The Islander is a lot more fun to fly than the Tecnam. Still hoping we see the Twin Otter make another comeback, but for now this Islander is my go to for my Winair routes out of Princess Juliana (TNCM)
Cheers Drawyah! Glad you found it useful - my pleasure. Nice to see you over here in my little neck of the woods. I like to watch your streams from time to time - the last one I saw, you were heroically battling your way back from Moscow in the CS777 haha (btw I can confirm, that Russian ATC, 100% true to life ha). Hope you’re enjoying the Islander! It isn’t going to win any awards for its looks, but it is good fun. I’m rather envious of your real-world trip. Must have been great fun! That part of the world is stunning. . . Happy flying! All the best : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Ah yes, back when I last had hope for MSFS payware add-ons which were slowly shattered the closer to London I got. Hopefully we see that turn around soon. You're certainly right, it's perhaps not the prettiest of aircraft, but the functionality is certainly there as well as the dynamics. You going through the starting checks definitely helped me get my own way in this aircraft. I flew with Hebridean Air Services on one of their sightseer flights (any spare seats on their public service island hops) which go for £80 round-trip. An hour and a half in one of these flying low and slow around the West Highland Islands, absolutely worth every penny! Hopefully going to drop a trip report mid next week showing it off.
Haha, no need to lose all hope just yet! We’ve got some quality aircraft starting to come into the sim now : ) It’s such a shame about CS though. Like you, I was a big fan of some of their previous work (I’ve seen people saying that most of their developers left long ago, hence the state of the company). Anyway, I enjoyed you Hebridean flight and I’m definitely looking forward to seeing the footage of the real thing. I think I might have to try that for myself one of these days! All the best!
Hi Jeffrey, Yes, unfortunately that was an issue on release - I would like to hope that BBS have patched it up by now though (I haven’t found the time to fly the Islander recently unfortunately)? The BBS Islander certainly isn’t a special product in many areas, but I find it very enjoyable nonetheless. As you say, the perfect aircraft / sim combination for a spot of island hopping. I love taking her through the Scottish islands myself. All the best! : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Hi, thanks, as you say This is a wonderful representation of the BN islander. I hope they can update it soon to make it perfect.. Cheers jeff.
I'm a little late to this craft but spotted your review, which i enjoyed and thought I would buy this to complete my Island hopping aircraft. The sounds are ok, not quite got the finesse of newer aircraft in the sim but lots of fun to fly. Thanks again
Hi Dave, Well, late is probably better in this case haha, as BlackBox have at least improved a few things on this aircraft since it’s release. The Islander certainly doesn’t offer anything revolutionary, but it is very much still a fun little island hopper nonetheless. Cheers again! Happy flying : )
@@caribbaviator7058 I bit the bullet and bought this . Currently trying to get my flight1 BN2 Sounds to work with this . I’ve changed the flap and ground roll sound so far .
Hope ILS and VOR work? As for the AS Twin Otter, until they fix the total failure of the ILS (and RNav,RNP) system on the CRJ, I won't be spending cash on anything they sell.
Ah damn, didn’t try the ILS! Just finished a test flight actually David;. I can confirm VOR and NDB work absolutely fine. I can try ILS another time if you like? Fair enough re Aerosoft. I haven’t tried their CRJ in a while and was just saying to someone else I need to give it another go and see what’s fixed / what isn’t. I have to say, the little C22J has rather made me re-assess what’s possible in MSFS. If a one-man team can build such a solid product / flight model and sell it for £10, it really makes you wonder what some other developers have been playing at (more-so on the flight model front). It was a silly decision from Aerosoft to go anywhere near the default Asobo avionics I have to say. It’s a shame, as the systems of the jet are really rather good, so why not give it the automation and flight model it deserves. . . That being said, I am still planning to review the Twotter; it will be interesting to see how receptive AS is to letting me take a look, after my review of their glider sim though haha. Cheers!
Sorry, just seen you were referring to the Islander - I thought this was in reference to the C22J, as we were discussing yesterday. From memory, I’m pretty sure VOR, ILS and NDB all worked on the Islander. It’s nothing spectacular though as a product. It’s fun and I do enjoy flying it, I will say that, but everything about it is rather mediocre.
I can confirm ILS and VOR work for the Islander - haven’t figured out how to slave multiple frequencies to nav1/2 for triangulation or dialed up an adf - hope it’s just my unfamiliarity with that garmin, but I typically just dial up a Rnav/Vnav or ils through the gps with a single loc frequency.
Thanks TickleFight. I believe the aircraft did have some issues initially with nav systems, I seem to recall ADF was one of them (and possibly NAV 2 as well). I think it’s all been fixed up now (can’t remember whether it has a separate NAV 2 radio?), but I haven’t had the chance to fly the aircraft myself for a while, so haven’t checked. It certainly functions in the basic sense (VOR, ILS etc), but 2 (working) NAV radios is really to be expected in an aircraft like this. Thanks for the input : )
Yeah, didn’t try the 110 myself. I was half tempted, but it just didn’t quite look up to scratch to me. The Islander was somewhat in the same boat, except I really like the aircraft in the real world, so that swung it for me. Overall it’s a pleasant aircraft. Not the best in any field, but decent enough and good fun to fly. All the best : )
Cheers Mike! Haha, 6 twins eh? That’s a lot of engines! The Islander is fun, but there are certainly better twins out there (some of which I’m sure you own). All the best : )
Microsoft should really set a standard of what go's into the marketplace. A modern model and a functioning VC, high resolution textures all over, tested features by actually performing test flights and more.
I agree there should be a more “robust” method of selling things through the Marketplace. It would be difficult to select which addons should / shouldn’t be sold through the Marketplace though. One mans junk addon, might be another’s favourite aircraft. The Islander for example, definitely closer to FSX standards than MSFS once’s, but I do rather enjoy it. My personal preference would be to allow anything to be sold on the Marketplace, but to have a much much more in-depth reviews system; multiple categories, scores out 100, reviewer comments etc. A try before you buy option would also be ideal. Just my 2 cents though. . . All the best : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Something like a games "system requirements". Does not define an FS98 aircraft as junk, but simply unsuitible. Just like using a 285GTX for FS2020. 😁
I believe they did MEAM. The aircraft has received a number of updates, though I haven't had a chance to test it in a while (and the product remains much the same graphically etc). I believe the change logs are available over on Black Box's web page (so I would suggest consulting those before purchasing). Apparently the aircraft will also be getting a "study level" upgrade, once the BBS Trislander has been released - so perhaps worth keeping an eye on. I hope that helps a little, all the best! : )
I’m tempted... the Islander was one of the aircraft that I dreamed of flying one day when I was in my teens. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately) I didn’t get the chance to fly one.
Haha, I know the feeling Paul! Depends what you’re after really. If you want something that’s a good bit of fun and looks like a half-decent Islander externally it’s possibly worth picking up (it’s a little overpriced for what it is though). If you want an in-depth simulation experience, or a top of the range graphical masterpiece, I’d probably give it a pass. There are already some custom 3rd party paints coming along that are much nicer than the default ones, that goes some way to improving it. The black variant of the cockpit also looks much more plausible than the other 2 (though still rather FSX). Apparently Black Box are very good when it comes to updates, so I think we can expect the product to be improved. A sound overhaul is already in the works for example; but I can’t imagine the product is ever going to get to the point where it meets the graphical standards of MSFS - it would almost need rebuilding from the ground up I would imagine (I could be wrong though). It’s not to bash the product, personally I’m really enjoying it. I don’t want to give anyone unrealistic expectations. I too would have loved to have flown the little Islander. This is probably as close as I’ll get for now. . . All the best! : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations I think, based on your review, I will hold off on buying it for now. I still need to sit down and dedicate some time to the Aerosoft CRJ which I purchased and flew just a couple of times. It feels kind of like work though! 😄
Very sensible Paul! Haha, I know what you mean. I generally like to fly things in the sim that I can’t readily fly elsewhere, otherwise I just feel like I’m doing more of the same. All the best and good luck with CRJ! ; )
I’m on the bus Paul, but I do prefer to keep it purposefully vague ; ) Can’t quite make out the cockpit in your pic, are you on the 777 (unless you want to be purposefully vague also haha)? All the best! : )
Coming back to flight sims, and MSFS in particular, after an absence. I spent an afternoon to see if any product after Just Flight's Arrow was worth looking into and looked at a lot of product reviews from different reviewers. I find yours to be the most informative, fair, helpful, and, most importantly, professional. IMLTHO you are the reviewer's reviewer. I especially appreciate the way you get into each product as if a professional pilot would (I suspect you might indeed be one).Thanks,
Well thank you very much!! Very high praise indeed and for sure very much appreciated! I certainly try to provide a professional, honest and objective review; I try and do my homework before reviewing a product as well. I figure if I’m (reasonably) comfortable with how the aircraft operates, I’m much more likely to find out what works as it should and what doesn’t. I can’t profess I get it right all the time, but I certainly try my best. Did you come up with anything else you fancied? Thanks very much once again and all the best! : )
I've flown in that James Bond Islander! It was on Skybus flying from Land's End to the Scillies in Cornwall. Just got sold and is being converted to a hydrogen engine plane by a college.
Haha, nice Jesse! I guess the Scilly Isles aren’t quiiite as glamorous as your average James Bond locale, but I’ll bet that was great fun! ; ) Sounds like a fascinating project. I’ve always been loosely interested in the whole hydrogen engine idea etc. Thanks for sharing. All the best! : )
Yes, the aircraft has received quite a number of updates since it was released. I would say in terms of the overall quality, nothing drastic has changed, but certainly a lot of the fundamentals have been fixed up and the aircraft is now useable online etc (as you say). The addon still doesn’t do anything groundbreaking, but it does indeed fly nicely enough and it’s always been a fun little aircraft : ) Cheers!
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Yes I agree, texturing, audio are both things that are not great quality, switches flipping and fuel pumps sound a bit muffled but the engine and propellor audio is quite good and it flies quite nicely, cheap and cheerful. Although, it would be nice to see an islander/trislander add on made to a good level of detail, trislander might be difficult to do now though unfortunately as all of Aurigny’s are long out of service. Cheers :)
Somewhere I’ve always wanted to go Rachel! Spent plenty of time flying there in the sim, but sadly never made it in the real world. I’ve been up the Western Coast of Scotland, visiting a lot of the islands there though, absolutely stunning! Any particular favourite spots in the Shetland / Orkney Islands? : )
I think it’s fair to say that the Twin Otter will be a more refined product in most respects. The FSX / P3D version of it looks like a pretty solid product : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations to be fair I got the bn2 islander now it was available from the marketplace and i am having a blast flying it, still looking forward to the twin otter
Yeah. It’s a bit rough around the edges (although fair play, it has been patched a couple of times already), but fun nonetheless! I certainly enjoy flying it. The sim is perfect for a bit of island hopping. Glad you’re enjoying it. Happy flying! : )
Thanks for the review, i was looking at this aircraft because i jumped out of it in a previous life and wonder if i should purchase. Because of your review i now know what to do.
My pleasure Ben! I’m not so sure. . . buying a “quirky” Islander addon seems like a much better idea than jumping out of one! : P Glad the review was helpful in informing your purchasing decision. That’s the aim of the game! All the best once again : )
Yeah it’s very nice isn’t it! The Outer Skerries is one of the custom airports that came with the MSFS UK and Ireland scenery update (goodness knows why they chose this airport out of all of them?!). Unfortunately the rest of the Shetland Islands didn’t get the same treatment though. . .
I love the Islander. And if this had been made by another company, I probably would've bought it. But having flown both the Torquesim and Nimbus islanders in X-Plane, I just can't get myself to buy something this... austere.
@@Topcat1952 Well Nimbus has at least announced that they're doing things in MSFS this year, but their first product will be an airport, according to this: fselite.net/news/nimbus-simulation-studios-shares-2021-plans/ I don't think I've seen anything mentioned by Torquesim. Personally, if I had to pick one, I like the Nimbus a bit more, so I'm quite pleased that they've at least announced some MSFS development. The BBS islander is just... well, I'm going to say annoying. Because this is a niche aircraft that deserves proper love. And it's also not a particularly complex aircraft; it's barely more than a Cessna 172 to be honest. And yet somehow, BBS managed to still have a bunch of inop and wonky instruments and switches? And some choices like the toggle to hide the yoke instead of just clicking on it is... baffling.
Yes, I can’t really understand the logic of having toggle switches to remove the yoke rather than just a simple clickspot. I didn’t mention it in the review, as I thought it was probably only me that would be bothered by that haha. I am enjoying the Black Box BN2, it’s basic but fun. My gosh do I wish it had som more of the Carenado treatment in the looks department though! Cheers Bjorn : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations No, you're not the only one bothered by it. But the thing about it that bothered me more, was the developer's response on the release thread in the official MSFS forum: "With regard the YOKE Visibility on switches. Again we simply thought it would be the better way . After all If youclick on a YOKE To turn it off … What would you click to turn it back on ??" To which the obvious replies came: on the base of the yoke, just like basically every other aircraft has done in any recent sim. I felt like I had taken crazy pills when I read his response. As if this was his first week on a flight simulator, instead of a seasoned developer. And some of the responses there to other questions and comments weren't exactly making me jump to spend money with them. And yes, I'll take a Carenado Islander over this one. As much flak as that company gets (and deserves at times) at least their stuff looks up to par and they know how to hide a yoke :D
Thanks very much as always! It was a tricky little product to review I must admit, but actually I have to say that I really enjoyed the flight. Glad you enjoyed it too : ) Thanks again for the support. All the best!
Yeah, this one ticks the “fun” box, as opposed to the realism box. I very much enjoy flying it, but it doesn’t feel particularly groundbreaking in any department. Enjoyable though nonetheless. Cheers Coenraad : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Yeah, quite a shame though, as those are absolute deal breakers for me. I expect planes to fly at least generally as they should and over powered planes are a big issue. Lets hope that they bring it more in line with reallife numbers with a future update.
Actually the product has been updated quite a number of times since this review (which is always nice to see from a developer) and aircraft performance characteristics have certainly been touched on. So it may well be that the aircraft now performs in a more true to life fashion - I’m afraid I haven’t had a chance to test it in a while though. All the best : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Yeah i saw that. I What i found interesting is that the patch notes show that they have increased the power multiple patches in a row. Not sure if there is yet another one that dampened the power though
Hi! Thanks, glad you enjoyed the video : ) Yes, I completely agree that the sounds aren’t great. I have heard the sounds of the Flight 1 version and they are excellent! Unfortunately I can’t imagine the BBS sounds ever being that good. They’ve already updated the sounds on the product (if I recall correctly) and they’re still so-so. I actually had a viewer transfer the sounds from the Flight 1 version, to this aircraft. It seemed to work well, but I’ve no idea how he went about doing that I’m afraid. In short, whilst the BBS Islander does seem to get regular updates, I don’t think the overall quality is going to improve drastically at this point (I could be wrong though). Cheers, all the best!
The deal-breaker with BlackBox for me is their proprietary store and install manager, which proved to be a nightmare with FSX/P3D. I bought two aircraft from them in the past and regretted both purchases, mainly due to the onerous DRM and poor support. I hardly flew those aircraft at all and view it as money wasted.
Yes, it’s always annoying when small developers go down this route, especially when it’s not well implemented (you’ll receive a code via email within 24hrs etc etc). There’s nothing more frustrating than buying a product and then (for whatever reason), not having access to it. This was my first Black Box product and I have to say, I haven’t had any issues with it so far. Not tried reaching out for support or anything though. . . All the best!
@@IntotheBlueSimulations The quality is actually decent, but the problem comes when you reinstall after a while or upgrade your pc and find that you’ve run out of “activations”. It didn’t help that i used both FSX and P3D, but you have to literally baby-sit their products, unlike others, which are “install and forget”.
Yeah, that sort of thing really rubs me the wrong way. If I purchase a product, it should be mine to use as I please (within the realms of what’s legal of course). Most of us will uninstall / install something a couple of times. I hate to have to start counting how many times I’ve downloaded and worrying about if I’m burning through my allowance by downloading it again. There has to be much better ways to avoid piracy, than punishing the people who did actually purchase the product legitimately! All the best
i bought this last night and have made several flights in it. I have to say I agree with your review - the plane model looks nice from far. The sound is very digital - it cuts or jumps = outside the sound is the same no matter what angle (except maybe from below). The sound is good - just not enough range I guess. I found it really fun to fly and it's not so sensitive - I flew it using zero sensitivity (the same as the JF Piper) and it felt solid. Still getting my landing skills down - I found it hard to drop speed to get flaps down - but think I am descending too late. Hope they make some updates to the texture and model and fix some of the highlighted issues....but this was great fun and engaging. No op manual, but seems I am getting good at starting up GAs now. Good review from you as always! thanks
Thanks Mark, Glad you’re having fun! The “manual” is out now, but apparently it’s just a real-world BN2 pilot handbook. Personally I don’t mind that, but it’s not very helpful if you want to understand the actual product and not the aircraft specifically. I hear the sounds are getting an overhaul which is great to hear. My biggest issue personally, is I would love to see some major graphical (namely texturing) improvements to the cockpit. The rest I can live with. It’s great fun though as you say and I guess that’s the main thing! All the best : )
Difficult to say really. It depends what you’re after. Most of my thoughts on the product have already been covered in the review; but essentially it’s a fun aircraft to fly. Looks like a decent enough version of the Islander from the outside, pretty dated and basic on the inside. I hear that Black Box are very good with updates, so no doubt it will see some improvements (a new sound engine is on the way for example), but I can’t imagine it’s ever going to get a significant overhaul in the graphics department (most addons never do). I have a couple of custom 3rd-party liveries now and they improve the external look of it. The black cockpit variant also makes things look a little better internally. Overall it’s definitely an FSX-level model in its current state, but I do enjoy it : ) Hope that helps a bit. All the best!
You’re most welcome! Yes, it’s not the flashiest aircraft, but it’s great fun to fly! Been very much enjoying it myself : ) All the best and happy flying!
@@IntotheBlueSimulations hey i just purchased this airplane today and cant lift off the ground. anyone else have this issue? basically can't fly the airplane at all. it shakes rather badly. also steering during taxi is bad. have to slow down to almost a crawl to steer the plane on the ground.
Hi Gerald, Sorry to hear that! I would guess it might be one of two things causing your issue: Either the recent sim update has “broken” something on the aircraft and you will need to wait for it to be updated unfortunately, or quite often with these types of issues, it’s a case of having the sims flight model set to “Legacy”. Sometimes a sim update can mess with one’s settings for whatever reason, so I would suggest making sure that you have you’re flight model set to “Modern” and not “Legacy” (within MSFS’s settings). Let me know how you go there and otherwise we’ll see what we can do thereafter. Cheers!
Huh, that’s very strange. I guess an update must have broken the aircraft then. If i get the chance to try it myself, I’ll let you know how I go. Black Box Simulations are releasing the Trislander some time soon, so I guess they will be focusing their attentions on that for the time being. The good news is, they’re also planning on a hefty upgrade for the Islander (apparently), so in the long run the product should be better for it! Cheers : )
Great review 👍 I will be definitely getting this islander. As for BBS they do release quick but on the plus you'll see constant updates like with the birddog that little plane has gotten better and better.
Thanks! Yeah, I’ve been hearing they are good with updates, so I’m keen to see what they bring going forward. I’ve been enjoying the aircraft nonetheless. Personally I wouldn’t release early and then fix it up, but I realise that’s rather become the norm these days. I just feel like you end up alienating a lot of potential customers this way. Enjoy the Islander and all the best! : )
I actually really enjoy it, but it is hard to outright recommend it at the moment, for obvious reasons. I did a livestream in it the other day, using a new livery and some slightly cleaned up cockpit textures. That helps with the aesthetic a little. Might be worth a watch if you are considering picking it up (it is rough around the edges though, no doubt about it): ua-cam.com/video/GkbzjrMBLfQ/v-deo.html All the best : )
That’s probably a good way to go Morrissey mate. It sounds like Black Box are pretty solid on the update front. The aircraft could certainly use a couple. So it probably is worth waiting a see how it pans out (apparently a sound overhaul is in the works and the documentation is now available). All the best : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Yeah, I am sure it will improve loads! aswell as the sounds of the engines. I love the sound of BN Islanders Lycoming engines. Gives you goosebumps!
Thanks again Mark! Yeah, I often wish I could pack a bag and go and fly these sorts of things for a living. Get back to some real flying. Unfortunately there always that inverse relationship between fun and pay haha. All the best : )
Great video! Subbed by the way🤠 I bought it because I'm a sucker for it, I'm still in the hopes that another Norman islander or something similar comes out. I'll just buy them up!
Hey Compramos, Oddly this message never showed in my notifications at the time it seems. A bit late now haha, but thanks for the sub and welcome aboard! : ) Yeah, it's not the perfect Islander, but it's still good fun. Seems fly pretty well in formation as well ; ) Cheers
"Why not wait until the documentation is completed before releasing it" Well, short answer is if Microsoft/Asobo followed that way of working, we'd still be waiting for MSFS 2020!
Hi John, But some would argue that would have been a good thing? Personally I’d rather wait and see something done right. We all used to manage to do that just fine. As much as I enjoy MSFS, it probably needed another year in development to flesh it out optimise it. As Captainsim’s latest efforts show, rushing things out just becomes a slippery slope. Anyway, I know we’re all different. What works for one, may not work for another and I appreciate your viewpoint. All the best : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Given the time and effort that had already gone in to the sim, and the absolutely perfect environment that Covid presented (many people who aren't at home normally, sitting around looking for something new and interesting that they could do at home without worrying about social distancing, etc) I'm not surprised that Microsoft released the sim when they did, and even the bugs have been relatively minor in most cases, apart from among the pedantic and "real" pilots, and despite a period of time when I couldn't install the sim (until I started using a VPN, would you believe), I am still quite enamored by the sim. The sim so far appears to have been very successful, if the quantity of fine addons is any indication, and the sim STILL doesn't have a manual from Asobo or Microsoft - just the payware version from SoFly, which is itself very useful. No, my point really was that lacking a manual isn't necessarily a reason not to release a particular add on, especially one such as this, where the intended audience will almost certainly be able to work out how to use it very quickly, anyway.
I agree with you on most of that John. I really like the sim and indeed the Islander (and I think you’re right about MSFS, COVID etc). I just feel like sometimes things get rushed out, to the detriment of the product. My experience with MSFS very much mirrors your own, but I am still reading about people who are struggling to install it (indeed I still have issue during updates sometimes) and after 9 months or thereabouts, that’s a little ridiculous! The Islander doesn’t feel finished (and indeed it isn’t) and I just wonder why one would choose to go down that route. . . Sure it’s good for the short term cash flow, but not the long term image / reputation of the company. I don’t have to make these sorts of decisions myself though, so it’s easy to be an armchair pundit of course. Anyway, I take you’re point and as I say, despite us perhaps feeling differently, I can’t say that I haven’t enjoyed my time in MSFS and I am glad that we’ve had it to keep us occupied this last year! All the best : )
I would say much the same. For sure there have been improvements, but we’re talking mostly things like fixed gauges, little details fixed up here and there. Graphically it’s still much the same, the same with sounds, handling etc. . . It is a fun little aircraft to fly, I’ve always enjoyed it, but it’s from a bit of a bygone era really. All the best : )
Haha, me neither (it’s the best “era”). But I meant it’s from a bygone era in terms of its texturing and modelling etc. It feels like an addon I would have purchased for FSX or P3D. Sorry, I should have been more clear haha. Cheers : )
I didn’t have very much optimism about the plane, because I had bought the Bird dog by black box and was disappointed. The BN2 is a wonderful aircraft though.
Yeah, it’s a bit rough around the edges (literally ha), but overall it’s a great fun little aircraft. As I say, I’m happy with my purchase, although perhaps it’s a little pricey in its current state. I hear the Bird Dog has been improved a lot since it’s release? How is it now? I used to love the SibWings version in FSX and would be quite keen to pick another one up. All the best : )
Hi Jay, Yes, the whole aircraft was given a significant overhaul by BlackBox, about 6 months ago: ua-cam.com/video/sGqJgLmrCbI/v-deo.htmlsi=hL7bTCSheVbbghxY All the best : )
Great job as always, thanks for all the detailed info & night lighting 😉 Love the idea of this plane, but a little too rough for me. Bring on the Twotter!
Thanks Dan, Nearly forgot the night lighting actually haha! But then a little something in the back of my head reminded me ha. To be fair, in an aircraft like this (where it certainly is going to be flying at night on occasion), it’s something that should be shown for sure. Haha, yeah. As I’ve said to a few others; it’s rough around the edges both figurative and literally : P Definitely looking forward to the Twotter also, I’m sure it’ll be much more refined. As an aircraft though, I have more of a soft spot for the Islander ; ) Cheers Dan! : )
2 external parts that's missing. Breather in the bottom of the cowling with the oil effect on gear fairing is missing. Also the air duct at the bottom that passes the air from the cabin to outside
Good spot there Benjamin! Thanks for the info. I’m not *that* familiar with the aircraft that I could pick something like that up. Interesting to know! All the best : )
Very informative and useful review as always. I too enjoy flying the Islander - we have a couple of airlines flying them here in New Zealand, (the Great Barrier livery is ours). The Black Box version is definitely not perfect but is of a better overall standard than some recent releases. Black Box have a great opportunity here, they have introduced a "reasonable' model of a popular aeroplane. Now they have to make it the "best" model they can before the competition muscle in because at the price they are charging, a lot of pilots will "wait and see". Update: I have now purchased this aeroplane and the manual can be downloaded from their website.
Thanks once again sir : ) I’ll bet New Zealand would be lovely place for flying the Islander (well anything really haha). I’ll have to add that idea to the list! As you say BBS have the opportunity to build upon their work and improve their reputation (which has been somewhat shaken so far it seems) whilst the Islander is one of the only “complex” aircraft we have in the sim. I gather they are very good with updates, so I look forward to seeing what they bring. I know it’s a popular process nowadays, but I just don’t understand this idea of releasing unfinished products. Especially from smaller developers, who’s reputation can be much more easily tarnished. The manual for example; great to hear it’s now available, but then why not just delay releasing the product by 24hrs until that was ready? It would have left a better first impression with many users I’m sure, had they of done so. Maybe that’s just me though. . . Anyway, it is a nice little product in many ways. It’s great fun to fly and certainly has its “charm”. Hope you’re enjoying it too! Happy flying! : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations New Zealand has such diverse scenery to fly around, it's great. I recently flew Auckland/Los Angeles/Chicago/London and have been doing some flying in the UK so I can see some of the world update scenery. Most of what I have seen so far consists of cloud, rain and ice. :P
Yeah, it’s always been on my list of places to visit (in the real world). It looks stunning from what I’ve seen in pictures and in the sim. I see ORBX just brought out some mesh for it. I was half tempted. . . (a shame that we’re still going to end up buying mesh and scenery upgrades for the sim though. I thought those days might finally be over haha. That being said, I would take a new ORBX TE Great Britain any day!). That sounds like quite the journey you made! Happy to hear the UK weather gave you its usual warm and friendly welcome haha! XD
@@IntotheBlueSimulations it's pretty good, but not as good as pmdg though (what am I comparing) but it's pretty good, idk about systems but flight dynamics seemed good not too bad, it's good on low end pc (on real potato ones like I have, coz my brother needs our main pc for his workstation so I'm stuck with fsx, and nostalgia always hits hard, so I found a330 and I'm flying it 😁). Do you remember real air scout, I have it in my hanger it's always fun to fly tundra on it......
Actually never tried the Real Air Scout, though I hear its excellent (along with their Spitfire). Haha, it’s always good to drag out an old aircraft and relive some memories. There were some excellent aircraft for FSX; the Level D 767 really springs to mind! That thing would give most high fidelity payware aircraft a run for their money, even today! There’s a lot of FSX-era aircraft that I was sad to leave behind, so enjoy them whilst you can! ; )
Sorry to hear that Josh. Did you purchase from BBS direct, or from the Marketplace? The aircraft has been updated a couple of times recently, but I suspect those updates may not have arrived on the Marketplace yet. Also, you don’t happen to have your sim flight model set to “Legacy” do you? That can cause a lot of strange behaviours with addons. Cheers, all the best!
Good review. Thank you. Very balanced critique. I purchased this myself and found it to be of a reasonable standard with pleasant liveries. BlackBox Simulations did a very good job. But as you say it needs updating on the textures and sound. Let’s hope that we will indeed see some future updates to make this aircraft even better.
Thank you sir! Glad you found it to be of use (and fair). Yes, the Islander certainly isn’t breaking any boundaries, but it’s an enjoyable product overall nonetheless. In fairness to Black Box Simulations, there have been regular updates for the product and hopefully those will continue. I doubt the aircraft will ever see much of an update in the graphics department, but otherwise it should hopefully continue to improve over time. All the best and happy flying! : )
Hi Kennedy, Usually I find a bit of searching around on google will yield some decent results. That’s usually what I do for most addons (unless they already come with a real / fully comprehensive checklist). I think this is the manual I found for the Islander: idoc.pub/download/bn-2-flight-manualpdf-vnd5o98q1rlx Hope that helps. Happy flying! : )
I feel like quality is a general issue of Black Box Simulations. Quite a shame actually. In my opinion it's not worth the price either. Well at least we have a large variety of creators to choose from. So yea, I'd rather get myself the YMF-5 biplane and a nice new airport. Anyways take care mate!
Yeah. First aircraft of theirs I’ve tried, but their reputation precedes them somewhat. It’s definitely a bit on the expensive side for what it is. Will definitely be interesting to see what it turns into. Quite a few people are saying the Bird Dog is now a nice little aircraft, so let’s hope the Islander gets the same treatment. I know it’s the kind of “done thing” now, but I don’t know why developers (especially smaller ones) put out products intentionally unfinished. Cash flow I guess, but you can very easily tarnish your reputation going about it this way. First impressions and all that. . . Still, I see Captain Sim are now playing the same game haha, so I guess it’s just the way business is done now : / All the best dude! : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Well the thing is with the reputation they have, I don´t see myself buying anything from them. Companies should focus on making quality products, instead of trying to go for a quick buck. Especially since MSFS2020 is a new market, with a lot of new people coming in. If they do it right, they could go ahead and actually become one of the "main" creators. Well, now it´s looking like they´re gonna struggle in the future. By the way, could you help me with something? Since I had the sim with the Xbox game pass (so via the Microsoft Store) and the store is completely shit and regularily breaks my game, I went ahead and bought the game on Steam. Now it´s still using my same Xbox account, however I can´t download my bought DLCs. I tried copying the files into the directory of my Steam folder. The problem is the game doesn´t recognize them or something, even though the file structure is exactly the same. I thought since the same account and the same store is being used, I could redownload the content. Do you have any idea how to fix it? Cheers!
Would be interested to see what altitude you can manage in it... While the quoted service ceiling is 13,400ft, according to my grandpa's logbook in March 1970, he got it up to 22,500ft flying in the Himalayas (shortly after barely making a landing at Lukla!). Would be interested to see if the simulated aircraft can match that performance...
An interesting idea and a wonderful story David! I would be happy to try “in the name of science” ; ) Do you have any more details on your grandfathers flight? I would be happy to try and replicate it as best I can. It might be a while in the making, as I have quite a backlog of the content to make at the moment, but I will add it to the list and would love to give it a go in the future. All the best! : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Thanks! His logbook entry for that particular flight is as follows... 24 March 1970... Dep Kathmandu, Arr Kathmandu... Flight duration 1.00hrs... Remarks: "To 22,500' among Himalayas (Miyahara-San)". There's a news article if you search for Mr Miyahara, it looks like he was a well-known Japanese immigrant to Nepal who became naturalised and quite influential in local politics. The previous day he'd also made many flights out of Kathmandu... one of them was to Dharan, with the remark "Strip on golf course, GHURKA HQ". Would be interesting to find out more about that one! The registration, in case you're interested, was G-AXRJ.
Was kinda looking forward to this plane. Although I mainly play in VR and I think the low poly cockpit would ruin it for me. The contrast from how good the scenery is to the cockpit would maybe look too goofy
Yeah, I think in VR it’s flaws would be all the more obvious. You definitely do notice the contrast you mentioned as well. Externally it’s fine, but internally the aircraft graphics look quite out of place in the sim. All the best : )
I was a big fan of the Flight1 rendition of this plane back in the mean old FSX days, it was great fun to fly around so I am quite interested in this one for MSFS. Modelling and texturing could be better but like you it doesn't bother me too much and your comments on the flight model and the fun factor just might persuade me to fork over the cash but I'm gonna wait and see if the devs patch up some of the other shortcomings you mentioned, they do have a pretty good track record with patching up the Bird Dog. It's kinda odd that there's a switch to toggle the yoke visibility, someone mentioned it on the MSFS forum thread and the dev wondered where else he'd put the toggle and it didn't seem to occur to him to do it like every other plane in the sim does with just clicking the yoke itself! I hope that gets changed because a YOKE VIS switch bothers me a bit. The devs mentioned they're looking to hire someone to help with the sounds as they are currently using the legacy sound system which is why it's kinda crap currently. Also they have released the manual but it's literally just a PDF of the POH which annoys me, strikes me as a bit lazy when devs do that plus I really don't need hundreds of pages covering real life stuff that isn't simulated, just give me the stuff I actually need for the simulated version please! Anyway, thanks a lot for the review, great stuff as always and quite a nice flight as well. Cheers!
Yeah, that sounds like the best course of action honestly. Give it a while and see what the devs come up with. It certainly has potential. I heard about the yoke thing haha, slightly odd that one. I can’t say I like having switches that don’t exist on the real aircraft either. If you are going to have them, at least hide them away a little more (like the door switches). That’s great news re the sound, engines aside, it definitely needs it. Hmm, I’m always happy when a product includes a real-world POH, but that isn’t a substitute for a product manual (and frankly is a bit lazy as you say). It obviously doesn’t tell you anything about what the product can / can’t do and how to actually do it (for example “feathering the engine doesn’t currently work”, would have been nice to know from a manual etc). That being said, I did have to dig around a bit to find a real-world Islander POH online, so it’s something nice to have I suppose (I wonder if it’s not the same one haha). Glad you enjoyed the review and the flight. Thanks for the information and all the best! : )
Really good review, very informative - thank you. I do have to admit I bought the aircraft anyway, I'm hoping for some quality updates but its ok. I play OnAir and mostly centre my flying around Greenland (BGSF), so its ideal for the short challenging air strips and weather there. A lot of fun.
Thank you very much! Glad you found it of use. Haha, I wasn’t necessarily trying to persuade anyone not to buy it, I just wanted to make it clear what one is getting for their money. I actually really enjoy the aircraft myself, despite it being pretty dated in terms of quality. It’s perfect for OnAir / Airhauler etc and ideally suited to carrying a decent load into / out of some of those smaller unprepared strips. Glad you’re enjoying it! : ) Ps, there is a “clean panel mod” on flightsim.to - it’s nothing crazy, but it makes the virtual cockpit look a little nicer. Worth a look.
The aircraft uses the default MSFS avatars. So you can switch them out to suit your needs; just the same as you would with any other default aircraft. Hope that helps : )
Great, you’re welcome : ) Yeah Carenado use their own personal models, but this one uses the default MSFS avatars. I actually quite like the Carenado avatars, as I think they look more realistic (in terms of how they’re modelled), but I realise they aren’t to everyone’s taste. All the best!
Hello John Correct, good catch! Wasn’t intentional. I couldn’t find an abbreviated checklist for the aircraft, so I was using the POH as I went along. The run-up section was basically just a wall of text and for the sake of the video I was trying to work my way through it in an expeditious fashion. Apparently my brain couldn’t keep up with my eyes ha. . . better luck next time one would hope! ; ) All the best : )
As for the other BB simulation aircraft it seems they released an early version of the model... We will see updates! Thanks as always. BTW, Nice landing!
Thanks! Yes, a lot of people seem to be saying BBS are good with their updates. Looking forward to seeing what they bring to the little Islander in the future then. My pleasure, thanks very much once again! : )
Thanks for another great review - not strictly needed this time though ;-) as I bought the add-on as soon as it was out, the Islander being my all-time favourite aircraft. Agree pretty much 100% with your summary - a lot of fun to fly, and while less polished than some, still value for money if improvements are coming from BBS. They have already said they will get a sound expert to work on that aspect. Feathering is indeed not implemented (yet). My main issue is the transponder, but the same applied to the JF PA28 and got fixed eventually. Shame Asobo's UK update didn't fix The Needles on the IoW - would like to fly this from Bembridge to Lee-on-Solent...
Thanks again Achim! Wow, you’re a lucky chap then, that your favourite aircraft came to the sim so soon! : D That’s great news regarding the sounds, it definitely need the extra work. It seems BBS are happy to release products in an unfinished state and work ok them as they go. I know that’s quite common these days. I don’t really mind it, but I wish this was made very explicit during purchase. I really like the aircraft, but incomplete sounds, documentation, engine controls etc, they aren’t “minor issues”. Anyway, looking forward to future updates, it is a great fun little aircraft! Yeah, I can’t believe the Needles didn’t make it into a UK update?! Not sure what that was all about. . . Initially I was going to make the video out of Bembridge, but decided I wanted to use the Outer Skerries scenery, as it is really nice. Funny side story about Bembridge, I think the worst landing I’ve ever done in any (real-world) aircraft was going into there ha! All the best! : )
They do. It’s a fun little aircraft to fly, but it’s certainly pricey for what it currently is. Still, now that Captainsim has shown us that $30 is the going rate for a re-skin, I guess this one actually represents good value - at least the developer actually put some work in! XD All the best
Great review as always. Was a little worried about the finer details. Would love to have the islanders but might wait for the Aerosoft twin otter which will have a lot more detail.
Thanks again Tristan! It was a tricky one to review. . . Yeah, the “finer details” are generally a bit on the coarse side haha. I like the aircraft, very much enjoying it, but it’s certainly rough around the edges (both literally and figuratively). I’m definitely very much looking forward to the Aerosoft twotter; I do have more of a soft spot for the Islander (as an aircraft) though ; ) All the best!
Thanks, my pleasure! Yeah, it’s not the flashiest aircraft, but it’s great fun to fly. I guess I could (should) re-do that run shouldn’t I. I’ll put it on the list of future projects! Thanks and all the best! : )
Yes David, it definitely has a more FSX / P3D vibe to it. I have to say, I have been enjoying it, but it has a long way to go before it's up to modern standards. To his credit, the developer has already updated it a couple of times, but I just don't understand why you wouldn't wait until it's complete to release it (though that seems to be the way the world works nowadays). . . All the best : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations I agree. Im currently looking for something that I can say "wow", never seen that before in FSX P3d? Why cant devs produce the MSFS standard? They need to look into the SDK, but they are devs so whats the problem? I dont feel like dolling out twenty quid for a FSX looking aircraft! I await the Twotter. Hope Aerosoft have solved the ILS issue...(Failing to track ILS in vertical nav?)
“Wow, never seen that before in FSX / P3D” - sounds like you’d be better off with DCS David haha (some truly excellent products to be found there). I know exactly what you mean though. In fairness, there are now a couple of really nice addons for the sim, but still nothing truly groundbreaking yeah. I think it’s the sim that needs work though, as opposed to the products. My guess would be that Aerosoft will still use the default avionics for the Twotter, so it will exhibit all the same issues. Let’s hope that’s not the case though. . . All the best : )
Great review as always! It does still seem like a pretty pleasant aircraft to fly, with a reasonable flight model and some conveniences like a basic autopilot. I enjoy the BB Bird Dog quite a lot, and in fairness to the developer - it did indeed receive lots of updates since last September, the more recent just a couple of weeks ago, so that's a good sign for those future updates. I'm not going to buy this one just yet, but I think this one is going on my list, and probably pretty high on it especially as far as twin piston-engined planes - it seems like a good way to get into this category for someone who's mostly been doing lots of single-engine bush flying in MSFS, which I certainly have!
Thanks very much! : ) Yes, a lot of people saying BBS are good when it comes to updates, so I think that bodes well for the future of the little Islander. It is great fun and nice to fly, so it would be nice to see it get polished up a bit. You’re probably taking the right approach though. Wait it out and see what the end result looks like. I think the Islander would be the perfect transition aircraft if and when you do decide to move a couple of rungs up the ladder. It’s basically just a big twin! : D All the best!
Gonna have to skip this one - can't hold a candle to the Islanders by TorqueSim or Nimbus for x-plane, and it costs just as much as they do (!). Hopefully they'll cross platform their work, because a plane like this is most enjoyable in the scenery only MSFS can provide!
I’ll bet. It’s fun, but very rough and ready at the moment. The Flight 1 version also looks significantly better. As you say though, nothing compares to MSFS for a bit of island hopping, so hopefully either BBS will continue to work on it, or someone else will come along with a stronger offering. Cheers, all the best!
Hi Sebastian, It’s certainly not the most realistic flight model I’ve come across, but I actually find it pleasant to fly. What issues have you been having? All the best : )
It does seem that way. First of all it climbs like rocket. Any real life Islander pilots please correct me as necessary but I've never seen BN-2 on any cockpit video climb as sharp as this one does. Maintaining 2000 fpm seems excessive for this type
I have no experience with the Islander myself, but I suspect you’re correct. Given that the aircraft is almost just a big GA twin, I can’t imagine the climb performance would be blistering (although I probably did have it fairly lightly loaded for the video). Overall the Islander definitely falls into the “fun” bracket, rather than the “study level” bracket for me anyway. All the best : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations ua-cam.com/video/EZJX9g_VDek/v-deo.html This one is pretty good, I caught peak 1300 fpm empty and 800-1000 fpm with parajumpers. BBS gets 1600-2000 fpm empty and 1100-1500 fpm loaded :) Islander for me is definitely another argument in favor of buying DRM-free planes (or DRMed without file encryption) outside the marketplace to tweak as necessary on your own. The mod performs much more like on video after significantly downgrading engines and offsetting resulting speed loss with decreased drag :)
Thanks Mikolaj, I had a quick look, looked great. I will definitely watch the rest when I get the chance! Completely agree! It’s a real shame that most MSFS addons are encrypted now. It’s a bit of a step backwards for the hobby and frankly it’s often to the benefit of the product that the community can have their own input. Sounds like you’ve got the Islander to a point where you’re halls with it now then : ) BBS do at least seem to be very proactive with updates and patches, so hopefully they will continue to tweak the flight model also. All the best!
The cowlings don't look right compared to the real Islander, they've used the same model from P3D. In my opinion a very mediocre product. BBS will never get my money.. not after their Airbus Prologue thing! I flew the trial version in P3D a couple of years ago it felt like it had no physics in flight...
Yeah, a couple of people have said the same about the cowlings. The whole thing definitely has a very “P3D” feel to it. I agree, from a quality standpoint it is very mediocre. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy it though. It’s overpriced for what it is, but it is good fun. I’ve always been wary of the BBS name myself. Primarily because of the Airbus Prologue thing, but it seems their name isn’t generally tied to anything too positive. This was my first product of theirs. Still, I guess Captainsim is now the new baseline, by comparison this thing is a work of art ha! All the best : )
Thanks for your review of this aircraft. I look forward to the higher fidelity that MSFS supports, so I’ll give this one a miss. I’m sure we will see an eventual flood of high quality aircraft in time. We just need to be patient.
The Quality of this plane is below par. Looked up a lot of pictures of the real Airplane and it looks , especially the cockpit , nothing like the real thing. Graphics looks like FSX. Can’t be pay ware in the current condition. Enjoyed the review though, I like the way you make a review.
Thanks Paul, Yeah, it is FSX / P3D quality, I think that’s very fair comment. I’m not 100% surprised though since BBS do offer the Islander on these platforms as well. I think the developer will need to get to grips with the new MSFS modelling / texturing techniques if they want to remain competitive. By all accounts they are good with updates though, so hopefully the Islander will get polished up. Would be a shame if it didn’t, as it is good fun and pleasant to fly. Glad you enjoyed the review. Much appreciated and all the best! : )
Fair enough Sam. That’s certainly the point of these reviews, so that people can decide whether or not a product is for them. Glad the vid was useful in helping you to decide : ) Cheers!
Thanks Paul! Yeah, it’s not really up to modern standards. It is good fun though and flies nicely enough, so I think it has potential. Apparently a sound overhaul is in the works and I hear BBS are very on the ball with updates. Some 3rd party liveries should fix the exterior somewhat. The cockpit definitely needs some work, but again I think it’s the texturing that makes it look dated more than anything. Anyway, don’t blame you for giving this one a pass. If it wasn’t an aircraft I was fond of, I would probably have done the same. Cheers, all the best! : )
Man I wish this used the in-game checklist feature....
The Islander is a lot more fun to fly than the Tecnam. Still hoping we see the Twin Otter make another comeback, but for now this Islander is my go to for my Winair routes out of Princess Juliana (TNCM)
Nice little overview here, bought the Islander after flying on one the other day from Oban. Thank you for the flight walkthrough!
Cheers Drawyah! Glad you found it useful - my pleasure.
Nice to see you over here in my little neck of the woods. I like to watch your streams from time to time - the last one I saw, you were heroically battling your way back from Moscow in the CS777 haha (btw I can confirm, that Russian ATC, 100% true to life ha).
Hope you’re enjoying the Islander! It isn’t going to win any awards for its looks, but it is good fun. I’m rather envious of your real-world trip. Must have been great fun! That part of the world is stunning. . .
Happy flying! All the best : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Ah yes, back when I last had hope for MSFS payware add-ons which were slowly shattered the closer to London I got. Hopefully we see that turn around soon.
You're certainly right, it's perhaps not the prettiest of aircraft, but the functionality is certainly there as well as the dynamics. You going through the starting checks definitely helped me get my own way in this aircraft. I flew with Hebridean Air Services on one of their sightseer flights (any spare seats on their public service island hops) which go for £80 round-trip. An hour and a half in one of these flying low and slow around the West Highland Islands, absolutely worth every penny! Hopefully going to drop a trip report mid next week showing it off.
Haha, no need to lose all hope just yet! We’ve got some quality aircraft starting to come into the sim now : )
It’s such a shame about CS though. Like you, I was a big fan of some of their previous work (I’ve seen people saying that most of their developers left long ago, hence the state of the company).
Anyway, I enjoyed you Hebridean flight and I’m definitely looking forward to seeing the footage of the real thing. I think I might have to try that for myself one of these days!
All the best!
I couldn't get the pitch levers into feather either. Disappointing but this is great sim for island hopping like around the Channel Islands.
Hi Jeffrey,
Yes, unfortunately that was an issue on release - I would like to hope that BBS have patched it up by now though (I haven’t found the time to fly the Islander recently unfortunately)?
The BBS Islander certainly isn’t a special product in many areas, but I find it very enjoyable nonetheless. As you say, the perfect aircraft / sim combination for a spot of island hopping. I love taking her through the Scottish islands myself.
All the best! : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Hi, thanks, as you say This is a wonderful representation of the BN islander. I hope they can update it soon to make it perfect..
Cheers jeff.
I'm a little late to this craft but spotted your review, which i enjoyed and thought I would buy this to complete my Island hopping aircraft. The sounds are ok, not quite got the finesse of newer aircraft in the sim but lots of fun to fly. Thanks again
Hi Dave,
Well, late is probably better in this case haha, as BlackBox have at least improved a few things on this aircraft since it’s release. The Islander certainly doesn’t offer anything revolutionary, but it is very much still a fun little island hopper nonetheless.
Cheers again! Happy flying : )
Nice vid
Thanks very much! Glad you enjoyed it : )
All the best
Me crossing the English Channel: *: )*
Was that from the Channel Islands or something RMOD? : )
Amazing video, may I ask you which checklist you are using, if you are using one?
If flight one brings their version over it's probably going to be miles better
someone had a port of from fsx video on youtube it didnt look too bad at all and sounded better than this ,
Can’t be worst imo
@@jamesdouglas3631 They need to bring it but seems like flight1 is out of the picture atm but if they really bring it I would wait for that
@@caribbaviator7058 I bit the bullet and bought this . Currently trying to get my flight1 BN2 Sounds to work with this . I’ve changed the flap and ground roll sound so far .
@@jamesdouglas3631 That the beauty of this sim. The developers get it 70% correct and the community take it to 100% . 😆
Hope ILS and VOR work? As for the AS Twin Otter, until they fix the total failure of the ILS (and RNav,RNP) system on the CRJ, I won't be spending cash on anything they sell.
Ah damn, didn’t try the ILS! Just finished a test flight actually David;. I can confirm VOR and NDB work absolutely fine. I can try ILS another time if you like?
Fair enough re Aerosoft. I haven’t tried their CRJ in a while and was just saying to someone else I need to give it another go and see what’s fixed / what isn’t. I have to say, the little C22J has rather made me re-assess what’s possible in MSFS. If a one-man team can build such a solid product / flight model and sell it for £10, it really makes you wonder what some other developers have been playing at (more-so on the flight model front). It was a silly decision from Aerosoft to go anywhere near the default Asobo avionics I have to say. It’s a shame, as the systems of the jet are really rather good, so why not give it the automation and flight model it deserves. . .
That being said, I am still planning to review the Twotter; it will be interesting to see how receptive AS is to letting me take a look, after my review of their glider sim though haha.
Cheers!
Sorry, just seen you were referring to the Islander - I thought this was in reference to the C22J, as we were discussing yesterday. From memory, I’m pretty sure VOR, ILS and NDB all worked on the Islander. It’s nothing spectacular though as a product. It’s fun and I do enjoy flying it, I will say that, but everything about it is rather mediocre.
I can confirm ILS and VOR work for the Islander - haven’t figured out how to slave multiple frequencies to nav1/2 for triangulation or dialed up an adf - hope it’s just my unfamiliarity with that garmin, but I typically just dial up a Rnav/Vnav or ils through the gps with a single loc frequency.
Thanks TickleFight. I believe the aircraft did have some issues initially with nav systems, I seem to recall ADF was one of them (and possibly NAV 2 as well). I think it’s all been fixed up now (can’t remember whether it has a separate NAV 2 radio?), but I haven’t had the chance to fly the aircraft myself for a while, so haven’t checked. It certainly functions in the basic sense (VOR, ILS etc), but 2 (working) NAV radios is really to be expected in an aircraft like this.
Thanks for the input : )
Sounds better than that nextgen Embraer 110 Bandeirante.
Yeah, didn’t try the 110 myself. I was half tempted, but it just didn’t quite look up to scratch to me. The Islander was somewhat in the same boat, except I really like the aircraft in the real world, so that swung it for me. Overall it’s a pleasant aircraft. Not the best in any field, but decent enough and good fun to fly.
All the best : )
Thanks a bunch for an informative, entertaining and honest review!
Thanks once again Mats, I’m glad you felt it was thus! : )
All the best!
A very enjoyable video and informative as usual but I have 6 twin engines aircraft atm and in no need of another one.
Cheers Mike! Haha, 6 twins eh? That’s a lot of engines! The Islander is fun, but there are certainly better twins out there (some of which I’m sure you own).
All the best : )
CLEAR PROP
Microsoft should really set a standard of what go's into the marketplace. A modern model and a functioning VC, high resolution textures all over, tested features by actually performing test flights and more.
I agree there should be a more “robust” method of selling things through the Marketplace. It would be difficult to select which addons should / shouldn’t be sold through the Marketplace though. One mans junk addon, might be another’s favourite aircraft. The Islander for example, definitely closer to FSX standards than MSFS once’s, but I do rather enjoy it.
My personal preference would be to allow anything to be sold on the Marketplace, but to have a much much more in-depth reviews system; multiple categories, scores out 100, reviewer comments etc. A try before you buy option would also be ideal.
Just my 2 cents though. . .
All the best : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Something like a games "system requirements". Does not define an FS98 aircraft as junk, but simply unsuitible. Just like using a 285GTX for FS2020. 😁
Did they ever fix the transponder? If they didn’t it’s probably a no for me because I like doing vatsim flights.
I believe they did MEAM. The aircraft has received a number of updates, though I haven't had a chance to test it in a while (and the product remains much the same graphically etc). I believe the change logs are available over on Black Box's web page (so I would suggest consulting those before purchasing).
Apparently the aircraft will also be getting a "study level" upgrade, once the BBS Trislander has been released - so perhaps worth keeping an eye on.
I hope that helps a little, all the best! : )
I’m tempted... the Islander was one of the aircraft that I dreamed of flying one day when I was in my teens. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately) I didn’t get the chance to fly one.
Haha, I know the feeling Paul!
Depends what you’re after really. If you want something that’s a good bit of fun and looks like a half-decent Islander externally it’s possibly worth picking up (it’s a little overpriced for what it is though). If you want an in-depth simulation experience, or a top of the range graphical masterpiece, I’d probably give it a pass. There are already some custom 3rd party paints coming along that are much nicer than the default ones, that goes some way to improving it. The black variant of the cockpit also looks much more plausible than the other 2 (though still rather FSX).
Apparently Black Box are very good when it comes to updates, so I think we can expect the product to be improved. A sound overhaul is already in the works for example; but I can’t imagine the product is ever going to get to the point where it meets the graphical standards of MSFS - it would almost need rebuilding from the ground up I would imagine (I could be wrong though).
It’s not to bash the product, personally I’m really enjoying it. I don’t want to give anyone unrealistic expectations.
I too would have loved to have flown the little Islander. This is probably as close as I’ll get for now. . .
All the best! : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations I think, based on your review, I will hold off on buying it for now. I still need to sit down and dedicate some time to the Aerosoft CRJ which I purchased and flew just a couple of times. It feels kind of like work though! 😄
Very sensible Paul!
Haha, I know what you mean. I generally like to fly things in the sim that I can’t readily fly elsewhere, otherwise I just feel like I’m doing more of the same.
All the best and good luck with CRJ! ; )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations If you don’t mind me asking, what do you fly IRL?
I’m on the bus Paul, but I do prefer to keep it purposefully vague ; )
Can’t quite make out the cockpit in your pic, are you on the 777 (unless you want to be purposefully vague also haha)?
All the best! : )
Coming back to flight sims, and MSFS in particular, after an absence. I spent an afternoon to see if any product after Just Flight's Arrow was worth looking into and looked at a lot of product reviews from different reviewers. I find yours to be the most informative, fair, helpful, and, most importantly, professional. IMLTHO you are the reviewer's reviewer. I especially appreciate the way you get into each product as if a professional pilot would (I suspect you might indeed be one).Thanks,
Well thank you very much!! Very high praise indeed and for sure very much appreciated! I certainly try to provide a professional, honest and objective review; I try and do my homework before reviewing a product as well. I figure if I’m (reasonably) comfortable with how the aircraft operates, I’m much more likely to find out what works as it should and what doesn’t. I can’t profess I get it right all the time, but I certainly try my best.
Did you come up with anything else you fancied?
Thanks very much once again and all the best! : )
I've flown in that James Bond Islander! It was on Skybus flying from Land's End to the Scillies in Cornwall. Just got sold and is being converted to a hydrogen engine plane by a college.
Haha, nice Jesse! I guess the Scilly Isles aren’t quiiite as glamorous as your average James Bond locale, but I’ll bet that was great fun! ; )
Sounds like a fascinating project. I’ve always been loosely interested in the whole hydrogen engine idea etc.
Thanks for sharing. All the best! : )
It has since been updated and flies very well, transponder in working fashion etc so I think flying it on vatsim is possible now
Yes, the aircraft has received quite a number of updates since it was released. I would say in terms of the overall quality, nothing drastic has changed, but certainly a lot of the fundamentals have been fixed up and the aircraft is now useable online etc (as you say). The addon still doesn’t do anything groundbreaking, but it does indeed fly nicely enough and it’s always been a fun little aircraft : )
Cheers!
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Yes I agree, texturing, audio are both things that are not great quality, switches flipping and fuel pumps sound a bit muffled but the engine and propellor audio is quite good and it flies quite nicely, cheap and cheerful.
Although, it would be nice to see an islander/trislander add on made to a good level of detail, trislander might be difficult to do now though unfortunately as all of Aurigny’s are long out of service.
Cheers :)
Love the Northern Scottish Islands
Somewhere I’ve always wanted to go Rachel! Spent plenty of time flying there in the sim, but sadly never made it in the real world. I’ve been up the Western Coast of Scotland, visiting a lot of the islands there though, absolutely stunning!
Any particular favourite spots in the Shetland / Orkney Islands? : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations No probably would be
Lerwick if I could visit in the real world
Ahhh, so you’re only a virtual visitor as well then? : )
i think better wait for the twin otter
I think it’s fair to say that the Twin Otter will be a more refined product in most respects. The FSX / P3D version of it looks like a pretty solid product : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations to be fair I got the bn2 islander now it was available from the marketplace and i am having a blast flying it, still looking forward to the twin otter
Yeah. It’s a bit rough around the edges (although fair play, it has been patched a couple of times already), but fun nonetheless! I certainly enjoy flying it. The sim is perfect for a bit of island hopping.
Glad you’re enjoying it. Happy flying! : )
Thanks for the review, i was looking at this aircraft because i jumped out of it in a previous life and wonder if i should purchase. Because of your review i now know what to do.
Ditto.
My pleasure Ben!
I’m not so sure. . . buying a “quirky” Islander addon seems like a much better idea than jumping out of one! : P
Glad the review was helpful in informing your purchasing decision. That’s the aim of the game!
All the best once again : )
sean connery, is that you ?
Hahaha, Sean Connery 100% confirmed! : D
nice scenery on landing there
Yeah it’s very nice isn’t it! The Outer Skerries is one of the custom airports that came with the MSFS UK and Ireland scenery update (goodness knows why they chose this airport out of all of them?!). Unfortunately the rest of the Shetland Islands didn’t get the same treatment though. . .
I love the Islander. And if this had been made by another company, I probably would've bought it. But having flown both the Torquesim and Nimbus islanders in X-Plane, I just can't get myself to buy something this... austere.
I'm with you. Too many negative comments on this developer. I had the other two in XPlane and liked those, so I'll wait for either of those to appear.
@@Topcat1952 Well Nimbus has at least announced that they're doing things in MSFS this year, but their first product will be an airport, according to this: fselite.net/news/nimbus-simulation-studios-shares-2021-plans/
I don't think I've seen anything mentioned by Torquesim.
Personally, if I had to pick one, I like the Nimbus a bit more, so I'm quite pleased that they've at least announced some MSFS development.
The BBS islander is just... well, I'm going to say annoying. Because this is a niche aircraft that deserves proper love. And it's also not a particularly complex aircraft; it's barely more than a Cessna 172 to be honest. And yet somehow, BBS managed to still have a bunch of inop and wonky instruments and switches? And some choices like the toggle to hide the yoke instead of just clicking on it is... baffling.
@@bjornkeizers Appreciate your comments and insights, Bjorn.
Yes, I can’t really understand the logic of having toggle switches to remove the yoke rather than just a simple clickspot. I didn’t mention it in the review, as I thought it was probably only me that would be bothered by that haha. I am enjoying the Black Box BN2, it’s basic but fun. My gosh do I wish it had som more of the Carenado treatment in the looks department though!
Cheers Bjorn : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations No, you're not the only one bothered by it. But the thing about it that bothered me more, was the developer's response on the release thread in the official MSFS forum: "With regard the YOKE Visibility on switches. Again we simply thought it would be the better way
. After all If youclick on a YOKE To turn it off … What would you click to turn it back on ??"
To which the obvious replies came: on the base of the yoke, just like basically every other aircraft has done in any recent sim. I felt like I had taken crazy pills when I read his response. As if this was his first week on a flight simulator, instead of a seasoned developer. And some of the responses there to other questions and comments weren't exactly making me jump to spend money with them.
And yes, I'll take a Carenado Islander over this one. As much flak as that company gets (and deserves at times) at least their stuff looks up to par and they know how to hide a yoke :D
Hey buddy, first class review, very detailed, superb and proffessional. As always, I would say if I may.
Thank you very much and take care.
Thanks very much as always! It was a tricky little product to review I must admit, but actually I have to say that I really enjoyed the flight. Glad you enjoyed it too : )
Thanks again for the support. All the best!
Looks nice but it does seem quite overpowered. Should climb at a little over 860ft/m not 1200-1500 what it seems to do.
Yeah, this one ticks the “fun” box, as opposed to the realism box. I very much enjoy flying it, but it doesn’t feel particularly groundbreaking in any department. Enjoyable though nonetheless.
Cheers Coenraad : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Yeah, quite a shame though, as those are absolute deal breakers for me. I expect planes to fly at least generally as they should and over powered planes are a big issue.
Lets hope that they bring it more in line with reallife numbers with a future update.
Actually the product has been updated quite a number of times since this review (which is always nice to see from a developer) and aircraft performance characteristics have certainly been touched on. So it may well be that the aircraft now performs in a more true to life fashion - I’m afraid I haven’t had a chance to test it in a while though.
All the best : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Yeah i saw that. I
What i found interesting is that the patch notes show that they have increased the power multiple patches in a row. Not sure if there is yet another one that dampened the power though
Haha, well I would assume / hope that’s in response to a previous power reduction (as you say); otherwise that thing is going to be a rocket ship! XD
hi ,nice video , but i dont like the engine sound ,at comparison to the fsx flight one bn2 , did blackbox will make changes in the future ?
Hi!
Thanks, glad you enjoyed the video : )
Yes, I completely agree that the sounds aren’t great. I have heard the sounds of the Flight 1 version and they are excellent! Unfortunately I can’t imagine the BBS sounds ever being that good. They’ve already updated the sounds on the product (if I recall correctly) and they’re still so-so. I actually had a viewer transfer the sounds from the Flight 1 version, to this aircraft. It seemed to work well, but I’ve no idea how he went about doing that I’m afraid.
In short, whilst the BBS Islander does seem to get regular updates, I don’t think the overall quality is going to improve drastically at this point (I could be wrong though).
Cheers, all the best!
@@IntotheBlueSimulations thx ,i hope so that bb check out how nice the flight one bn is and update his one hihi , have a nice day
I’d be surprised if they did, but we can keep our fingers crossed haha. Cheers! Hope you have a great day too : )
The deal-breaker with BlackBox for me is their proprietary store and install manager, which proved to be a nightmare with FSX/P3D. I bought two aircraft from them in the past and regretted both purchases, mainly due to the onerous DRM and poor support. I hardly flew those aircraft at all and view it as money wasted.
Yes, it’s always annoying when small developers go down this route, especially when it’s not well implemented (you’ll receive a code via email within 24hrs etc etc). There’s nothing more frustrating than buying a product and then (for whatever reason), not having access to it.
This was my first Black Box product and I have to say, I haven’t had any issues with it so far. Not tried reaching out for support or anything though. . .
All the best!
@@IntotheBlueSimulations The quality is actually decent, but the problem comes when you reinstall after a while or upgrade your pc and find that you’ve run out of “activations”. It didn’t help that i used both FSX and P3D, but you have to literally baby-sit their products, unlike others, which are “install and forget”.
Yeah, that sort of thing really rubs me the wrong way. If I purchase a product, it should be mine to use as I please (within the realms of what’s legal of course). Most of us will uninstall / install something a couple of times. I hate to have to start counting how many times I’ve downloaded and worrying about if I’m burning through my allowance by downloading it again.
There has to be much better ways to avoid piracy, than punishing the people who did actually purchase the product legitimately!
All the best
To the point, and very informative. Excellent Presentation of the Blackbox Britten Norman BN-2 Islander. Thank you very much, sir!
Thank you Jan, very kind of you to say. It’s my pleasure!
Glad you enjoyed it and found it informative as well : )
All the best!
i bought this last night and have made several flights in it. I have to say I agree with your review - the plane model looks nice from far. The sound is very digital - it cuts or jumps = outside the sound is the same no matter what angle (except maybe from below). The sound is good - just not enough range I guess. I found it really fun to fly and it's not so sensitive - I flew it using zero sensitivity (the same as the JF Piper) and it felt solid. Still getting my landing skills down - I found it hard to drop speed to get flaps down - but think I am descending too late. Hope they make some updates to the texture and model and fix some of the highlighted issues....but this was great fun and engaging. No op manual, but seems I am getting good at starting up GAs now. Good review from you as always! thanks
Thanks Mark,
Glad you’re having fun! The “manual” is out now, but apparently it’s just a real-world BN2 pilot handbook. Personally I don’t mind that, but it’s not very helpful if you want to understand the actual product and not the aircraft specifically. I hear the sounds are getting an overhaul which is great to hear. My biggest issue personally, is I would love to see some major graphical (namely texturing) improvements to the cockpit. The rest I can live with.
It’s great fun though as you say and I guess that’s the main thing! All the best : )
Should I pull the trigger? Will it have future updates?
Difficult to say really. It depends what you’re after. Most of my thoughts on the product have already been covered in the review; but essentially it’s a fun aircraft to fly. Looks like a decent enough version of the Islander from the outside, pretty dated and basic on the inside. I hear that Black Box are very good with updates, so no doubt it will see some improvements (a new sound engine is on the way for example), but I can’t imagine it’s ever going to get a significant overhaul in the graphics department (most addons never do).
I have a couple of custom 3rd-party liveries now and they improve the external look of it. The black cockpit variant also makes things look a little better internally.
Overall it’s definitely an FSX-level model in its current state, but I do enjoy it : )
Hope that helps a bit. All the best!
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Thank you! I purchased it and I have 6 hours of flight with it already ☺️ very enjoyable to fly and land!
You’re most welcome!
Yes, it’s not the flashiest aircraft, but it’s great fun to fly! Been very much enjoying it myself : )
All the best and happy flying!
nice detailed review
Thank you very much Gerald! Much appreciated : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations hey i just purchased this airplane today and cant lift off the ground. anyone else have this issue? basically can't fly the airplane at all. it shakes rather badly. also steering during taxi is bad. have to slow down to almost a crawl to steer the plane on the ground.
Hi Gerald,
Sorry to hear that! I would guess it might be one of two things causing your issue: Either the recent sim update has “broken” something on the aircraft and you will need to wait for it to be updated unfortunately, or quite often with these types of issues, it’s a case of having the sims flight model set to “Legacy”. Sometimes a sim update can mess with one’s settings for whatever reason, so I would suggest making sure that you have you’re flight model set to “Modern” and not “Legacy” (within MSFS’s settings).
Let me know how you go there and otherwise we’ll see what we can do thereafter.
Cheers!
@@IntotheBlueSimulations thanks for your reply. i switched to modern and it didn't solve the issue. hoping for a fix soon. anxious to fly
Huh, that’s very strange. I guess an update must have broken the aircraft then. If i get the chance to try it myself, I’ll let you know how I go.
Black Box Simulations are releasing the Trislander some time soon, so I guess they will be focusing their attentions on that for the time being. The good news is, they’re also planning on a hefty upgrade for the Islander (apparently), so in the long run the product should be better for it!
Cheers : )
Great review 👍 I will be definitely getting this islander. As for BBS they do release quick but on the plus you'll see constant updates like with the birddog that little plane has gotten better and better.
Thanks! Yeah, I’ve been hearing they are good with updates, so I’m keen to see what they bring going forward. I’ve been enjoying the aircraft nonetheless. Personally I wouldn’t release early and then fix it up, but I realise that’s rather become the norm these days. I just feel like you end up alienating a lot of potential customers this way.
Enjoy the Islander and all the best! : )
Is that Comic Sans text on the nose...?!
Haha, someone else mentioned the same. Not sure myself. . .
I’m sure Comic Sans was still cool in the 90s XD
really want to like this plane but just can't pull the trigger to buy it just yet.
I actually really enjoy it, but it is hard to outright recommend it at the moment, for obvious reasons. I did a livestream in it the other day, using a new livery and some slightly cleaned up cockpit textures. That helps with the aesthetic a little. Might be worth a watch if you are considering picking it up (it is rough around the edges though, no doubt about it):
ua-cam.com/video/GkbzjrMBLfQ/v-deo.html
All the best : )
Looking forward to the BN coming for MSFS (I have two for X-Plane11 and love them!) I might see what updates it gets and dig deep and purchase it!
That’s probably a good way to go Morrissey mate. It sounds like Black Box are pretty solid on the update front. The aircraft could certainly use a couple. So it probably is worth waiting a see how it pans out (apparently a sound overhaul is in the works and the documentation is now available).
All the best : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Yeah, I am sure it will improve loads! aswell as the sounds of the engines. I love the sound of BN Islanders Lycoming engines. Gives you goosebumps!
Looking forward to it then.
I hear a 3rd party will be giving it a sound overhaul, so that sounds promising! : )
Great aircraft & I totally agree that this is the type of flying I would love to do in a real world situation. Thank you 🙏
Thanks again Mark!
Yeah, I often wish I could pack a bag and go and fly these sorts of things for a living. Get back to some real flying. Unfortunately there always that inverse relationship between fun and pay haha.
All the best : )
Great video! Subbed by the way🤠 I bought it because I'm a sucker for it, I'm still in the hopes that another Norman islander or something similar comes out. I'll just buy them up!
Hey Compramos,
Oddly this message never showed in my notifications at the time it seems. A bit late now haha, but thanks for the sub and welcome aboard! : )
Yeah, it's not the perfect Islander, but it's still good fun. Seems fly pretty well in formation as well ; )
Cheers
@@IntotheBlueSimulations 🥲
"Why not wait until the documentation is completed before releasing it" Well, short answer is if Microsoft/Asobo followed that way of working, we'd still be waiting for MSFS 2020!
Hi John,
But some would argue that would have been a good thing? Personally I’d rather wait and see something done right. We all used to manage to do that just fine. As much as I enjoy MSFS, it probably needed another year in development to flesh it out optimise it. As Captainsim’s latest efforts show, rushing things out just becomes a slippery slope.
Anyway, I know we’re all different. What works for one, may not work for another and I appreciate your viewpoint.
All the best : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Given the time and effort that had already gone in to the sim, and the absolutely perfect environment that Covid presented (many people who aren't at home normally, sitting around looking for something new and interesting that they could do at home without worrying about social distancing, etc) I'm not surprised that Microsoft released the sim when they did, and even the bugs have been relatively minor in most cases, apart from among the pedantic and "real" pilots, and despite a period of time when I couldn't install the sim (until I started using a VPN, would you believe), I am still quite enamored by the sim.
The sim so far appears to have been very successful, if the quantity of fine addons is any indication, and the sim STILL doesn't have a manual from Asobo or Microsoft - just the payware version from SoFly, which is itself very useful. No, my point really was that lacking a manual isn't necessarily a reason not to release a particular add on, especially one such as this, where the intended audience will almost certainly be able to work out how to use it very quickly, anyway.
I agree with you on most of that John. I really like the sim and indeed the Islander (and I think you’re right about MSFS, COVID etc). I just feel like sometimes things get rushed out, to the detriment of the product. My experience with MSFS very much mirrors your own, but I am still reading about people who are struggling to install it (indeed I still have issue during updates sometimes) and after 9 months or thereabouts, that’s a little ridiculous!
The Islander doesn’t feel finished (and indeed it isn’t) and I just wonder why one would choose to go down that route. . . Sure it’s good for the short term cash flow, but not the long term image / reputation of the company. I don’t have to make these sorts of decisions myself though, so it’s easy to be an armchair pundit of course.
Anyway, I take you’re point and as I say, despite us perhaps feeling differently, I can’t say that I haven’t enjoyed my time in MSFS and I am glad that we’ve had it to keep us occupied this last year!
All the best : )
What is this aircraft like now after updates?
I would say much the same. For sure there have been improvements, but we’re talking mostly things like fixed gauges, little details fixed up here and there. Graphically it’s still much the same, the same with sounds, handling etc. . .
It is a fun little aircraft to fly, I’ve always enjoyed it, but it’s from a bit of a bygone era really.
All the best : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations By gone ere doesn’t bother me, I fly the DC-6 regularly, lol.
Haha, me neither (it’s the best “era”). But I meant it’s from a bygone era in terms of its texturing and modelling etc. It feels like an addon I would have purchased for FSX or P3D. Sorry, I should have been more clear haha.
Cheers : )
I didn’t have very much optimism about the plane, because I had bought the Bird dog by black box and was disappointed. The BN2 is a wonderful aircraft though.
Yeah, it’s a bit rough around the edges (literally ha), but overall it’s a great fun little aircraft. As I say, I’m happy with my purchase, although perhaps it’s a little pricey in its current state.
I hear the Bird Dog has been improved a lot since it’s release? How is it now? I used to love the SibWings version in FSX and would be quite keen to pick another one up.
All the best : )
nice landing
Thanks Lars! : )
I’ve done worse haha
An excellent review. Thank you.
Thanks very much John! My pleasure as always : )
My islander doesnt have the left or right fuel valve switch on the upper panel. Was this a change later?
Hi Jay,
Yes, the whole aircraft was given a significant overhaul by BlackBox, about 6 months ago: ua-cam.com/video/sGqJgLmrCbI/v-deo.htmlsi=hL7bTCSheVbbghxY
All the best : )
wow loved the flight thnx fior the video plzz
Thanks very much Joel, glad you enjoyed it! : )
Great job as always, thanks for all the detailed info & night lighting 😉
Love the idea of this plane, but a little too rough for me. Bring on the Twotter!
Thanks Dan,
Nearly forgot the night lighting actually haha! But then a little something in the back of my head reminded me ha. To be fair, in an aircraft like this (where it certainly is going to be flying at night on occasion), it’s something that should be shown for sure.
Haha, yeah. As I’ve said to a few others; it’s rough around the edges both figurative and literally : P
Definitely looking forward to the Twotter also, I’m sure it’ll be much more refined. As an aircraft though, I have more of a soft spot for the Islander ; )
Cheers Dan! : )
2 external parts that's missing. Breather in the bottom of the cowling with the oil effect on gear fairing is missing. Also the air duct at the bottom that passes the air from the cabin to outside
Good spot there Benjamin! Thanks for the info. I’m not *that* familiar with the aircraft that I could pick something like that up. Interesting to know!
All the best : )
Is there a cargo version without passengers seat ?
I’m afraid there isn’t Kmuz, only what you see here. . .
All the best! : )
Very informative and useful review as always. I too enjoy flying the Islander - we have a couple of airlines flying them here in New Zealand, (the Great Barrier livery is ours). The Black Box version is definitely not perfect but is of a better overall standard than some recent releases. Black Box have a great opportunity here, they have introduced a "reasonable' model of a popular aeroplane. Now they have to make it the "best" model they can before the competition muscle in because at the price they are charging, a lot of pilots will "wait and see".
Update: I have now purchased this aeroplane and the manual can be downloaded from their website.
Thanks once again sir : )
I’ll bet New Zealand would be lovely place for flying the Islander (well anything really haha). I’ll have to add that idea to the list! As you say BBS have the opportunity to build upon their work and improve their reputation (which has been somewhat shaken so far it seems) whilst the Islander is one of the only “complex” aircraft we have in the sim. I gather they are very good with updates, so I look forward to seeing what they bring.
I know it’s a popular process nowadays, but I just don’t understand this idea of releasing unfinished products. Especially from smaller developers, who’s reputation can be much more easily tarnished. The manual for example; great to hear it’s now available, but then why not just delay releasing the product by 24hrs until that was ready? It would have left a better first impression with many users I’m sure, had they of done so. Maybe that’s just me though. . .
Anyway, it is a nice little product in many ways. It’s great fun to fly and certainly has its “charm”. Hope you’re enjoying it too!
Happy flying! : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations New Zealand has such diverse scenery to fly around, it's great. I recently flew Auckland/Los Angeles/Chicago/London and have been doing some flying in the UK so I can see some of the world update scenery. Most of what I have seen so far consists of cloud, rain and ice. :P
Yeah, it’s always been on my list of places to visit (in the real world). It looks stunning from what I’ve seen in pictures and in the sim. I see ORBX just brought out some mesh for it. I was half tempted. . . (a shame that we’re still going to end up buying mesh and scenery upgrades for the sim though. I thought those days might finally be over haha. That being said, I would take a new ORBX TE Great Britain any day!).
That sounds like quite the journey you made! Happy to hear the UK weather gave you its usual warm and friendly welcome haha! XD
I have black box a330 for fsx 😁
Haha, how is it? Did it ever get finished? I think I nearly picked that up myself at one point. . .
All the best! : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations it's pretty good, but not as good as pmdg though (what am I comparing) but it's pretty good, idk about systems but flight dynamics seemed good not too bad, it's good on low end pc (on real potato ones like I have, coz my brother needs our main pc for his workstation so I'm stuck with fsx, and nostalgia always hits hard, so I found a330 and I'm flying it 😁).
Do you remember real air scout, I have it in my hanger it's always fun to fly tundra on it......
Actually never tried the Real Air Scout, though I hear its excellent (along with their Spitfire).
Haha, it’s always good to drag out an old aircraft and relive some memories. There were some excellent aircraft for FSX; the Level D 767 really springs to mind! That thing would give most high fidelity payware aircraft a run for their money, even today!
There’s a lot of FSX-era aircraft that I was sad to leave behind, so enjoy them whilst you can! ; )
very nice airplane nice landing wooowwww
Haha, thank you sir! ; )
Much appreciated and all the best to you : )
i have been havving trouble with the plane it been really slugish and it wont lift of the ground when you want and wont go down
Sorry to hear that Josh. Did you purchase from BBS direct, or from the Marketplace? The aircraft has been updated a couple of times recently, but I suspect those updates may not have arrived on the Marketplace yet.
Also, you don’t happen to have your sim flight model set to “Legacy” do you? That can cause a lot of strange behaviours with addons.
Cheers, all the best!
@@IntotheBlueSimulations no way you just saved me 49 buck it works thank you so so so so much here is a sub
Ah, glad to be of help! Happy flying and thanks for the sub! : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations all good cant thank you enough
Good review. Thank you. Very balanced critique. I purchased this myself and found it to be of a reasonable standard with pleasant liveries. BlackBox Simulations did a very good job. But as you say it needs updating on the textures and sound. Let’s hope that we will indeed see some future updates to make this aircraft even better.
Thank you sir! Glad you found it to be of use (and fair). Yes, the Islander certainly isn’t breaking any boundaries, but it’s an enjoyable product overall nonetheless. In fairness to Black Box Simulations, there have been regular updates for the product and hopefully those will continue. I doubt the aircraft will ever see much of an update in the graphics department, but otherwise it should hopefully continue to improve over time.
All the best and happy flying! : )
Where do you get the checklists for these aircraft? I’ve now bought the islander and I’d love to simulate the proper checks
Hi Kennedy,
Usually I find a bit of searching around on google will yield some decent results. That’s usually what I do for most addons (unless they already come with a real / fully comprehensive checklist). I think this is the manual I found for the Islander:
idoc.pub/download/bn-2-flight-manualpdf-vnd5o98q1rlx
Hope that helps. Happy flying! : )
I feel like quality is a general issue of Black Box Simulations.
Quite a shame actually.
In my opinion it's not worth the price either.
Well at least we have a large variety of creators to choose from.
So yea, I'd rather get myself the YMF-5 biplane and a nice new airport.
Anyways take care mate!
Yeah. First aircraft of theirs I’ve tried, but their reputation precedes them somewhat.
It’s definitely a bit on the expensive side for what it is. Will definitely be interesting to see what it turns into. Quite a few people are saying the Bird Dog is now a nice little aircraft, so let’s hope the Islander gets the same treatment. I know it’s the kind of “done thing” now, but I don’t know why developers (especially smaller ones) put out products intentionally unfinished. Cash flow I guess, but you can very easily tarnish your reputation going about it this way. First impressions and all that. . .
Still, I see Captain Sim are now playing the same game haha, so I guess it’s just the way business is done now : /
All the best dude! : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Well the thing is with the reputation they have, I don´t see myself buying anything from them.
Companies should focus on making quality products, instead of trying to go for a quick buck.
Especially since MSFS2020 is a new market, with a lot of new people coming in.
If they do it right, they could go ahead and actually become one of the "main" creators.
Well, now it´s looking like they´re gonna struggle in the future.
By the way, could you help me with something?
Since I had the sim with the Xbox game pass (so via the Microsoft Store) and the store is completely shit and regularily breaks my game, I went ahead and bought the game on Steam.
Now it´s still using my same Xbox account, however I can´t download my bought DLCs.
I tried copying the files into the directory of my Steam folder. The problem is the game doesn´t recognize them or something, even though the file structure is exactly the same.
I thought since the same account and the same store is being used, I could redownload the content.
Do you have any idea how to fix it?
Cheers!
Would be interested to see what altitude you can manage in it... While the quoted service ceiling is 13,400ft, according to my grandpa's logbook in March 1970, he got it up to 22,500ft flying in the Himalayas (shortly after barely making a landing at Lukla!). Would be interested to see if the simulated aircraft can match that performance...
An interesting idea and a wonderful story David!
I would be happy to try “in the name of science” ; )
Do you have any more details on your grandfathers flight? I would be happy to try and replicate it as best I can. It might be a while in the making, as I have quite a backlog of the content to make at the moment, but I will add it to the list and would love to give it a go in the future.
All the best! : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Thanks! His logbook entry for that particular flight is as follows... 24 March 1970... Dep Kathmandu, Arr Kathmandu... Flight duration 1.00hrs... Remarks: "To 22,500' among Himalayas (Miyahara-San)". There's a news article if you search for Mr Miyahara, it looks like he was a well-known Japanese immigrant to Nepal who became naturalised and quite influential in local politics.
The previous day he'd also made many flights out of Kathmandu... one of them was to Dharan, with the remark "Strip on golf course, GHURKA HQ". Would be interesting to find out more about that one!
The registration, in case you're interested, was G-AXRJ.
Thanks again David!
Sounds like he had quite the adventure over there! I will certainly look into it more when I get the chance.
All the best : )
omg, is the plane's name written in Comic Sans? :D
Haha, someone else mentioned the same. I can’t say I noticed; but if it is, it’s either a baller move by the developer or BA themselves! : P
Was kinda looking forward to this plane. Although I mainly play in VR and I think the low poly cockpit would ruin it for me. The contrast from how good the scenery is to the cockpit would maybe look too goofy
Yeah, I think in VR it’s flaws would be all the more obvious.
You definitely do notice the contrast you mentioned as well. Externally it’s fine, but internally the aircraft graphics look quite out of place in the sim.
All the best : )
I was a big fan of the Flight1 rendition of this plane back in the mean old FSX days, it was great fun to fly around so I am quite interested in this one for MSFS.
Modelling and texturing could be better but like you it doesn't bother me too much and your comments on the flight model and the fun factor just might persuade me to fork over the cash but I'm gonna wait and see if the devs patch up some of the other shortcomings you mentioned, they do have a pretty good track record with patching up the Bird Dog.
It's kinda odd that there's a switch to toggle the yoke visibility, someone mentioned it on the MSFS forum thread and the dev wondered where else he'd put the toggle and it didn't seem to occur to him to do it like every other plane in the sim does with just clicking the yoke itself! I hope that gets changed because a YOKE VIS switch bothers me a bit.
The devs mentioned they're looking to hire someone to help with the sounds as they are currently using the legacy sound system which is why it's kinda crap currently.
Also they have released the manual but it's literally just a PDF of the POH which annoys me, strikes me as a bit lazy when devs do that plus I really don't need hundreds of pages covering real life stuff that isn't simulated, just give me the stuff I actually need for the simulated version please!
Anyway, thanks a lot for the review, great stuff as always and quite a nice flight as well. Cheers!
Yeah, that sounds like the best course of action honestly. Give it a while and see what the devs come up with. It certainly has potential.
I heard about the yoke thing haha, slightly odd that one. I can’t say I like having switches that don’t exist on the real aircraft either. If you are going to have them, at least hide them away a little more (like the door switches).
That’s great news re the sound, engines aside, it definitely needs it.
Hmm, I’m always happy when a product includes a real-world POH, but that isn’t a substitute for a product manual (and frankly is a bit lazy as you say). It obviously doesn’t tell you anything about what the product can / can’t do and how to actually do it (for example “feathering the engine doesn’t currently work”, would have been nice to know from a manual etc). That being said, I did have to dig around a bit to find a real-world Islander POH online, so it’s something nice to have I suppose (I wonder if it’s not the same one haha).
Glad you enjoyed the review and the flight. Thanks for the information and all the best! : )
Really good review, very informative - thank you. I do have to admit I bought the aircraft anyway, I'm hoping for some quality updates but its ok. I play OnAir and mostly centre my flying around Greenland (BGSF), so its ideal for the short challenging air strips and weather there. A lot of fun.
Thank you very much! Glad you found it of use.
Haha, I wasn’t necessarily trying to persuade anyone not to buy it, I just wanted to make it clear what one is getting for their money. I actually really enjoy the aircraft myself, despite it being pretty dated in terms of quality.
It’s perfect for OnAir / Airhauler etc and ideally suited to carrying a decent load into / out of some of those smaller unprepared strips.
Glad you’re enjoying it! : )
Ps, there is a “clean panel mod” on flightsim.to - it’s nothing crazy, but it makes the virtual cockpit look a little nicer. Worth a look.
Can you select your own pilot avatars or are you stuck with the white guys?
The aircraft uses the default MSFS avatars. So you can switch them out to suit your needs; just the same as you would with any other default aircraft.
Hope that helps : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations Thank you. It does help. I purchased the Carenado Cessna a while back and you can't change the pilot avatars.
Great, you’re welcome : )
Yeah Carenado use their own personal models, but this one uses the default MSFS avatars. I actually quite like the Carenado avatars, as I think they look more realistic (in terms of how they’re modelled), but I realise they aren’t to everyone’s taste.
All the best!
Hello again, just watching you pre-takeoff checks. You don't cycle the props?
Hello John
Correct, good catch! Wasn’t intentional.
I couldn’t find an abbreviated checklist for the aircraft, so I was using the POH as I went along. The run-up section was basically just a wall of text and for the sake of the video I was trying to work my way through it in an expeditious fashion. Apparently my brain couldn’t keep up with my eyes ha. . . better luck next time one would hope! ; )
All the best : )
As for the other BB simulation aircraft it seems they released an early version of the model... We will see updates! Thanks as always. BTW, Nice landing!
Thanks!
Yes, a lot of people seem to be saying BBS are good with their updates. Looking forward to seeing what they bring to the little Islander in the future then.
My pleasure, thanks very much once again! : )
Thanks for another great review - not strictly needed this time though ;-) as I bought the add-on as soon as it was out, the Islander being my all-time favourite aircraft. Agree pretty much 100% with your summary - a lot of fun to fly, and while less polished than some, still value for money if improvements are coming from BBS. They have already said they will get a sound expert to work on that aspect. Feathering is indeed not implemented (yet). My main issue is the transponder, but the same applied to the JF PA28 and got fixed eventually. Shame Asobo's UK update didn't fix The Needles on the IoW - would like to fly this from Bembridge to Lee-on-Solent...
Thanks again Achim!
Wow, you’re a lucky chap then, that your favourite aircraft came to the sim so soon! : D
That’s great news regarding the sounds, it definitely need the extra work. It seems BBS are happy to release products in an unfinished state and work ok them as they go. I know that’s quite common these days. I don’t really mind it, but I wish this was made very explicit during purchase. I really like the aircraft, but incomplete sounds, documentation, engine controls etc, they aren’t “minor issues”. Anyway, looking forward to future updates, it is a great fun little aircraft!
Yeah, I can’t believe the Needles didn’t make it into a UK update?! Not sure what that was all about. . . Initially I was going to make the video out of Bembridge, but decided I wanted to use the Outer Skerries scenery, as it is really nice. Funny side story about Bembridge, I think the worst landing I’ve ever done in any (real-world) aircraft was going into there ha!
All the best! : )
They charge for this??
They do. It’s a fun little aircraft to fly, but it’s certainly pricey for what it currently is. Still, now that Captainsim has shown us that $30 is the going rate for a re-skin, I guess this one actually represents good value - at least the developer actually put some work in! XD
All the best
Great review as always. Was a little worried about the finer details. Would love to have the islanders but might wait for the Aerosoft twin otter which will have a lot more detail.
Thanks again Tristan! It was a tricky one to review. . . Yeah, the “finer details” are generally a bit on the coarse side haha. I like the aircraft, very much enjoying it, but it’s certainly rough around the edges (both literally and figuratively).
I’m definitely very much looking forward to the Aerosoft twotter; I do have more of a soft spot for the Islander (as an aircraft) though ; )
All the best!
Looks impressive, thanks for the review! Are you going to redo Westray to Papa Westray in the Islander?
Thanks, my pleasure!
Yeah, it’s not the flashiest aircraft, but it’s great fun to fly. I guess I could (should) re-do that run shouldn’t I. I’ll put it on the list of future projects!
Thanks and all the best! : )
Its more FSX in graphical depiction. Not worth £20. Asobo default models are superior!
Yes David, it definitely has a more FSX / P3D vibe to it. I have to say, I have been enjoying it, but it has a long way to go before it's up to modern standards.
To his credit, the developer has already updated it a couple of times, but I just don't understand why you wouldn't wait until it's complete to release it (though that seems to be the way the world works nowadays). . .
All the best : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations I agree. Im currently looking for something that I can say "wow", never seen that before in FSX P3d? Why cant devs produce the MSFS standard? They need to look into the SDK, but they are devs so whats the problem? I dont feel like dolling out twenty quid for a FSX looking aircraft! I await the Twotter. Hope Aerosoft have solved the ILS issue...(Failing to track ILS in vertical nav?)
“Wow, never seen that before in FSX / P3D” - sounds like you’d be better off with DCS David haha (some truly excellent products to be found there).
I know exactly what you mean though. In fairness, there are now a couple of really nice addons for the sim, but still nothing truly groundbreaking yeah. I think it’s the sim that needs work though, as opposed to the products.
My guess would be that Aerosoft will still use the default avionics for the Twotter, so it will exhibit all the same issues. Let’s hope that’s not the case though. . .
All the best : )
Great review as always!
It does still seem like a pretty pleasant aircraft to fly, with a reasonable flight model and some conveniences like a basic autopilot.
I enjoy the BB Bird Dog quite a lot, and in fairness to the developer - it did indeed receive lots of updates since last September, the more recent just a couple of weeks ago, so that's a good sign for those future updates.
I'm not going to buy this one just yet, but I think this one is going on my list, and probably pretty high on it especially as far as twin piston-engined planes - it seems like a good way to get into this category for someone who's mostly been doing lots of single-engine bush flying in MSFS, which I certainly have!
Thanks very much! : )
Yes, a lot of people saying BBS are good when it comes to updates, so I think that bodes well for the future of the little Islander. It is great fun and nice to fly, so it would be nice to see it get polished up a bit.
You’re probably taking the right approach though. Wait it out and see what the end result looks like. I think the Islander would be the perfect transition aircraft if and when you do decide to move a couple of rungs up the ladder. It’s basically just a big twin! : D
All the best!
Gonna have to skip this one - can't hold a candle to the Islanders by TorqueSim or Nimbus for x-plane, and it costs just as much as they do (!).
Hopefully they'll cross platform their work, because a plane like this is most enjoyable in the scenery only MSFS can provide!
I’ll bet. It’s fun, but very rough and ready at the moment. The Flight 1 version also looks significantly better. As you say though, nothing compares to MSFS for a bit of island hopping, so hopefully either BBS will continue to work on it, or someone else will come along with a stronger offering.
Cheers, all the best!
this airplane has problems with flight controls, very bads dynamics
Hi Sebastian,
It’s certainly not the most realistic flight model I’ve come across, but I actually find it pleasant to fly. What issues have you been having?
All the best : )
It does seem that way. First of all it climbs like rocket. Any real life Islander pilots please correct me as necessary but I've never seen BN-2 on any cockpit video climb as sharp as this one does. Maintaining 2000 fpm seems excessive for this type
I have no experience with the Islander myself, but I suspect you’re correct. Given that the aircraft is almost just a big GA twin, I can’t imagine the climb performance would be blistering (although I probably did have it fairly lightly loaded for the video).
Overall the Islander definitely falls into the “fun” bracket, rather than the “study level” bracket for me anyway.
All the best : )
@@IntotheBlueSimulations ua-cam.com/video/EZJX9g_VDek/v-deo.html This one is pretty good, I caught peak 1300 fpm empty and 800-1000 fpm with parajumpers. BBS gets 1600-2000 fpm empty and 1100-1500 fpm loaded :)
Islander for me is definitely another argument in favor of buying DRM-free planes (or DRMed without file encryption) outside the marketplace to tweak as necessary on your own. The mod performs much more like on video after significantly downgrading engines and offsetting resulting speed loss with decreased drag :)
Thanks Mikolaj, I had a quick look, looked great. I will definitely watch the rest when I get the chance!
Completely agree! It’s a real shame that most MSFS addons are encrypted now. It’s a bit of a step backwards for the hobby and frankly it’s often to the benefit of the product that the community can have their own input. Sounds like you’ve got the Islander to a point where you’re halls with it now then : )
BBS do at least seem to be very proactive with updates and patches, so hopefully they will continue to tweak the flight model also.
All the best!
The cowlings don't look right compared to the real Islander, they've used the same model from P3D. In my opinion a very mediocre product. BBS will never get my money.. not after their Airbus Prologue thing! I flew the trial version in P3D a couple of years ago it felt like it had no physics in flight...
Yeah, a couple of people have said the same about the cowlings. The whole thing definitely has a very “P3D” feel to it. I agree, from a quality standpoint it is very mediocre. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy it though. It’s overpriced for what it is, but it is good fun.
I’ve always been wary of the BBS name myself. Primarily because of the Airbus Prologue thing, but it seems their name isn’t generally tied to anything too positive. This was my first product of theirs.
Still, I guess Captainsim is now the new baseline, by comparison this thing is a work of art ha!
All the best : )
Thanks for your review of this aircraft. I look forward to the higher fidelity that MSFS supports, so I’ll give this one a miss. I’m sure we will see an eventual flood of high quality aircraft in time. We just need to be patient.
Thanks Paul, my pleasure!
Probably a very sensible decision haha and I’m sure you’ll be correct in the long run!
All the best : )
The Quality of this plane is below par. Looked up a lot of pictures of the real Airplane and it looks , especially the cockpit , nothing like the real thing. Graphics looks like FSX. Can’t be pay ware in the current condition. Enjoyed the review though, I like the way you make a review.
Thanks Paul,
Yeah, it is FSX / P3D quality, I think that’s very fair comment. I’m not 100% surprised though since BBS do offer the Islander on these platforms as well. I think the developer will need to get to grips with the new MSFS modelling / texturing techniques if they want to remain competitive. By all accounts they are good with updates though, so hopefully the Islander will get polished up. Would be a shame if it didn’t, as it is good fun and pleasant to fly.
Glad you enjoyed the review. Much appreciated and all the best! : )
putting out stuff just to make a dollar no thanks on this one
Fair enough Sam. That’s certainly the point of these reviews, so that people can decide whether or not a product is for them. Glad the vid was useful in helping you to decide : )
Cheers!
Me 👍likee
Haha, thanks Steve! Me too. It’s a little rough around the edges for sure, but I am very much enjoying this little bird overall : )
Nice review...not impressed with the aircraft though
Thanks Paul!
Yeah, it’s not really up to modern standards. It is good fun though and flies nicely enough, so I think it has potential. Apparently a sound overhaul is in the works and I hear BBS are very on the ball with updates. Some 3rd party liveries should fix the exterior somewhat. The cockpit definitely needs some work, but again I think it’s the texturing that makes it look dated more than anything.
Anyway, don’t blame you for giving this one a pass. If it wasn’t an aircraft I was fond of, I would probably have done the same.
Cheers, all the best! : )