How do I install scenery add-ons in Prepar3D v5?

To install scenery add-ons in Prepar3D v5, follow the package’s readme and use its supplied installer or add-on.xml registration whenever available. For legacy scenery, keep the scenery and texture folders together, then add their parent folder through Prepar3D’s Scenery Library and set the correct priority.

Which Prepar3D v5 scenery installation method should I use?

Use the method intended by the scenery author; the files inside the extracted archive normally identify it.

Do not install the same package through two methods. Duplicate BGL files can produce doubled buildings, conflicting runways, elevation steps and unnecessary loading.

Installing an add-on.xml scenery package

An add-on.xml package should remain self-contained, with its original folders and relative paths unchanged.

1. Close Prepar3D and extract the archive completely. Do not run an installer or load files directly from a ZIP archive.
2. Find the package root containing add-on.xml. Watch for an extra wrapper folder created by the extraction program.
3. Move the complete package into your Windows Documents folder under Prepar3D v5 Add-ons. A typical result is Documents\Prepar3D v5 Add-ons\My Scenery\add-on.xml.
4. Start Prepar3D and approve the prompt to enable the package. If it was previously declined, enable it through the simulator’s add-on management screen.
5. Check the package status in Prepar3D’s add-on list and confirm that any scenery components appear in the Scenery Library.

If a dedicated installer registered the package in another location, leave it there. Moving installer-managed files afterwards can break the paths recorded in its configuration.

How do I add legacy scenery through the Scenery Library?

Register the folder directly above scenery and texture, not either subfolder itself.

1. Create a permanent package folder, such as D:\P3D Add-ons\My Airport.
2. Check the structure. BGL files belong under My Airport\scenery, while associated DDS or BMP textures belong under My Airport\texture.
3. Open the Scenery Library from Prepar3D’s World menu and choose the option to add a scenery area.
4. Select the parent folder named My Airport, give the area a recognisable name and ensure it is enabled.
5. Set its priority above conflicting regional or default scenery, then let Prepar3D rebuild its scenery database. Restart the simulator if it does not initiate a reload.

Our example of the correct scenery and texture folder structure shows what a conventional library-ready package looks like. There is also an example documenting both library registration and direct file copying.

Some older instructions tell you to copy BGL files into ...\Prepar3D v5\Addon Scenery\scenery and textures into the matching texture folder. That works when explicitly required, but a separate named scenery area is easier to disable, update and remove without leaving stray files behind.

Where should Prepar3D v5 scenery be installed?

Keep manually installed scenery outside the Prepar3D program directory whenever the package permits it.

• Use Documents\Prepar3D v5 Add-ons for self-contained add-on.xml packages discovered by Prepar3D.
• Use a stable folder on a local drive for legacy Scenery Library areas.
• Do not place add-ons among Prepar3D’s default scenery files or overwrite original BGL files.
• Do not move a package after registering it; remove the old entry and add the new location instead.

Keeping scenery separate from the core simulator prevents repair or update operations from confusing add-on files with the default installation. It also makes fault-finding much quicker.

Prepar3D scenery priority and mesh layering

In the Scenery Library, entries nearer the top have higher priority, but packages containing several coordinated layers should retain the author’s intended internal order.

• Higher priority: individual airports, airport corrections and local scenery.
• Middle priority: regional scenery, city packages, photo scenery, vector data and landclass, arranged according to their documentation.
• Lower priority: broad terrain mesh, with default Prepar3D scenery below add-on coverage.

Mesh also needs an appropriate terrain mesh-resolution setting before its added detail becomes visible. This Prepar3D v5-compatible mesh example illustrates why terrain coverage and scenery priority need to be considered together.

Why is my Prepar3D v5 scenery not showing?

Most missing scenery is caused by the wrong folder being registered, a disabled package, missing dependencies or another scenery area taking priority.

• The library path is wrong: select the folder containing scenery, not the scenery folder itself and not an outer archive wrapper.
• The add-on was not enabled: check Prepar3D’s add-on management screen and any enable prompt shown at startup.
• Textures or objects are missing: restore the package’s texture folder and install any object library or dependency named in its readme.
• The old airport remains visible: move the new airport above broader scenery and remove duplicate versions of the same airport.
• Runways sit in holes or on plateaux: look for an older airport BGL or elevation correction still loading elsewhere.
• Mesh changes are invisible: check its priority, coverage area and Prepar3D’s terrain mesh-resolution setting.
• Prepar3D reports content errors: recheck the add-on.xml location and preserve the folder names expected by the package.

Prepar3D v5 compatibility with older scenery

Some FSX and earlier Prepar3D scenery works in Prepar3D v5, but compatibility should never be assumed from the presence of BGL files alone.

Simple airports, terrain and texture packages are the most likely to transfer. Prepar3D v5 is 64-bit and uses DirectX 12, so old installers, compiled modules, shaders, effects and executable components may require a v5-specific release. Never point an installer at v5 when its supported simulator list stops at FSX or an earlier Prepar3D version.

Prefer packages explicitly labelled for the simulator version; our Prepar3D library of version-labelled add-ons provides suitable scenery examples for v4 and v5.