Start here
A few places to begin, from the aircraft’s story to the people who fly it.
Meet the aircraft
Rockwell introduced the four-seat 112 in the early 1970s and followed it with the Commander 114 in 1976. A roomy cabin, retractable landing gear and cruciform tail formed the layout. The 114 added a more powerful engine and other refinements.
Aircraft background
Wikipedia contributors · Read more ↗Trying the revived Commander from front and back
The reviewer flew N114BW twice and also took a short ride in the rear seats. That gave the report a passenger’s view of the redesigned cabin as well as the pilot’s. The broad doors, reclining rear seats and quieter interior made an impression, although door fit still needed attention on an early production aircraft. Flying the demonstrator showed familiar Commander handling beneath the updates.
July 1992 report. N114BW during the 114B’s development and certification period; named byline not established by the accessible article.
AOPA Pilot · Read more ↗The tablet makes systems visible
The Commander tablet includes an engine visualiser, a live electrical schematic and environmental-system displays, alongside payload, options and failures. The feature booklet describes hydraulic landing-gear behaviour and cabin heating, cooling and ventilation. These displays provide ways to explore what changes inside the simulated aircraft when equipment is operated or a fault is introduced.
Commander 114 · Black Square · MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024
Black Square / Just Flight · Read more ↗Into the cockpit
YouTube DXHUNTER · 9 min ·
Flight with Rockwell Commander 114
A guest shares a flight in a Commander 114.
Real aircraft · Rockwell Commander 114
Watch on YouTube ↗Preview images are served by AirframeDB. Videos open on YouTube only when you choose to watch.
Meet Rockwell Commander 114
Rockwell introduced the four-seat 112 in the early 1970s and followed it with the Commander 114 in 1976. A roomy cabin, retractable landing gear and cruciform tail formed the layout. The 114 added a more powerful engine and other refinements.
Black Square represents a 1977 Commander 114 and a turbonormalised, air-conditioned version, with several radio and navigation installations.
Rockwell Commander 114
Rockwell → · Explore the family →
Rockwell Commander 114
Wikipedia contributors · Rockwell Commander 112 ↗Black Square · MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024 →Aircraft type designators
Use the code for the model you are flying. The linked authority lists the applicable aircraft.
History & design
Development milestones
The 4 December 1970 first-flight date in the linked history belongs to the Commander 112. The 114 followed as a more powerful member of the same family.
Wikipedia contributors · Rockwell Commander 112 ↗Clarifies the Commander 112 family milestone
From the original 114 to a revived 114B
The Commander 114 arrived in 1976 with a 260 hp six-cylinder engine. Following the end of Rockwell’s single-engine production, Commander Aircraft acquired the design and developed the 114B, updating the cabin and aerodynamic details before certification in 1992.
AOPA Pilot · Commander 114B: Plan B ↗Contemporary AOPA history of the 114B’s return
Pilot accounts
Trying the revived Commander from front and back
The reviewer flew N114BW twice and also took a short ride in the rear seats. That gave the report a passenger’s view of the redesigned cabin as well as the pilot’s. The broad doors, reclining rear seats and quieter interior made an impression, although door fit still needed attention on an early production aircraft.
Flying the demonstrator showed familiar Commander handling beneath the updates. One flight’s temperamental instruments made performance checking difficult; another climbed above thermal turbulence before the writer could assess the cruise. The aircraft’s substantial feel on the ground, heavier ailerons at speed and accommodating trailing-link landing gear all entered the report. This was an account of a design returning to production while its final details were still being refined.
July 1992 report. N114BW during the 114B’s development and certification period; named byline not established by the accessible article.
Read the full account · AOPA Pilot ↗Keeping the wide cabin while moving up in performance
The Williamses came to the Commander from a Tobago, seeking more performance while keeping the two doors and broad cabin they already enjoyed. Both were pilots, and their journeys often stretched from Virginia to Florida, Oklahoma or Texas. The aircraft served some business travel as well as their longer personal trips.
Daniel had additional flight instruments installed on the right side so either seat would be useful to a pilot. His joke that he kept the left seat by hiding the keys gave the interview a glimpse of their shared flying life. They described planning trips at moderate power rather than treating maximum advertised speed as the everyday objective. Their enthusiasm centred on an aircraft that preserved the comfort they valued while broadening its travelling role.
Owners interviewed by AOPA Pilot · April 1995. Their 1994 Commander 114B, based at Accomack County, Virginia.
Read the full account · AOPA Pilot ↗Comfortable cruising still meant watching the engine
Horne’s first leg brought smooth air between showers, with the autopilot and yaw damper holding the course while he used the built-in oxygen system. The generous cabin and easy access reinforced the Commander’s appeal for longer trips. On the ground before the next departure, a fuel leak through the vent supplied an unwelcome reminder about the aircraft’s fuel-selector arrangement.
Climbing higher to retain a direct clearance made engine monitoring more demanding. Rising cylinder temperatures led him to open the cowl flaps, accepting additional noise and drag; later, he reported resolving rough running with the boost pump. He descended through lively cloud into Cincinnati and finished with an acceptable landing. The journey illustrates both the comfort and the attention required by the particular turbocharged aircraft he flew.
AOPA Pilot · October 1998. Turbocharged 114TC N6121A, flown from Bethany through Olathe to Cincinnati.
Read the full account · AOPA Pilot ↗In your simulator
Systems, equipment and documentation for each developer’s aircraft.
MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024Commander 114
Black Square · Released
Commander 114
Black Square · Released
Aircraft specifications
Published figures for the named real-aircraft variant. Simulator equipment and performance can differ.
| Specification | Published value |
|---|---|
| Length | 24 ft 11 in (7.59 m) |
| Wingspan | 32 ft 9 in (9.98 m) |
| Height | 8 ft 5 in (2.57 m) |
| Wing area | 152 sq ft (14.1 m² ) |
| Empty weight | 2,077 lb (942 kg) |
| Gross weight | 3,260 lb (1,479 kg) |
| Max takeoff weight | 3,250 lb (1,474 kg) |
| Powerplant | 1 × Textron Lycoming IO-540-T4B5, 260 hp (190 kW) |
| Propellers | 3-bladed McCauley B3O32C4 L 9/82NHA-5 |
| Maximum speed | 164 kn (189 mph, 304 km/h) |
| Cruise speed | 135–155 kn (155–178 mph, 250–287 km/h) |
| Stall speed | 60 kn (69 mph, 110 km/h) |
| Range | 600 nmi (690 mi, 1,100 km) at 75% Power |
| Service ceiling | 14,200 ft (4,300 m) at MTOM |
| Rate of climb | 1,070 ft/min (5.4 m/s) Initial Sea Level Rate |
Manuals & resources
Find your next read
Choose a topic for a short introduction and a link to the original source. Simulator references identify the developer and edition they cover.
Simulator documentation
The tablet makes systems visibleCommander 114 · Black Square · MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024
The Commander tablet includes an engine visualiser, a live electrical schematic and environmental-system displays, alongside payload, options and failures. The feature booklet describes hydraulic landing-gear behaviour and cabin heating, cooling and ventilation. These displays provide ways to explore what changes inside the simulated aircraft when equipment is operated or a fault is introduced.
Black Square Commander feature booklet, June/July 2026 edition; developer feature description · PDF p.7
Black Square / Just Flight · Read the source ↗Two engine configurations and a choice of cockpit equipmentCommander 114 · Black Square · MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024
Black Square represents a 1977 normally aspirated Commander 114 and a turbonormalised, air-conditioned version. The manual describes interchangeable radio equipment, a stormscope, hydraulic landing gear and the S-TEC System 60-2 autopilot. Mechanical effects include wheel shimmy.
Black Square Commander 114 · PDF p.9; introduction and variants
Black Square / Just Flight · Read the source ↗Choose what returns on the next flightCommander 114 · Black Square · MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024
The tablet separates non-essential, flight-critical and avionics state-saving options. The manual says fuel and payload are always retained and explains how defaults adapt to the starting phase of flight. Saving is gradual, taking roughly a minute, and requires a proper simulator shutdown to preserve changes.
Black Square Commander manual · PDF pp.51–52
Black Square / Just Flight · Read the source ↗Starting reflects temperature and battery conditionCommander 114 · Black Square · MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024
Black Square’s engine model includes cylinder compression and starter torque that depends on battery charge. Cold oil and reduced battery performance can make starting harder. A tablet-controlled preheater changes the simulated engine's condition before flight.
Black Square Commander manual · PDF pp.58–59
Black Square / Just Flight · Read the source ↗A stormscope with a documented simulation methodCommander 114 · Black Square · MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024
Black Square describes its stormscope as a depiction of storm activity built from precipitation data and estimated electrical potential. That explains what produces the simulated indications. The feature booklet also presents a choice of period and GPS avionics, including the RNAV 511, with instrument friction and sticking among the modelled behaviours.
Black Square Commander feature booklet, June/July 2026 edition; developer feature description · PDF pp.4–5
Black Square / Just Flight · Read the source ↗Pilot account
Trying the revived Commander from front and backJuly 1992 report. N114BW during the 114B’s development and certification period; named byline not established by the accessible article.
The reviewer flew N114BW twice and also took a short ride in the rear seats. That gave the report a passenger’s view of the redesigned cabin as well as the pilot’s. The broad doors, reclining rear seats and quieter interior made an impression, although door fit still needed attention on an early production aircraft. Flying the demonstrator showed familiar Commander handling beneath the updates.
AOPA Pilot flight reviewer
AOPA Pilot · Read the source ↗Keeping the wide cabin while moving up in performanceOwners interviewed by AOPA Pilot · April 1995. Their 1994 Commander 114B, based at Accomack County, Virginia.
The Williamses came to the Commander from a Tobago, seeking more performance while keeping the two doors and broad cabin they already enjoyed. Both were pilots, and their journeys often stretched from Virginia to Florida, Oklahoma or Texas. The aircraft served some business travel as well as their longer personal trips. Daniel had additional flight instruments installed on the right side so either seat would be useful to a pilot.
Daniel and Bonnie Williams
AOPA Pilot · Read the source ↗Read the original documentation from the people who created it. Manuals open on their publisher’s website.
Manual
Black Square Commander 114 operating manualBlack Square / Just Flight Commander 114 product and manualsBlack Square / Just Flight Microsoft Flight Simulator aircraft manualsMicrosoft / aircraft developers Feature HighlightsBlack Square / Just Flight · Black Square Commander feature booklet, June/July 2026 edition; developer feature descriptionAircraft background
Rockwell Commander 112Wikipedia contributors · Research background · Wikipedia revision 1345185061 · retrieved 2026-09-12Type designator
ICAO Doc 8643 — aircraft type designatorsInternational Civil Aviation Organization · Public search data retrieved 2026-09-14; authority update 2026-09-03Built-in force-feedback profiles
Read the documentary basis, editable starting settings and remaining questions for the aircraft you fly. Each explanation refers to the exact profile revision shown.
Catalogue programme-20261022-v1 · 2 profile choices
Black Square Commander 114
Black Square · Free and Pro · Revision 1 · Inherited starting point
MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024
Black Square Commander 114: The selected spring and load supply touring-aircraft yoke resistance.
Rockwell Commander 114
Free and Pro · Revision 1 · Partial review
MSFS 2024 · MSFS 2020
Rockwell Commander 114: The selected spring and load supply touring-aircraft yoke resistance.
Discuss this aircraft (0)
Questions, observations and useful sources from the community.
No published discussions yet. Bring a question or share a useful source.
Open aircraft discussions →Content expanded · What’s new
Something missing or a source that needs attention?
Suggest a correction ↗
