Jetways: Am I missing something?

[mattperry78]

Hi all. Once again I have to turn to the pros to help with a problem. I was developing KPNS (Pensacola) for FS2k4 but now am trying to get it ready for FSX as well. I am trying to get the jetways in my afcad and have used the attached code, but they just don't show up. Do you see anything wrong?? Thanks in advance.

 <Jetway parkingNumber="4" gateName="GATE">
			<SceneryObject lat="30.4754561" lon="-87.1924835" alt="0F" altitudeIsAgl="TRUE" pitch="0.00" bank="0.00000000" heading="207" imageComplexity="VERY_SPARSE">
				<LibraryObject name="{81e481b9-c222-4ac8-ac01-797f4112ff03}" scale="1.00000000" /> 
			</SceneryObject>
		</Jetway>
                <Jetway parkingNumber="1" gateName="GATE">
			<SceneryObject lat="30.4755455" lon="-87.1934879" alt="0F" altitudeIsAgl="TRUE" pitch="0.00000000" bank="0.00000000" heading="29" imageComplexity="VERY_SPARSE">
				<LibraryObject name="{81e481b9-c222-4ac8-ac01-797f4112ff03}" scale="1.00000000" /> 
			</SceneryObject>
		</Jetway>
		<Jetway parkingNumber="7" gateName="GATE">
			<SceneryObject lat="30.4750355" lon="-87.1923834" alt="0F" altitudeIsAgl="TRUE" pitch="0.00000000" bank="0.00000000" heading="25" imageComplexity="VERY_SPARSE">
				<LibraryObject name="{81e481b9-c222-4ac8-ac01-797f4112ff03}" scale="1.00000000" /> 
			</SceneryObject>
		</Jetway>

 

[jvile]

Matt

I am not at my main computer to test your XML so I have to ask did the XML compile to a bgl without errors.

Do you have cooresponding parking spots named Gate 4, Gate 1 and Gate 7 and are they linked to a runway by way of taxi links.

Do you have an exclusion that is being read after the Lat/Lon placement of the Jetway.

Is your scenery slider set high enough to display the Jetways

If you continue to see that the Jetways do not show up, move them away from the Terminal building and temporarily place them on a Taxiway. See if they show up now.

I have noticed in some cases the amount of RAM or lack of RAM will cause certain scenery (Jetways) not to display once they are positioned up close to a Terminal building.

 

[mattperry78]

Hi Jim! Thanks for the response.

Do you have cooresponding parking spots named Gate 4, Gate 1 and Gate 7 and are they linked to a runway by way of taxi links.

Yes.

Do you have an exclusion that is being read after the Lat/Lon placement of the Jetway.

Well, I tried the exclusion in the AFCAD file, but then decided to go with an exclusion built with Sbuilder. The exclusion does NOT cover the areas where the new jetways should be (I figured out that the ref point for the jetway is at the cylinder closest to the terminal). In fact, I will attach my exclude and Afcad file and you can see that I haven't even excluded the terminal building. I did this as a proof to myself that my exclude was in there and was only excluding the jetways (and buildings other than the terminal around the airport).

Is your scenery slider set high enough to display the Jetways

Yes, as the default jetways will show without the exclude in.

If you continue to see that the Jetways do not show up, move them away from the Terminal building and temporarily place them on a Taxiway. See if they show up now.

This I still have yet to try. Gate 7 is a considerable distance away from the original terminal though and it still doesn't show.

Thanks again for your help. I'm sure I am just missing something small.

 

[jvile]

Matt

I took a look at you XML and there are already 8 Jetways at KPNS in FSX. They are numbered Gate 1 through Gate 8 with cooresponding parking spots.

You are trying to add Gate 1, 4 and 7 in a AFCAD file and this does not work because AFCAD does not have a deleteAll Jetway element tag.

We are starting to see designers upload AFCAD's to web sites and this also does not work. A good example is the KATL that is on AVSIM and what happens when a AFCAD file is used to add additional scenery like a new runway. Most of the FSX default scenery starts to disappear including all Jetways.

A good example of a airport that is FSX compliant with a new runway is KMSP which is also on AVSIM. This bgl was done correctly and all Jetways/ground traffic was not deleted when parts of the FS9 AFCAD was added.

Exclusions don't work the way they did in FS9 based on what is being deleted.

I recommend to go and read Reggie Fields post (reply #10) on how to decompile a FS9 AFCAD and the default FSX APXnnnnnn.bgl. You then combine the 2 XML's so your new FSX KPNS will be 100 percent compliant.

Post is here

http://www.projectai.com/discuss/index.php?topic=52918.0

 

[mattperry78]

Thanks for pointing me to that thread! Reggie has definitely found out alot of useful information. In reading his post I actually found that there IS a deleteAllJetways statement and it works great!

The only issue I'm having with the jetways now is that their scenery object is about 1 meter too tall for my airport. Of course the altitude parameter just buries the wheels and apron markings. I might just have to scale the airport vertically by a couple of feet in GMAX!

Thanks! This was a really big hurdle to get over!

 

[jvile]

Matt

You can scale the Jetway down to about .8 and then tilt downward toward the terminal end so the roof aligns properly.

I have been on many Jetways that you have to walk upward a small amount at some airports.

or

Some terminal buildings in FSX are actually put together like building blocks using XML. You can find the Terminal from a decompiled root file (obx24210.bgl) and place it in your XML above the Airport header so FSX will read and load it at a higher priority. The roof has a meter value and you can raise it a few feet if needed.