CHARTER SERVICE

In Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 career mode, you have the possibility of flying charter flights. These flights require you to fly a VIP to famous tourist destinations around the world, or - with the help of a copilot and cabin crew - fly them to exclusive events synchronized with real events around the world. If you wish your aircraft to be used on these activities you will need a preset that has been appropriately set up as part of the Modular SimObject, as explained below.

 

For more information on the various other career activities and how to prepare your aircraft, please see here:

• Career Activities

 

 

Charter Activity Constraints

When setting up your aircraft for charter flights you will need to ensure that it fulfills the requirements for such an activity. To start with these activities will require a plane and currently do not support helicopters. The plane will need to meet the following specifications based on the type of charter activity to be performed:

 

• Private Charter (Solo)

  This kind of flight requires a small plane (like the DA62, for example) which has space for at least one passenger. The following constraints apply:
  • The plane will need to have the navigation_graph_pilot.cfg (as explained here).
  • The aircraft will need to have the ApronWithoutCovers.flt file (as explained below).
  • The object_class must be "Airplane".
  • The operating_status must be either "in_service" or "experimental".
  • The plane cannot be flagged as military.
  • The plane cannot have a copilot.
  • The aircraft complexity must also be simple, as explained here: Note On Aircraft Complexity.
  • The plane ui_max_range must be greater than 1.
  • The plane can only sit up to 16 passengers (ie: up to 16 SIT nodes, see here for information).
  • The plane can have wheels or big wheels, for landing gear.
  • The plane cannot have skis or floats for landing gear.

  Following the constraints given here will give the aircraft the COF_Cabin type. See here for more information: Note On Cabin Codes

 

• VIP Charter (Copilot)

  This kind of flight requires a small-to-medium plane (like the DA62 to the PC12 NGX, for example) which has space for at least one passenger. The following constraints apply:
  • The plane will need to have the navigation_graph_pilot.cfg (as explained here).
  • The aircraft will need to have the ApronWithoutCovers.flt file (as explained below).
  • The object_class must be "Airplane".
  • The operating_status must be either "in_service" or "experimental".
  • The plane cannot be flagged as military.
  • The plane must be flagged as premium.
  • The plane must have a copilot, and the sharedSeat parameter for the node must be false (as explained here).
  • The plane ui_max_range must be greater than 1.
  • The plane takeoff weight must be less than 44092lbs (as defined by the max_takeoff_weight parameter).
  • The plane can have wheels or big wheels, for landing gear.
  • The plane cannot have skis or floats for landing gear.

  Following the constraints given here will give the aircraft the PRC_Cabin type. See here for more information: Note On Cabin Codes

 

• VIP Charter (Airliner + Cabin Crew)

  This kind of flight requires a large plane (like the A320 Neo, for example) which has room for both passengers and cabin crew. The following constraints apply:
  • The plane will need to have the navigation_graph_pilot.cfg (as explained here).
  • The aircraft will need to have the ApronWithBatteriesWithoutCovers.flt file (as explained below).
  • The object_class must be "Airplane".
  • The operating_status must be either "in_service" or "experimental".
  • The plane cannot be flagged as military.
  • The plane must be flagged as premium.
  • The plane must have a copilot, and the sharedSeat parameter for the node must be false (as explained here).
  • The plane ui_max_range must be greater than 1.
  • The plane takeoff weight must be greater than or equal to 44092lbs (as defined by the max_takeoff_weight parameter).
  • The plane can have wheels or big wheels, for landing gear.
  • The plane cannot have skis or floats for landing gear.

  • Following the constraints given here will give the aircraft the PRC_Cabin type. See here for more information: Note On Cabin Codes

 

 

Navigation Graph Setup

For the planes you are creating to be used in the Charter Service activities, you will be required to set-up the basic navigation graph for Passengers, as well as set up the Spawn Pilot navigation graph. Keep in mind that there must be at least as many SIT nodes in the passenger graph as the minimum number of passengers listed in the constraints (above).

 

Having set up the generic SIT nodes, you will then need to add in some nodes that are specific to the "VIP" that has chartered the aircraft for the activity. These nodes are placed in the Passengers navigation graph, and this can be the base CFG file in the common folder, or a new one placed in the preset specific to the activity (which will be merged with the base file as part of the Modular SimObject Merging process). Either way, the the navigation_graph_passenger.cfg file must have the following three nodes defined:

 

• RTC_VIP_EXTERIOR_START_1

  This node is the node where the "VIP" passenger will spawn into the world at the start of the activity. For charter activities there is a short RTC animation that will play of the passenger moving from this point to the PLANE_ENTRANCE node before entering the aircraft. This node should be on the left side of the aircraft, approximately 8-10m away from the corresponding PLANE_ENTRANCE node, and be connected to that node with an edge.

 

• RTC_VIP_EXTERIOR_START_2

  This node has the exact same conditions for placement as the RTC_VIP_EXTERIOR_START_1 node. It should be placed at the approximate same position too (although a little variation is permitted), since the node will be used to recreate an "american shot" (also called "cowboy shot") cut-scene as part of the initial activity RTC of the VIP moving towards the PLANE_ENTRANCE. This node should be on the left side of the aircraft, approximately 8-10m away from the PLANE_ENTRANCE node, and be connected to that node with an edge.

 

• PLANE_ENTRANCE

  This node is only required if you have not set one up already as part of the Passengers navigation graph. It defines the point where the passenger would enter into the plane, and for small and medium aircraft this would be a point right next to the aircraft fuselage, where the door is. For large airline type planes, this point will be approximately 8m from the fuselage door to leave space for the boarding stairs (see the image below). Both the RTC_VIP_EXTERIOR_START_1 and RTC_VIP_EXTERIOR_START_2 nodes should be connected to this node using an edge.

 

The image below illustrates how these nodes should be setup for an airliner:

 

 

FLT Files

When a user starts a charter activity they will not be going through the usual Preflight checks, and so they will need to have a special apron FLT file instead of the usual Apron.flt. This file should be set up like a regular apron FLT file, however you should ensure that the following parameters and sections are setup correctly, depending on the aircraft:

 

For VIP Charter (Airliner) you will need to use the ApronWithBatteriesWithoutCovers.flt, setup as follows:

 

• Section [SimVars.0] must have the parameter SimOnGround set to true.
• All [Covers] needs to be set to false.
• Section [Controls.0] must have the parameter ParkingBrake set to 100.00 (if the aircraft has a parking brake).
• Engines must be turned off.
• The communication system must be turned on.

 

For all other charter aircraft you will need to use the ApronWithoutCovers.flt, setup as follows:

 

• Section [SimVars.0] must have the parameter SimOnGround set to true.
• All [Covers] needs to be set to false.
• Section [Controls.0] must have the parameter ParkingBrake set to 100.00 (if the aircraft has a parking brake).
• Aircraft electrics and engines must be turned off.