Developer Fabio Merlo has announced a major update coming soon to Flight Control Replay v5 for both Microsoft Flight Simulator and Prepar3D. Flight Control Replay bills itself as the most complete tool for video replay and recording and has become an essential piece of software for many flight simmers thanks to its expansive feature set, strong developer support, and ease of use.
In the just-announced update, Fabio reveals several new features of note. These include:
Fly-by Camera for Replay
A long-awaited feature that has been absent from Microsoft Flight Simulator, the fly-by camera allows users to watch their aircraft on the ground or in the air from an external camera that automatically follows the aircraft’s position. The feature enables replay from anywhere, using any aircraft, and with any add-on scenery. Users can easily specify the position of the replay camera left or right of the aircraft and set a custom distance for the camera from the aircraft.
Expanded Support for HPG H145 V2
In the announcement, Fabio explained that “complex aircraft add-ons need a custom development time and coding effort to make sure that all events are actually detected and reproduced during replay.” This was the case for the Hype Performance Group H145. With the latest Flight Control Replay update, the popular helicopter gains added support for lights, doors, engine switches, and more – in addition to the already supported features for the aircraft. The H145 joins the growing list of custom-supported aircraft that includes the PMDG 747, Fenix A320, Fly The Maddog MD80 series, Just Flight 146 Pro, Aerosoft CRJ, iniBuilds A310, FlyByWire Simulations A32NX, and Salty 747-400 Mod.
Replay Editing & Video Compression Enhancements
Another useful feature included in the update allows users to trim their replay files directly from the Flight Control Replay v5 user interface. This saves time by eliminating unnecessary parts of the video replay. Further, by utilising efficient compression technology the .FCR (Flight Control Replay user files) now require far less disk space than before. This makes cloud or mobile drive sharing of replay files easier and faster.
Greater User Interface Customisation
By default, Flight Control Replay V5 allows users to choose their desired interface size and layout as well as set transparency and “always-on-top” mode – keeping the interface always visible even with the flight simulator running in full screen. The latest v5 update adds the option for further customisation of the layout to persist the menu or keep the buttons command bar visible at all times depending on user preference.
Release Date & Pricing
In the press release, Fabio mentions that the expected release date will be sometime “before the end of Summer 2023.” While we don’t have an exact release date, we do know what the pricing will be as it will follow a tiered pricing structure based on when/if a user already owns Flight Control Replay v4.5.
- New purchase, never owned before: €20.00
- Previously purchased version Flight Control Replay 4.5: €8.25
You can pick up your copy of Flight Control Replay v5 from SIMMARKET and update it to the latest version when it becomes available.
Full List of Features:
- New User Interface (MSFS + P3D)
- Customizable Size and Transparency (MSFS + P3D)
- MSFS Toolbar integration and in-game controls (MSFS only)
- Cinematic Replay with Automatic Cameras Switch (MSFS only)
- GhostPlane: formation flying live with AI duet pilot (MSFS + P3D)
- MSFS Airliners Custom Support PMDG 737, Fenix A320, Fly The Maddog, iniBuilds A310, Just Flight 146
- Next-gen memory management for performance upgrade (MSFS + P3D)
- Landing Touchdown Report (MSFS + P3D)
- Crash-to-desktop recovery
- Easy setup of the software
- MSFS users: all included in 1 automatic setup
- P3D users: the same 1 automatic setup and 2 Microsoft separate packages are required
- FREE download of the User Manual PDF
