Understanding FSHud–Air Traffic Control Traffic

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   Hi,

We are making this post to help describe how FSHud traffic works.

Initially, we only focused on the CORE BGL traffic in P3D. This is something everyone had in every installation. Now that we have released FSHud to the public, we are now getting reports of the different BGL formats used, such as with AIG, and where AFCADs may apply. Thanks for your reports, and we are CURRENTLY working to add better compatibility with other traffic formats… ultimately working to a goal of a universal format that will offer the best traffic solution.

In regards to needing to have FSHud control all aspects of traffic, and why what you see in P3D does not match what you previously saw in the simulator when FSHud was not controlling the traffic:

It is critical FSHud is the engine behind traffic. Why? Because every aircraft must be flown, with proper separations, and proper routes, just as in the real world. FSHud controls every aircraft. If it didn't, the skies would not reflect a realistic air space to the level that FSHud requires. To make an aircraft viable for FSHud traffic, it needs a list of valid parameters. This includes proper parking availability, available runways for the aircraft type (you would not land a 737 on a 2000 ft. runway), proper departure times with appropriate separation for the number of runways in operation, and many other factors. If there is a reason FSHud cannot make use of the information, the flight cannot be used. It involves a highly complex set of calculations and tables.

How FSHud determines all these parameters is being adjusted based on user feedback, and based on our study of the traffic BGL’s we have been looking at. We now see methods to add more traffic to make it much closer to what you were accustomed to (without inappropriately relaxing the calculation standards applied). But there is an important rule that must be followed:

Because a flight is listed in a BGL, that does not mean it can always be used.

In summary... It is not as simple as what we have been used to for so many years. The entire scope of how AI traffic works needs to be looked at in a different way. All the traffic in FSHud must make sense from an ATC point of view. In the past you could populate an airport with so many aircraft, and it would look great, but that does not mean they could all be sequenced and spaced according to real world standards. FSHud looks at the ATC component first. If you see an aircraft in FSHud, you know it is part of the system that also affects your aircraft.

So please do not focus solely on traffic. Please take your full FSHud flight and follow ATC exactly according to their instructions. This is where the fun is! And know we are working on updating the traffic system often, and also publishing information and updates that will allow users to have more AI flights in their simulator. And the more flights that get added, the more realistic the entire experience will become.