I am perfectly aware they have both been confirmed to be in development however I fear they have been lost in the books or forgotten about. Let me clarify I am not complaining or anything, I understand it takes a long time, I just wanted to make sure they weren’t forgotten about
As long as they have been confirmed by staff, they’re added to the pipeline and tracked internally, and will be added at some stage. As stated in the confirmation message, there is no time estimate on when they will arrive. So rest assured that they aren’t forgotten about ;) They will come, it’s just a matter of time.
Thai was confirmed in November 2023 so it’ll most likely come after China Eastern and China Southern. I can’t find a post confirming an Air Austral Boeing 777-300ER but that would be cool
Why does the staff team refuse to give an estimated timeline whenever a livery is confirmed? I was told a while ago that the developers space the release of liveries so that there is an even spread of liveries every update, which I understand and agree. What I don’t understand is why they would not give an estimated arrival date when a livery is confirmed. It cannot be difficult to plan ahead, is it? In my opinion, it leaves those who are eagerly expecting the liveries hanging without knowing when it will come, which isn’t justifiable.
For the same reason no ETA is given with any other features: roadblocks of various natures appear. Let’s say they’ve promised the China Easter B77W livery to come out by August 20th, 2024. To be extremely clear, this is in no way a confirmation for any kind of release(in no small part because I’m not a staff member, lol), I am using this is to give an example. However, higher priorities may take place for the artists, or something preventing the livery from being added may happen, and they may not be able to live up to the promise. What do you think will follow throughout the community? That’s right, a huge backlash on how the team cannot keep their promises.
Trust me, the team is as eager to release the liveries as the public is to get them. The same goes for all other in-progress features. However, it is better not to give a promise you are not 10000% certain you can deliver on. Letting the community know that the liveries are added to the pipeline is enough more often than not.
I have to say I’m not convinced. I would like to clarify by saying that I meant “estimated timeline” as the update that this livery will come, not the exact date itself.
First up, “higher priorities may take place for the artists”.
This just means there is poor planning. If this is indeed true, it should not be difficult to update the community on why something that was confirmed is delayed. With the amount of dedicated Community Managers and helpful community members, it would not be difficult keep everyone on the same page.
Secondly, “something preventing the livery from being added may happen”.
Again, it would not be difficult to give a reason to us on why it’s delayed. I believe this is what the moderators and community mangers are for, so that everyone is updated.
Thirdly, “a huge backlash on how the team cannot keep their promises”.
You will get backlash regardless. People are complaining about IF not giving release dates, and as you rightly mentioned, will complain when an expected feature is not released on time. But as always, as long as the developer team provides a legitimate reason as to why it’s delayed, the majority will be understanding, barring a few individuals.
IMO, the reasons you’ve provided makes the staff team look irresponsible. Majority of your reasoning stems from staff not wanting to answer directly to paying customers, and hiding behind a wall of “because we never told you when it’s going to come, so you can’t blame us if you’re waiting for a long time”. That’s just irresponsible behaviour IMHO. A much better way to approach this will be to explain why the staff team failed to deliver, and I believe most people will be understanding. And judging by how the community excels at making each other informed, I don’t see why the reasons you provided will be stopping the developers provide a rough timeline.