Find aircraft background, systems descriptions and manuals for the aircraft you are researching. Each note keeps its source and version context close by.
G-21A Goose · Microsoft Flight Simulator · MSFS 2020
The guide identifies old-style navigation and other omitted functions as inoperative. Unanimated controls should be treated as INOP, rather than assumed to have an undocumented function.
MSFS 2020 Goose guide, Important Notes and Substitutions
Grumman conceived the Goose as transport for businessmen around Long Island. A boat hull, retractable landing gear and two engines mounted high on the wing allowed travel between water and conventional airfields. Military service followed during the Second World War.
The G-21 is smaller than Grumman's Albatross, with a different cabin and service history. Civilian survivors and military JRF versions can carry different equipment.
Aircraft / family
Ken Scott · 1 June 2018
Derek Roberts interviews Burke Mees · 15 May 2019
Jay Selman interviews Sam Valadez · 6 January 2026
Grumman G-44A Widgeon · Flysimware · MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024
Flysimware represents the postwar G-44A. Its listed equipment includes a GNS 530, GTX327 transponder, GMA 340 audio panel, ADF and DME. The developer also describes an interactive copilot checklist, rain and icing effects, and parked-aircraft equipment such as chocks, tie-downs and engine plugs.
Official MSFS product description
Grumman G-44A Widgeon · Flysimware · MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024
The product page links its v1.2 pilot manual and a changelog, and gives separate advice about ground steering for users without toe brakes. That file-based adjustment is explicitly limited to non-Marketplace versions because Marketplace files are protected. Consult the developer’s current instructions for the installed version.
Product page: User Manuals and Latest Info
Grumman G-44A Widgeon · Flysimware · MSFS 2020 · MSFS 2024
The manual describes an optional realistic hydraulic mode on the copilot-seat clipboard. In this mode, the gear and flap levers must be held while the mechanism moves; releasing a lever closes its valve. Flysimware warns that a persistent hardware gear assignment conflicts with this option and recommends a separate control profile. The documented manual pump and lever-lock tabs provide a simulated alternative when the left-engine hydraulic supply is unavailable.
Flysimware manual v1.2, MSFS 2020: clipboard settings and hydraulic operation; developer documentation, not a runtime hardware test.
The Widgeon was Grumman's smaller counterpart to the Goose. High-mounted twin engines kept the propellers above the water, and retractable landing gear allowed it to use runways as well as sheltered waterways.
Military versions served as the J4F and Gosling. The postwar G-44A revised the hull. Many surviving aircraft have replacement engines or propellers, including Super Widgeon conversions that differ from the original Ranger-powered configuration.
Real G-44 with modified propellers; water checkout with Merrill Wien. AOPA Pilot, March 2000.
Owner/instructor’s converted Super Widgeon; AOPA Pilot, December 2021. Reported interview, not a stock G-44A flight test.
One-hour real Widgeon flight with instructor Chester Lawson, reported by SRQ on 23 February 2017.
New aircraft, useful sources and improvements to AirframeDB. Occasional updates, when there’s something to share.
