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Airport data (apt.dat) specifications
Link to version 1000 full specifications file
This specification (APT.DAT 1000) is supported in X-Plane 10.00 and later and by WorldEditor 1.2 and later.
This specification defines core airport data for X-Plane. This includes the locations of runways, taxiway and apron pavement, basic airport ‘furniture’ (VASI/PAPIs, windsocks, light beacons and taxiway signage) and communications frequencies. It also includes attributes for each of these features to fully describe them (eg. it includes runway surface type, runway markings, taxiway lighting and markings, approach lighting, taxiway sign text, etc). This specification (1000) introduces new airport data to define arrival and departure traffic flows to airports and taxi networks & routings for AI-controlled airplanes. This specification does not include scenery objects (such as buildings, static aeroplanes or underlying terrain textures).
- Latitudes and longitudes are described in a decimal notation (eg. 20.12345678) up to 8 decimal places.
- A latitude of 50 degrees 30 minutes south would be defined as -50.50000000
- North latitudes and east longitudes are positive. South latitudes and west longitudes are negative.
- All headings are referenced to true north (not magnetic north).
The apt.dat files are plain text files:
- Fields in the data can be separated by one or more white space characters (space, tab).
- By default, the files are generated so that columns of data are consistently aligned, but this is not required.
- Blank rows are permitted and are helpful to differentiate between airports.
- Comments are permitted and are indicated by “#” as the first two characters of a row.
- 1 Land airport header
- 16 Seaplane base header
- 17 Heliport header
- 100 Runway
- 101 Water runway
- 102 Helipad
- 110 Pavement (taxiway or ramp) header Must form a closed loop
- 120 Linear feature (painted line or light string) header Can form closed loop or simple string
- 130 Airport boundary header Must form a closed loop
- 111 Node All nodes can also include a “style” (line or lights)
- 112 Node with Bezier control point Bezier control points define smooth curves
- 113 Node with implicit close of loop Implied join to first node in chain
- 114 Node with Bezier control point, with implicit close of loop Implied join to first node in chain
- 115 Node terminating a string (no close loop) No “styles” used
- 116 Node with Bezier control point, terminating a string (no close loop) No “styles” used
- 14 Airport viewpoint One or none for each airport
- 15 Aeroplane startup location *** Convert these to new row code 1300 ***
- 18 Airport light beacon One or none for each airport
- 19 Windsock Zero, one or many for each airport
- 20 Taxiway sign (inc. runway distance-remaining signs) Zero, one or many for each airport
- 21 Lighting object (VASI, PAPI, Wig-Wag, etc.) Zero, one or many for each airport
- 1000 Airport traffic flow Zero, one or many for an airport. Used if following rules met (rules of same type are ORed together, rules of a different type are ANDed together to). First flow to pass all rules is used.
- 1001 Traffic flow wind rule One or many for a flow. Multiple rules of same type “ORed”
- 1002 Traffic flow minimum ceiling rule Zero or one rule for each flow
- 1003 Traffic flow minimum visibility rule Zero or one rule for each flow
- 1004 Traffic flow time rule One or many for a flow. Multiple rules of same type “ORed”
- 1100 Runway-in-use arrival/departure constraints First constraint met is used. Sequence matters
- 1101 VFR traffic pattern Zero or one pattern for each traffic flow
- 1200 Header indicating that taxi route network data follows
- 1201 Taxi route network node Sequencing is arbitrary. Must be part of one or more edges
- 1202 Taxi route network edge Must connect two nodes
- 1204 Taxi route edge active zone Can refer to up to 4 runway ends
- 1300 Airport location Not explicitly connected to taxi route network
- 50 – 56 Communication frequencies Zero, one or many for each airport