====================================================================== File: GEN_TAS.TXT 1 of 6 files in: ATAS.ZIP; Revision date: 10 September 1994 BGL scenery of: TASMAINIA (TAS), AUSTRALIA For use with: Microsoft Flight Simulator version 5a. This scenery is part of the Oz FS5 Scenery Portfolio which is produced and continually being enhanced by The OzPack. ====================================================================== CAUTION! This scenery and information are not to be used for real world flight training, planning or operations. ====================================================================== TABLE OF CONTENTS A. GENERAL B. SCENERY PROBLEMS C. CREDITS D. COPYRIGHT E. WARRANTY ====================================================================== A. GENERAL ^^^^^^^ This scenery is the Tasmainia (TAS) component of the Oz FS5 Scenery Portfolio by The OzPack, an Australian based team of volunteers who are dedicated to producing high quality FS5 scenery, covering the entire Australian island-continent, under the freeware principle. This is being accomplished using a series of pre-planned, and ongoing state-by-state revisions wherein, with each state's next revision, more detail is progressively introduced. The TAS scenery has been designed to mesh well with adjoining states' scenery which comprise the Oz FS5 Scenery Portfolio. There are no duplications along state borders to "gum up the works". This revision contains all airports in TAS for which instrument "Departure and Approach Procedures" (DAPS) are published, plus others which are listed in the Civil Aviation Authority's "Enroute Flight Supplement - Australia" (ERSA). Included are airports on the off-shore Bass Straight islands. The scenery also contains all navaids which FS5 is capable of using, as well as ATIS and Flight Information Service (FIS) COMs. All information and physical placements are current as of the 23 Jun 94 edition of ERSA and amendment 43 to DAPS EAST, effective 18 Aug 94. Data in the NAV_TAS.TXT file may be used to find your way around. Proper aeronautical charts can be purchased at or ordered through your local pilot shops. In Australia, these include the Civil Aviation Authority's VTC series (Visual Terminal Charts), the ERC Low series (Enroute Charts), the TAC series (Terminal Area Charts), and the WAC series (World Aeronautical Charts). If your pilot shop cannot advise which charts to use for TAS, or any other part of Australia, I'll be happy to. Send a message to my address below. Tasmainia contains a lot of high areas, ( 4000 + feet ). The current versions of FS5a scenery doesn't have the ability to render mountain ranges, sloping ground, peaks etc in a way that conveys a good sense of changing ground elevations. I hope to produce better soon. Meanwhile I have coloured the higher areas with a browner coloured surface so that in the interim you will at least have some way of recognising an approaching high area. Be sure to check your charts to allow sufficient ground clearance in all areas. Australia is a big country! Distances are deceptive. Make sure you plan re-fuelling stops. Airports in TAS with simulated fuel are noted in NAV_TAS.TXT. B. SCENERY PROBLEMS ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ILS There is a little known bug in FS5 and FS5a ILS *glideslopes*. This bug is found only in southern hemisphere ILSs and affects ILSs in all course directions. There are two ILSs in TAS. Both gligeslopes do not function in the current versions of FS5a. However the ILS *localizers* seem to work properly. HORIZON This version of the scenery contains extensive repair to the otherwise poorly rendered stock FS5 Australian coastline. Users of this scenery need to be aware of some FS5 problems which make coastline rendition less than totally satisfactory. The defect manifests differently depending whether you have textured ground set on or off. With Textured Ground ON - In order to illustrate the coastline problem, establish yourself in stock FS5 scenery, flying coastal Los Angeles to San Diego, at 5000 feet or above. You should see land on your left, and the Pacific Ocean on your right. But during your flight, you will see land on the horizon in front of you, jutting out into the sea. This false land possibly is the result of the FS5 designers trying to overcome limitations in the range of land/sea visibility by filling in the horizon beyond about 35 nm with a poorly rendered green haze - a good idea, as visibility beyond 35 nm is generally not reliable especially in the more polluted areas of the world - but sadly this idea is less than satisfactory in execution. The result in the map view is less than satisfactory as well. Using the long range scales, you will see the "haze" as textured green land on the map's outer border. Also, with textured ground turned on, and if you're flying, at 5000 feet or above, over land which is predominantly desert (brown terrain with green patches), you will see a mirage of green terrain on the horizon. Again, in the map view, using the long range scales, you will see the "haze" as textured green land on the map's outer border. Unfortunately, this poorly rendered stock FS5 horizon carries over into non-stock FS5 scenery as well, including OzPack's scenery for Australia. So please be advised. It is not possible to navigate by reference to bays, capes, and other coastal landmarks in view 1, 2, or in map view beyond a ground range of about 35 nm. With Textured Ground OFF - Unfortunately, there are other unsatisfactory phenomena with textured ground turned off. Instead of the putrid green haze on the horizon, there is "the black void". Beyond about 35 nm, land mass is rendered as simply a black space in the two views and the map. C. CREDITS ^^^^^^^ Many thanks to the other OzPack members - John Blackie, Bryan Fripp, Ron McKeirnan, Tom Monnone and Adam Szofran, - for providing advice, cooperation, encouragement, co-ordination and technical support. A portion of the scenery was compiled using BGLGEN.EXE developed by Enno Borgsteede. BGLGEN was developed with help from Maurizio Gavioli and associates. Many thanks to Enno, Maurizio and associates. D. COPYRIGHT ^^^^^^^^^ ATAS.ZIP, and all files it contains, are - (C) 1994, Phillip McNelley, All Rights Reserved. This scenery is Freeware. It may be non-commercially re-distributed under the conditions that: * the full archive, ATAS.ZIP, remains unaltered, AND * the full archive and all files which it contains are re-distributed together and unaltered, AND * the full archive and all files which it contains are re-distributed on a freeware basis. COMMERCIAL ENTERPRISES, ( including their empolyees, officers and propritory interest holders ), of any nature are specifically prohibited from re-distributing ATAS.ZIP or its contents in any form and under any pretext, alone or as part of any combination package or offer of free and/or commercial services or products. Providing a free copy of the said file or part thereof or the suggestion of so doing or the advertisment of so doing will be an infrigement of the copyright and/or other laws. No verbal copyright related authorisation will be given by the copyright holder. Any copyright related authorisation whatsoever will stricly be given in written form only. E. WARRANTY ^^^^^^^^ Great care and effort has gone into the production of this scenery. However the author accepts no liability whatsoever with regard to its use. This product is Freeware and is distributed as is and does not carry a guarantee of any sort as to its accuracy or completeness. The author makes no warranty of any kind, express or implied, including without limitation any warranties of fitness for a particular purpose. The author shall not be liable for any damages, whether direct, indirect, special or consequential arising from a failure of this scenery to operate in the manner desired by the user. ====================================================================== (C) 1994 Phillip McNelley. All Rights Reserved. PO Box 8, Sandgate, QLD, 4017, Australia. ======================================================================