FlyInside
More actions
| FlyInside | |
|---|---|
| Information | |
| Developer | FlyInside Inc. |
| Publisher | FlyInside Inc. |
| Platform | Oculus Rift (Platform), SteamVR |
| Device | DK1, DK2, Oculus Rift, HTC Vive |
| Operating System | Windows |
| Type | Utilities |
| Genre | Simulation |
| Input Device | Keyboard, Mouse, Leap Motion, Oculus Touch, SteamVR Controllers, flight controls |
| Version | 1.97; P3D4 1.99 |
| Release Date | November 18, 2015 (version 1.0) |
| Price | Free legacy add-ons |
| Website | https://flyinside-fsx.com/AddOns.html |
| Infobox Updated | 2026-10-13 |
FlyInside is a family of virtual reality add-ons for Microsoft Flight Simulator X (FSX), Prepar3D and X-Plane. Its legacy Pro plug-ins provide headset integration, cockpit interaction and virtual windows, and are available free with version-specific prerequisites.[1] FlyInside's website distinguishes these add-ons from its separate FlyInside Flight Simulator and helicopter products.[2]
Features
Cockpit interaction
FlyInside's historical interaction system allowed users to operate aircraft controls with a headset-directed interaction dot, Vive controllers or a Leap Motion hand tracker. In the interaction-dot mode described for version 1.6, a bound Interact button selected a control at the centre of the view; switches toggled, while levers and dials displayed adjustment controls. Oculus Touch support followed in version 1.8. Version 1.9 made Vive and Windows Mixed Reality controllers appear as hands and unified their interaction with the Leap Motion and Touch systems.[3]
The Leap Motion documentation describes index-finger touches for buttons and switches, and sliders for adjustable knobs and levers. A fist could grab window controls to move, resize or close a virtual window; finger taps operated its contents. The same hand input worked in the FlyInside Menu View and desktop interface. The documentation cautioned that some aircraft controls responded incorrectly or were difficult to select, so this was not universal support for every cockpit.[4]
Virtual windows placed charts, tutorials and video around the cockpit, while FlyInside's interface exposed simulator menus, settings and dialogs in VR.[1] The implementation developed separately across simulators. The August 2015 beta changelog listed in-cockpit flight panels and a virtual desktop for Pro users; the September update saved window positions between sessions. Version 1.1 automatically brought Prepar3D ATC and instrument-panel windows into the virtual cockpit. FlyInside XP gained ATC and map-window import in version 1.81.[5]
Rendering and instrument readability
Daniel Church's original campaign described asynchronous timewarp as a core implementation: it adjusted previously rendered images in parallel when FSX stalled or missed frames. This was the developer's account of the technique, not an independent performance benchmark. The campaign's DK2 alpha also offered a 4K rendering option to improve the readability of small gauges.[6] Binocular zoom and a magnifying-glass view subsequently appeared in the October and November 2015 beta changelog.[5]
Development and compatibility history
Church's Kickstarter campaign ran from June 30 to July 30, 2015 and raised US$30,350 from 479 backers. Its initial FSX plug-in supported the Oculus Rift DK2; Prepar3D and Leap Motion were also part of the campaign.[6] The official changelog dates version 1.0 to November 18, 2015 and the addition of DK1 support to version 1.1 on December 21. Consumer Rift support arrived in version 1.4 on March 28, 2016, followed by Vive support in version 1.5 on April 5. These device listings describe historical integrations.[5]
The developer announced FlyInside XP 1.7 for X-Plane 10 on November 17, 2016, with X-Plane 11 beta support following in December. FlyInside P3D4 was released on October 13, 2017. Windows Mixed Reality support followed on December 8, 2017; the announcement described that headset integration as beta.[3]
On January 25, 2019, the developer discontinued FlyInside XP sales and support for newer X-Plane versions. Its explanation was that X-Plane 11.30's precompiled shaders prevented reliable use of FlyInside's shader-rewriting VR integration. A possible replacement layer over native VR was described as research, without a completed implementation or delivery date.[3]
System Requirements
The legacy downloads specify these simulator prerequisites.[1]
| Legacy edition | Listed build | Required simulator |
|---|---|---|
| FlyInside FSX Pro | 1.97 | FSX: Steam Edition, Acceleration or SP2 |
| FlyInside P3D4 Pro, 64-bit | 1.99 | Prepar3D 4.0-4.5 |
| FlyInside P3D Pro, 32-bit | 1.97 | Prepar3D 2.5 or 3.0-3.4; does not support version 4 |
| FlyInside XP Pro | 1.97 | X-Plane 10.52 or 11.26; newer-version support discontinued |
Each edition has downloads labelled for Oculus Runtime 1.10 and for Vive and Mixed Reality through SteamVR.[1] Historical Windows compatibility was also versioned: for example, version 1.75 added Windows 10 Creators Edition support.[5]
Setup Instructions
The download page describes installing the appropriate add-on and launching FSX or Prepar3D through the dedicated "FlyInside FSX" or "FlyInside P3D" Start Menu shortcut.[1] Version 1.4 changed activation so that FlyInside ran only when explicitly launched through these shortcuts.[5]
The historical Leap Motion setup guide required a controller mounted on the headset, calibration and working controller demos, followed by the Orion Beta software. It instructed users to enable "Allow Background Apps" and "Allow Images" in the Leap Motion Control Panel. FlyInside's Settings and Bindings tabs provided hand-movement scaling and a key binding to toggle Leap Motion input.[4] These instructions describe the legacy integration and do not establish compatibility with later hand-tracking software.
Research use
A 2017 MSc thesis by Raoul Gaston Didier Vink used FlyInside with X-Plane 10, the SSG E170 Evolution aircraft, an HTC Vive and Leap Motion. The experimental cockpit also had physical flight controls. Thirty E170 captains from one airline took part in a backward-transfer study involving seven familiar tasks. It examined whether already-trained pilots could perform those tasks in the VR setup; 29 completed the entire trial.[7]
The thesis reported the highest pass rate for autoland monitoring (29 assessed participants), alongside a significant increase in simulator-sickness scores in the pre/post analysis (30 participants); one participant stopped early because of sickness. It explicitly distinguished backward transfer from learning new skills and recommended subsequent forward-transfer research. The single-group, experienced-pilot experiment therefore does not establish that the plug-in trains novice pilots effectively or qualifies as a certified training device.[7]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "Virtual reality for Microsoft FSX, Prepar3D, and X-Plane, now Free!". FlyInside. https://flyinside-fsx.com/AddOns.html. Retrieved 2026-10-13.
- ↑ "FlyInside: Virtual Reality Flight Simulation". FlyInside. https://flyinside-fsx.com/. Retrieved 2026-10-13.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "News". FlyInside. https://flyinside-fsx.com/News. Retrieved 2026-10-13.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Leap Motion". FlyInside. https://flyinside-fsx.com/Features/LeapMotion. Retrieved 2026-10-13.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 "Change Log". FlyInside. https://flyinside-fsx.com/Download/ChangeLog. Retrieved 2026-10-13.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Daniel Church. "FlyInside FSX". Kickstarter. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1232710074/flyinside-fsx/description. Retrieved 2026-10-13.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Raoul Gaston Didier Vink (August 2017). "An exploration into the Utility of a Virtual Reality Headset for Flight-Crew Training Using the Backward Transfer Paradigm". Coventry University, MSc thesis. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/357900619_An_exploration_into_the_Utility_of_a_Virtual_Reality_Headset_for_Flight-Crew_Training_Using_the_Backward_Transfer_Paradigm. Retrieved 2026-10-13.