SimPixel have released Bari Airport (LIBD) for Microsoft Flight Simulator on the iniBuilds Store. Bari Airport has been recreated to capture the essence of a gateway airport in southern Italy. The add-on comes with several key features and accurate modelling of the entire airfield.
About Bari Karol Wojtyła Airport
Bari Airport is located in the southern Italy, 5 km from the town centre of Bari. It started out as a military airfield built in the 1930s. However, in 1943 it was sized by the British Army and was used by the RAF and USAF. At the end of the war it was handed back to the Italian Republic and wasn’t used until much later in the 1960s.
Alitalia, once the flag carrier and largest airline of Italy, served routes from Bari when it opened to civil flights in the 1960s. These routes were later taken over by ATI with Fokker F27s however when ATI began using DC-9s, the runway was rebuilt to support the aircraft. A new building was complete in 1981, originally meant for cargo but became a new passenger terminal instead.
Since the 1990s, the runway has been extended and the terminal has been upgraded. 2005 saw a new terminal open as traffic increased, straining the airport’s operations. Another runway extension was completed in 2006. Many airlines now serve routes from Bari, with the airport handling millions every year. In 2023 alone, Bari Airport handled 6.5 million passengers and demand continues to increase.
SimPixel’s Bari Airport
To capture the airport’s real life operations, SimPixel have created high resolution textures with PBR materials. These textures allow for highly realistic reflections, shadows and weathering effects throughout the airport. However, with these textures brings performance issues, so the developers have optimised the airport to run on a range of systems without compromising on quality.
Reflecting the real airport, custom 3D models for every structure have been made. This includes every building from the terminals to the hangers, which have been modelled with painstaking accuracy, according to the SimPixel. Terminal interiors have also been modelled, giving you a true to life experience inside and outside.
Enhancing the atmosphere within the airport, you will find plenty of static ground equipment such as baggage carts, GPUs and more. SimPixel have also hand placed static aircraft around the airport to give it a more immersive feel. Jetways have been fully animated, modelled and textured and are completely operational to dock with your aircraft.
Night operations can be hard without much light, so the developers have created dynamic lighting to brighten up your night operations. Runway, taxiway and terminal lighting can be seen throughout the airport. Expanding beyond the airport, the surroundings have been modelled and detailed to give you a better and more seamless approach and departure.
Bari Airport is available now via the iniBuild Store for €18.30 for MSFS. For more flight simulator related news, check out the rest of FSNews.
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