Runway lights

**Roxane-21** · March 18th, 2018, 01:08

Hi.

In order to make night missions more realistic, I would like to get rid of the runway lights that show up on some airfields. Is there a simple way to do, without having to get rid of the whole airfield?

**bearcat241** · March 18th, 2018, 05:27

In CFS2, runway construction is embedded in bgl files. These files also contain the data governing the display of any runway lights as intended by the designer. To eliminate the lights you would have to re-engineer the bgl via scasm or the original design program by which the runway was constructed.

**Roxane-21** · March 18th, 2018, 09:33

I will have to leave it as it is then... Thank you for your answer.

**mav** · April 10th, 2018, 09:41

I wouldn't be discouraged by that reply......have go... that's what the mdlc for.....take some time ,but at least you tried.
Scasm may be dated..... but not dead.

Mav

**No Dice** · April 10th, 2018, 09:48

Maybe..... If you located the Light Texture, you could replace it with a black Transparent texture of the same name ...??

**Captain Kurt** · April 10th, 2018, 12:01

Hi Dave

If it is present, the runway lighting is coded into the scenery bgl. It isn't from a texture file.

**Blood_Hawk23** · April 11th, 2018, 03:28

get a list of the airfields and see if replacements have been made. if not Scasm editing is done with note pad once its extracted. then just recompile. If you don't have the tools, I'm sure there are a few that do.

**mav** · April 15th, 2018, 08:46

Note pad doesn't quite cut it.

...especially when decompile a/c mdl.....some can be quite huge.... IDM Ultra edit is really good and makes light work of any scasm code.

Mav

**No Dice** · April 15th, 2018, 10:28

Well take a look at this to decompile and recompile Scenery BGL's:

BGL Analyze, break down and extract, correct or change .BGL files
By Winfried Orthmann
Click image to download ****

http://thefreeflightsite.com/Design.htm

**No Dice** · April 15th, 2018, 10:37

And as far as A/C breakdown check these out:

Aircraft design	Design and produce your own aircraft
MDLC_v.2	Convert .mdl files from FS9 to CFS2 or .mdl to.bgl by Ivan Hsu ***
MK_MDLC	Frontend Interface utility for above MDLC by Morten ****
DOSbox MDLC	Convert .mdl files from FS9 to CFS2 using Win7 and Up by Allen ****

http://thefreeflightsite.com/Design.htm

**Fibber** · April 15th, 2018, 14:48

......just call the head electrician and have him pull the switch!

**No Dice** · April 15th, 2018, 15:12

Fibber,
That is the best idea out of all of us !!!!

**Robert John** · April 16th, 2018, 03:49

Hi Roxane
Attach the bgl and I will take a look, or PM me.

**achim27619** · April 16th, 2018, 09:36

Hi All,
if one has the source file like a sca file it it easy to switch off the runway lights. I did it for Roxane-21 for the English airfields I made myself. And some time ago I made bgl-files for Africa with no lights. That was a special request as well.
If anyone wants the runeway lights beeing put out just let me know.
Again, I can do it only for the airfields I made myself (and if I still have the source files)

Cheers

Achim

**Fibber** · April 16th, 2018, 13:47

....if the lights are set to be off, what happens if we wish to use the airfield in FF? Are they set to be always on or always off? Can they be set to be on for a period of say 2100 hrs to 2200 hrs so that if we wish to tool around in FF at those hours we have a field to land on. Or can they be set to be off in the missions and on for FF?
I admit freely I don't have a clue

as to how these things are compiled so I am just wondering if that is possible.

**Ravenna** · April 16th, 2018, 17:17

Achim,

That sounds like a lot of work, but the idea of using burning oil drums along the North African airfields sounds attractive. If you would like to remove the lights in the North African set (an alternative set?) the burning drums could be included in lay files.

**achim27619** · April 16th, 2018, 22:24

Fibber,
unfortunatly that doesn`t work with FSSC (Flight Sim Scenery Creator). So they are on during dark hours and off at daylight.
Some years ago someone made runway lights which switched on when approaching the airfield to a certain distance. But those came in set lenghts. Something like 2000, 4000 and 7000 meters. Very sutiable for modern airport where the big ones like 747 and A 380 are operating. But not of any use for airfields of the WW 2 area.

Ravenna,
layout files with burning oil drums could be a way around that problem in Africa but I never worked with them. And if I remember correctly some members complained about CDTs when using these oil drums.
I`ll check whether I still have the bgl files with no runway lights and come back to you.
Cheers

Achim

***Rami*** · April 17th, 2018, 00:33

Achim27619,

I use those oil drums on Malta for Swordfish night missions. They will occasionally cause CTDs, but they are not as frequent as one might think.