Compare Aerosoft Airbus X Extended with Airbus Professional, including aircraft coverage and exact support for FSX and Prepar3D versions.
Aerosoft Airbus X Extended is the older 32-bit A320/A321 add-on for FSX and legacy Prepar3D, while Airbus Professional is the redesigned 64-bit Prepar3D generation spanning separate products from the A318 through A330. Professional chiefly targets P3D v4; P3D v5 support depends on the exact aircraft package and installed update.
What changed from Airbus X Extended to Professional?
Extended is the legacy product, whereas Professional is a later product family rather than a patch or renamed edition. Airbus X Extended centred on the A320 and A321 and was developed around the 32-bit FSX generation. Our original coverage of the FSX and Prepar3D release records that legacy platform position.
Professional moved the range to 64-bit Prepar3D, with reworked models, cockpit systems, displays, effects and supporting tools. It also expanded the range through separate A318/A319, A320/A321 and A330 products. Buying one Professional package does not necessarily provide every aircraft in that range.
| Difference | Airbus X Extended | Airbus Professional |
|---|---|---|
| Product generation | Legacy FSX-era release | Redesigned Prepar3D series |
| Simulator architecture | 32-bit | 64-bit |
| Aircraft coverage | A320 and A321 | A318/A319, A320/A321 and A330 in separate packages |
| Main platform | FSX and compatible early Prepar3D releases | Prepar3D v4, with package-dependent P3D v5 support |
| Upgrade relationship | Standalone legacy product | Not an in-place update for Extended |
The word “Professional” does not mean it is a certified training system or that every aircraft system and failure is simulated. Both generations concentrate heavily on normal airline procedures; Professional describes Aerosoft’s newer Prepar3D product generation.
Which simulators support each Aerosoft Airbus?
FSX users need a legacy 32-bit edition, while Prepar3D v4 users need Professional. Prepar3D v5 requires more care because compatibility can differ by aircraft package and update level.
| Simulator | Airbus X Extended | Airbus Professional |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Flight Simulator X | Yes, using its FSX installer | No native Professional build; some purchases provide a separate legacy FSX edition |
| Prepar3D v1–v3 | Only where the particular installer or update explicitly names that P3D version | No native Professional build; a separate older P3D edition may be included |
| Prepar3D v4 | No | Yes; this is the principal Professional platform |
| Prepar3D v5 | No | Supported by some updated Professional packages; verify the exact aircraft and build |
| Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 or 2024 | No | No |
| X-Plane | No | No |
Do not treat “Prepar3D compatible” as universal compatibility with every Prepar3D release. P3D v4’s move to 64-bit code is the hard dividing line: an Extended gauge or module compiled for a 32-bit simulator cannot run in P3D v4 or v5.
Why can a Professional purchase include an FSX installer?
A Professional purchase may include access to a separate older 32-bit edition for FSX or Prepar3D v3, but that does not make the Professional executable compatible with those simulators. Aerosoft’s description of the Professional redesign and expanded aircraft family explains this backward-access arrangement.
Aerosoft also used several overlapping product names over the years: Airbus X, Airbus X Extended, later A318/A319 and A320/A321 editions, and then Professional. Read the complete installer label and supported-simulator list rather than relying on the name shown in an account library.
Which version should you install?
The correct choice is determined by the simulator’s major version, not by which package name sounds newer.
- For FSX: use Airbus X Extended for the A320/A321, or the separate legacy FSX edition supplied with an applicable later purchase.
- For 32-bit Prepar3D: use only the legacy installer that explicitly lists your P3D release.
- For Prepar3D v4: install the matching Professional package.
- For Prepar3D v5: install Professional only when that aircraft’s requirements and update notes explicitly include v5.
- For MSFS 2020, MSFS 2024 or X-Plane: neither Extended nor Professional is compatible; copying the aircraft folder will not convert it.
Why do black displays or missing models appear after installation?
After ruling out an unpowered aircraft, black displays, absent models and loading errors usually point to a mismatched or mixed-generation installation.
- Confirm the simulator version. Check whether it is FSX, a 32-bit Prepar3D release, P3D v4 or P3D v5.
- Match the installer to that version. Stop if the installer does not offer the simulator you intend to use; manually selecting its folder does not create compatibility.
- Avoid layering generations. Do not install Professional over an existing Extended aircraft folder or copy old gauges into Professional.
- Use the correct updater. An Extended update cannot update Professional, and an updater does not convert a 32-bit package into a 64-bit one.
- Match liveries to the model generation. Repaints made for Extended may reference different model folders or texture conventions and are not automatically Professional-compatible.
Editing aircraft.cfg can correct a livery entry, but it cannot make an FSX binary work in 64-bit Prepar3D. If generations have been mixed, a clean removal followed by the correct base installer is safer than replacing individual files.