Yes, there is a reason for the delay, even if bits are done.

Acceleration and SP2 are separate products.

By putting SP2 into Acceleration we get additional test coverage on SP2. So not having SP2 in Acceleration would actually delay SP2.

Then there is test, setup, and International.

We ship in 8 languages, English+7 more. So we have to get thru those for Acceleration before we can even get onto SP2. We have 1 test and release team, these are not parallelizable activities.

And then there is setup for SP2 and its associated SDK. So with Acceleration that is 4 setups our single setup developer has had to create for this fall. So that activity is not parallelizable.

And then we have international for SP2.

So there is a reason for the delay. It is not as easy as it appears from the outside.

Adding to what Daube posts...

Remember, the new Train Simulator and FS-X are sharing common elements....  I, for one, do not find it inconceivable that a land, sea, air, space simulation, (whether a massive "all-in-one"  or four separate "parts"  all sharing a common engine, design base, and "world") can ultimately be developed, given the constantly increasing capabilities if personal computers, both in computing and graphics power.

.........for a program that has no finish, unlike most games that have an objective and an actual end.