Tools for Microsoft Flight Simulator and X-Plane.

In-sim panels, desktop and mobile companion apps, hardware integrations and developer tools, built on each simulator's official interfaces. One simulator or several, with the business around the tool if you need it.

Book a Tool Sprint Building an aircraft instead?

SIMULATORS: Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 and X-Plane; others on request
TOOL SPRINT: one week: a spec and a fixed build quote, credited to the build
PRICE: quoted after the Sprint, set by scope and complexity
YOUR TOOL: your name, brand and product; we license our reusable libraries

What we build

Six kinds of tool the simulator community pays for, on one simulator or several.

In-sim panels and EFBs

Cockpit tablet apps, checklists, performance and planning tools that live inside the simulator.

Desktop companion apps

Apps that talk to the simulator through its official interfaces: flight trackers, moving maps, copilots and instructor stations.

Mobile companion apps

iPhone and iPad apps that connect to the simulator: remote panels, moving maps, checklists and flight planning on a second screen.

Hardware integration

Drivers and bridges for yokes, panels, home cockpits and motion platforms, on one simulator or several.

Virtual airline and training tools

Flight logging and reporting, lesson tracking, and scenario and failure injection for instructors.

Developer tools for add-on studios

Livery managers, installers and updaters, configurators and build pipelines.

Simulators

Built on each simulator's own interfaces

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024

SimConnect apps, WASM modules, in-sim panels and EFB apps.

X-Plane

Plugins on the X-Plane SDK, datarefs and commands, Lua, and UDP data.

Other simulators

Prepar3D, DCS World, FlightGear and others on request. Ask us.

Experience

We've been building simulator tools for a long time.

Our founder has built simulator tools for years, including mission planners and code libraries for Jane's® F/A-18 and Graphic Simulations' F/A-18 Hornet™.

Today the same kind of work runs inside our own projects. For the Airplane Farm Harvest we built a custom HUD with autoland and auto-takeoff guidance, a JSBSim flight-dynamics model that runs inside the simulator about 480 times a second, and flight recording for Tacview.

Jane's is a registered trademark of Jane's Information Group. Graphic Simulations is a trademark of Graphic Simulations Corporation. F/A-18 and Hornet are trademarks of The Boeing Company. Microsoft Flight Simulator is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation, and X-Plane is a trademark of Laminar Research. Product names are used only to describe past and present work; Keelara is not affiliated with or endorsed by any of these companies.

Packages

Every tool is different, so the price is set by scope and complexity. The Tool Sprint is the one fixed price, and it ends with a fixed quote for the build.

Tool Sprint

START HERE

Paid up front, and credited in full against a build booked within 30 days.

One week

Book a Tool Sprint

A written spec. What the tool does, who uses it, and how it fits the simulator.
An interface check. What each simulator lets a tool read and control: SimConnect and WASM for MSFS, the plugin SDK, datarefs and UDP for X-Plane.
A one-sim or cross-sim plan. Build for one simulator, or one shared core with an adapter for each.
A fixed build quote and timetable. Set by scope and complexity. A number you can hold us to, or take to someone else.

Sim Tool

One tool for one simulator: an in-sim panel, a desktop or mobile companion app, or a plugin, with an installer and documentation.

after the Sprint

Ask about it

Cross-Sim

The same tool for Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 and X-Plane, built as one shared core with an adapter for each simulator.

after the Sprint

Ask about it

Connected Tool

Your tool plus the business around it: accounts, license keys, subscriptions and a web dashboard, built by Keelara Studio.See Keelara Studio →

after the Sprint

Ask about it

Hardware Integration

Drivers and bridges for yokes, panels, home cockpits and motion platforms, on one simulator or several.

after the Sprint

Ask about it

Care

Simulator and SDK updates are the most common reason tools stop working. Opt-in, month to month, with 30 days' notice either way.

FROMper month

Ask about it

Prices are in US dollars, exclusive of any applicable taxes. Milestones trigger on builds you can run and accept, never on calendar dates.

Rules we hold ourselves to

Fixed once quoted.

Price depends on scope and complexity, so the Tool Sprint ends with a fixed quote. Changes are quoted before work starts.

Every milestone runs in the simulator.

Each one is a build you can install, run and accept. No payment for slides.

Your tool is yours.

Its name, brand and product are yours. Keelara keeps its reusable libraries, and your package includes a license to use them.

Inside the rules.

We build on each simulator's official SDKs and interfaces, within Microsoft's and Laminar Research's license terms.

Questions about tools

Can you build a tool or plugin for Microsoft Flight Simulator and X-Plane?

Yes. Keelara Flight Systems builds tools for Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 and X-Plane: in-sim panels and EFB apps, desktop companion apps on SimConnect or the X-Plane SDK, iPhone and iPad companion apps, hardware integrations, virtual airline and training tools, and developer tools for add-on studios. Other simulators are available on request.

How much does a simulator tool cost?

It depends on scope and complexity, so every build starts with a one-week Tool Sprint for $2,000. The Sprint ends with a written spec and a fixed build quote, and the $2,000 is credited in full against a build booked within 30 days.

Can one tool work in both simulators?

Usually, yes. We build one shared core with an adapter for each simulator. The Tool Sprint checks what each simulator allows a tool to read and control, and says plainly where the two differ.

Can you add accounts, licensing and subscriptions?

Yes. The Connected Tool package pairs your tool with a web back end built by Keelara Studio: accounts, license keys, subscriptions and a web dashboard.

Who owns the tool?

You do. Its name, brand and product are yours. Keelara keeps its reusable libraries, and your package includes a license to use them.

What happens when a simulator update breaks the tool?

Simulator and SDK updates are the most common reason tools stop working. Opt-in care plans, from $300 a month, keep your tool compatible after each update.

Start a project

Tell us what the tool should do and which simulators it's for. We'll reply personally, usually within a day, and if we're not the right fit, we'll say so.

1. A free 30-minute fit call
2. A Tool Sprint: a spec, a check of each simulator's interfaces, and a fixed quote
3. The build, paid on milestones you can run in the sim

Your tool's name, brand and product are yours. Keelara keeps its reusable libraries, and your package includes a license to use them.

Please don't attach code or files here. We'll send an NDA first if you need one.

NameEmail

Company / product name

What do you need? What kind of tool?

Target simulator Budget

Deadline or reason Tell us about the tool How did you hear about us?

We'll email you a confirmation as soon as you send this. If it isn't in your inbox within a few minutes, please check your spam or junk folder.

Please don't attach code or files here. We'll send an NDA first if you need one. Goes straight to contact@keelara.com.