Works with Default Airports?
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I’m thinking of getting this add on to help me when flying on VATSIM and using real world charts. One thing I was confused about is the fact that many of the default high detail airports ie KJFK, KSFO, etc. are covered by the Real Taxiways package. Meanwhile the instructions say it’s not intended to cover “bespoke” airports and “may” interfere with third-party addons. So I’m just a little confused about how to use this addon.
Do I have to manually exclude all the “bespoke” airports that are included in the sim and world updates? Am I going to see doubled taxiway signs if I don’t exclude third party custom airports? Seems like a lot of manual work if Real Taxiways breaks the signs for airports that are currently modeled correctly (default high detail and third party sceneries).
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You can read a little more about these questions in the manual. The short answer is that MSFS 2020 didn't offer as reliable or user-friendly tools for managing scenery layers, but MSFS 2024 improved that situation with the Package Reorder Tool. In MSFS 2024, you should be able to either override, or not override both bespoke default airports and 3rd party sceneries with the Package Reorder Tool, right from within the simulator.
The only combination that might still require you to manually remove/rename a file from the Real Taxiways installation is if a 3rd party airport has its own taxiway sign 3D models, and doesn't contain any default taxiway sign record in the airport's scenery files. I'm not sure I've seen anyone complain about this, but I know there is the possibility for it.
Do my explanations make sense? I know it's a complicated subject, because there are so many ways to make scenery for the simulator, and an infinite number of combinations for how they might be layered. I'm happy to help you however I can to ensure that things are working as well as possible on your system, however! Let me know if you have any more questions.
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So I purchased the 2024 edition and at a couple of default airports I’ve tried so far, the sign models appear to be changed, but the actual taxiway names are still wrong.
For example, at KSBA, taxiway B is named H. And at PHNL, taxiway R is named RA and R2, R3, etc. are named RB, RC, etc. Taxiway J is also misnamed.
It was my understanding that the taxiway names were supposed to be changed to match the official charts. Not sure if what I’m seeing is due to an install error on my side?
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So I purchased the 2024 edition and at a couple of default airports I’ve tried so far, the sign models appear to be changed, but the actual taxiway names are still wrong.
For example, at KSBA, taxiway B is named H. And at PHNL, taxiway R is named RA and R2, R3, etc. are named RB, RC, etc. Taxiway J is also misnamed.
It was my understanding that the taxiway names were supposed to be changed to match the official charts. Not sure if what I’m seeing is due to an install error on my side?
@intjmastermind I just checked KSBA, and taxiway B was named taxiway H as recently as 2024. Unfortunately, airport layouts are dynamic in the real world, while the MSFS satellite imagery remains static for years. This means that I have to weigh whether I can change the name of the taxiway when I do my updates (a simple rename), or whether I have to keep the old names, because it's not possible to update the physical airport layout. In the latter case, I think VATSIM controllers will often use the outdated diagrams, or suggest sceneries that include their own taxiway layouts for more current real world changes. In this case, it looks like the airport went through a mostly simple rename to conform to the FAA's new recommendations for taxiway naming (numbered taxiways for runway exits), so I can add this to a list of airports to revisit for my next update.
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Thanks! What are the chances the two airports I decided to check out on my first try happened to be renamed recently.
