fsx-se Airport Vendors for FSX

[Rivet 16]

I have purchased many aircraft and much scenery for FSX:SE (using Steve’s DX10) but as far as airports go I have only purchased ORBX airports to date. I love them but as a rule they only do small or medium size airports for N.A. and Europe. I would like to add some larger airports to the mix for use with ORBX Global and ORBX detailed regions (I own all the detailed regions in N.A. and Europe). I have looked at many of the airport vendors often mentioned at AVSIM but I am still wondering which ones might best fit the following requirements:

• Airports that work seamlessly with ORBX scenery and are just “install and go”

• No other add-on managers or other software required. No playing with external files.

• Have static aircraft included at the airport

• Have good detail but still gives reasonable performance. I have a high end machine so I have some leeway here and I have no memory or performance problems at all with any of the medium sized ORBX airports in any region. However I am thinking I may want to avoid very detailed airports in detailed regions (i.e. FlightBeam KSFO in NCA).

• Ideally can be purchased through one of the major flight simulation software sites (i.e. the vendor does not just have their own unique e-commerce setup).  

Any input or suggestions for vendors and/or specific airports would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

[airernie 263]

 

 

No other add-on managers or other software required. No playing with external files.

 

You might want to reconsider because depending upon you definition of add-on managers you've just eliminated arguably the top two airport vendors; FS DreamTeam and Flightbeam.

 

Should you reconsider; take a look at Flightbeam's KIAD.  It's try before you buy.

 

Ernie

[Rivet 16]

Thanks Ernie,

 

I included that because I have heard of folks having more trouble with add-on managers associated with third party products than with the products themselves, both in the short term (initial install) and long term (upgrades, service packs etc.). I was trying to avoid added complexity and the "one more thing to go wrong" scenario. Are these add-on mangers things you must install to then go ahead and install the vendors  product(s)? 

 

I will go ahead and take a look at Flightbeam's KIAD. Thanks for the recommendation. Do I have to install the add-on manager to try the demo?

[cmpbellsjc 2,960]

Thanks Ernie,

 

I included that because I have heard of folks having more trouble with add-on managers associated with third party products than with the products themselves, both in the short term (initial install) and long term (upgrades, service packs etc.). I was trying to avoid added complexity and the "one more thing to go wrong" scenario. Are these add-on mangers things you must install to then go ahead and install the vendors product(s)?

 

I will go ahead and take a look at Flightbeam's KIAD. Thanks for the recommendation. Do I have to install the add-on manager to try the demo?

Yes you have to install Addon manager and a lot of what you read doesn't tell the whole story. People generally post about problems but remain silent when things are good, hence the reason for support forums.

 

I know a lot of folks who use FSDT and Flightbeam products with no issue, me included for the last 8 years. However, recently there have been some hiccups with it after the FSDT release of KMEM, so you might want to wait until they sort it out.

 

Both Mir of Flightbeam and Umberto of FSDT offer great customer service and are quick to reply to issues and solve problems. Generally it's safe to say that any issues get sorted with the exception of a few rare cases where people have some unusual or out of the ordinary setup that causes issues. If Addon manager were that troublesome they would have either quit using it or would be out of business by now as no one would buy their products.

[Rivet 16]

Thanks Jim,

 

What you say makes sense so I will warm a bit to the thought of a vendor that uses an add-on manager. To be on the conservative side maybe I will just pick one vendor and its add-on manager (at least to start). Both Ernie and yourself have mentioned FSDT and FlightBeam so anything to choose between them given the other preferences I stated? (static aircraft, ORBX compatibility, performance, availability).  If it is FSDT I will do as you mention and hold off for a bit and follow their forum discussions.

[airernie 263]

I really like Flightbeam's KIAD, KDEN, and KSFO as well as KIAH from FSDT.

 

They all use the same technology, so there is going to be an add-on manager as well as a python-based application that drives some of the features.

 

I would avoid the older FSDT airports such as KORD, KJFK, and KDFW.  They aren't as optimized and can absolutely kill frame rates on my i5-3570K OC 4.2Ghz. 

 

Also, there might be some static aircraft, but none come with AI traffic.  For that you'll need something like MyTraffic or World of AI.

 

Both Flightbeam and FSDT offer other airports (KPHX, KLAS, etc.), but I don't own any of those.. so can't comment.

 

However, most flyers want something in their neighborhood, so those may or may not be the best choices for you.   If that's the case, watch the forums and ask for recommendations. 

 

Good luck..

[richie894 45]

UK2000 have great UK airports with an option to add static aircraft. And you get a ton of static aircraft too with the airports which I have.

 

I just got Flightbeam's IAD and it is really great. I will be purchasing the other Flightbeam's over time. I heard FlyTampa has some decent airports too, but don't have any personally. 

[Pat Mussotte 92]

Hi Rivet!

I have FSX-SE with all ORBX NA plus ORBX GLOBAL. I installed FSDT KFLL and KLAS(Don't be afraid by addon manager :wink: ), FlyTampa KMDW, KBUF, KTPA, Grenadines, TNCM, and many LatinVFR like KEYW, KRSW, KSAN, KSNA all these airports working fine with ORBX stuff. I forget Drzewiecki New York airports X and Miami City X

 

Cheers