Roberta Aguirre
Users of Prepar3D have reported various issues with airports in the flight simulation software. These include incorrect airport placement, missing airports, disappearing runways and taxiways, and incorrect altitude readings. While some users have suggested potential fixes for these issues, such as adjusting airport elevation in Airport Design Editor (ADE) or installing airports from Freeware or Payware, others have expressed frustration with the lack of updates and customer support from the developers, LM. It is recommended that users refer to the Prepar3D forums and community for the most up-to-date information on correcting airport-related issues in the software.
Explore related products
![Airport: The Complete Collection [Blu-ray]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81-nvGF8wgL._AC_UY218_.jpg)
![Airport: The Complete Collection [Blu-ray]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81+g3nUI+7L._AC_UY218_.jpg)
What You'll Learn
Incorrectly placed airports
Several users have reported issues with incorrectly placed airports in Prepar3D. One user noticed that the airport at Nashua, NH (KASH) is not positioned correctly in the scenery. When the airport is loaded with an active runway, the aircraft appears in the Prepar3d scenery as positioned in the center of the runway. However, in the GTN 650 and GTN 750 gauges, the aircraft's actual position is different from what is displayed in the scenery. This issue has also been observed at other airports, such as KJAX, where runways and scenery objects display incorrectly at certain altitudes.
In some cases, the issues with incorrectly placed airports may be due to conflicts with installed payware sceneries or addon scenery files. One user reported that they were able to resolve elevation conflicts at other airports by running the Config Utility, but this did not correct the issue at KJAX. Another user suggested that the issue with KJAX may be due to a traffic program that adds AF files for AI traffic.
To correct incorrectly placed airports in Prepar3D, users can try the following:
- Check for any installed payware sceneries or addon scenery files that may be causing conflicts and temporarily move them to different locations so that the sim will not find these files.
- Disable any addons in the addons.cfg files to see if this corrects the issue.
- If the issue is with the default scenery, ensure that you have the latest version of Prepar3D installed as updates may include corrections for incorrectly placed airports.
- For issues with incorrect altitude, users can try dialing the Baro setting until the correct field elevation is displayed and writing down the Baro setting. Contacting ATIS should then report (nearly) the same BARO information. If there is a discrepancy, equipment calibration may be needed.
Traveling with Pizza: Airport Security Rules Explained
You may want to see also
Explore related products
Missing airports
Several users have reported missing airports in the Prepar3D flight simulator. One user noted that major airports such as VTBS (Bangkok/BKK) and OTHH (Hamad International/DOH) were missing from the simulator. Another user reported that Iranian airports OITT Tabriz, OITZ, and Zanjan were missing from the P3D V4.5 version.
In some cases, users have found that while the airport is missing from the "Go To Airport" menu, it can still be seen when flying overhead of the airport location. This suggests that the issue may be related to incorrect airport names or codes, preventing the search engine from finding the airport.
To address the issue of missing airports, users have suggested installing them from either Freeware or Payware, provided they are compatible with the Prepar3D version in use. Some users have also recommended using third-party scenery or addons to fill in the missing airports.
It is worth noting that the developers of Prepar3D have been criticized for not keeping the airport database up to date, with some users expressing disappointment and frustration over the missing airports. Some have suggested that the database is still using old data from the FSX database, which may explain the absence of certain airports that have changed or evolved over time.
In addition to the missing airports, some users have also reported issues with incorrect airport placements, such as the airport at Nashua, NH (KASH), where the aircraft position in the simulator did not match the actual position in the GTN 650 and GTN 750 gauges.
Airport Package Pick-Up: Is It Possible?
You may want to see also
Explore related products
Disappearing runways and taxiways
If you are facing issues with disappearing runways and taxiways in Prepar3D, there are a few potential solutions you can try.
Firstly, check if you are using custom airports created with Airport Design Editor (ADE). Some users have reported that taxiways disappear on custom airports after updating to a newer version of ADE. This issue is specifically related to the "'drawSurface' flag being set to FALSE for TaxiwayPath entries" in the airport XML file. To resolve this, you can manually edit the XML file and change the "drawSurface" flag to TRUE for the affected taxiways. Make sure to back up your files before making any changes.
Another potential solution is to reinstall an older version of ADE that is compatible with your custom airports. For example, if your custom airports were created with ADE 9x, you might need to reinstall ADE 1.4 or 1.60, as these versions are known to handle taxiway flags correctly. Recompiling your custom airports with the compatible version of ADE should resolve the issue.
In some cases, the issue of disappearing runways and taxiways may be related to scenery priority or conflicts with other scenery addons. Try changing the scenery priority or disabling other addons to see if that resolves the issue. Additionally, ensure that you have installed all available updates for Prepar3D, as some runway and scenery issues have been addressed in newer versions of the software.
If you are experiencing issues with specific airports, such as KJAX, it is recommended to check for known conflicts or errors associated with that particular airport. Some users have reported runway elevation issues and stray jetways at KJAX, which may require specific fixes or workarounds. Refer to online forums and community resources for specific troubleshooting steps related to the airport you are having issues with.
Lisbon Airport: Sleep or No Sleep?
You may want to see also
Explore related products
Incorrect altitude
One common issue is that the altimeter is set to 29.92 by default, which may not be the correct setting for the airport. This can be corrected by dialling the Baro setting until the correct field elevation is displayed, and then contacting ATIS to verify the Baro information. If ATIS reports a different Baro setting, your equipment may need calibration.
Another issue could be elevation errors in the default scenery. This is due to the FSX being built on the unreliable GTOPO30 elevation dataset, resulting in significant elevation discrepancies for some airports. To correct this, you can use add-ons that utilise more accurate datasets like SRTM30, which allows seamless integration of your airport dataset at the correct elevation. Alternatively, you can recompile parts of the scenery using the SRTM30 dataset yourself, although this may require additional work in post-processing, error correction, and integration of other sources.
In some cases, bugs in the Prepar3D client application may cause incorrect altitude handling of airports. For example, updating from P3D 4.5.12 to 4.5.13 has resulted in elevation issues with pits and plateaus for several airports. To address this, you can use tools like Lorby Addon Organizer or ORBX Central to reorder the scenery layers, which may resolve the issue.
Additionally, issues with airport altitude may arise when using stock airports in Prepar3D. For instance, the stock airport CYLH has an elevation of 834ft, but lowering it to match the lake elevation of 798ft or closer to it at 805ft may result in warnings about polygons. To address this, you can try removing the default flatten before placing any new structures or terrain. You can also use tools like Airport Background Flatten MaskClassMap Autogen to lower the airport elevation.
If you encounter specific issues with certain airports, it is recommended to refer to the Prepar3D forums, where users often share their experiences and solutions for incorrect altitude problems at particular locations.
Hotel Bag Drop-Off at Tampa International Airport
You may want to see also
Explore related products
Incorrect aerodrome elevation
The root cause of this problem lies in the dataset used during the development of Prepar3D. The software relied on the GTOPO30 elevation dataset, which contains unreliable data in certain areas, including sketches from old expeditions. As a result, the airport elevation in Prepar3D may be adjusted to match the terrain elevation, leading to incorrect aerodrome elevations.
For example, the Rio Amazonas airport in Prepar3D blends smoothly with the terrain data, but the GTOPO30 model shows an elevation error of 4652 feet, or 1418 meters. In another instance, the real-world elevation of the SESM/PTZ aerodrome is 3465 feet, but Prepar3D places it at 8117 feet.
To address this issue, users can combine Prepar3D with real-world elevation data. For instance, using SRTM terrain data for SESM/PTZ results in a more accurate representation, as it corrects the elevation to the real-world value of 3465 feet. However, this solution is not without its challenges, as incorporating the SRTM dataset would significantly increase download sizes and require extensive post-processing and error correction.
In some cases, incorrect aerodrome elevation can be addressed by disabling and re-enabling the airport in the software, or by reinstalling the relevant content. For example, one user reported that disabling and re-enabling the Telluride airport resolved an issue where their plane was underground. Another user corrected a similar issue at Aspen airport by reinstalling the content, although the problem recurred after restarting their computer.
Customs Booth: Permanent Residents' Airport Experience
You may want to see also
Frequently asked questions
This issue can be fixed by repositioning the aircraft using "Navigation | Go to Airport".
This issue can be fixed by adjusting the airport elevation in ADE or changing the scenery priority.
This issue can be fixed by installing them either from Freeware or Payware, provided they are P3D V4 compatible.
This issue can be fixed by dialling the Baro setting until the correct field elevation is displayed and contacting ATIS to confirm the Baro information.
