Dear aviators,

Today, we are happy to report that our joint development with Ugra-Media of a major Flying Circus-themed update is nearing completion. In mid-November, we plan to release this update, which will significantly expand and diversify the virtual world of World War I in our simulator.

A significant improvement will be the addition of 7 new major cities to the Western Front map: Mons, Namur, Aachen, Verviers, Maastricht, Bruxelles, and Charleroi. Several additional unique landmarks have been added to Paris, including the Arc de Triomphe. Small and big railway stations have been added to many settlements. Several smaller improvements have been made, which together significantly enhance the map's perception and realism.

In addition to the map improvements, a real giant is entering the Flying Circus! We have completed development of the German Zeppelin R Class combat airship. We are now finishing a set of related additional combat missions for the early period of the Pilot Career mode. Six new types of combat missions include intercepting the airship and assaulting and bombing airship bases for the Entente - German pilots will cover the airship's passage across the front line and defend the Zeppelin bases.

Creating a simulation model of an airship was not a simple task: we had to resolve issues related to the interaction of such a gigantic object with other objects in the game world, implement a very specific damage model, develop AI to control the airship's flight and the use of its weapons, and create an entirely new set of graphic effects and sounds for it. Our earlier fears about taking on such a task were not unfounded — in many ways, such a unique object brought us close to the limits of what is possible within the game world of Great Battles. Nevertheless, we managed to solve all these problems, and soon all Flying Circus owners will see the result on their PCs - you won't have to buy anything extra.

We will continue to keep you updated on the latest developments in the Great Battles game world — there will be additional important news before the end of the year. Please stay tuned and stay in touch!