Gee Bee R3 Special launching on August 31

In partnership with Flightsim.to, Got Friends is announcing the Gee Bee R3 Special for Microsoft Flight Simulator! This exciting payware add-on will exclusively be available August 31st on the new Flightsim.to payware marketplace. This exciting collaboration between Got Friends and Flightsim.to has been in the works for a couple months and our team couldn’t be more honored to have our aircraft become an exclusive product. Got Friends is comprised of three talented developers: Jonx, Got Gravel and 270Inc. You may recognize some of our work already available on Flightsim.to, including the Discus-2b, Savage Grravel, EA-7 Edgley Optica, Vertigo, and 270Inc’s Pilot Character Mod. When we were approached by Flightsim.to to release the Gee Bee R3 exclusively to their new payware platform, we were ecstatic! We already had a great community established, largely in part due to their game-changing freeware platform, so accepting their offer and bringing our aircraft to our closest fans was exactly what we needed.

A Brotherhood Beyond Collaboration

After the Vertigo was released by Got Gravel, I (Jonx) started dreaming up the next era of racing simulation. My biggest objective was to have a modern, fast, and agile racing aircraft that could handle various situations including aerobatic maneuvers and competitive racing capability. The answer was staring at me in form of a very popular RC (Remote Control) aircraft, brought to life by the hands of Mirco Pecorari, the original Gee Bee R3 designer. With that vision dancing around in my head, I needed a team to accomplish this project. Although I had the modeling and coding skills necessary to bring the Gee Bee to the simulator, I needed some talented help to bring the flight model and vision to life as well.

Alas, Got Gravel entered the chat. I pitched him the Gee Bee R3 and we ran with the idea of creating the best hair-raising, nail-biting, white-knuckling experience the simulator could offer! Early into development we realized the Gee Bee needed a makeover. She finally had the shape and power but lacked the zest. Enter 270Inc, a very talented texture artist who has leveraged his skills for Got Gravel and I many times in the past. Choosing him was a no-brainer. Almost immediately, all three of us took to the skies and shared sleepless nights, exciting conversions and occasionally the subtle laugh when our development took the wrong turn, resulting in humorous results. As we conversed with one another, we soon realized our shared service. 270Inc and I both served for several years in the United States Navy, whilst Got Gravel also served in the Dutch Navy. We were already fully invested in this project, but the realization of what we had just embarked on, considering our backgrounds, motivated us even more! I can without a doubt say that the Gee Bee R3 was developed not only professionally, but with a brotherhood that will last beyond this project.

A White-Knuckle Experience

At last, our vision came to life and the Gee Bee R3 made its way from a fictional canvas to Microsoft Flight Simulator. The Gee Bee R3 was never brought to real life standards, so we pulled our creativity together and set her features apart from the rest. The Gee Bee R3 is equipped with a fuel injected Lycoming AEIO-580-B1A engine, delivering 315HP to 3 blades at a constant 2,700RPM. She shreds through the skies with unprecedented speed and agility. To overcome the “Need for Speed”, we have also equipped the aircraft with large pneumatically powered speed brakes, located left and right of the engine. They are activated manually to induce drag and deployed automatically to aid the pilot in various aerobatic maneuvers and tight turns.

When you perform a hard turn, the speed brake in the direction of the roll will deploy half-way to maintain stabilization over low control authority when you need it most! For competitive racing, we wanted to raise the standard for a modern racing aircraft. To achieve this, we crammed 75 Quarts of NOS (Nitrous Oxide) into the rear of the cockpit and enabled the aircraft to gain a 25% increase in performance at the flip of a switch. But don’t get too carried away! This aircraft was also designed for competitive use, and you will only have an average of 5-minutes’ worth of NOS, which can be easily be tracked on the NOS remaining quantity gauge. If that wasn’t enough, we also equipped the Gee Bee R3 with 5 colors of smoke canisters. There is no limit to smoke production currently, and you’ll have access to red, white, blue, green and orange colored smoke to paint the sky as you throw yourself around. The NOS and smoke features could never have been accomplished without the help of Alex Marko (Touching Cloud). His dedication to our project went far beyond our expectations and we were honored to have his help as a critical support member. With the incorporation of smoke effects, we can proudly say that we have it fully working with multiplayer. Not only can you paint the sky solo, but you can group up and paint a variety of colors in the sky, proving that this aircraft is a show horse as well as a Clydesdale. No matter the aircraft flown, if you have a Gee Bee R3 on your screen, you will be able to see fellow pilots deploy their smoke.

Let’s talk aerobatics! The Gee Bee R3 is fully capable of executing a variety of aerobatic maneuvers with pin-point accuracy. These maneuvers include, but are not limited to: Inverted Flight, Aileron Rolls, Barrel Rolls, Slow Rolls, Snap Rolls, Loops, Avalanches, Immelmans, Split-S’, English Bunts, Half Cuban Eights, Cuban Eights, Hammerheads, and Knife Edges! If you want to impress your friends, have a blast, and enjoy a flight simulation experience unlike any other, consider adding the Gee Bee R3 to your hanger.

As you might not know, the Gee Bee R3’s teardrop shape became quite an issue for us in VR development. Due to its slim design and abstract scaling, we spent countless hours remodeling the VR Ready Version in a separate sub-model. You will find this livery in the aircraft’s selection menu next to six other hand-crafted liveries, including favorites like the infamous Texaco RC paint scheme. In a move to provide the best homage to Gee Bee Airplanes and an era of aviation that took the world by storm, we have also handcrafted a sub-model from the movie “The Rocketeer”. This sub-model not only includes a gorgeous livery, but a completely different model set that includes various goodies for movie enthusiasts! From gum to a portrait of Jennifer Connelly, plus a radial 2-bladed propeller set. Be aware, this is strictly a visual homage to the film and your flight model performance will be unchanged.

Now before we conclude, let us mention that the cockpit is also equipped with a GNS 430/330 set and a GTN750 navigation unit (PMS50 Mod Required) that can be retroactively swapped mid-flight to your preferred method of navigation.

A Special Thank You

We would like to offer our sincerest thanks to Flightsim.to and all the following individuals for helping us produce the best aerobatic racing aircraft in Microsoft Flight Simulator. Without their tireless efforts and support, this would have never become more than a dream. We hope that you will be able to appreciate the $15.00 price tag and continue to support the Got Friends commitment to the community.

• Mirco Pecorari: Gee Bee R3 Designer
• Makbeton: Initial Exterior 3D Model
• Carlocestra285: Initial Gauge 3D Models
• Alex Marko: Visual Effects Library and NOS Boost Incorporation
• OzWookie: Critical XML Help
• Davux3: Critical Development Help
• TechnoTech: Critical 3D Modeling Help
• PMS50: GTN 750 Compatibility Mod
• Asobo: General Assets & SDK
• Got Gravel Beta Testers: Extensive Testing
• Flight Simulator Freelance Society: Various Support

Thank you for supporting Got Friends. Now what are you waiting for? Mark you calendar, grab your friends, and prepare to hop in a seat like no other!