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Scenery Description
SVMI or "Aeropuerto Internacional
Simon Bolivar" serves the city of Caracas, Venezuela.
Historically know as Maiquetia, SVMI has been in
operation since the dawn of aviation when airlines like
Pan Am pioneered commercial flights across the Caribbean
Sea bound for South America. Its prime location on
the northern coast of the South American continent made
it the ideal first and last stop before the crossing
thus earning the qualification of "Gateway" to South
America and the Caribbean. SVMI has, at one time
or another, offered service to all major cities in
South America, the east coast of North America, the
Caribbean and Europe. While having been much
busier at other times, SVMI continues to be an important
crossroad for intercontinental flight.
SVMI was the home to Viasa (Venezolana
Internacional de Aviacion, S.A.), one of the pioneering
airlines in the South America - Europe passenger routes.
It was also home to Aeropostal and the Pan Am affiliated
Avensa (Aerovias Venezolanas S.A.), two of the oldest
airlines in the world. The ongoing deterioration
of the Venezuelan aviation industry resulted in the sad
demise around the turn of the century of these airlines
which are yet to be replaced by another worthy of such
distinguished heritage. The lack of a major flag
carrier has been compensated by service by numerous
international airlines from all over the western
hemisphere.
Interestingly, SVMI is considered
to be the DC9 enthusiast heaven. DC9s (on their
-30 and -50 series versions) were once the backbone of
the Avensa and Aeropostal fleets. Being strong and
reliable, those same aircraft have been handed down from
airline to airline and still constitute the bulk of
SVMI's domestic and regional operations.
SVMI is located in the only sizable
portion of semi-flat land between the mountains
surrounding the city of Caracas and the Caribbean Sea.
Numerous development and renovation projects have
resulted in the current terminal complex that includes a
Domestic Terminal and an International Terminal.
Those facilities have been in operation since the late
1970s. At opening, they boasted major works of art
by local artists that include the floor of the passenger
check-in hall in the international terminal and two
enormous colored glass murals in the check-in hall of
the domestic terminal. Both pieces have been
preserved and can still be admired today. The most
recent round of improvements still underway resulted in
the expansion and complete renovation and modernization
both inside and out of the international terminal. We
have rendered both terminals as they exist today with
luxury of detail.
SVMI has two semi-parallel runways,
9/27 and 10/28, the former being the original runway
that has been in operation for many decades. When
runway 9/27 was the only runway, the approach to runway
9 (used 99% of the time due to the prevailing trade
winds from the east) was considered one of the most
dangerous approaches, especially at night or under low
visibility conditions without the advantages of an ILS.
We invite you to explore SVMI to find our the reason for
such distinction. Runway 10/28 entered operation
at the same time as the current terminals did, easing
the challenges of the approach. Nonetheless, minor
deviations from the proper approach course will continue
to result in unscheduled, violent landings either on the
side of a mountain or in the Caribbean Sea.
Scenery Features
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Custom-made optimized Gmax models of the two
terminals, the traffic control tower, the auxiliary
terminal, the maintenance facilities and the cargo
terminal
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Custom-made, high-resolution textures for all Gmax
generated models including transparency and
refection effects in the FSX version
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Custom-adjusted terrain elevation at 30 meter
resolution to better represent the geography
surrounding the field and enable the accurate
positioning of the runways and other airport
facilities that were misplaced in both the FS2004
and FSX default sceneries. (This feature
represents the introduction if a new skill acquired
by our development team and now available to be
applied in future FS2004 and FSX sceneries)
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Custom-made high-resolution ground textures fitted
to the runways at their correct location and
displaying interesting mountain and coastal features
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Accurate taxiway and ramp layout including detailed
markings and signs
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Basic, custom-made AI mapping file including
realistic gate and parking spot locations
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Realistic ramp illumination effects, approach
equipment and animated radar facility
Note: As is the case for
most international airports in South America, airline
gate assignments are variable and unpredictable.
Consequently, no gate assignments have been made.
Note: This scenery,
particularly the domestic terminal, is incompatible with
the default animated vehicles in FSX. An alternate
set if static vehicles is provided.
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