worth it? | PC Invasion

The Aerosoft CRJ 550/700 for Microsoft Flight Simulator has finally taken flight as the sim's first study-level airliner. But is it any good?

[Abriael]

This is not a study-level airliner. It's complex, awesome, and it does require some study, but it steps a bit short of study-level, which requires full failures simulation, which this does not support, on top of a few more details, like some systems that are not interconnected as they should be.

Also, fully disagree that core simmers have been left out so far. The a32nx by FlyByWire and Citation by Working Title are perfectly up to the task of satisfying core simmers. It's worth mentioning that no previous simulator received add-ons of this complexity (including the CRJ) nearly as fast as MSFS after their release.

You can also absolutely use a file generated by Simbrief to import flight plans into the CRJ, exactly as you can with the Zibo 737. I don't know what anyone would want to do that and miss part of the fun, but you can.

PS: if you think this is pricey, wait until PMDG asks $100 for its 737. These complex add-ons cost like a game because they require as much work as a game to make.

[AKR]

Hi, I'm the author of this piece. Thanks for commenting.

First thing - thank you for pointing out the note about using Simbrief. I was unaware of it at the time but have since updated the article with a tutorial I just found on YouTube.

Secondly, there seems to always be an argument as to what is and isn't considered to be "study-level". But, at least from the perspective of what's on offer, the CRJ is the most advanced airliner to come to the sim so far. Thus, I had no qualms about giving it this label. The mods you mentioned are just that, mods. They're not reflective of the sim's true content; though that doesn't change the fact that they're still impressive in their own right. The CRJ has been built from the ground up with the intention of being more complex, however. And that's why there's been so much fanfare surrounding it.

Also, I'm aware of why the CRJ costs $50 and that there are even more expensive add-ons out there for other sims that will eventually come to MSFS as well. I'll make sure to add that note to the article too, as your observation is correct and I actually forgot to specify that before publishing.

[Abriael]

That's exactly why I don't really use the label study-level. It's stuffy and people argue about it all the time, but it's worth mentioning that Aerosoft itself does not want to use it for the reason mentioned above and the fact that Aerosoft focuses on the captain's experience more than the pure simulation of all the systems, which is pretty much the opposite approach to what people most commonly refer as "study-level."