Uploaded August 2009 | Updated September 2026, 1 hour ago
Flight Simulator 2000
- Released in October 19th, 1999.
FS2000 (FS7.0) was released as a major improvement over the previous versions, and was also offered in two versions; Standard, and Professional with more aircraft, cities, IFR panels, panel designer. Although many users had high expectations when this version arrived, many were disappointed when they found out that the simulator demanded high-end hardware; the minimum requirements were only a Pentium 166MHz computer, although 400-500 MHz computer was deemed necessary to have an even framerate. However, even on a high-end system, stuttering framerate was a problem, especially when performing sharp turns in graphically dense areas.
This version also introduced 3D elevation, making it possible to adjust the elevation for the scenery grids, thus making most of the previous FS scenery obsolete (as it didn't support this feature). A GPS was also added, enabling an even more realistic operation of the simulator.
New aircraft in FS2000 included the supersonic Aerospatiale-BAC Concorde (prominently featured on both editions' box covers) and the Boeing 777, which had recently entered service at the time.
An often overlooked, but highly significant milestone in Flight Simulator 2000, was the addition of over 18000 new airports, for a total exceeding 21000 worldwide, as well as worldwide navigational aid coverage, and a map. This greatly expanded the utility of the product in simulating long international flights as well as instrument-based flight relying on radio navigation aids. Some of these airports, along with additional objects such as radio towers and other "hazard" structures, were built from publicly available U.S. government databases. Others, particularly the larger commercial airports with detailed apron and taxiway structures, were built from detailed information in Jeppesen's proprietary database, one of the primary commercial suppliers of worldwide aviation navigation data.
In combination, these new data sources in Flight Simulator allowed the franchise to claim the inclusion of virtually every documented airport and navigational aid in the world, as well as allowing implementation of the new GPS feature. As was the case with FS98, scenery development using these new data sources in FS2000 was outsourced to MicroScene in San Ramon, working with the core development team at Microsoft. Flight Simulator 2000 has some AI aircraft at Meigs Field and at major airports.
Microsoft Flight Simulator 2000 was the last of the Flight Simulator series to support the Windows 95 operating system.
Flight Simulator 2000
- Released in October 19th, 1999.
FS2000 (FS7.0) was released as a major improvement over the previous versions, and was also offered in two versions; Standard, and Professional with more aircraft, cities, IFR panels, panel designer. Although many users had high expectations when this version arrived, many were disappointed when they found out that the simulator demanded high-end hardware; the minimum requirements were only a Pentium 166MHz computer, although 400-500 MHz computer was deemed necessary to have an even framerate. However, even on a high-end system, stuttering framerate was a problem, especially when performing sharp turns in graphically dense areas.
This version also introduced 3D elevation, making it possible to adjust the elevation for the scenery grids, thus making most of the previous FS scenery obsolete (as it didn't support this feature). A GPS was also added, enabling an even more realistic operation of the simulator.
New aircraft in FS2000 included the supersonic Aerospatiale-BAC Concorde (prominently featured on both editions' box covers) and the Boeing 777, which had recently entered service at the time.
An often overlooked, but highly significant milestone in Flight Simulator 2000, was the addition of over 18000 new airports, for a total exceeding 21000 worldwide, as well as worldwide navigational aid coverage, and a map. This greatly expanded the utility of the product in simulating long international flights as well as instrument-based flight relying on radio navigation aids. Some of these airports, along with additional objects such as radio towers and other "hazard" structures, were built from publicly available U.S. government databases. Others, particularly the larger commercial airports with detailed apron and taxiway structures, were built from detailed information in Jeppesen's proprietary database, one of the primary commercial suppliers of worldwide aviation navigation data.
In combination, these new data sources in Flight Simulator allowed the franchise to claim the inclusion of virtually every documented airport and navigational aid in the world, as well as allowing implementation of the new GPS feature. As was the case with FS98, scenery development using these new data sources in FS2000 was outsourced to MicroScene in San Ramon, working with the core development team at Microsoft. Flight Simulator 2000 has some AI aircraft at Meigs Field and at major airports.
Microsoft Flight Simulator 2000 was the last of the Flight Simulator series to support the Windows 95 operating system.
