MSFS20 Appropach lights and running rabbit - activation/frequency/intensity

[Nordscape]

Hello. I am currently planning the next helipad with the designation ENLX. The helipad uses both ILS and approach lights with running-rabbit. The approach lights and running rabbit are dimmable through an app.

I am looking for advice on how to approach this. I would offcourse love to have an app, but that is highly unlikely - to say the least. What other ways are there?

I would be very comfortable by just activating the lights and the running rabbit with one setting, but it would be very cool if it is possible to also adjust their intensity. Maybe by visibility through metar as a workaround for controlling them manually?

Any creative ideas which do not require extensive coding?

 

[mamu]

Hey!

Proper lights, especially approach ones you are supposed to be seen from a distance and in low visibility can be obtained only using light preset/light rows

Unfortunately, those can't be controlled in any way by code at runtime


Every other option requires using a simobject (so basically a 3d object)
You will loose its visibility pretty soon, unless you use its LODs to switch the lights "bulbs" (the more you go away from the source location, the further LODs must have a bigger bulb/orb-basically, a sphere)
And they must be Simobjects because you really want to hide them during the day (the giant sphere you need for long distance would be too much noticeable during the day)

The running rabbit is a simple animation, simply throw the lights underground during their off period

For dimming you can link the emissive_code to a L:var you can drive from a switch in the cockpit or external app

About visibility, the game doesn't have a clue about what visibility is
So you must obtain it outside the game (via an API call to a metar )
That requires an external app or wasm

 

[Nordscape]

Hey!

Proper lights, especially approach ones you are supposed to be seen from a distance and in low visibility can be obtained only using light preset/light rows

Unfortunately, those can't be controlled in any way by code at runtime


Every other option requires using a simobject (so basically a 3d object)
You will loose its visibility pretty soon, unless you use its LODs to switch the lights "bulbs" (the more you go away from the source location, the further LODs must have a bigger bulb/orb-basically, a sphere)
And they must be Simobjects because you really want to hide them during the day (the giant sphere you need for long distance would be too much noticeable during the day)

The running rabbit is a simple animation, simply throw the lights underground during their off period

For dimming you can link the emissive_code to a L:var you can drive from a switch in the cockpit or external app

About visibility, the game doesn't have a clue about what visibility is
So you must obtain it outside the game (via an API call to a metar )
That requires an external app or wasm

Thank you so much mamu, for your input on approaching this issue. (Love your videos and the discord!)

It is very helpful to get some creative insight to solve different issues. I will play around with different setups.

Initially I plan on custom designing the lightbars which will also need emission textures for the light bulb. I know mcx have some function to add lights with different flash frequencies but I am unsure if they are possible to activate/deactivate by a radio frequency.

 

[Nordscape]

Hey!

Proper lights, especially approach ones you are supposed to be seen from a distance and in low visibility can be obtained only using light preset/light rows

Unfortunately, those can't be controlled in any way by code at runtime


Every other option requires using a simobject (so basically a 3d object)
You will loose its visibility pretty soon, unless you use its LODs to switch the lights "bulbs" (the more you go away from the source location, the further LODs must have a bigger bulb/orb-basically, a sphere)
And they must be Simobjects because you really want to hide them during the day (the giant sphere you need for long distance would be too much noticeable during the day)

The running rabbit is a simple animation, simply throw the lights underground during their off period

For dimming you can link the emissive_code to a L:var you can drive from a switch in the cockpit or external app

About visibility, the game doesn't have a clue about what visibility is
So you must obtain it outside the game (via an API call to a metar )
That requires an external app or wasm

Hello again Mamu. Do you know if it is possible to activate the approach lights and/or "running rabbit" with an active frequency. Say I want to approach the helipad on a set ILS-frequency; that in-tune on frequency will also activate the approach lights and running rabbit?