Hi, all.
I'm developing a slipstream-based dual-rotor tail-sitter UAV similar to the Phoenix Drone (https://github.com/utiasSTARS/PhoenixDrone), and I need a simulator to make control algorithm development and testing easier.
The available solution is to test the model through the Gazebo simulator; however, its aerodynamics simulation is very limited (http://gazebosim.org/tutorials?tut=aerodynamics&cat=physics). For instance, the current Gazebo aerodynamics plugin makes great (and possibly incorrect) simplification to the lift and drag polar and does not support aerodynamic moment at all.
It seems to me that FlightGear handles aerodynamics and flight dynamics in a much more sophisticated and accurate manner and might be a better solution to simulating the vehicle. Also, the flow over the target vehicle involves complex slipstream dynamics that might not be supported in FlightGear, so I might need to develop some extension to make that possible.
As I'm very new to this software package and don't have a full understanding of its capacity, may I ask if creating such a flight vehicle simulator is viable and practical?