It is kind of at the point where I just wish Shez would let us know what is going on. If it is a matter of money, I would donate if I knew it would be released (PM me Shez if this is the case). I'd also be willing to pay for the scenery if it was released as payware. I am starting to wonder if he is ok. He did post over at AVSIM last month, so I assume he is.
He really is one of the most prolific freeware developers this hobby has ever had, and assuming he is ok, I'd hate for something to make him dial back his contributions. His original DTW (FS2000, I think) was one of the things that turned me into a scenery slut. It seems fitting that the next quality version of DTW is released by him.