Okay, so I’ve had a flick through the thread again at this stage, and I’ve had a few ideas, basically a merging of @me123’s, @Henry747’s, @ReV0LT’s and @Antarctica’s ideas.
So, these are the FAA regulations for aircraft class
Category A - <15m wingspan - e.g. Cessna 182, Baron 58
Category B - <24m wingspan - e.g. DHC-6, Saab 340
Category C - <36m wingspan - e.g. B737, A320
Category D - <52m wingspan - e.g. B767
Category E - <65m wingspan - e.g. B777/A330
Category F - <80m wingspan - e.g. B747/A380
However, these could be altered slightly for ACEO
Category A - ≤ 4 Tile wingspan - e.g. Cessna 182, Baron 58
Category B - ≤ 6 Tile wingspan - e.g. DHC-6, Saab 340
Category C - ≤ 8 Tile wingspan - e.g. B737, A320
Category D - ≤10 Tile wingspan - e.g. B767-300, B757
Category E - ≤12 Tile wingspan - e.g. A330, A340, 767-400
Category F - ≤14 Tile wingspan - e.g. Longer Class E Craft: B777, A340-600
Category G - ≤16 Tile wingspan - e.g. A380
Category G has been added since the A380 has a massive 80m wingspan compared to the 60m of the 747 - so a bigger stand is probably a better idea.
Well, there are seven of them - so what about seven eventual stand types? And they could all be upgraded in different ways - let’s see how I envisage it:
Stand Class A
SIZE: 4x4 Tiles (+2x4 Service Road)
COST: $15 000 (Grass), $45 000 (Asphalt/Concrete)
USES: General Aviation, Class A aircraft
COMES WITH: Service Road, Road Crossing, Taxi-in-taxi-out Style
UPGRADES:
- Grass > Asphalt/Concrete - $35 000
- Mirror Stand Guidance System - $1 000
Stand Class B
SIZE: 6x6 Tiles (+2x6 Service Road)
COST: $20 000 (Grass), $60 000 (Asphalt/Concrete)
USES: General Aviation, Class A and B aircraft
COMES WITH: Service Road, Road Crossing, Taxi-in-push-out Style
UPGRADES:
- Grass > Asphalt/Concrete - $45 000
- Mirror Stand Guidance System - $1 000
Stand Class C
SIZE: 8x10 Tiles (+2x10 Service Road)
COST: $100 000 [Notice how I’ve reduced the price - the jetbridge has been removed, meaning no price is paid for that]
USES: Class B and C aircraft
COMES WITH: Service Road, Road Crossing, Taxi-in-push-out Style
UPGRADES:
- None > Normal Jetbridge - $100 000 [Would normally be much more expensive, but in-game that price would be a bit high IMO]
- Normal Jetbridge > Glass Jetbridge - $25 000
- Electronic Stand Guidance System - $10 000
(Current Medium Stand)
Stand Class D
SIZE: 10x12 Tiles (+2x12 Service Road)
COST: $160 000
USES: Class C and D aircraft (Class D only with 2 Jetbridges)
COMES WITH: Service Road, Road Crossing, Taxi-in-push-out Style
UPGRADES:
- None > 1 Normal Jetbridge - $125 000 [Would normally be much more expensive, but in-game that price would be a bit high IMO]
- 1 Normal Jetbridge > 2 Normal Jetbridges - $120 000
- Normal Jetbridge > Glass Jetbridge - $30 000
- Electronic Stand Guidance System - $10 000
(Largest Stand Needed At The Moment)
Stand Class E
SIZE: 12x14 Tiles (+2x14 Service Road)
COST: $250 000
USES: Class D and E aircraft
COMES WITH: Service Road, Road Crossing, Taxi-in-push-out Style, 1 Jetbridge
UPGRADES:
- 1 Normal Jetbridge > 2 Normal Jetbridges - $120 000
- Normal Jetbridge > Glass Jetbridge - $30 000
- Electronic Stand Guidance System - $10 000
Stand Class F
SIZE: 12x14 Tiles (+2x14 Service Road)
COST: $250 000
USES: Class D, E and F aircraft
COMES WITH: Service Road, Road Crossing, Taxi-in-push-out Style, 1 Jetbridge
UPGRADES:
- 1 Normal Jetbridge > 2 Normal Jetbridges - $120 000
- Normal Jetbridge > Glass Jetbridge - $30 000
- Electronic Stand Guidance System - $10 000
Stand Class G
SIZE: 14x16 Tiles (+2x16 Service Road)
COST: $350 000
USES: Class G aircraft (A380)
COMES WITH: Service Road, Road Crossing, Taxi-in-push-out Style, 2 Jetbridges
UPGRADES:
- 2 Normal Jetbridges > 3 Normal Jetbridges - $120 000
- Normal Jetbridge > Glass Jetbridge - $30 000
- Electronic Stand Guidance System - $10 000
You will notice I refer to Stand Guidance Systems - I’m going to create a separate thread about this and once I do I will add a link below.
So, one of the questions you may ask is what is the benefit of upgrading the stands? The answer is below:
Airline Requirements and Stand Upgrades
So, I’m actually tempted to create yet another thread about types and classes of airline - if I do, the link will end up in here somewhere!
So, different airlines may have different requirements for the gate - a low cost airline probably won’t care about their passengers and their experience, whereas another might.
Lets use an example using two made up airlines - Zing and RoyalAir. Zing is a low cost carrier (thanks @FirstOfficerFair!) and RoyalAir is the world’s first 6 star airline. They both operate A320s in this case.
Zing will not really mind what infrastructure the Class C or D stand has - if does not mind its passengers walking in the rain to the terminal. In fact it would prefer there not to be a jetbridge - it is charged every time it uses one!
However, RoyalAir needs to impress its customers who are paying lots of money. It wants the best jetbridge available, so will want a glass jetbridge for the customers to admire the shining purple aircraft they are boarding or leaving.
Thus, different airlines can have different requirements depending on their type/class, and it is up to the airport to satisfy these needs - obviously RoyalAir will pay the airport a lot more handsomely than Zing for their glass jetbridge!
So, I believe this is a good, not too complicated solution to the stand size and upgrades balancing issue. Here is an example of what each aircraft might be:
Aircraft
Cessna 182 - A
Baron 58 - A
Cessna 208 - B (No Jetbridge)
DHC6 - B (No Jetbridge)
Saab 340 - B (No Jetbridge)
ATR42 - B (No Jetbridge)
CRJ 200 - B
Embraer 135 - B
ATR72 - C (No Jetbridge)
CRJ 700 - C
Fokker 70 - C
Embraer 190 - C
737-600 - C
737-800 - C
A320 - C
A321 - C
757-200 - D
767-300 - D
787-9 - E
A330-200 - E
A340-300 - E
777-200 - E
A340-600 - F
777-300 - F
747-400 - F
A380-800 - G
So, what do you think? Do you think there are too many stand types? Or is it just right? I’d love to hear your feedback!