Parking Codes

[Mattie941]

Hi,
been looking at my airport layouts and started using assigned parking for major airports with UT2. However I was wondering is it possible to give certain airlines the ability to park anywhere they like, even though assigned parking is there?

Matt

[wdscobie]

FS will still park a plane if there are none of the 'correct code' available. the game chooses parking based on aircraft size and code. if code spots (of the correct size) are full, the sim will park the plane in a location the airframe will fit.


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[ReggieF5421]

AI aircraft with no parking codes in the fltsim.x section of the aircraft.cfg file will be assigned to parking spots with no parking codes first.

If the atc_parking_types=GATE the aircraft will be assigned to uncoded GATE x spots before beings assigned to GATE A x spots. There is no priority between letters - GATE A 23 and GATE Z 1 will have the same priority if they are the same size.

Only after all the uncoded spots have been filled will AI aircraft be assigned to parking spots with parking codes that do not match the AI aircraft.

[fxsttcb]

Rather than pose a new query for the same basic question I've resurrected this one.

I'm revising some military airports(ADE9X) that are plagued with Maules, Barons, Dash 8s etc.
I've assigned atc_parking_types=MIL_COMBAT,MIL_CARGO,RAMP, to my planes and MIL_COMBAT and MIL_CARGO to the parking spaces I want exclusively for them.

The GA AI are still showing up in those spots. I've now added some un-designated atc_parking_types spaces for them.
Can I designate a parking code to the AI planes and to the "reserved" parking spaces for them?

What are the Alpha-Numeric limitations of the parking codes? # of characters? Alpha only? Multiple codes(csv)? Thanks...Don

[ReggieF5421]

Check the GA aircraft. If they have atc_parking_types=RAMP - the ALL ramp types of parking are equal - all four types of GA, both types of military and cargo spots are all Ramp spots. The aircraft will be parked by size in that instance.

atc_parking_types=MIL_COMBAT and atc_parking_types=MIL_CARGO are ramp spots but will create a preference for those aircraft into those type parking spots.

One way I keep the military aircraft into their spots and keep the GA out is with size increments. For my GA aircraft, my parking spot sizes end in .3 - i.e. 10.3M for the parking spot radius. For a 10 M military spot - it will be 10.7M.

If I have a RAMP_GA_SMALL spot set to 10.3M and a RAMP_MIL_COMBAT spot set to 10.7M - the GA aircraft with atc_parking_types=RAMP will always go to the 10.3M GA Small spot, and the military fighter with atc_parking_types=MIL_COMBAT will go the the 10.7M military combat spot. If you have GA aircraft arriving on the base - you really need some RAMP_GA_??? spots for them, sized slightly smaller than the MIL_COMBAT spots of the same whole meter size. Look for a spot to but the base flying club on the airport.

While you cannot adjust aircraft parking sizes by anything less than whole meters, you can set priorities among identically sized parking spots with tenths of a meter size differences.

Parking Codes - no more than four characters. Numbers and letters can be used. While capitalization does not matter in many things, like the atc_airline= entry - it is vital that the Parking Code in the parking spot and the aircraft.cfg be exactly the same.

C130 and c130 are not the same as far as parking codes.

Aircraft.cfg
FS9 - only the first entry in the aircraft.cfg atc_parking_codes= line will be used
FSX - can accept multiple entries in atc_parking_codes=

We know that the weight of the second and third codes is lower than the first code when deciding parking spot assignment. After four codes it appears that a fifth code does not have enough weight to be a deciding factor.

Parking Spot Parking Codes

Again, we know that the weight of the second and third codes is lower than the first code when deciding parking spot assignment. After four codes it appears that a fifth code does not have enough weight to be a deciding factor.

I recommend no more than one parking code in the aircraft.cfg entry unless there is a specific trend. For example, I have some airline repaints setup like this: atc_parking_codes=TCX,CHTR

At EGLL - I have parking spots coded TCX
At HGSN - I have some parking spots coded CHTR

Military
The way we worked out a long time ago for military parking spots was Unit, Model, Type - for FSX this can be a good way to setup the aircraft.cfg also.

Such my setup for KMIB - Minot. The B-52 parking spots are coded either 23BS, B52, M002 or 69BS, B52, M002 or two spots coded B52, B1, B2, M002

So my 23rd Bomb Sqdn B-52's will park in the 23BS spots. My 69th Bomb Sqdn aircraft will park in 69BS spots. The first two B-52 visiting aircraft from KBAD, or KEDW will park in the two transit spots. If the two transit spots do no have B-52 aircraft, then visiting B-1 or B-2 aircraft will park there.

Because I code my aircraft.cfg files in a similar manner, the visiting B-52, B-1 or B-2 aircraft would park in an open 23BS or 69BS squadron spot if the two transit spots are full, rather than parking in the similar sized MIL_CARGO spot.

[fxsttcb]

Thank You Reggie, you pretty much confirmed my take on what little I could gather from the SDK.
My undesignated spots are indeed placed at the base's "Flying Club", and where space was available, a couple Large GA near the tower.

I don't have any add-on AI yet, I'm still learning scenery design for FS9/FSX. One step at a time!
Once I feel I have a little competence in that venue, I'll move on to another aspect and learn it.

I'm intending to use N and the 3 digit squadron number for my Navy Planes, M/Marine, A/Army, F/Airforce, and G/Coast Guard. DEF1, DEF2, etc for civilian defaults, and actual ICAO codes for planes with designated airlines. That should allow me to segregate parking at fields that are multi-purpose. Sound about right?
[edit]Clarification; parking codes, N, M, etc for blanket parking and N115, M251 etc for specific squadrons. ie; N,N115
Is there a concise list of ICAO codes to help me avoid duplication?

Thanks again for your one of your always helpful answers...Don

[ReggieF5421]

I would recommend you look at the MAIW packages. They don't build anything specifically for FSX, but most of their stuff will work.

There were four parking codes for military originally planned by Ultimate Traffic, and we added a fifth, and they are in common usage for general catagories
M000 - Military Trainer/Observation/ Light Logistics
M001 - Military Fighter/Attack/Carrier Based Aircraft
M002 - Military Bomber/ Long Range Patrol/ Recon
M003 - Military Transport
M004 - Military Helicopter

I've never seen a need to segregate aircraft by service.

With military AI we are talking about two different types of parking.

At home base, the aircraft will park in a squadron area.

Away from home base, most of the time the aircraft will park in a transit area, and at airports like KADW - you will see Navy, Air Force, Army and Marine transit aircraft parked side by side on the transit ramp. At some transit locations, you may see specific types of military aircraft parked in the location of a local squadron which uses the same type of aircraft.

On crowded bases, this may be done to minimize ramp space usage by the transit bird. Or if there is a maintenance issue, the plane will be parked close to available expertise on the aircraft. A few aircraft will be parked in certain locations for security purposes. When I was in a ELINT squadron - we used to have to park in the boonie's at many bases.

In my 20 years in the US Navy and visits to several bases of all five services, I've never seen aircraft segregated by service. By squadron like the USN squadrons, the USMC and the USAF ANG squadrons at KNFW - yes, but not in transit areas.

As far as I know - there is no master list of squadron codes. I've never seen anyone use current ICAO codes for military parking - like RCH for USAF Air Mobility Command aircraft (C-17, C-5, some C-130). They either use the squadron code, the type code - C17, C5, C130 or the general code above M003

MAIW has this worked out pretty well and is your best resource for dealing with military AI.

[fxsttcb]

Thanks again Reg, I'll have to check out MAIW.

I'm doing a Selfridge ANGB(MTC) rendition from my reservist days and it did indeed host Navy, Marine, and ANG/USAF squadrons that were segregated and had seperate transit spaces assigned according to HQ. We did have "In Transit Repair" spots designated by aircraft type among all the Sqdns onboard.

The same was true for some NAS/MCAS and quite a few other installations that hosted Reserve Sqdns and USCG detachments.

You read my mind! I already started adding a VIP space, for those "special" liveries, to the bases I am tweaking.

I can see it is gonna take me ages to get all this organized, and completed, but, I'm having a blast doing it.
Gotta fly to 'em to test my tweaks, and I get a lot of flight time in too. It took 8 years to do all my US military bases in FS98, so I'm not in any hurry!
So far, FSX AI looks to be much easier than all that dynamic object stuff that took forever in FS98/2000.

I love being directed to the correct space at home base and proper parking elsewhere, along with AI going to where they belong. Thanks...Don