It is difficult to believe 2024 is about to come to a close. This year, BRAVO 737 has had a very product year. Many of you may remember, PMDG rolled out the initial 737-800 in May 2022, however, it wasn't until February of 2023 the additional variants were released including the 737-900 and 900ER. Our team was busy strengthen the brand with this initial release providing additional BRAVO 737 House liveries for those who want and fly the designs for free.
In June, the BRAVO 737 team traveled to Las Vegas, Nevada for the 2024 Flight Simulation Expo organized by the Flight Simulation Association. The events was the largest to-date and the second event attended by our team. There were a ton of reveals and several exhibitors and presentations most valuable to BRAVO 737 Captains. If you have not done so already, make sure you plan to attend the 2025 Flight Simulation Expo next June - more about that below!
For the first time in BRAVO 737 history, we hosted two in-person events. The first event was held in Denver, Colorado at the Wings Over the Rockies Aviation Museum. The July event
welcomed flight simulation enthusiasts to a question and answer session with YouTubers Captain Russell (BRAVO 737) and Captain Hawke (Charlie 31) as well as free admission to the museum. The second in-person event was held at the Tulsa Air and Space Museum in September. The Tulsa-based event once again welcomed flight simmers, YouTubers, aviation enthusiasts and more. The event included free admission to the Tulsa Air and Space Museum as well as to the planetarium. The event in Tulsa was hosted by
Captain Russell who showcased the 101 of getting involved in flight simulation as well as the basics of online flying and broadcasting on streams such as Twitch and YouTube.
We continue to support the Thursday Night Flight Club and other fly-in events as well as our partnership with The Pilot Club.
Our final project for 2024 will be the delivery of the Spirit of Washington! This is our brand new house livery project painted on the iFly 737 Max8 for msfs 2020. This aircraft features the latest in flight dynamics associated with the aircraft as well as the BRAVO 737 high-fidelity livery.
A LOOK AHEAD TO 2025
We are always excited for what's next for both BRAVO 737 and the flight simulation community. We will be attending the FlightSimExpo 2025 in Providence, Rhode Island. We encourage anyone who has an interest in either flight simulation, aviation, gaming, tech, online media, or just wants to enjoy the opportunity to meet with those developers, designers and coders that make the community amazing - GO TO THIS EVENT! Our team is looking at several ways to become a partner with the Flight Simulation Association and we also encourage you to join that organization as well! Membership is incredibly affordable and the organizations do an exemplary job of providing value.
Just as we did in 2024, we would like to host more in-person events across the United States. We have been in Colorado and Oklahoma and are interested in events in Kansas, Texas and Arizona. If you'd like to help in hosting and promoting one of our BRAVO 737 in-person meet-ups, please contact us today.
We would be remiss if we didn't acknowledge the impact Microsoft/Asobo 2024 will have in the coming months. Our team will do all they can to either adapt or re-create the livieries we have built for the Boeing 737 variants in MSFS 2020. Furthermore, we will continue to support and create liveries for MSFS 2020 including crafting historic liveries as we designed for our RetroZibo series back in 2021 for X-Plane 11 and 12.
Last, but certainly not least, we are watching the development of two more 737 variants as they continue to be tested. The 737-200 created by developer Milviz should be revealed in late 2025 or early 2026. Milviz began the project back in 2020 and has released very limited updates. We are also excited about the creation of the Boeing 737 Classic by Commercial Simulation Systems (CSS). The aircraft expected is the 737-500, which will fill the gap nicely between the 732, 737NG and the 737 MAX variants.
BRAVO 737 & MSFS 2024
In November 2024, Microsoft/Asobo launched the much-anticipated next iteration of Flight Simulator, MSFS 2024! Welcomed by many, the initial release was slightly tainted by Microsoft's inability to imagine the scores of flight sim and gaming enthusiasts ready to download the new version.
BRAVO 737 pre-purchased the software and downloaded it the second day available. Our team reviewed the new software and found the actual graphics a notch better than MSFS 2020. That being said, our team experienced many of the same challenges and frustrations many others have in both learning the newly re-imagined control dashboard as well as simply the more "game based" interface including the walkaround function and others. For now, BRAVO 737 is continuing our overall review and testing of the software. Candidly, our strength is in the strength of other developers who craft high-fidelity models and scenery which our team can then build additional custom liveries, utilize in group flights, etc. We are in a holding pattern now, but do anticipate as the updates from Microsoft/Asobo become available, our team will take full advantage of this new flight simulation model. Until then, we encourage those in our community to continue flying in MSFS 2020, X-Plane 12 and P3D!
WHAT SIM ARE YOU FLYING?
X-Plane 11
X-Plane 12
MSFS 2020
MSFS 2024
SPIRIT OF WASHINGTON RELEASES ON DECEMBER 8, 2024!
In our commitment to those who love all-things Boeing 737, the BRAVO 737 group is finishing the latest in our BRAVO 737 House livery series, the 737 MAX8! Just released by FlightOne, the iFly 737 MAX8 is the first 737 MAX aircraft released for MSFS 2020. This aircraft offers the latest in avionics and systems associated with the continued adaptation of the might 737 airframe - originally built in 1968 as the 737-200. From the 200 to the Classic (400/500) and the 737NG (736,737,738 and 739), the MAX is a technological jump with new composite materials, new flight systems and the LEAP engine plant. We hope BRAVO 737 Captains will enjoy the new Spirit of Washington! and fly it on routes with the BISON callsign!
THURSDAY NIGHT FLIGHT CLUB
Why aren't you a member of Thursday Night Flight Club? Every Thursday evening (Friday morning in Europe), pilots converge to fly pre-defined flights. Our club flies all around the world in multiple liveries. Of course, we LOVE the BRAVO 737 House livery, but we invite anyone to choose their favorite airlines and soar proudly!
Events generally begin around 0100z and end no later than 0500z. Consisting of at least two legs, these flights are a perfect balance of all phases of flights. For more information about the Thursday Night Flight Club, check out the TNFC Dispatch page.
MERCHANDISE
Don't forget, Gear Up with BRAVO 737 Merchandise. We offer scores of great aviation and flight simulation-related apparel, drinkware and pet products. Make sure you find a few items for your loved ones - and treat yourself!
WISHING EVERYONE A HAPPY NEW YEAR!
From the entire BRAVO 737 team to your family, we wish you an incredible New Year in 2025! We are grateful for all of you who have engaged in our community and look forward to continued opportunities to do so. Thank you for making BRAVO 737 a organization for all of those who have a passion of aviation and flight simulation!
Comments