High Fidelity aircraft

On a High Fidelity aircraft, the next pilot gets more than the fuel and the radios. The full cockpit, each switch, the condition of each component, the hot brakes and the failures of the last flight travel with the aircraft. You get the aircraft exactly as the last pilot left it. This is the most complete form of the shared world.

The two levels of aircraft state

Universal: each aircraft, on each simulator. The plugin carries the fuel in each tank, the transponder, the COM, NAV and ADF radios, the altimeter setting and the autopilot targets.
High Fidelity: a supported add-on aircraft. The full state of the aircraft, complete and correct, goes to the next pilot.

A High Fidelity save is 1:1 when it carries the whole aircraft: the cockpit and the wear, the condition and the failures. An aircraft and lease page shows the 1:1 mark on such a save.

Same add-on, same simulator

A High Fidelity save is for one add-on on one simulator. A pilot in the same add-on gets the full state. A pilot in a different MD-11, or on a different simulator, gets the Universal state only. Each pilot always gets the Universal state.

Supported aircraft

TFDi Design MD-11MSFS 2020MSFS 20241:1

The TFDi Design MD-11 is the first High Fidelity aircraft. Its save is 1:1. It operates on MSFS 2020 and MSFS 2024. More aircraft follow. We prefer to work with the developer of each add-on, so that the save is safe for the aircraft.

What travels with the MD-11

The cockpit: approximately 1,500 values. Each switch, each knob, each panel, the FMS and the EFB, the ground power, the doors.
The condition: the wear of each component, and the dirt on the wings and the tires.
The failures: the active failures of the last flight. A hard landing that fails a tire gives the next pilot a failed tire. A stuck brake stays stuck.
The brakes: the brake temperatures, cooled for the time that the aircraft was parked. An aircraft that sat for six hours has cold brakes. A fuse plug that blew stays blown.

You inherit the failures

Tailstrike does not repair the aircraft between pilots. Look at the condition on the aircraft page before you lease. Then repair the failures in the EFB of the MD-11 before you fly, or fly with them. Repair each component on its own in the EFB. This is the real aircraft, with its real history.

Before you lease: the condition

The aircraft page and the lease page show a High Fidelity state card above the Universal values. It tells you who saved the aircraft, when, and how long it has sat. Then four numbers: the cockpit values that are saved, the condition of the components, the hottest brake, and the number of active failures. Click the Lived in pill on the aircraft page to open it. Hidden failures that count down are not shown. The surprise stays a surprise.

How to fly the MD-11

1
Lease the MD-11.
Lease it on the web. Look at the condition card first.
2
Start the plugin and connect it to MSFS before you load the aircraft.
This is the important step. The plugin puts the save files of the last pilot in place while MSFS is in the main menu. The MD-11 reads them when it loads. The lease pill shows High Fidelity with a gold spark when the plugin is ready.
3
Load the MD-11 in the livery of the lease.
Start the flight in MSFS. Approximately ten to twenty seconds after the cockpit comes to life, the plugin restores the cockpit and refreshes the failures. You do not click anything. The flight log tells you when it is done. Then open the EFB and look at the failures.
4
Fly the leg.
Fly as always, in real time, with the plugin in operation.
5
Park, set the brake, and shut down.
At the stand, set the parking brake or the chocks, shut down the engines, and set the fuel switches off. Approximately forty-five seconds later, the plugin saves the aircraft and sends the save to Tailstrike. The log shows sent to Tailstrike, and the flight-complete window shows the save status. The plugin saves again each thirty seconds while the aircraft is parked.
6
Wait for the save before you close the simulator.
Keep the plugin and MSFS in operation until you see the save. Then click LEASE AGAIN or COMPLETE LEASE. Each button takes one last save before it returns the aircraft.

If you loaded the aircraft first

If the MD-11 loaded before the plugin was connected, the cockpit can show a failure that the EFB does not know. Exit to the main menu and load the flight again. The plugin tells you in the flight log when this is necessary.

Your own saves are safe

The TFDi Design MD-11 keeps one save for each registration. When Tailstrike puts a save in place for a registration that you also fly on your own, the plugin makes a backup of your own save first. It keeps the backup also when the plugin restarts. Open the settings page of the plugin and click Restore my save to get your own save back when you return the aircraft.

Known limits

X-Plane has no High Fidelity aircraft yet. An MD-11 on X-Plane gets the Universal state.
The cockpit save of the TFDi Design MD-11 does not include the right main gear tires 3 and 4. The EFB can list them as failed while the cockpit shows them intact.
A failed tire that comes from the failure list, and not from a blown wheel, can resist the Repair all button. Repair that component on its own.
A different MD-11 add-on, or the same add-on on a different simulator, does not read the save.

Note

Do you develop an add-on aircraft, and do you want it to be High Fidelity on Tailstrike? Speak to us on Discord.