On the FSX Traffic menu screen there are two sliders - "Airline traffic density" and "General aviation traffic density." The sliders control a percentage of the AI aircraft displayed in FSX.Where does FSX get the information to differentiate "Airline" traffic from "General aviation" traffic For example, how does FSX know that a particular Airbus A320 belongs to an airline and not to some private entity. Another example, how does FSX know that a Cessna C172 belongs to a small cargo airline as opposed to an individual owning the aircraft (GA traffic).Do all GA-type aircraft get lumped into a single category (General aviation) even if some or most of the repaints are commercially-owned, airline aircraft assets.Thanks,Frank

Hello,this a very good question. I do not ave the answer but I am very interested to read the answer.

I am not sure either but my best guess would be on if the compiled flighplan is either IFR or VFRIFR = commercialVFR= GAAgain, not sure but I dont see anything in the flighplans.txt that would otherwise differentiate.

I think it's tied to the R/F flag in the flight plan.Flight plans with the R flag (reg#) are GA.Flight plans with the F flag (flight#) are airlines.regards,Joe

Nothing to do with flight plans. It has to do with how the plane is set up in it's cfg file. Look at the default Cessna 208 folder. It is a GA tpye plane that is set up like an airline. There are airline type entries in the cfg file. I'm not at my FS machine so I can't remember the exact format.Bob

It goes by ATC MODEL in the aircraft.cfg file. FSX has no way to differentiate whether a 737-800 is a commercial or private variant or whether a C182 is a private or commercial use aircraft...they are all lumped together. If you shut off all airline traffic that includes the BBJ and any Embrarer or Airbus private paints you have. If you shut off all GA traffic then you won't get small charter carriers that use GA aircraft. I think this is the most efficient way to do it, the only other way is if FSX were to recognize a Private and Commercial flag in the aircraft.cfg, which it doesn't

First, thanks to all who responded.Second, we have a number of opinions here. If all aircraft are lumped together, then why are there two sliders. I don't know about the VFR-IFR entry in flight plans but surely there are GA-type aircraft that are programmed to fly either. This particular FP entry governs how the flight is executed - doesn't it?The "aircraft.cfg" file might be an answer - in the "(GENERAL)" section there is an entry - "Category=airplane" - are there variable entries for this statement that might be used. If so, I guess you'd have to have an aircraft folder for each type.Anyway, if there is no answer does that mean you have to run FSX with both sliders set at the same level in order to get all your AI aircraft (airline, cargo, GA) to display?Thanks again.Frank

Seems it would be pretty easy to test if someone would take the time.scott s..

Again, look at the cfg file for a 737. Among other important lines, you will see an "atc_airline="(some name). That is one of the things that makes the difference. There are other lines that you need. Take the time to see what differences there are between a 172 and a 737. You can make a 737 a GA plane, or a 172 into an airline. "Category" is not it. Ifr/vfr in the flight plan is not it.If you are interested in all of this, install the FS SDK(for a line by line explanation of the cfg file) , Ttools(for a great explanation of how AI works), and AIFP(a great tool for working with AI).

Bobbyjack,The "atc_airline" entry in the aircraft.cfg file is the callsign for that particular airline associated with that particular aircraft. Yes, one would assume that if there is an airline callsign then the aircraft belongs to a commercial entity. That would mean all of your installed AI aircraft having a callsign entry would be lumped into the "airline" category.So, what would I do with all those "airline" aircraft that don't have a callsign. Are these treated as GA just because they don't have that entry? In my AI system that might mean over a 1,000 texture sets in this situation. NOTE: My system has somewhere between 7,000 and 8,000 texture folders corresponding to AI aircraft. That's a whole lot of "no shows." I have looked through the SDK (loaded on my system) and I did not find the answer to my original question.Thanks for your response.Frank

OK I did a test using the default Airbus 321. The only thing that matters is atc_airline= in FltSim.X in determining if AI reacts to GA or Airline density slider.scott s..

FrankI can only speak to default aircraft. Add on AI may or may not bet set up properly.Thanks, Scott.

On the FSX Traffic menu screen there are two sliders - "Airline traffic density" and "General aviation traffic density." The sliders control a percentage of the AI aircraft displayed in FSX.Where does FSX get the information to differentiate "Airline" traffic from "General aviation" traffic For example, how does FSX know that a particular Airbus A320 belongs to an airline and not to some private entity. Another example, how does FSX know that a Cessna C172 belongs to a small cargo airline as opposed to an individual owning the aircraft (GA traffic).Do all GA-type aircraft get lumped into a single category (General aviation) even if some or most of the repaints are commercially-owned, airline aircraft assets.Thanks,Frank

FrankJust for clarification the atc_airline= is not just for a airline call sign. This is a FSX default example meaning (like Scott says) the line entry atc_airline= places that type plane in the Airline slider. Remove that line and the plane will now be part of the GA slider. atc_airline= does not require a name. atc_id=N737Tatc_airline=atc_flight_number= ATC will call the plane by the Tail number N737T but if we add a flight_number ATC uses it. Add the Airline name and ATC uses it if available in the voice waves. Its all based on a building system of what lines exist and then what is placed in those lines.jim

Thanks Jim.So, if the line "atc_airline=" appears in the aircraft's specific texture (fltsim.n) section, then FSX regards that entry as controlled by the "airline" slider - even if there is no callsign entry. If the line does not appear, then it is treated by FSX as a "GA" aircraft. By this logic then (in my case), I don't even need the "GA" slider - all of my aircraft are in the commercial airline category and all will be controlled by the "airline" slider. I can set my "GA" slider to 0%.NOTE: I have so many "GA-type" aircraft that all belong to commercial airlines (small and large) that I don't need common "GA" traffic. I have a ton of "little birds" flying all over the place. In fact, I've removed the default FSX traffic file.Thanks to everyone who responded to this query. I really appreciate it.Frank

Thanks Jim.So, if the line "atc_airline=" appears in the aircraft's specific texture (fltsim.n) section, then FSX regards that entry as controlled by the "airline" slider - even if there is no callsign entry. If the line does not appear, then it is treated by FSX as a "GA" aircraft. By this logic then (in my case), I don't even need the "GA" slider - all of my aircraft are in the commercial airline category and all will be controlled by the "airline" slider. I can set my "GA" slider to 0%.NOTE: I have so many "GA-type" aircraft that all belong to commercial airlines (small and large) that I don't need common "GA" traffic. I have a ton of "little birds" flying all over the place. In fact, I've removed the default FSX traffic file.Thanks to everyone who responded to this query. I really appreciate it.Frank

FrankYes, all that is correct.It does not look logical to have a airline entry without the airline name but something has to tell FS what slider has what type plane associated with it.jim