Asset Upgrades

AEP V2.0 isn't just about new models and textures, instead, it's a complete overhaul of the entire package, built from the ground up! In addition to new hangar models, brand new vehicle models, new clutter objects, and an overhauled ground texture scene, AEP 2.0 brings a revolutionary new feature to X-Plane, procedurally generate airport overlays!

Procedural Overlays

By applying a complex series of rules to the default scenery, which then determine placement "actions", AEP is able to generate rich overlays that give every airport more depth and realism.

Skids on taxiways, grunge at gates, tiedowns on GA tarmacs, and loads of clutter such as spill kits, GSE, maintenance stairs, cones, fuel hydrants, and more, bring every airport to a level of fidelity and immersion, unparalleled for global airports in any sim!

Cool Snow Effects

AEP 2.0 doesn't stop there however - using this same algorithm, I've implemented a new system for controlling snow placement! Rather than a uniform level of patchy snow everywhere, snow now accumulates much more in areas aircraft and vehicles don't usually operate, and is cut out along taxiroutes, roads, and at gates!

This is the same system utilized by KDEN and KEVV in their recent winter wonderland update, making for a cohesive experience between AEP and our custom airports. Additionally, since it works by placing weather textures, the snow levels are 100% native, and fully compatible with excellent addons such as XA-Snow!

Taxisigns

And last but not least - a feature I'm very proud of: AEP Live! AEP Live is a scenery plugin that reads all the taxisigns in your sim, including from 3rd party airports, and in real time, replace them with higher quality models!

These models are much more detailed than the traditional default signs in any sim, and more importantly, they're closely based on publicly available FAA specifications, closely following sizing, coloring, font, and character spacing standards, giving you the most realistic experience possible! The best part is: It's all done on a background thread, with only a lightweight message handler running on the main thread, resulting in a near-zero performance impact!

Updating

As mentioned before, this is a free update to all users! Simply log in to your account, re-download, and follow the install instructions in the manual. If you don't yet have AEP, there's never been a better time to change that! Head over to the X-Plane.org store to pick up your copy today!

Before I close this post out, I'd also like to give a huge thanks to all the incredible Gateway artists! Your amazing work has created the best default airport scenery ever seen - without this base, AEP would be nothing more than a folder of textures and some skid textures along a runway!

Creating AEP 2.0 was an exciting experience, combining years of experience in modelling, and tackling new challenges in programming. I hope you all enjoy AEP 2.0 as much as I enjoyed creating it!

If you run into any issues or have questions, please don't hesitate to reach out on the forums, on Discord, or via the contact form!