Database maintenance--adding/changing airport IDs

[Bob Scott 7,721]

Flying into ORBX/Turbulent's KGPI (formerly KFCA) reminded me of something worth mention--how to get RC4 to recognize airports added to the sim or whose ICAO identifiers have changed since the database files were first created back around 2006.

Running Pete Dowson's Makerwys utility updates most of the database files RC4 uses, but in the case where an airport ICAO ID has changed or been added, you have to also manually go in and make a change or addition to the m4.csv file that defines the MSA (min safe altitude) base and transition altitude.

In the case of Glacier Park Intl, the ICAO was changed from KFCA to KGPI, and running Makerwys updates the airport (a4.csv) and frequency (f4.csv) data files, but it does not create the required new entry in the elevation/transition altitude data in the m4.csv file.

The files are located in the data subdirectory of your Radar Contact main directory, and can be edited with a simple text editor.  Just go to the proper place in the alphabetical list and insert a new line with the data, in the format ICAO_ID,MSA_base,transition.  The MSA base appears to be the highest elevation within some (unknown) distance of the field, probably around 10nm.  If you are replacing an existing airfield, or there is another nearby, just copy the existing numbers to the new line with the revised ICAO ID.

In the Glacier Park example, there is a line in the file for the old airport: KFCA,5846,18000, so I inserted a new line below KGPH in the file: KGPI,5846,18000

The same would apply, for example, adding the (not so) new Hamad Intl OTHH, which replaced OTBD back in 2014.

Leaving the old airport in the file does not appear to have any ill effect.

The main symptom that tells you that you need to do this for an airfield is finding blanks in all of the ATC frequency blocks, the gate block in the RC Controller tab greyed out and unable to accept an entry, and/or odd/incorrect MSA/transition level data.

Regards

 

[ronzie 21]

As far as I am aware, The file copying part of the rc scenery update does not copy/update the f4.csv file into the data folder of of RC. FSUICP places an f4.csv in your main folder of your sim. Back up in a folder outside of the RC folder the current f4.csv folder by renaming it f4.csv.bak then copy f4.csv from your sim folder as placed by FSUIPC over the original installed in your RCv4/data folder. These frequencies have been extracted from your current scenery AFD type files in your sim so if you use charts that are dated for your installed scenery the data will sync.

Alternately your can just replace the line in your existing f4.csv file or add the line from  the one in the sim folder to your rcv4/data folder.

Be sure to use a text editor, not a data or spreadsheet application. Be sure your text editor in in plain text mode, not enhanced html mode.

The listings in f4.csv are in alphabetical order by airport Id.

Just be sure to back up the original f4.csv to avoid an rc reinstall of problems occur and you need the original file.

These steps will add the data for changed or new airports as far as frequency data is concerned.

The fields in the csv files are explained in the make runways readme text file placed in the sim folder.

The procedure for the surface data changes as described in the previous post are correct.

 

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Edited February 3, 2019 by ronzie

[bobrbend 28]

So I'm not completely clear. I need to change Lima Peru's ICAO code from SPIM to the new one: SPJC. Its the same airport, just a new ICAO code.

Don't even care about changing the frequencies, just the names.

I've located both f4.csv files and the RC m4.csv and wonder if I can just change the code or if there's more to it. 

Thanks.

Ps. Not an Excel expert by any means.