Airport lighting overhaul is long overdue

[captain420 3,099]

The whole airport lighting issue needs to be addressed. The following things are some of the things that they really need to fix:

1. Intensity and look of the rotating airport beacon. It doesn't look real and stands out way too much out in the distance.
2. Runway lights shouldn't remain on at all times, they should be off during the day!
3. The intensity of the lights need to be more realistic, according to most real world pilots, it's usually hard to spot an airport at night, the best way to spot one is to look for an area of darkness.
4. individual light orbs need to be dynamic, the higher resolution you are, the more big and blurrier it gets.
5. Airport lights shouldn't stand out like a sore thumb at night. Flying at high altitudes and being to see all airports around you is very unrealistic.

 

Edited December 28, 2020 by captain420

[fra147 65]

Completely agree!

[captain420 3,099]

I mean one would have to agree that aircraft lighting plays a crucial role in flight sims. It's one thing that can't be overlooked. I mean we start off at an airport and then fly and land at another airport. I would hope that Asobo would focus and prioritize on airport lighting  to make it as realistic as possible.

[marsman2020 1,310]

The made some updates to this in Sim Update II I think.  Runway lights now disappear at some angles at night anyway.  I flew into the LA basin over the weekend at ~10,000 feet over the weekend, and a number of runways were not visible until I flew past them onto the approach side.   Just the blue taxiway lighting was visible, otherwise dark.

Edited December 28, 2020 by marsman2020

[bobcat999 8,482]

Just now, marsman2020 said:

The made some updates to this in Sim Update II I think.  Runway lights now disappear at some angles at night anyway.  I flew into the LA basin over the weekend at ~10,000 feet over the weekend, and a number of airport were not visible until I flew past them onto the approach side. 

This is true.  You can't see runway lights off to the side now. I just wish they would work on the blue taxiway lights now.

[marsman2020 1,310]

I've been specifically avoiding night flying since they made all the roads lit up 100%.

I did the "Cannonball Run" from JFK to LAX this week (23 hours, 39 min of continuous flying!) which required night flying.

Between the somewhat toned down rural roads, and runways not being visible off to the side....it's more passable now then it was a few updates ago. 

Live weather also captured the marine layer that comes in over LAX in the early mornings in the winter accurately, which was pretty neat.

[Drumcode 1,893]

I agree. It was mediocre in P3D and it's totally amateurish in 2020. 

[Flic1 976]

6 minutes ago, marsman2020 said:

The made some updates to this in Sim Update II I think.  Runway lights now disappear at some angles at night anyway.  I flew into the LA basin over the weekend at ~10,000 feet over the weekend, and a number of runways were not visible until I flew past them onto the approach side.   Just the blue taxiway lighting was visible, otherwise dark.

I just noticed this last night.....but all I could see were the bright taxiway lights which should not be visible at all.  Hopefully this is a WIP and they get it sorted. I saw a developer comment recently stating there is new airport lighting in the works....sadly cannot remember where I saw it (maybe not even true) but hopefully this is the case.

[Ajb376 59]

I agree on the runway lights, however airport beacons are probably more visible from the air than you think at night. When I flew single engine over texas I would typically pick a VFR route that never put me far away (10 miles) and you can see them easily from 8-10k feet if you're looking in the general area. Saved my word not allowed a bunch of times.

[tweekz 2,165]

1 hour ago, captain420 said:

Runway lights shouldn't remain on at all times, they should be off during the day!

Especially agree with that one.

Just like the overdone icing effect or the lack of inertia. Those things need to be addressed badly.

[Chock 17,769]

49 minutes ago, captain420 said:

I mean one would have to agree that aircraft lighting plays a crucial role in flight sims. It's one thing that can't be overlooked. I mean we start off at an airport and then fly and land at another airport. I would hope that Asobo would focus and prioritize on airport lighting  to make it as realistic as possible.

Well, to be fair your complaint is that it is too bright, not that it isn't visible, so whilst that isn't realistic in terms of visible range, it is undeniably erring on the plus side in terms of usability, so this really isn't a usability issue at all, merely an aesthetic one. 

And as for and overhaul being 'long overdue', the sim has been out for three and a bit months, which whilst I would say is not an inconsiderable period, it's hardly a particularly long time, so it isn't really possible for anything to be 'long overdue' for MSFS.

I'm not saying I don't want these things improved if that's possible, but it's hardly at the top of my list in comparison to other stuff they could look at.

[omarsmak30 4,068]

47 minutes ago, Flic1 said:

I just noticed this last night.....but all I could see were the bright taxiway lights which should not be visible at all.  Hopefully this is a WIP and they get it sorted. I saw a developer comment recently stating there is new airport lighting in the works....sadly cannot remember where I saw it (maybe not even true) but hopefully this is the case.

I think here https://www.flightsimulator.com/december-17th-2020-development-update/:

A new airport lights system is available in the Scenery Editor. It is currently in the testing stage and will be delivered in a near-future update