david lyons yacht design

Mr David Lyons

My Expertise

Naval architecture. Ships and boats. Marine. Navigation. Marine Safety. Composite materials. Mechanical engineering design. Chartered Engineer. Experienced expert witness: Unisearch Expert Opinion Services and other.

Fields of Research (FoR)

Experienced consulting engineer and teacher in the fields of naval architecture, composite materials and yacht design.

Professional Associations – CEng - Chartered Engineer (Engineering Council, UK). Fellow, The Royal Institution of Naval Architects. Fellow, Engineers Australia. RPEQ - Registered Professional Engineer, Queensland.

LinkedIn – www.linkedin.com/in/davidhlyons

Qualifications

Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) – UNSW... view more

Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) – UNSW 1987

Grad. Cert. University Learning & Teaching

Other Professional Associations/Memberships

• International Technical Committee Offshore Racing Congress (1997 - )
• Special Regulations sub-Committee International Sailing Federation (2009 - 2016)
• National Safety Committee Yachting Australia(2010 - 2016 )

Legal/Technical Expert - Composite Materials and Naval Architecture

• My expert reports have been tendered in the NSW Coroners Court, Supreme Court of NSW, the NSW District Court, The Supreme Court of Queensland and the High Court of New Zealand.  I have appeared at numerous higher-level mediations as expert and appeared as a witness in court proceedings as an expert engineer.

1987-1989          Unilever – manufacturing engineering

1989-1992          DIAB Australia – composite engineering

1992-1996          Full time consultancy – Director, Seaflyer Pty Ltd

1996-2004          DIAB Australia – composite engineering

2000 -  2020                Lecturer, School of Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering, UNSW

2004–2011         EMP Composites (Nuplex Industries) – Founder, general manager

2011-2014               Full time consultancy – Director, Seaflyer Pty Ltd t/as Lyons Chartered Engineers

2020 -               Naval Architecture program, UNSW Canberra at ADFA: developing and presenting the new Program in Naval Architecture.

National and international sailor – competed at the Admiral’s Cup (UK), Australian Champion Melges 24 class 2009, overall winner 1993 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race on my own design Micropay Cuckoo's Nest .

Recipient, Australian Sports Medal 2000 (Sailing).

My Qualifications

BE (Hons), FIEAust, FRINA, CEng, GCULT, RPEQ

Australian Sports Medal

My Engagement

Key member of academic team setting up the Naval Architecture program at UNSW Canberra at ADFA.

First intake of Level 3 undergraduate students in March 2022.

My Teaching

I specialise in the education (learning and teaching) of undergraduate engineering students in the field of naval architecture.

Publications

• Journal articles 3
• Conference Papers 1

ORCID as entered in ROS

UNSW Sydney NSW 2052 Australia Telephone +61 2 93851000 Authorised by Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) UNSW CRICOS Provider Code: 00098G ABN: 57 195 873 179

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David Lyons

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Research Interests: Naval Architecture , Composite Materials and Structures , and Yacht Design ()

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Lyons designs in 2001 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race

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Ronnie Simpson

Ronnie Simpson is a 38-year-old professional racing sailor and the skipper of the Open 50 Shipyard Brewing competing in the first-ever Global Solo Challenge. As a combat-wounded and medically retired US Marine and Iraq war veteran who has sailed more than 140,000 miles at sea, Ronnie will be sailing to raise money and awareness for US Patriot Sailing, a 501c3 Veterans’ sailing non-profit organization. Ronnie credits sailing with saving his life and believes in the inspirational and therapeutic benefit of finding purpose through sailing.

Career Sailing Achievements

• Years sailing: 15
• Offshore Miles Sailed: 140,000+
• 19 crossings between Hawaii and US Mainland
• 1 Trans-Atlantic crossing
• 6 races to Hawaii; 2 solo and 4 crewed
• 1 division win in Singlehanded Transpac and 1 division win in Transpac
• 1 participation in the Rolex Sydney-Hobart
• Significant other offshore, inshore and coastal races.
• Sailed a 34’ monohull about 14,000 miles solo around the Pacific.
• Sailed a 27’ engineless monohull about 10,000 miles solo from Washington State to New Zealand.
• Offshore crossings on racing monohulls up to canting-keel 100’ supermaxis.
• Experience on bigger racing and cruising monohulls with a variety of systems
• Experience on racing and cruising multihulls up to 72’ ORMA racing trimaran.
• USCG Captain’s License – 50 ton master
• Professional experience as a racing sailor, delivery captain, charter captain, yacht rigger and racing yacht preparateur.

Global Sailing Challenge

Open 50 Shipyard Brewing

As well as racing to benefit veterans, Ronnie hopes to raise the profile of sailing in America, continue to be a steward for the environment and also aim to promote diversity in sailing. Through this campaign, Ronnie hopes to connect with the American public as much as possible including speaking engagements, boat tours, boat rides, media engagements and also bringing guests and donors onboard for offshore delivery legs and even some Caribbean racing. With the formation of Ronnie Simpson Racing LLC, Ronnie also aims to create a sustainable and viable business entity that can successfully run a Vendée Globe campaign and create offshore sailing opportunities for individuals that would not otherwise be exposed to sailing.

Shipyard Brewing is an Open 50 class racing yacht that was designed by David Lyons and built in Australia by Kanga Birtles for the 1994 BOC Around the World Race. Sailing under the name Newcastle Australia, Alan Nebauer completed the race after dismasting before Cape Horn and rounding under jury rig. Nebauer sailed to the Falklands where a new mast was fitted. Then en route to Punta del Este, his rudder failed, and he fitted a steering oar to complete the leg to Punta del Este. Alan rightly earned seamanship awards for his tenacity and grit, and finished fourth in class.

Four years later, American Brad Van Liew raced her around the globe again in the 1998-99 Around Alone as Balance Bar. This time it was Brad’s turn, and he was dismasted on the final leg to Charleston. But again a new mast was fitted and Brad completed the race, finishing 3rd in class. Tech innovator and entrepreneur Philippe Kahn then bought the boat and renamed her Pegasus. The boat was then fitted with a new carbon mast, rudder and deck, as well as a new keel and ballast tanks, engine and electronics.

More recently, Californian Whitall Stokes sailed the boat some 20,000 nautical miles including a 17,000 mile singlehanded voyage from California to Maine via Cape Horn. Stopping just twice, Stokes left the boat with the talented and experienced crew at Maine Yacht Center before deciding what his next voyage would be. Due to the realities of life, family and business rendering it impossible to mount a campaign for the Global Solo Challenge himself, Stokes loaned the boat to Hawaii sailor Ronnie Simpson.

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From The First Superyacht To Modern Yacht Design: A Look At How Luxury Vessels Have Changed Over the Years

Discover just how far has modern yacht design evolved over the last centuries, from the steam-powered vessels of yesteryear to their streamlined successors..

September 3, 2020, 1:56 pm Comments Off on From The First Superyacht To Modern Yacht Design: A Look At How Luxury Vessels Have Changed Over the Years

Modern yacht design has evolved tremendously since the world’s first ‘superyacht’, Cleopatra’s Barge, emerged from Retire Becket’s shipyard in Salem, Massachusetts, to gasps of admiration from the awe-struck crowds that had gathered on the docks.

The 25m, 192t brigantine had been built at the cost of $50,000 for a wealthy merchant named Captain George Crowninshield Jr. who then went on to sail America’s first-ever pleasure boat across the Atlantic to Europe in 1817.

Cleopatra’s Barge was particularly noteworthy as it was opulently furnished, with reports of exotic cabin fittings and beautiful multi-coloured stripes on her elegant hull. No one had ever seen anything like her; and so the first superyacht was born.

Fast forward more than 200 years and there are now said to be more than 5,500 superyachts in the world, of all shapes and sizes (a superyacht is simply defined as a pleasure boat over 24m) and each and every one an example of stunning luxury yacht design.

From luxurious barges to modern yacht design: what’s changed (and what hasn’t)

The first sailing yachts date back to the 1600s, when they became popular modes of transport for the Dutch navy. The word yacht came from the Dutch word ‘jacht’, meaning to hunt, as the sailing boats were built to be light and fast so that they could hunt down and chase pirates.

Originally working vessels, yachts then became the playthings of royalty, with Charles II using a yacht to sail from England to Holland in 1620.

Sail yachts were swapped for steam yachts in the mid 19th century by the wealthy and well-to-do, with the first British royal yacht the Victoria & Albert being completed in 1843. These steam yachts were usually motored by one or two steam engines, and whilst they carried rigging for sails, this was usually just for show.

In fact, these ‘ superyachts ’ became a real indicator of wealth amongst leading families in America, with names such as the Vanderbilts, Goulds, Morgans, Bennetts and Hearsts all competing to come up with the best luxury yacht design . One of the most famous steam yachts at the time was the North Star, built in 1852 for the then richest man in the United States, Cornelius Vanderbilt.

Steam yachts remained the queen of the oceans for almost a century, with two world wars halting technical developments somewhat. Indeed, many superyachts were commandeered to transport freight during the first and second world wars with some, such as the legendary Christina O, serving as a frigate in World War II before being transformed into a luxury vessel. Christina O was bought by Aristotle Onassis in 1954 for $34,000. The Greek shipping magnate then spent $4 million on the refurbishment, which famously included a bronze-edged swimming pool with a mosaic dance floor that rises up at the push of a button.

Luxury yacht design in the 1980s

The late 20th century saw a huge increase in the number and size of superyachts for sale, sparked by an improvement in communications equipment and a growth in the number of wealthy people able to buy their own vessel. New technological advances meant it was possible to easily travel anywhere in the world on larger superyachts, with room for whole families, staff and dedicated crew.

All of a sudden, modern yacht designs had to incorporate home cinemas, fully functional gyms, helipads and water toys galore to cater to wealthy families and their friends. Multi-deck superyachts became popular, such as ‘ Al Salamah ’, a 139m vessel with five decks built by Lurssen in 1999. At the time of her construction, Al Salamah was the third largest yacht in the world, boasting accommodation for 36 guests, a cinema, an onboard hospital, two full-time beauticians, a business centre and a spa. Yet the 162m superyacht ‘Dubai’, by Platinum Yachts, dwarfed Al Salamah when she was completed two years later with her eight decks, on which you can find a helipad, two 33ft chase boats, a squash court and 20 jet skis.

Modest modern yacht designs – a legacy of the financial crisis

When the financial crisis struck in 2008, the superyacht industry was impacted on a global scale, with fewer buyers, charter clients and investors almost overnight. Less became more in luxury yacht design , with the superyacht community choosing smaller, more inventive and innovative vessels over larger multi-decks.

Sailing superyachts are also seeing a resurgence, partly due to the growth of sailing regattas, events which bring the yachting community together for days of weeks filled with fun and excitement.

Once considered a ‘jolly’ where the apres-sailing was taken more seriously than the sailing, many owners are now wanting to compete on superyachts which can actually take home the prize. Composite hulls are increasingly popular, with lifting keels and other features to ensure the yachts are race-fit.

Another modern yacht design that has emerged since the early 21st century is the expedition superyacht, where vessels are designed not only to look elegant but be capable of travelling to the ends of the earth, even in unfavourable conditions.

‘Cloudbreak’ by Abeking & Rasmussen is a good example of an explorer superyacht that was completed in 2016. Boasting all the traditional toys such as a helicopter, spa and cinema room, this 75m exploration yacht named after a mythical wave in Fiji also has a chalet-like fireplace for chilly evenings, a winter garden on the upper deck and zero speed stabilisers to reduce rolling motion in faraway seas.

Environmentally-friendly luxury modern designs

A concern for the environment and a need for sustainability is very much at the forefront of new modern yacht designs, with owners and shipbuilders both looking to use eco-friendly technologies wherever possible.

Ground-breaking technologies include hybrid propulsion systems which use multiple energy sources to lower carbon emissions and reduce noise pollution to the marine wildlife. An example of a yacht which uses such a system is the award-winning Black Pearl, a 106m yacht delivered by Oceanco in 2018. Her hybrid propulsion system combines wind power with two electric propulsion motors, and its controllable pitch propellers generate enough energy to take the Black Pearl across the Atlantic without any fuel at all.

Another brilliant green innovation can be seen on French designer Julien Cadro’s ‘ Ecoo ’ superyacht, which has an Avatar styled hull made out of bamboo fibre instead of steel, while superyacht designer Dan Lenard has designed a yacht made from abandoned performance yacht parts. Eco sailors looking for the perfect superyacht will unfortunately not yet be able to buy one of Lenard’s new recycled boats, however. The designer has only built the 33ft sailboat so he can sail single-handedly across the Atlantic and raise awareness of the state of the world’s oceans.

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Superyachts closer to a bigger home as fort lauderdale starts las olas marina project.

Susan Stocker / South Florida Sun Sentinel

Fort Lauderdale Commissioner Steven Glassman, Suntex Marinas executive David Filler and Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis celebrate the groundbreaking of Las Olas Marina, on Thursday May 5, 2022 in Fort Lauderdale. The marina is designed to mainly accommodate visiting superyachts, which are luxury vessels of 80 feet or more in length.

A rendering of Las Olas Marina on display at its groundbreaking on Thursday in Fort Lauderdale. Suntex Marinas, in partnership with the city, is constructing a $70 million world-class facility for superyachts that will feature boutique retail, fine dining, state-of-the-art infrastructure improvements and pedestrian-friendly landscape. The marina is the capstone of more than $130 million in public amenity improvements along the Las Olas corridor connecting pedestrians to the ocean.

As much as Fort Lauderdale has always welcomed luxury vessels to the city’s vast network of waterways, the “yachting capital of the world” often has been a tough place for a captain of superyachts to find a place to dock.

But now, the space issue is closer to easing as the city started construction last week of the Las Olas Marina, which would provide helmsmen with 7,000 new linear feet of dockage, a three-story marine services building and a 15,000-square foot, two-story upscale restaurant with outdoor dining.

The project is designed specifically to give access to superyachts, those vessels more than 80 feet long.

The $70 million project, which is expected to be completed by 2024, is being built and paid for by Dallas-based Suntex Marinas, a national developer and operator of marinas in Florida and 11 other states. The site is just north of Las Olas Boulevard on the east bank of the Intracoastal Waterway. It served as a municipal parking lot for years.

Ultimately, the marina will be closely aligned with Birch Road, which runs north and south, and local residents will be able to dine at the restaurants and have access to jogging paths.

On Thursday, officials from the city, Broward County and Suntex gathered for a waterfront groundbreaking with a number of nearby condo tower dwellers who closely monitored the marina’s planning.

“It’s been a long time coming,” said Mayor Dean Trantalis “The city of Fort Lauderdale has really tried to figure out what’s the best thing to do for this site. It’s going to be an amazing reimagining of this corner of our city.”

It will also offer an important extension of space for the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show, where superyachts are a major draw and whose annual exhibition draws thousands of boaters and vendors to the city at more than a half dozen locations. Most of the big yachts visit the Bahia Mar Yachting Center or the Pier Sixty-Six Marina.

“We need more new large boat space,” Trantalis said. “It’s amazing how many new boats are being built and how much longer and bigger they are becoming. Since we are the yachting capital of the world, we want to continue to be able to accommodate the industry as we have over these many years.”

Superyachts a priority

In an interview David Filler, head of acquisitions and development for Suntex, said the company could have designed the marina for smaller boats. But he said people in both the public and private sectors saw a need to produce a spot for bigger vessels.

“They requested that we focus on the design and development of a marina primarily serving the mega-yacht market,” he said. “That’s what they wanted.”

Generally speaking, the “superyacht” category involves vessels 80 feet long and above. But these days, buyers want to go bigger, opting for yachts of more than 100 or 120 feet.

Last fall, the international yacht brokerage Fraser, which had agents at the Fort Lauderdale show, said 2021 was its “best year ever,” with sales of yachts 80 feet and longer rising 110.3% over the previous year.

“It’s really a supply and demand situation that we are trying to address,” Filler said. “There are a lot more slips available for smaller boats.

“Many people rent homes, and you can put a 60- or 80-foot boat behind a house,” he added. “It’s much harder to find a home to support moorings for a 100-foot boat.”

Strong neighborhood input

The project’s final version is an outgrowth of a request for proposals issued by the city in 2016. The city made the request after rejecting a proposal several years earlier that called for a more densely populated mixed used project that focused on commercial businesses and a high rise.

Suntex won the job and signed a long-term lease in 2017, and then embarked upon “four years of permitting and design.”

City Commissioner Steven Glassman, whose District 2 includes the neighborhood, credited the company with closely listening to nearby condo tower residents who are members of the Central Beach Alliance. “ They didn’t just get approval from the city and disappear. They are here until the end.”

“People have been fighting and making their voices heard for what they wanted on this site for a long time,” Glassman said at the Thursday groundbreaking ceremony. “Without your input we would not have the project we have today.”

To laughter, he quipped: “When you sign up and join the Central Beach Alliance there is a question on the application that says, ‘Are you shy?’ If you say ‘yes,’ you are automatically not allowed to join the Central Beach Alliance. No one in that organization is afraid to have an opinion, to let you know what that opinion is and to repeat that opinion as often as possible so that you get that opinion.”

Ultimately, the tower residents got what they wanted.

“Where once all of these buildings and all of the inhabitants of these buildings looked down on asphalt, and partying at night and broken glass and beer bottles from kids on A1A, now they are going to look out and think they are in Monaco,” Glassman said.

The benefits

According to Trantalis, the following are some projected economic and financial upsides from the Las Olas Marina project:

Jobs: More than 650 during construction, 1,110 full-time positions after completion.

Economic impact (annual): $221 million

State and local tax revenues (annual): $6 million

Real estate property taxes: (annual) Almost $500,000

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That '70s Week: Yacht Rock

Talia Schlanger

Donald Fagen (left) and Walter Becker of Steely Dan. Danny Clinch/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

Donald Fagen (left) and Walter Becker of Steely Dan.

• The Doobie Brothers, "What A Fool Believes"
• Christopher Cross, "Sailing"
• Sade, "Smooth Operator"
• Nielsen/Pearson, "If You Should Sail"
• Ned Doheny, "Get It Up For Love"
• Iron & Wine, "Desert Babbler"
• Young Gun Silver Fox, "You Can Feel It"

What's the best way to become the unchallenged expert on a particular genre of music? Invent it. Enter JD Ryznar, Hunter Stair, David B. Lyons and Steve Huey: coiners of the description "yacht rock," creators of a hilarious web series of the same name and now de facto captains of the genre. Broadly speaking, yacht rock is an ocean of smooth, soft-listening music made in the late '70s and early '80s by artists like Toto, Hall & Oates and Kenny Loggins — music you can sail to. But as David and Talia learn in this conversation with the arbiters of Yacht Rock , the waters are much murkier than that.

For example, according to Ryznar, "There's also a common misconception that just because it's about a boat, or the ocean, or sailing, that it's yacht rock. That is most definitely nyacht true." Thankfully, on their Beyond Yacht Rock podcast, our guests have developed a sound system of logical criteria to define what is "Yacht" and what is "Nyacht." They employ their patented "Yachtzee scale" to examine a song's "Yachtness" based on a number of factors, including its personnel (is there a Doobie Brother in there?), amount of jazz and R&B influence, geographic origin (Southern California is a plus) and lyrical obtuseness.

Listen as Ryznar and Lyons steer us towards the musical marina with a buoyant "Yacht or Nyacht" debate that includes Michael McDonald, Christopher Cross, Sade and the most serious discussion you can have about the proper soundtrack for standing shirtless on a deck wearing boat shoes and a sailor cap. Dive on in --the water's great.

Listen: JD Ryznar's Yacht Rock Primer

Episode playlist.

• Michael McDonald
• Hall & Oates

32 episodes

This podcast does one thing and one thing only: It determines whether songs are "yacht rock" or "nyacht rock." "Hollywood" Steve Huey, David Lyons, JD Ryznar, and Hunter Stair, the team that coined the genre "yacht rock" with their legendary webseries, rate curated and listener-suggested tracks on the highly-accurate Yachtski Scale to build out the playlist of certified yacht rock songs. Their analysis employs a precise scientific method that involves a deep well of musical knowledge, impeccably trained ears, sophomoric banter, and, most impressively, uses a spreadsheet algorithm to add scores & divide them by four. This may sound intimidating but fear not! The hosts let you in on their decades-long friendship and make you feel like part of the team. Can you guess how they'll rate each song? The more you listen, the better you'll get.

The Yacht or Nyacht Podcast JD Ryznar, Steve Huey, Dave Lyons, Hunter Stair

• 5.0 • 160 Ratings
• APR 2, 2024

31. I'm A Podcast

JD, Steve, Hunter and David rate listener suggestions on the Yachtski Scale, including tracks by Marc Jordan, Bobby McFerrin and the Dukes of September.

• MAR 26, 2024

30. Dick Fitzmore n’ Friends

Listener suggestions are rated on the yachtski scale, including songs by Al Jarreau, Billy Joel, and Jimmy Webb.

• MAR 19, 2024

29. Clarinet is a Female Clarin

Listener suggestions are rated on the Yachtski scale, including some by Michael McDonald, Al Jarreau, and Toto.

• MAR 12, 2024

28. Pointer Anointer

We take a look at songs by The Pointer Sisters to determine whether they are yacht or nyacht.

• MAR 5, 2024

27. EWF-Stravaganza

The guys rate songs by Earth, Wind & Fire on the Yachtski scale.

• FEB 27, 2024

26. Guttural Russian

Songs are rated on the yachtski scale, including tracks by by Hall & Oates, Little River Band, and Elton John.

Customer Reviews

160 Ratings

100 on the Pyachdski Scale

The best podcast/pyachdcast to help you understand what belongs on the boat, what is best left at the marina, and what is bilge water that should be discharged posthaste.

So excited to find out what makes the boat!

Believe in the system

The boys are all back and in fine form

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Scenery Review : Moscow City XP by Drzewiecki Design

• drzewiecki design

By Stephen September 24, 2016 in Payware Airports and Scenery Reviews

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You fly for hours, anticipating your arrival, wanting to take in the area and the views of another country far away from your departure airport. The airport and the area you leave from is detailed and visually full, and you know you have a great airport scenery waiting for you at the other end of the flight, then when you arrive...

...  Nothing, but flat plain emptiness and the same boring standard X-Plane basic scenery, worse there is no OSM (Open Street Map) data in the tile either, so there is no road or autogen detailing in there as well, just well nothing.

When Drzewiecki Design released their UUEE Sheremetyevo Airport XP , I loved it because it was like a visitor from the Cold War past, the Soviet era, and it was also great scenery and great choice of a destination to fly to from any of the capitals of Europe...  but that was it, just this great airport in the middle of nothingness, bland....   zero ville.

Now Drzewiecki Design has released "Moscow City"  a scenery package to compliment their UUEE Sheremetyevo, and boy how much a difference this release has done to this totally boring area.

To get the full first impression effect I flew JARDesign's A320neo from EFHK Vatnaa, Helsinki to UUEE Sheremetyevo which is flight Finnair AY153 which is a daily 9.25am service.

First Impressions

I was surprised to start picking up scenery still quite away out from central Moscow, as I approached my 6000ft transition altitude. Here there was buildings and houses and the physical visual notes you were arriving somewhere.

Looking hard at the horizon through the A320's windows and you could see the iconic silhouette of Moscow city.

The scenery provides lite versions of all Moscow's Airports, this is UUWW Vnukovo, which was easily recognisable as you flew over. As you fly closer to the centre of the city the density of the objects below becomes quite heavy as the landscape fills in. You have all kinds of infrastructure including, blocks of flats, tower blocks, factories, housing, skyscrapers and almost everything that makes up an urban landscape, in all there is 2000 custom-made buildings that makes up this impressive scenery.

A note here in that you don't get that rolling as you move feeling effect where as it just suddenly appears in front of you and then quickly disappears behind as soon as you have flown out over the area. There is a slight effect of that as there has to be, but only in the far distance and as you can see from the images the views in every direction are widespread and visually it is very good to excellent.

The "Seven Sisters" or "Stalinist skyscrapers" built from 1947 to 1953 are all in the scenery with their "Wedding Cake" architecture or officially  Russian Baroque               - Gothic style. Most famous is the Moscow State University, front and centre of the image below.

Central Moscow is excellent and extremely realistic, and you really need a travel guide to pick out the landmarks and detail, but it is hard to miss the Red Kremlin complex  and St Peter's square from the air.  Both sides of the aircraft is visually full until you have crossed right over the city.

I am not a fan of the generated 3d OSM scenery, but this is very good in blending in perfectly with the X-Plane default scenery and giving you a smooth transition from country to urban and back again with great realism.

Over the city and turning north towards Sheremetyevo, another Moscow airport UUMU Chkalovsky is represented on the turn.

The city skyline is now easily visible on landing at Sheremetyevo, and that really helps in the arrival factor, more so in that the cities building infrastructure spread now comes up and around the airport to fill the gaps to the city itself, and making the original  Sheremetyevo scenery that was so open and lonely in the old X-Plane view is now a big part of the whole in this combination. No doubt it really brings this always good scenery now alive and very usable.

Sheremetyevo Airport

Before we move on to the city itself. It is important to note the area around UUEE Sheremetyevo itself.

Compare the large image above to the earlier image at the start of this review to see the amount of change there is around UUEE Sheremetyevo with the addition of this Moscow City package. The two sceneries are of course meant to be used together, and in reality it would look odd if you had Moscow City scenery installed without the Sheremetyevo scenery included to fill out the northern areas. A highlight is that both sceneries together form a single whole, as the areas between the airport and the central city area are well filled in and that gives you a huge area of coverage and the full visual aspect.

To get a closer lower look at the Moscow Center I commandeered Dreamfoil's lovely Bell 407.

There is a 4.000km² total area covered with this scenery here, and you have expect some sort of building replication to cover all that ground. There is of course but as well in the fact there is also enough variations as to not keep it all interesting and not obviously visually obvious.

The closer you go to the central area, the variations in the buildings change there in style and density as well. And then more of the iconic buildings start to appear as you get closer in again to the middle. The business district is excellent, with a lot of business towers and the more modern futuristic skyscraper architecture that stands out in every view point in eye scans across the city.

The more recent is in tune with the more older Stalinist era that makes up the Moscow skyline.

The Kremlin Complex and the Cathedral of Vasily the Blessed (St Basil's) is excellently represented and so is "Red Square"

There are Orthodox churches everywhere and all the big icons in the Moscow Cathedral Mosque, Cathedral of Christ the Savior, Grand Arena of the Central Lenin Stadium, Otkrytive Arena and department stores, museums and power stations and more....

I did have issues with many buildings floating, including the Kremlin. I tried both "Runways follow terrain contours" on and off with no flattening of the objects and there is no information in the manual either on how to fix the problem.

Night lighting is very good, yes there is again a repeatable pattern to the majority of the hundreds of the apartment blocks that does stand out, but the more individual buildings do all have that personal touch and some buildings look really very good.

The highlight here is the business district which looks magnificent and is very realistic from any direction at night as is the lit Stadium.

Although away from the central area the Ostankino Tower that stands 540.1 metres (1,772 ft) tall, and is the tallest freestanding structure in Europe and it looks great at night and is a very good position indicator from the air from any direction.

Included Moscow Airports

As noted also included in the scenery are seven airports and several helipads.

UUWW Vnukovo

The futuristic Vnukovo International is very good for a lite version, with great terminals and lots of small detailing. Only thing missing is the static aircraft and a bit more ramp equipment, but otherwise it is highly usable.

UUDD Domodedovo

The oldest of Moscow's International airports is Domodedovo. Again it is quite devoid of static aircraft and I am not crazy about the blue terminal glass work, but it is still a very workable scenery to use and has a lot of well made objects.

UUBW Zhukovsky

Zhukovsky was a major aircraft testing facility since the  cold war years, with most of the major Russian Experimental Design Bureau's having facilities here. It is also now used by the Ministry of Emergency Situations! and cargo carriers. It was also used as a test site for the Soviet Buran  reusable Spacecraft because it has the world's second longest pubic runway at at 5,402 m (17,723 ft). Mostly it is a collection of very large hangars but has a lot of static aircraft in storage.

UUMO Ostafyevo International Business Airport

A former military airbase. Ostafyevo features a new modern glass terminal, and caters primarily to business aviation.

UUMU Chkalovsky

Chkalovsky is a military logistics airport that is famous for it's support for the Russian Space program and transport to Star City and the Yuri A. Gagarin State Scientific Research-and-Testing Cosmonaut Training Center. Yuri Gagarin left here on his final flight before crashing by the town of Kirzhach.

UUBM Myachkovo Airport

Myachkovo is a small General Aviation Airport that is owned by the Finpromko company. Cargo aircraft up to the size of the Ilyushin ll-76 freighter can also use the airport.

UUMB Kubinka

Kubinka has been a significant Russian military airbase and large airshows are held here to show off the Russian military might.

There is also provided UUU1 Kremlin Airport, within the Kremlin walls, but I couldn't get it to work? There are two pads in H1 and H2.

Your first thoughts after reviewing this excellent Moscow scenery is not with this actual package. You then wish that you could have this extensive scenery at London, Rome, Madrid, Berlin and the list could go on with any of your favorite European Cities, and don't count a load in the Middle East and Asia. But a London scenery like this would certainly be a godsend in our X-Plane world. Drzewiecki Design has already done Warsaw and Manhattan, so there is always hope.

It is not cheap either and you need to add in their UUEE Sheremetyevo scenery package on top of that as well. But you get an awful lot of ground covered here for your money, with the area covered here that is extensive...  huge and flying into Moscow will never be the same again.

A few areas to note in one that in my case a few of the buildings floated, the download is huge load at 1.4gb and this Russian area is not the best for navigation aids and programming FMS units as most waypoints are not recognised. Most of the airports ILS coordinates also have to checked and recalibrated (Drzewiecki Design do provide all the correct coordinates) so there is a little work to do to set up repeat services but the work is worth the results.

Not only is the actual Moscow city and all it's buildings supported, you also get seven (if lite versions) of Moscow's other airports included as well, but the framerate processing of all this huge amount of objects and scale is pretty good to excellent. Framerate does hurt more on a lower (helicopter) level and certainly you need a computer with a little extra power is in no doubt required, but overall for the size of the area the scenery is extremely efficient.

Yes I was impressed by this Moscow City Scenery, as this once very barren area of X-Plane is now a very attractive repeat destination as nothing can give you a greater fulfilment than seeing your destination appear in the distance and then give you a huge visual experience as you fly over and approach your destination.

Moscow City certainly delivers that and more...  Just more sceneries like this please!

Moscow City XP by Drzewiecki Design is NOW available! from the X-Plane.Org Store here :

• Extremely detailed model of Moscow metropolitan area in Russia
• Almost 2000 custom-made buildings and other objects, all high quality, FPS-friendly and with night textures
• Whole Moscow center done in 3D as well as all other important landmarks - museums, palaces, skyscrapers, towers, bridges, railway stations, Zara stores...
• Trains, ships, 3D people, cars, airport vehicles, static aircraft - anything you can imagine
• About 4000 sq.km of photoreal 0,5-1m/pix terrain with autogen
• Sceneries of all surrounding airports including UUWW Vnukovo, UUDD Domodedovo, UUBW Zhukovski, UUMO Ostafyevo, UUBM Myachkovo and UUMB Kubinka, with all airport buildings, detailed layouts, people, airport vehicles and more
• Very detailed Kremlin model with newly constructed heliport

Requirements

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Installation and documents:

Download for the Moscow City XP is 1.47gb and the unzipped file is deposited in the "Custom Scenery" as four files:

DDZ Moscow City XP (3.99gb) - Yes GIGABYTES!

DDZ Moscow City XP Layer 2 (30.20mb)

DDZ Moscow City XP Documents (1.0 mb)

ZZZ_DDZ Moscow City XP Terrain (20.10mb)

Installation for Windows comes with an .exe installer that deposits the files in the correct order required (however I still moved the ZZZ- folder to the bottom via the INI text install list.

Installation Instructions are provided for Mac and Linux

You need to check all airports ILS coordinates are correct, instructions are provided.

Documents: Two documents include

Moscow City XP MacLinuxinstall

Moscow City XP Manual (seven pages)

Review System Specifications:

Computer System : Windows  - Intel Core i7 6700K CPU 4.00GHz / 64bit - 16 Gb single 1067 Mhz DDR4 2133 - GeForce GTX 980/SSE2 - Samsung Evo 512gb SSD 

Software :   - Windows 10 - X-Plane 10 Global ver 10.50

Addons : Saitek x52 Pro system Joystick and Throttle : Sound - Bose  Soundlink Mini

Plugins: JARDesign Ground Handling Deluxe US$14.95 : WorldTraffic US$29.95

Scenery or Aircraft

- Airbus A320neo by JARDesign ( X-Plane.OrgStore ) - US$59.95 : A320neo Sound Packs by Blue Sky Star Simulations ( X-Plane.OrgStore ) - US$19.95

- Bell 407 by Dreamfoil Creations ( X-Plane.OrgStore ) - US$34.95

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• 7 months later...

Thank you for this very thorough (as always) review. I just bought it (it's on sale) and have only one disappointment so far: Red Square has no ILS or any landing aids at all for that matter. And what a nightmare of an approach! Also I was hoping the package would include an add-on that gives my c172 a big cup holder for my Stoli. Otherwise the scenery is gorgeous. What a country!

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Meet Moscow’s Take On The Twisting Tower: Evolution Tower

Evolution Tower is a twisting 255 meter tall skyscraper located in ‘Moscow City’, Moscow, an initiative by the Russian government to create a new business district on an old industrial site. The twisting tower provides approximately 85,000 m² of retail and leisure facilities and 85,000 m² of offices and public functions. It is the twelfth tallest building in Russia and the 20 th tallest in Europe.

 The dramatic form of the tower was designed by architects RMJM in collaboration with Scottish artist Karen Forbes. The double helix DNA inspired form has become an iconic landmark in the Moscow skyline, as the city has never been known for its skyscrapers or architectural identity. The form is also reminiscent of two ribbons wrapping around each other. Each of the 51 floors of the tower is rotated 3 degrees relative to the previous one, so the building is “swirled” by more than 150 degrees. In this way, the central core and eight columns with 15-meter spans between the axes remain strictly vertical all the way up. The spiral geometry is repeated only by four corners of the building. The top of the tower is crowned with two asymmetric “arches” spanning 41 m, visually uniting the two opposite facades.

The facade of the tower boasts a near complete covering of LED lights, this media façade is the largest in all of Asia. The scale and the form of the building made the installation and management of the LED system quite a challenge, thus the building also boasts one of the most sophisticated lighting management and control systems on the planet.

The plot covers an area of 2.55 hectares, of which most are landscaped into a terrace while the rest is used for the tower. The tower and the terrace are built on a three-level stylobate designated the Evolution Gallery with an area of 28,000 square metres (300,000 sq ft). There are exits from the tower that lead directly to the nearby metro station. This podium features a shopping mall and the roof is landscaped to provide additional space for users to unwind in the midst of fountains, terraces and cafes, thus providing a strong connection with the larger urban sphere.

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