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BluePrint's Design
Philosophy BluePrint
Simulations was born from the desire to share our vision
of what a simulator airport scenery should be from a
pilot's point of view. Contributions from
groups like PMDG, FeelThere, PSS and LevelD have taken
the flight experience to an unbelievable degree of
realism and accuracy that any pilot can appreciate.
Groups like SimFlyers, SimWings and Aerosoft, FlyTampa,
Imagine and many others have taken the ground experience
to a new level also, providing increasingly realistic
environments for the pilots to enjoy while on the
ground. From the early days of simFlyer's "Service
Armada", their vision has diverged from our own
as they have paid increasing attention to moving
vehicles and animations that make the airport come
alive. As a pilot, however, I felt the need for
increased realism in the airport itself, from runway and
taxiway location to the look and feel of terminals and
other building. We did
not embark in this adventure to improve or replace what
other developers are already offering. We
are doing it to offer an alternative that satisfies
our vision of what we want to encounter once we start
the engines and taxi to the runway or when we land and
taxi to the gate. Our sceneries are for
virtual pilots that spend 99% of their time
flying and would like the few critical moments during
departure and arrival to be experienced in "real"
airports.
Isn't it annoying to fly a great
approach to find out that the runways has been "moved"
to fit the custom-made ground layout? Isn't it
frustrating to hunt for a taxiway while trying to keep
the aircraft on the centerline during a heavy cross-wind
landing because the taxiways do not actually match the
airport's diagram? Isn't it annoying to try
to find that gate that you know should be there where
you left it the last time you visited the airport in
real life? If your answer to any of this questions
is "yes", you are likely to enjoy our sceneries.
If you are instead annoyed when
you arrive at the gate and the ground crews are not
ready to unload the baggage, or when you are ready to
push back and you cannot see the jetway undocking, or
when you know that an American 757 should be on the next
gate ready to push back on its way to Orange County,
then our designs are just not for you. The needs
of "Airport Simulation" enthusiasts are unlikely to be
met by our designs. There are no moving vehicles
or animated jetways. There are no advanced AI
traffic operations. What you will find is the "most
realistic rendering of the airfield available today
including runway and taxiway locations, terminal
buildings and other structures as well as ground
features such as freeway interchanges and bodies of
water that you know should be there as you approach".
If you are an AI fan or airport
simulation enthusiast, you are likely to be familiar
with Lee Swordy's AFCAD2 software and/or Project AI to
mention just two of many options available to customize
the airport environment. If you are not interest
in learn and use Gmax or 3DsMax to create your own
terminals, perhaps you will appreciate our designs as
great looking stages where you can create airport
simulation masterpieces!
That being said, we will
continue focusing on the airport. Originally,
we had decided to pursue airports with unique and
recognizable structures like the new KRDU T2, KIND's new
terminal and KIAD's iconic curved roof terminal.
Those are, however, difficult to find in our part of the
world. We, as Americans, tend to look for function
before form. In most other parts of the world,
airport terminals are intended to reflect the country's
technical achievements and ingenuity. They are a
way to say: You have arrived to a country of proud and
creative people. Impressive terminals with unique
structures like Hong Kong's Kay Tak or Bangkok's
Subarnabhumi or Dubai's, or Heathrow's T5, or Barajas'
T4, or Beijing's, or Paris' CDG 2, or Osaka's Kansai, or
... are unlikely to be found in the US or other American
(North and South) countries. RDU's T2 and the new
terminal at IND as well as JFK's new American and
JetBlue terminals, Denver and Dulles are the exceptions.
Having completed RDU, IND and IAD, we have run out of
options at this time.
We have now decided to focus on
airports that have been neglected or that could use a
significant improvement in performance with particular
emphasis on FS2004 (the most popular Flight Simulator
worldwide by a long shot) without ignoring the
slowly emerging popularity of FSX. The complexity
of widely requested airports like DFW, IAH, LAX, and MIA
makes them impossible to render at the level of detail
that we seek. Fortunately, excellent renditions
are already available at least for FS2004. There
are, however, numerous airports needing attention.
We have already made numerous changes to our plans and
schedules to fulfill the wishes of our loyal customers.
We will continue to do so. Every once in a while
we will fulfill our own wishes with airports dear to our
hearts. We hope you enjoy them as much as we do
while exploring a world that goes well beyond the major
airlines' major hubs. |
