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Military AI Works Grand Forks Air Force Base AI Package
Version: 1.0
For FS 2004 / FS9
Project Manager: Aaron Haase
This freeware AI package, produced by Military AI Works contains everything needed to activate the 319th Air Refueling Wing in FS2004. The 319th Air Refueling Wing, one of only three "super tanker" wings in the United States Air Force, guarantees global reach and engagement for the U.S. and its allies through robust air refueling and airlift capabilities. The 319th ARW consists of three squadrons of KC-135 aircraft, the 905th, 906th, and 912th air refueling squadrons.
Note: Unfortunately the days of the KC-135 at Grand Forks Air Force Base are numbered. As of the publishing of this package, the 912th ARS has stood down. We have elected to keep the 912th ARS aircraft as part of this package and let our users decide if they want to remove them to reflect the current situation. Within the next year, the remaining two KC-135 squadrons will be stood down and their aircraft re-distributed throughout the U.S.A.F. and the U.S.A.F. Air National Guard.
A brief summary of the recommended closure of this KC-135 “Superwing” follows:
Realign Grand Forks Air Force Base (AFB), ND. Distribute the 319th Air Refueling Wing’s KC-135R/T aircraft to meet the Primary Aircraft Authorizations (PAA) requirements established by the Base Closure and Realignment recommendations of the Secretary of Defense, as amended by the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission.
Establish the following KC-135R/T PAA:
The 126th Air Refueling Wing (ANG), Scott AFB, IL (eight PAA KC-135R/T). The 126th Air Refueling Wing KC-135E aircraft will be transferred to the Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Center (AMARC) at Davis-Monthan AFB, AZ, for appropriate disposal as economically unserviceable aircraft;
The 916th Air Refueling Wing (AFR), Seymour-Johnson AFB, NC (16 PAA KC-135R/T), which will host an active duty associate unit;
The 6th Air Mobility Wing, MacDill AFB, FL (16 PAA KC-135R/T), which will host a Reserve association with 927th Air Refueling Wing (AFR) manpower realigned from Selfridge ANGB, MI;
The 154th Wing (ANG), Hickam AFB, HI (12 PAA KC-135R/T), which will host an active duty associate unit; and,
The 22d Air Refueling Wing, McConnell AFB, KS (48 PAA KC-135R/T), which currently associates with the 931st Air Refueling Group (AFR).
Modify infrastructure at Grand Forks AFB to accommodate the emerging Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) mission. The Secretary of Defense will maintain eight KC-135 aircraft at Grand Forks Air Force Base to facilitate an efficient and cost effective bed down of UAVs. The Secretary will keep the tankers in place until the UAVs are operational at Grand Forks, but not later than 31 Dec 2010 unless otherwise required by the Department of Defense for National Emergencies. Grand Forks will remain an active Air Force installation with a new active duty/Air National Guard association unit created in anticipation of emerging missions at Grand Forks.
(use hyperlinks to navigate)
1. About MAIW
2. Credits
3. Units Included in This Package
4. Installation
7. Permissions and Disclaimers
Military AI Works (MAIW) is a loosely affiliated, international group of flightsim enthusiasts who share the common goal of seeing realistic military AI traffic in MS Flightsim. Our goals:
1) Produce only high-quality, freeware packages and products
2) Create military AI traffic accurately within the bounds of MS Flightsim
3) Promote new freeware military AI models, scenery and products
4) Advance military AI modeling of countries around the globe
5) Respect the rights of designers and contributors
To learn more about MAIW or to become a contributor, visit our website at http://militaryaiworks.com.
2. Credits
AFCAD:
- Aaron Haase
- Edith Black
Models:
- PAI KC-135R and KC-135T by Project AI
Repaints:
- Aaron Haase
Voicepacks:
- Stewart Pearson
Flightplans:
- Aaron Hasse
Scenery Enhancements
- Edith Black
- John Stinstrom
Beta Testing:
- MAIW Beta Team
3. Units Included in this Package
905th Air Refueling Squadron
906th Air Refueling Squadron
912th Air Refueling Squadron
4. Installation
Step 1) Install this package
Install the package in accordance with the on-screen prompts
Step 2) Remove duplicate AFCAD files
Open your “Flight Simulator 9/Addon Scenery/scenery” folder and remove any previously installed AFCAD’s for the following airports (e.g. “AF2_XXXX.bgl,” “AF2_XXXX_DEFAULT_XX.bgl” or “PAI_AF2_XXXX_DEFAULT.bgl”)
KRDR
**Note the MAIW KRDR AFCAD file for this package is located in the MAIW Grand Forks AFB/Scenery folder.
NOTE: Failure to remove these duplicate files may result in problems with AI aircraft parking and operation. It is recommended you move these to a temporary folder instead of deleting them; however, you should not need them again as the AFCADs included in this package are thoroughly researched and highly detailed. If you are already using add-on scenery for one of the above airfields, it is recommended you do NOT remove the AFCAD for the add-on scenery, but instead remove the MAIW AFCAD file (e.g. MAIW_XXXX_DEFAULT.bgl) after installation.
Step 3) Install voicepack callsigns
3a) If you don’t have the EditVoicepack 3.1 freeware installed, download it and install it by clicking here.
3b) Run EditVoicepack and import all vcpmod files included in with this installation
3c) Choose “Import” from the “File” menu:
3d) Find the folder “Flight Simulator 9/Military AI Works/USA/USAF/Grand Forks AFB/Voicepack Callsigns” in the “Look in:” window
3e) Click “open” for the following file.
RAID
3f) Update the Voicepack for FS9 by choosing “Update Voicepack” from the “File” menu--ensure the “Custom/Callsigns” box is checked in the left hand window. (note: the update may take a few minutes—do not attempt to start FS9 until the update is complete. Look for “Ready” in the lower left corner)
3g) When ready press save to keep the modifications
Step 4) Install Grand Forks AFB Scenery
The Installer will already have installed two folders called “MAIW Grand Forks AFB”, and “MAIW Scenery Library Objects” in your “Flight Simulator 9/Addon Scenery" directory. These folders contain all the scenery and exclude files. To enable these sceneries, start FS9 and go to the scenery library in "SETTINGS", select "ADD AREA" and then select the path of the above folders. Finally, using the "Move Down" button, move the "MAIW Scenery Library Objects" scenery addon down your list of addon sceneries so that it resides just above the default FS9 libraries. The Grand Forks scenery can be located anywhere below your default Addon Scenery folder. Note: This will prevent display problems with the MAIW library objects. Once you've done that, restart FS9 to activate both of these scenery folders.
***Users who have previously downloaded other MAIW packages that contain the "MAIW Scenery Library Objects" folder DO NOT need to activate it again. The necessary files will automatically be placed into that folder. The installer will also overwrite any older versions of the scenery objects and their textures meaning the user need not worry about duplicating any of these files.
. ***Also with recent releases it has been brought to our attention that users with multiple copies of the various MAIW libraries, may experience some scenery related issues if more than one copy of the same library exists in separate places on a user’s computer. For example some of John Stinstrom’s early sceneries contained these same scenery object libraries in the custom scenery folder for that particular scenery set. If this is the case, FS9 may try to pick up a given library from a folder other than the intended MAIW Scenery Library Objects folder. In this case, some scenery objects may not show up or more likely their textures may not show up or display the wrong texture. It is highly recommended that you run a search of all FS9 folders that may contain scenery libraries from MAIW or John Stinstrom. If duplicates are found, we recommend that you keep the most current version of a given library and its texture set. However before deleting any scenery files it is strongly recommended that you keep the old files in a safe place until you can test the results of their removal upon any scenery that they may be used in. As always further support for any MAIW scenery or packages is available from our website forums
That’s it! You’ve successfully installed this package. Your AI traffic files will be automatically updated the next time you run FS9
Problems addressed:
“I’ve installed the package, but there are no Military AI aircraft at the airports”
“When I go to an airport, there are AI planes parked on top of one another”
“I can’t find the aircraft in the aircraft selection menu”
“When the Military AI planes talk to ATC, they use only numbers, not callsigns”
“I’m following the Military AI aircraft, and they won’t come back for touch-and-gos”
Problem: “I’ve installed the package, but there are no Military AI aircraft at the airports”
Potential issue: FS9 AI traffic density set too low
Fix action: In FS9, set the AI traffic density slider to at least 10%.
Problem: “When I go to an airport, there are AI planes parked on top of one another”
Potential issue: Multiple AFCADs active for the same airport
Fix action: Using Windows Explorer, open the folder “Flight Simulator 9/Addon scenery/scenery.” Look for duplicate entries for the following airport identifier:
KRDR
Files may be named in several ways. The most common are “AF2_KXXX.bgl,” “AF2_KXXX_DEFAULT_XX.bgl” and “PAI_AF2_DEFAULT.bgl.” Keep the file names starting with MAIW and remove all others with duplicate airport identifiers.
Problem: “I can’t find the aircraft in the aircraft selection menu”
Issue: These are AI aircraft and have been programmed to not show up in the flyable aircraft selection menu
Fix action: If you simply must select these aircraft, use an editing program such as AirEd and change the Aircraft type from “2” to “0”
Problem: “When the Military AI planes talk to ATC, they use only numbers, not callsigns”
Potential issue: Callsign Voicepacks were not installed correctly
Fix action: Run the EditVoicepack software. Look for the following callsigns in the “custom modifications/callsigns” section of the program:
RAID
If any of these are missing, choose “File/import” and open the appropriate .vcpmod file in the folder:-
Flight Simulator 9/Military AI Works/Sweden/Swedeforce Part 1/Voicepack Callsigns”
Once this is complete, or if all callsigns are present, ensure the “Custom/Callsigns” box is checked in the left hand window and choose “File/Update Voicepack” to install them into FS9 (this may take a few minutes, do not open FS9 until the lower left of the EditVoicepack screen says “Ready.”)
Problem: “I’m following the Military AI aircraft, and they won’t come back for touch-and-gos”
Potential issue: You’re following your AI aircraft
Fix action: Stop following your AI aircraft. For some reason, a watched AI aircraft does not always behave the way it is programmed to. If you wait for the aircraft at the airport, it will arrive on schedule
This package was built by the Military AI Works online community. If you are interested in making Military AI traffic more realistic, visit this site!
Flightplans:
The flightplans are fictional, but have been researched via Internet and message forums. We have tried to make the plans as “realistic” as possible and have had to use our own judgment
All flightplans were created using Notepad.
Flightplans were installed using Lee Swordy’s TrafficTools freeware traffic compiler.
Callsigns:
The callsigns used in this package are actual callsigns used by these units, based on information obtained in manuals and on internet.
RAID
All callsigns were created using the ingenious EditVoicepack freeware. This program is extremely simple and fun to use—if you need a new AI callsign, give it a try!
AFCADs:
All AFCADs were created using Lee Swordy’s AFCAD v2.21. This has got to be one of the finest freeware programs ever created. Want to add some AI parking to your local airport? AFCAD makes it fun!
7. Permissions and Disclaimers
Adverse Effects:
The contents of this package should not adversely affect your FS9 or computer operation if installed according to the instructions. The authors make no guarantee and bear no responsibility for adverse operation or lost/overwritten files on your computer.
Use of Contents:
THESE FILES MAY ONLY BE UPLOADED TO AVSIM BY THE AUTHOR(s)
THESE FILES MAY NOT BE UPLOADED TO ANY OTHER SITE WITHOUT THE AUTHOR'S WRITTEN PERMISSION. THESE MODELS, REPAINTS AND FLIGHTPLANS ARE FREEWARE AND MAY NOT BE SOLD, OR PUT ON ANY SITE THAT CHARGES FOR DOWNLOADING FREE FILES. THE FILES FOUND IN THIS ARCHIVE MAY NOT BE DISTRIBUTED ON CD OR ANY MEDIUM FOR ANY KIND OF FEE, INCLUDING THE COST OF PRODUCTION, MATERIALS OR POSTAGE. THE MODELS, REPAINTS AND FLIGHTPLANS OWNERSHIP REMAIN WITH THE AUTHORS AS MENTIONED IN THE PACKAGE
Upload to FSPLANET.com and Wingz of Silence will never be allowed by Military AI Works.
Any questions, suggestions and feedback on the contents may be directed to the forums at www.militaryaiworks.com.
Sources:
All information used to create this package was obtained via online, open-source research. All flight plans and schedules, while reasonable for military units, are fictional. The custom scenery included with this package is fictional and is only meant to simulate the real Grand Forks AFB.