⚠️⚠️⚠️ IMPORTANT PATCH RELEASE: 0.15.1 ⚠️⚠️⚠️

Previous patch releases (< 0.15.1) like the 0.13.1 and the previous 0.15.0 would generate a logbook backup each time the application was started (and if the logbook option "Before migration of an older logbook" is enabled, which is the case by default).

This has been fixed with the 0.15.1 patch relase.

How to reclaim storage space:

• In Sky Dolly: File | Logbook Settings... | Show


• In File Explorer: Open the Backups folder


• Delete any logbook backups that are not required anymore (the file names contain the backup date)

I am terribly sorry for this inconvenience 😞

Happy birthday, Sky Dolly!

Sky Dolly was released a year ago here on flightsim.to, on the 28th February 2021. So at the time of this writing Sky Dolly just has become one year old, congratulations! 😊

And today the v0.9 was just released. Refer to the changelog for new features and improvements.

At the same time I would also like to thank the community and everyone who suggested improvements or simply wrote that the tool was genuinely useful to them. Thank you so much!

So round (year) two has just begun, and there are still plenty of features that I'd like to implement...

🎂🎂🎂 HAPPY BIRTHDAY, FLIGHT SIMULATOR 2020 🎂🎂🎂

The Flight Simulator was released on August 18 2020 - today exactly one year ago!

As a little present also for the community the latest bug fix release Sky Dolly v0.8.5 also includes a new KML import plugin (accessible via File | Import | KML) which allows to import flight track data from https://flightaware.com.

Note that the "reconstructed attitude" and flaps/gear events is still very basic ("hardcoded" for now) and set under the assumption that he aircraft is "A320-like" (= commercial airliner). Also in most cases the final position coordinate is "under the ground", as the FS 2020 scenery data's altitude apparently does not always match exactly with reality. So expect the aircraft to "dive under the runway" a lot.

Those are know issues which might get addressed in future releases.

In any case I hope that you enjoy visualising real-world aviation in Flight Simulator 2020!

Dear all,

Sky Dolly v0.10.0 has just been released, focusing mostly on "under the hood" changes related to the import & export architecture. This release also provides new support for GeoJSON and GPX export.

"Again import & export plugins?" you may ask. The reason is that I wanted to "get this right" first before moving on towards new functionality - and there are still plenty of ideas and items on my "internal to-do list". Not to mention (possible) improvements related to formation flight - keyword: "aircraft jitter" - and most importantly also flight import and the mis-alignment of imported altitude data with the MSFS scenery (keywords, "WGS84", "undulation", "EGM 2008 geoid" - if you're "into the topic" you are very likely to immediately understand what this is all about 😉).

So what has been done with this "plugin architecture"? For one, I "refactored" the import and export code such that as much as possible "common code" may be re-used. For instance the KML import parsers for flightware.com, flightradar24.com and the "generic KML track parser" share most of their code now.

Also, common functionality such as "checking for file existence before overwritting existing files", "directory import", "formation export" and also "data resampling" (for export) are now implemented in common base classes. All plugins will immediately profit from enhancements in those areas.

So yes, this refactoring is a Good Thing(tm), and I wanted to have this done before moving on or adding even more import & export plugins (there are at least two formats that I'd still like to implement support for).

What's next? As usual I don't want to disclose my ideas too much, because Sky Dolly is still a "hobby project" for me, and I neither want to put pressure on myself nor do I want to disappoint anyone in case I never get to implement a "promised feature". But I can say that there is still existing functionality that I'd like to improve upon (formation flying, "aircraft jitter" and altitude import have already been mentioned) first before moving "to the next big thing"...

That said, I do have open ears for ideas from you - for instance the idea for the international gliding commission (IGC) file format support came from someone in the community! And I quite enjoyed digging into this format.

But as always, "it is fun for as long as it is fun" - and I still do have a lot of fun!

In that sense, happy flying!

A new IGC format plugin has been provided in the just released v0.8.6, which otherwise only provides a few bug fixes related to import (KML mostly).

The IGC (International Gliding Commission) file format is mostly used by flight recorders in gliders. Basic position, task and header data is imported.

Known issues and limitations:

- The glider may "turn wildly" on the ground before start (due to slight "GPS noise" movements and the reconstructed heading)

- The GNSS altitude is imported - but even with the "pressure altitude" (which is currently ignored during import) the glider is either way above or below the MSFS terrain (this might be amended with an altitude offset option in the future)

- The "noise level" (an optional "fix" data in the B records) is currently ignored. This may be used in the future to enable/disable the engine

- In general "flight augmentation" (the reconstruction of flight attitude and operations) is still very simplistic (also for KML imported flight paths)