Aircraft Traffic Types

Flight Simulator air traffic consists of both airline traffic and general aviation traffic. Airline traffic includes regularly scheduled air carriers such as Landmark Airlines and Orbit Airlines, while general aviation traffic refers to all other aircraft.

You can choose to have airline, general aviation, or both kinds of traffic flying during your flights. You'll see the aircraft if you're in an area where they're flying and you'll hear them communicate with the tower if you're using air traffic control on the same frequency. To learn more,
see Air Traffic Control.

 

To see air traffic Open the Traffic dialog box. Select the Airline and/or General aviation checkboxes. Click OK.

Air Traffic Density

The Density slider determines how busy the skies are. You can turn off all air traffic by setting the slider to zero (dragging the slider all the way to the left), or you can make the skies very busy by dragging the slider all the way to the right. Be aware that if you're flying from a small airport in the middle of nowhere, even with a high air traffic density setting you'll encounter less traffic than you would using a medium setting at a busy international airport. On some computer systems, a high density setting may affect simulator performance.

 

To set air traffic density Drag the Air traffic density slider left or right. Click OK.

Aircraft Labels

AI aircraft include labels that provide useful information that you can see from a distance. When you're using air traffic control and the controller gives you a traffic warning, these labels prove particularly useful. You can choose the type of information you want displayed in labels, or you can choose to turn the labels off.

 

To see aircraft labels Select the Aircraft labels checkbox. Click OK.

Label User Aircraft

When you select Label user aircraft, your own aircraft will be labeled, a useful feature if you're flying in dense traffic conditions and viewing your aircraft from Tower or Spot plane view (for more on views, see Using Views and Windows). See below for choosing which information the labels display, what color the labels are, and how often they cycle.

 

To see a label on your own aircraft Select the Label user aircraft checkbox. Click OK.

Show Manufacturer

The aircraft manufacturer's name can be useful to identify traffic when using air traffic control. Traffic advisories from ATC are often given as, "...traffic is a Boeing 777." In this case, "Boeing:" is the manufacturer's name.

 

To see the manufacturer's name in labels Select the Show manufacturer checkbox. Click OK.

Show Model

Similarly, the aircraft model can be useful to identify aircraft mentioned in ATC traffic reports. Traffic advisories from ATC are often given as, "...traffic is a Cessna 172." In this case, "172" is the model name. If you're looking for the traffic, the model name in the label can help differentiate the Cessna 172 from, say, a Cessna Caravan that may also be nearby.

 

To see the model name in labels Select the Show model checkbox. Click OK.

Show Tail Number

The tail number is useful when listening to air traffic control. The controller may be issuing instructions to an aircraft near you that is not currently close enough to warrant giving you an advisory. Seeing the tail number allows you to identify who ATC is talking to. Tail numbers are usually the aircraft registration number. In the United States, tail numbers begin with "N," usually followed by a combination of other letters and numbers (for example N700MS). In most other countries, including Canada, the tail number is all letters.

 

To see the tail number in labels Select the Show tail number checkbox. Click OK.

Show Distance

Whether or not you're listening to air traffic control, aircraft labels can show you the distance between your aircraft and another. Depending on your current International settings, the distance is displayed in miles or kilometers (for more information, see Changing International Settings).

 

To see the distance to other aircraft in labels Select the Show distance checkbox. Click OK.

Show Altitude

It's often difficult to determine by sight whether another aircraft is flying at the same altitude as your aircraft. Also, Flight Simulator traffic advisories always include the altitude of the other aircraft, so seeing the altitude in the label can help identify the traffic. Depending on your current International settings, the altitude is displayed in feet or meters (for more information, see Changing International Settings).

 

To see altitude in labels Select the Show altitude checkbox. Click OK.

Label Color

Experiment with setting different colors for aircraft labels to determine which color is easiest for you to see. Different weather conditions may dictate using a different label color.

 

To change the label color Select a color from the Label color list. Click OK.

Cycle Rate

If you select all of the Aircraft labels options, the labels will contain a lot of information. The information cycles, or changes, by displaying one piece of information at a time. Experiment with different cycle rates to determine which rate works best for you. You can select an interval, ranging from one to five seconds, which determines how long each piece of information remains on screen before cycling to the next piece of information.

 

To set the label cycle rate Select a rate from the Cycle rate list. Click OK.