Located on the border of the ArcticCircle in Norway, Sandnessjoen Airport (ENST) serves the local communities inand around the Nordland with direct flights to Oslo and other regionalcities through Wideroe public service routes.

Developed by FlyThreePeaks and published by Aerosoft, thisMicrosoft Flight Simulator scenery covers AirportSandnessjoen-Stokka. In this review we're going to take a close lookat the airport and see how it sits in the Microsoft Flight Simulatorworld.

Where Is It?

Airport Sandnessjoen-Stokka sits between the North Sea coast andthe Norwegian Fjords. In the county of Nordland, it serves the localtown of Sandnessjoen as well as several small villages in and aroundthe southern part of the region. It is not too far from a couple oflandmarks in the latest Nordic World Update which includes theHelgeland Bridge just a few miles north.

The region is host to unpredictable weather with cold, harshwinters and warm, dry summers. While the arctic circle cuts throughNordland, the airport itself is just outside of its reach, allowingfor slightly milder conditions when compared to a few miles north ofit.

Installation

Installation of Aerosoft Airport Sandnessjoen-Stokka is very simplethrough the FlightSim.Com Store. You receive an installer download andan activation key for the add-on. Run the installer, point it to thedirection of your simulator's 'Community' folder, input your key andthe rest of the process is automated.

Structures And Facilities

The airport features a main terminal, a combined fire station andground service depot, as well as a control tower. These are alllocated alongside the main aircraft stands and parking area, andseparate the main road from airside.

The terminal is an 80s-style wooden structure with angled roof andnewer extensions around it. Walls include detailing all over withsignage and destination posters to keep passengers travelling throughinformed and enticed.

The departure lounge and main entrance also feature full 3Dinteriors. These include benches, wall posters and a computer setupfor checking boarding passes when passengers head for theiraircraft. There are also three animated and walking passengers in theterminal, but all three are the same model of the same guy carrying abriefcase. Perhaps a little more variety is in order.

To the south side of the terminal you can find the combined airportapron facilities depot. This includes the fire station complete withtruck, a few hangars and warehouses with parked trolleys and tractors.

Textures throughout the terminal are done to a high resolution andallows for smaller details to be visible.

Ground Layout And Surrounding

Airport Sandnessjoen-Stokka has a simple airport layout with only asingle runway with three taxiways leading to the main parking area.

Taxiway and runway textures look fantastic and are done to a veryhigh level of detail. The runway especially looks highly impressivewith the asphalt grooving detail included, designed for water runoffduring particularly wet days. Taxiway lines and markings are alsoclear and allow for easy following when taxiing.

Towards the coast is a well-detailed Non Directional Beacon whichtowers above the airport on a hill.

There are however two negatives which I feel should be worked on toimprove this scenery.

I would love to see the ground mesh re-worked so that it covers thearea in a higher resolution, thus providing improved ground definitionand shaping. The road that passes alongside the terminal twists andturns in all directions which looks rather unnatural and connectsreally poorly into the main car park. The NDB station also sits on topof a square hill with the road leading to it climbing at almost a 90°vertical angle. These are very close to the terminal and aircraftstands, making them visible to the user and therefore should be givena visual appeal.

Admittedly, marketing screen shots of this scenery show the groundmesh as smooth and adjusted. I reinstalled the add-on in case I had aninstallation error, but mesh was still problematic. This scenery wasreleased with World Update V Nordics arriving only three weeks later;perhaps this is just a case of waiting for a compatibility patch toarrive to make the mesh compatible with the updated default mesh.

The main ground satellite texture I feel should also bere-done. This doesn't blend in well with the local scenery, especiallyaround the runway, changing from fields and grassy plains thatintersect the airport at different angles to a flat, rectangular grasstexture that just doesn't suit the satellite overlay.

The airport as a whole looks fantastic, but more love couldcertainly be given to the immediate surroundings to improve theoverall visual appeal.

Seasonal Effects

Sitting in the heart of Norway, winter and snow effects play a bigpart of making or breaking this scenery. While Microsoft FlightSimulator does well in depicting weather patterns and shader-basedenvironmental effects, there's a lot a scenery can do to push thisfurther.

When snow falls over the Nordland region, the terminal andoutbuildings will sit with a small layer of snow covering them. Theroofs of parked vehicles and trolleys will also spread with a thinwhite layer of snow.

Runway lights will also flicker in the lower visibility. While youlose some view of the airport, you will definitely see enough to keepyou guided towards the runway. Don't expect any autoland or ILScapability however! Landing is all on you.

If you like your winter wonderlands, then there are far worseplaces to be than here at Airport Sandnessjoen.

Opinion And Closing Remarks

Aerosoft Airport Sandnessjoen-Stokka is not a bad littlefacility. Not perfect, but the level of detail that you get for theprice is not going to disappoint. The facilities look good, theairport is easy to navigate and being situated right on the arcticcircle, it can form the base for a lot of exploratory flights.

The main terminal and interior as well as the fire station andcontrol tower all look fantastic, and with the animated people, reallydo bring the facilities to life. The ground textures are made to avery high resolution and scenery clutter such as Wideroe baggagetrolleys help in bringing some more variety to the airport. I wouldcertainly like to see an update to the mesh and backing textures, butthat's something I'm sure we'll see at some point in the future.

If you enjoy bush flying and are looking for somewhere to base afew trips in and around the Norwegian fjords, then AirportSandnessjoen-Stokka is not a bad place to start!

The Technical Bit

Minimum Requirements

• Microsoft Flight Simulator (Version 2020)
• OS: Windows 10 (Nov 2019 Update - 1909)
• CPU: Intel i5-4460 -or- Ryzen 3 1200 or better
• GPU: NVIDIA GTX 770 -or- Radeon RX 570 or better
• DirectX: DirectX 11
• VRAM: 2 GB
• RAM: 8 GB
• HDD: 2 GB
• Bandwidth: 5 Mbps

Review PC Spec

• Microsoft Flight Simulator Premium Deluxe
• Windows 10 Professional
• 6th Generation Intel® Core™ i7 6700K Processor
• 32 GB RAM
• NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 1660

Michael Hayward

Purchase Aerosoft - Airport Sandnessjøen-Stokka for MSFS