How do I add static aircraft to FS2004 airport scenery?

To add static aircraft to FS2004 (FS9) airport scenery, place an FS2004-compatible scenery-object aircraft at the required coordinates, compile its placement as a BGL, and install that BGL with the referenced object library and textures in an active scenery area. Then check elevation, heading, scenery complexity and AI parking conflicts.

Static aircraft or AI aircraft: which should I use?

Use a static scenery object when the aircraft must remain permanently parked; use AI traffic when it should occupy gates, taxi or fly.

A static aircraft is part of the scenery, not traffic. It stays at its compiled coordinates and does not reserve a gate, follow taxi links or respond to an AI schedule. Purpose-built, low-detail static models are usually a better choice than converted flyable aircraft when filling a large apron.

How do I add static aircraft to FS2004 scenery?

The reliable method is to put the placement in its own FS2004 scenery area while retaining the exact model-library and texture files on which it depends.

1. Create a separate scenery area. Under the usual add-on scenery directory, create a parent folder such as My Airport Static, then add Scenery and Texture subfolders. A typical structure is Addon Scenery\My Airport Static\Scenery and Addon Scenery\My Airport Static\Texture.
2. Select a genuine FS2004 scenery object. The aircraft must have been exported as an FS9 scenery-library object. A flyable aircraft installed in the simulator's Aircraft folder is not directly placeable, and an FSX or newer simulator model is not automatically compatible.
3. Install a compatible placement tool and object library. One established option is to place FS2004 scenery objects with the RWY12 package. Follow the package instructions for its library BGLs and textures; the placement will fail if the selected aircraft's library is omitted.
4. Load the finished airport configuration. Enable the airport add-on, flatten, mesh and AFCAD that you normally use before choosing the position. Placing against the default airport and later enabling a replacement airport commonly leaves the aircraft floating, buried or sitting on a relocated apron.
5. Set the position and heading. Enter or capture the latitude and longitude, select the aircraft object and rotate it to match the stand markings. In the usual heading convention, 0 degrees faces north and 90 degrees east, although an incorrectly authored model may require an additional heading correction.
6. Begin at ground level. Use zero altitude above ground level where the tool supports AGL placement. Do not enter the published airport elevation as an arbitrary vertical offset; FS2004 will then add it to the local ground height and may place the model far above the apron.
7. Compile the placement BGL. Use the tool's FS2004 export or compile function, then put the resulting BGL in your new Scenery folder. Retain the editable placement source because a compiled BGL is inconvenient to revise.
8. Install every dependency. Keep the required object-library BGL in an active scenery area and its supplied textures in the associated Texture folder. A placement BGL normally stores the object's identifier, coordinates and orientation; it does not contain the complete aircraft model or livery.
9. Activate and test the scenery. Add the parent folder to the FS2004 Scenery Library, allow the simulator to reload its scenery data and restart FS2004 if necessary. Our guide to FS2004 scenery folders, activation and layer priority covers that part of the installation.

Inspect the result from several directions and at the Scenery Complexity setting you normally use. Also test at night if the package includes light-map textures. Keep the object clear of active taxiways, start positions and stands used by AI traffic.

Copying or renaming a flyable aircraft's MDL file will not convert it into scenery. Building a new static object requires the source geometry, an FS2004-compatible scenery export and a unique library entry. Adapting another author's aircraft also requires their permission.

Why is my FS2004 static aircraft missing or untextured?

A missing static aircraft usually means that its object library is unavailable, its scenery area is inactive or the model was built for a different simulator version.

• Nothing appears: Verify the latitude, longitude and hemisphere signs, especially west longitudes and south latitudes. Confirm that both the placement BGL and the library BGL are active and that the selected model was exported for FS2004.
• Only some aircraft are missing: The absent models probably belong to a separate object library that was not installed. Object packages can depend on more than one library even when all placements are compiled into a single BGL.
• The aircraft appears only at higher settings: Its placement has a scenery-complexity threshold above your selected setting. Raise FS2004's Scenery Complexity setting or recompile the placement with a lower threshold.
• The shape appears but its livery does not: Restore every supplied texture with its original filename, including any night or light-map files. Textures from a similarly named flyable aircraft are not necessarily mapped for the scenery model.
• It disappears after enabling an airport add-on: An exclusion in the airport scenery may be suppressing objects from lower-priority layers. Move the static-aircraft area above the layer containing the exclusion, reload the scenery and test again.
• It floats or sinks: Recheck that the placement is AGL rather than an unsuitable MSL altitude. Custom flattens and unusual model reference points may still require a small vertical correction.
• It faces the wrong direction: Correct the placement heading and recompile. If every placement of the same model has an identical offset, the model's own forward axis is probably misaligned.
• Duplicate aircraft appear: Look for another active copy of the placement BGL. Changing only its filename does not disable it if the file still ends in .bgl; move it outside all active Scenery folders or change its extension.

Will static aircraft block FS2004 AI parking?

No; FS2004's AI system does not recognise a visible scenery aircraft as occupying an AFCAD parking position.

An AI aircraft can therefore spawn inside the static model, park over it or taxi through it. Static models with collision geometry can also trigger a crash when the user's aircraft touches them, depending on the simulator's crash settings.

How can I prevent AI aircraft from using the same stand?

Place static aircraft on closed or non-operational stands whenever possible.

If a model must occupy a working gate permanently, remove or disconnect that parking position in the active airport layout and check that another AFCAD is not restoring it. Our explanation of AFCAD parking, scenery priority and duplicate airport files covers the checks needed before editing a stand.

How do I limit the performance cost of static aircraft?

Use scenery models designed for FS2004, limit apron density and assign less essential aircraft to a higher scenery-complexity level.

A few simple library objects usually have little effect, but rows of detailed converted models, large textures and multiple liveries can reduce frame rate or exhaust the resources available to this older 32-bit simulator. Avoid placing aircraft hidden behind buildings, and test the busiest viewing direction rather than judging performance from directly above the airport.