Laminar Research

Laminar Research is the developer of the X-Plane series of flight simulators, including X-Plane 12, the current desktop version for Windows, macOS and Linux. X-Plane was first released in 1995 and began as a simulator called Archer-II IFR, written by founder Austin Meyer. Its flight model uses blade-element theory, which breaks an aircraft into small parts and calculates the forces on each, so the simulator can predict how a real aircraft will fly. It is used by pilots, flight training organizations, aviation enthusiasts and gamers.

Products

• X-Plane 12 desktop simulator, with a free demo
• X-Plane 12 Professional licence for commercial use, with hardware and frame-rate checks required for FAA certification and cylindrical and spherical projection for large simulators
• X-Plane Mobile for phones and tablets
• Plane Maker, bundled with X-Plane, for designing and editing aircraft
• WorldEditor (WED), an open source scenery and airport editor

Aircraft and scenery

X-Plane 12 includes 20 aircraft in the default installation, such as the Cessna 172SP, Cirrus SR22 and Vision SF50, Beechcraft Baron 58 and King Air C90, Boeing 737-800, Airbus A330-300, Citation X, MD-80, Robinson R22, Sikorsky S-76 and the ASK 21 glider. The scenery covers the Earth from 74 degrees north to 60 degrees south and includes over 34,000 airports.

Professional use

FAA-certified training devices are sold as complete hardware and software packages through companies such as Precision Flight Controls and GLEIM Aviation, using a certified version of X-Plane.

Company facts

• X-Plane first released in 1995
• Founder: Austin Meyer
• Current version: X-Plane 12
• 20 default aircraft and more than 34,000 airports
• FAA-certifiable professional version available