Flight Yoke · X-Plane 12
Honeycomb Aeronautical Alpha Flight Controls Yoke & Switch Panel
- Mid-Range
- PC
- Yoke only
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X-Plane 12 Performance Score
- Feel & Centering25% 100
- Controls in the Box25% 15
- Sensors20% 40
- Platforms15% 50
- Build Quality15% 70
Biggest contributor: feel and centering (25% of the score), rated 100/100. How we score
Verdict for X-Plane 12
The Honeycomb Alpha suits Cessna and Bonanza flying in X-Plane 12: its switch panel and 5-position ignition key let you run the start-up from the yoke, not the keyboard. No throttle is included, so power sits on keys until you add a quadrant.
Updated October 2026
Pros & Cons for X-Plane 12
Strengths
- The GA switch panel puts master, alternator, avionics and lights on real toggles, and the 5-position ignition key turns a cold-and-dark Cessna start in X-Plane 12 into a sequence you flip and turn instead of hunting keyboard shortcuts.
- Honeycomb Aeronautical states damped self-centering on a steel shaft, so the yoke eases back to center rather than snapping through a notch, which helps when you're nudging pitch to hold altitude or making half-inch corrections on short final.
- It fits the simmer who flies light singles on PC and plans to build up: 180 degrees of roll gives you a long, deliberate sweep for a crosswind landing, and X-Plane 12 will happily take a throttle quadrant and rudder pedals alongside it later.
Trade-offs
- There's no throttle in the box, so power in X-Plane 12 lives on keyboard keys until you buy a quadrant, and stepping power up in jumps is awkward when you're chasing a glideslope or setting cruise power in the climb.
- You also miss a trim wheel and any contactless (Hall-effect) sensor claim from the maker: trim has to go on a key or hat switch, and non-contactless sensors can drift jittery with age, which means a recalibration or a small null zone (dead zone) around center in X-Plane's axis settings.
Full Specifications
- Sensors
- Not stated by the maker
- Throttle
- None (add a throttle quadrant)
- Trim wheel
- No
- Rudder controls
- Needs rudder pedals
- Panel
- Switch panel with ignition key
- Centering
- Damped self-centering
- Roll
- 180°
- Build
- Hybrid
- Works on
- PC, Mac
- Released
- 2019
Frequently Asked Questions
Is this a good Flight Yoke for X-Plane 12?
Yes, if you fly general aviation in X-Plane 12 on a PC, where it scores 54.8/100. It shines in a Cessna or Bonanza, because the switch panel and ignition key let you run the start-up and shut-down by hand while the damped centering keeps small pitch inputs tidy on final. It shows its limits the moment you want smooth throttle control, rudder for taxiing, or trim without reaching for a key.
Is it worth the price for X-Plane 12?
For the money you're buying the switch panel and ignition key more than a complete flight controls set, so judge it on how much you want physical master, alternator and avionics switches in the cockpit. The next step up in price tends to add a separate throttle quadrant, contactless sensors or a trim wheel, and a simpler yoke saves money by skipping the panel entirely.
Which platforms does it work on?
It's a PC-only yoke, which lines up with X-Plane 12 on Windows; X-Plane 12 also runs on Mac and isn't on Xbox or PS5, so console licensing never comes into it here. Once it's plugged in, go straight to X-Plane's control bindings, since the sim lets you assign any axis and button and set a response curve and null zone per axis.
What else do I need with it?
Budget for a throttle quadrant early, because nothing in the box sets power, and add rudder pedals too, as this yoke has no rudder controls at all for taxiing straight down the centerline or kicking out drift in a crosswind landing. You'll also want a sturdy desk edge to clamp it to, since a flexing tabletop makes the centering feel vague.
How should I configure this in X-Plane 12?
First check that the roll and pitch axes are assigned in X-Plane 12 and that pitch isn't reversed, then fly a circuit and see whether the yoke sits quiet around center. If it twitches, add a small null zone (a dead zone around neutral that ignores tiny movement) and soften the response curve on pitch; then bind elevator trim up and down to a panel switch or hat, because there's no trim wheel to roll in the climb.