The extremely popular Orlando International Airport has received a custom rendition by scenery developer Taxi2Gate for Microsoft Flight Simulator. This release comes as Taxi2Gate’s second foray into scenery development for MSFS, following their release of Pointe-à-Pitre airport in February.
Orlando International Airport is the gateway to the most popular tourist destinations in the United States. The airport services over 50 million passengers a year, making it one of the highest-capacity airports in the country. With over 12,000 acres of land, four runways, and its unique four-spoke airside terminal, Orlando International is an exciting destination for flight simmers and tourists alike.
Taxi2Gate is the first scenery developer to tackle the unique challenges of creating a MSFS rendition of Orlando International Airport. The airport uses multiple large bridges to separate the airside terminals from the runways. If anyone has tried taxiing on the ground at the default airport and gone over any of these bridges, you will have noticed how poorly Microsoft Flight Simulator has modeled them.
These problems are due to Microsoft Flight Simulator’s utilization of a 3D imagery technique called photogrammetry. The game engine interpolates overlapping satellite images to create a detailed 3D ground environment. From broad green hills to dense urban cityscapes – this technique creates compelling recreations of the planet’s many different environments. It is likely one of the primary selling points of Microsoft Flight Simulator. However, the closer you get to physical objects, the more obvious it becomes that they’re composed of several images taken from far above the Earth’s surface.
This is the most significant drawback of photogrammetry: its inability to accurately model complex multi-dimensional 3D objects (such as bridges). This drawback means taxiing at Orlando International Airport in MSFS can be a bit like off-roading. You might find yourself taking flight off a bump on a large bridge. Orlando is one of many default airports in MSFS with this problem; airports like Amsterdam Schiphol also suffer from similar issues.
Taxi2Gate has clarified that they did not implement a solution before release and have announced that users must disable the in-game photogrammetry. The community response has been less than positive following this revelation. When you turn off photogrammetry, it is disabled globally, meaning there is no longer any interpolated scenery. Buyers are rightfully frustrated that they have to disable one of the primary selling points of MSFS for a single add-on scenery.
Taxi2Gate has made it sound as though this is a temporary measure, meaning current owners should hopefully receive an update that fixes the interpolation issues and allows users to have photogrammetry enabled without running the risk of taking flight on a taxiway. Besides these teething problems, reviews indicate that the airport is reasonably well-detailed. The runways and taxiways look exceptionally well-textured and should provide an immersive experience.
Taxi2Gate’s Orlando International Airport is available at simMarket for €23,99. For owners of their Orlando Airport for Prepar3D, the add-on is available at a discounted €21,99.
