If you’ve been keeping an eye on the MSFS 2024 beta programme, you’ll have noticed things moving pretty fast lately. A new public build dropped this week — version 1.8.8.0 — and it’s available right now on PC, Xbox Series X|S, and PS5 for anyone who’s opted in.
For those who haven’t been following along: Sim Update 6 is the one with the helicopter developer tools. The vortex ring state visualizer, the rotor blade polar analysis, the phase lag debug tools — all of that good stuff that Microsoft announced at FlightSimExpo back in June. This update isn’t just a bug-fix cycle. For the rotorhead community specifically, it’s the update that’s supposed to raise the quality floor on third-party helicopter flight models across the board.
And we’re getting close. The fact that we’re already on build 1.8.8.0 inside the beta is a fairly reliable signal that the full release isn’t far off. Microsoft tends to run several beta iterations before pushing the button on a full update, and the pace of builds over the last few weeks has been steady.
There’s not a huge amount of detail yet on exactly what changed between this build and the previous one — Microsoft is pointing beta testers to the forum release notes and asking everyone to submit bug reports and vote on the feedback surveys. Which is exactly what you should do if you’re on the beta and you fly helicopters, because this is the moment when developer feedback actually shapes the final product.
If you’re not in the beta yet, you can opt in through the MSFS settings on PC or through your console. It’s stable enough for everyday flying at this point.
The full release shouldn’t be far behind. Watch this space.